New Delhi, July 26 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lauded Indian youth and women athletes for their remarkable achievements on the global sports stage, highlighting badminton star PV Sindhu’s historic Japan Open title and a historic Test match victory by the Indian women’s cricket team at Lord’s.
Addressing the nation in the latest episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’, the Prime Minister expressed immense pride in the country’s sports performance, also celebrating the contribution of ‘Nari Shakti’.
PM Modi firstly highlighted ace shuttler PV Sindhu’s maiden Japan Open title, which ended her seven-year wait to win a Super 750 or above title. It was her biggest Tour title after the World Tour Finals and China Open she won back in 2018 and 2016, respectively. Moreover, it was the former world champion’s first BWF World Tour title after winning Syed Modi in December 2024.
“Our youth have achieved remarkable feats in sports recently. PV Sindhu has become the first Indian to win the Japan Open title in badminton; the entire nation is proud of this achievement of hers,” PM Modi said.
Reflecting on the milestone in women’s cricket, PM Modi commended the Indian cricket team for their first-ever Test victory at the iconic Lord’s Stadium in London by a massive margin of 270 runs. Drawing a connection to a historic milestone in Indian sports history, he recalled India’s maiden Cricket World Cup triumph at the same venue in 1983.
“This is a historic victory; our team won the match by a massive margin of 270 runs. But that is not all in the long history of Lord’s, this was the first Test match played by a women’s team. It was on this very ground that India won her first Cricket World Cup in 1983. Now, our ‘Nari Shakti’ has brought glory to the nation there,” PM Modi said.
With the Lord’s Test win, India also extended their formidable run in red-ball cricket by securing their seventh victory in the last 11 Test matches. Crucially, they have maintained their proud unbeaten record in the longest format on English soil.
–IANS
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