After Sania and Saina comes Neha

We first saw Sania Mirza change the face of Indian tennis. She brought great glory to India and became the role model for Muslim women the world over and for Indian women in sports.

Sania was followed by her anagram-cousin Saina. Saina is doing for badminton what Sania did for tennis and more. She is already a household name and is still a long way away from her peak. We expect the world from her – world titles, Olympic medals and more.

Now there is another young lady getting ready to change the face of another racquet sport in India. We are talking of Neha Aggarwal and table tennis.

She has the skills to be the best in her trade. She has the charm to be the face of Indian table tennis, just like Saina Nehwal in badminton and Sania Mirza in tennis.

A national champion in roller skating when she was in school, Neha shifted to table tennis because she wanted to pursue a more popular sport. The Delhi girl has had no reason to regret that decision yet.

Having started catching the attention of her fraternity as a 12-year-old, the crowning moment in the Delhi girl’s nascent career came earlier this year when she qualified for the Olympics ahead of reigning queens Poulami Ghatak and Mouma Das.

Neha is still very young and has many great years ahead of her. Although her Olympic experience didn’t last beyond Round I, it was an experience of a lifetime – one which will come in handy for many future events. It was also in Beijing that she became good friends with Saina.

The world No. 11 of women’s badminton is not just a good friend but a source of inspiration for Neha as well.

We are hoping Neha also becomes an inspiration for the next lot of female champions.