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

I didn't think I would have an Olympic medal at 21, but I knew I would give my best and play my game. I just viewed it as my first Olympics and that I would take it one match at a time, but to bring a silver home made me very, very happy.

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

Ups and downs will be happening; coming to the final and losing by a point or so should not matter.

What hurts most is whenever I am leading, and then I lose the match, it is disappointing, and there are so many such matches.

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.

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

You win some and lose some. It's all part of the game. You have to take it in a very positive way.

I went to school like any other regular student till Class VIII, and my favourite subject was math. From Class IX, things got a little difficult to manage. I was inclined towards studies, but then I also had to give time to badminton.

Hard work is the key for success.

The key is not being overconfident. You should not think that because I'm a top-ranked player, I will win this game. You have to be focused.

If it makes me happy, it definitely adds to my well-being.

I have learnt many things, but there's more to learn. Every day is a new start.

There will be many obstacles in the pursuit of your dreams. I had long hours of training, balancing studies and badminton.

Fitness is the key. You need to have strokes and stamina and agility; you need to exercise really well. On-court and off-court are equally important.

When you are injured, you need to strengthen yourself very well to make a comeback very confidently.

Your dreams are what define your individuality. They have the power to give you wings and make you fly high.

It's really cool. I don't know how many people in the world have a silver medal. Maybe a thousand?

I just want to improve myself.

I just love to pass.

I just wanted to play hard - just to give my 100 percent to help my teammates, to help my team to win the game. That's my only goal going on the court.

You must be fast. Bigs are fast, running all over the court. You must be ready for that.

After the first season, I got some experience and got older.

Every season, I get better and learn new stuff.