'This time we were expecting a better result', says PV Sindhu's mother

Hyderabad: We were expecting a better result this time as PV Sindhu had trained hard for the competition, said an elated P Vijaya after her daughter became the first Indian to win the gold medal at the BWF World Championships on Sunday.

After her epic triumph, Sindhu dedicated the victory to her mother. "I would like to thank my coach (South Korean Kim Ji Hyun) and Gopi sir (Pullela Gopichand) and also my parents. Today is my mother's birthday, so happy birthday mom," she said in an on-court interview after the match.

Responding to this, Vijaya said Sindhu always gave her birthday gifts. "This time she has given a great gift to me and to the nation."

"She was trained really tough. This time we thought she will get a better result. We are very happy. We are waiting for that gold medal. This is the third time she was playing in the final," Vijaya told ANI.

Earlier, the 24-year old had four medals at the World Championships as she bagged bronze in the 2013 and 2014 while in 2017 and 2018 she claimed silver medals.

Sindhu trounced Japan's Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 in the final of the tournament and became the first Indian shuttler to win a gold at the event.

Sindhu's elder sister Divyaram Pusarla was also elated over her sister's victory and said she is feeling proud of Sindhu's feat as she bagged her fifth medal.

"I'm very happy and feeling proud of her. This is her fifth medal and that being gold is amazing. Our support is always there for her, her coaches and all the other people who supported her. We are very happy about it," Divya said.

Sindhu also won the silver medal at the Rio Olympics 2016. This year she appeared in the final of the Indonesia Open where she faced a defeat at the hands of Akane Yamaguchi.