Pusarla Venkata Sindhu scripted history on Sunday as she became the first Indian to win a world badminton championship. Having finished runner-up in the past two annual editions, Sindhu finally managed to overcome the last hurdle and grab gold.

Over the past five years, Sindhu has grown to become the preeminent Indian badminton player, upstaging Saina Nehwal, with a string of superlative performances that have yielded multiple medals at top tournaments.

The Hyderabad-based shuttler has many firsts to her name. She was the first Indian woman to reach the final of a badminton world championship and also the first to reach an Olympic final.

Her pioneering performances on the badminton court have led to financial riches. Sindhu frequently ranks in the world’s highest-paid athletes and is the top grossing non-cricket athlete from India.

She was tied for 13th in Forbes' list of the highest-paid female athletes over the last year with $5.5 million in earnings that included prize money from tournaments but a major chunk — $5 million — came from brand endorsements.

The top 11 spots in the 2019 Forbes list was dominated by tennis players. United States football star Alex Morgan occupied the 12th spot and was followed by Sindhu. Tennis is well-known for rewarding its players with enormous prize money while the same is not the case for badminton. For her to rank so high on the list shows the pull she brings for her sponsors.

Sports marketing firm Baseline Ventures, which manages Sindhu, said the athlete currently endorses 14 brands and her off-court earnings trail only Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli among the country's sporting elite.

Her star is likely to shine even brighter after Sunday’s world championship win.

"There will be a lot more people who will be potentially interested," Baseline managing director Tuhin Mishra told Reuters.

"Sindhu commands a certain price and a lot of sponsors are already with her due to her qualities.

"It's not a flash in the pan as lots of factors are at play for the sponsors."

Baseline Ventures secured exclusive rights to manageSindhu for all her commercial and brand endorsement deals in 2016.

The 24-year-old has a robust sponsor roster with Bridgestone, Gatorade, Nokia, Panasonic, Reckitt Benckiser and a half-dozen other brands, according to Forbes

First Published:Aug 26, 2019 1:42 PM IST