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Indian badminton: Jwala Gutta, the doubles flame

Image via Wikipedia

 

Jwala Gutta has always been in the news but always for the wrong reasons.

Unlike her singles counterpart, Saina Nehwal, controversy seems to court her with a vengeance.

So who is Jwala Gutta?

Jwala is a left-handed badminton player of mixed Indian and Chinese descent.

According to Wikipedia:

“Her mother’s grandfather, Tseng from Tianjin, was a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi and stayed with him at Sevagram ashram, where he translated Gandhi’s autobiography and other works into Chinese.”

With her doubles victory partnering Ashwini Ponappa at the CommonWealth Games 2010 , New Delhi, Gutta is now a household name and can count herself among the limited pantheon of Indian sports heroes.

Jwala and her partner Diju also clinched a silver at the CWG in the mixed doubles , going down in the final to the Malaysian pair Koo Kien Keat and Chin Ee Hui 14-21, 21-10, 10-21.

But the path to glory has been a thorny one.