“There were many struggles, but my parents supported me a lot. Whenever I wanted anything, wherever I wanted to go, practice session etc., they were there for me.”

I had once thought I would become a doctor but gave up on the thought soon enough. I took up the racquet instead. Later, when I saw my sister studying so much to become a doctor, I was like, ‘Thank God I am a shuttler!’

Previously, people were like, ‘She might win the tournament,’ but now it’s like, ‘She should win the tournament.’

My parents have been volleyball players, and my dad is an Arjuna awardee in volleyball.

Playing for Hyderabad Hunters is a very good feeling.

The year 2017 has been really good for me. Definitely, a lot of positive things to learn from.

Win or lose, I always focus only on giving my 100%.

My period days didn’t make me falter: they made me more determined to pursue my dreams.

Saina is not someone special player that I have to win against. It’s not like that I must beat her. She is one of the players.

I will keep working on different aspects of my games. It’s not so easy, and I need to work on every stroke.

I am aggressive only on court.

You have to keep working all the time. How much you learn, there is always room for learning; you will have to keep improving all the time.

My coaches have always been on my side, motivating me to try harder and harder every day, which is not easy.

You can’t compare one tournament with another.

Winning a tournament at the end of the year boosts your confidence a lot.

It’s always good to win a title.

The year 2017 has been really good for me. Definitely, a lot of positive things to learn from.

Parenting is the most important thing to many of us, and so it’s also the place we’re most vulnerable. We’re all a little afraid we’re doing it wrong.

Dream big, work hard. My parents brought up Kylie Jenner and me to be workaholics. That’s something I really appreciate.

My parents wanted me to be a lawyer. But I don’t think I would have been very happy. I’d be in front of the jury singing.

Who knows what the future holds? It’s all on parenting, one way or another. I don’t care what level it is, it comes back to people learning how to deal with people.

Some of these kids are spending more time with the coaches than they are with their parents. The coach is supposed to be raising these kids, not belittling them and talking to them like the world is coming to an end.

One of the things I’ve always said is that if you’re given the ability to coach kids, then you’re really given the ability to be a father or parent of some sort.

You will find as the children grow up that as a rule children are a bitter disappointment – their greatest object being to do precisely what their parents do not wish and have anxiously tried to prevent.

Hold dear to your parents for it is a scary and confusing world without them.