India's Sindhu Pusarla V. celebrates during the women's singles final match against Japan's Okuhara Nozomi at the BWF Badminton World Championships 2019 in Basel, Switzerland, Aug. 25, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Jundong)
BASEL, Switzerland, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- Fifth seed Sindhu V. Pusarla became the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Badminton World Championships as she crushed third-seeded Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in the women's singles final here on Sunday.
Having faltered in three straight major event finals, the 24-year-old finally topped the podium with a comfortable victory of 21-7, 21-7 in just 36 minutes.
Sindhu Pusarla V. (L) greets Japan's Okuhara Nozomi after the women's singles final match at the BWF Badminton World Championships 2019 in Basel, Switzerland, Aug. 25, 2019. (Xinhua/Li Jundong)
She took sweet revenge on the Japanese shuttler, whom she lost to 21-19, 20-22, 22-20 in one of the longest women's singles match ever played in Glasgow two years ago.
Pusarla slipped in the Rio Olympic Games final and last year's World Championships gold match -- to Spain's Carolina Marin on both occasions.
She also won the bronze medals in the event at the 2013 and 2014 World Championships.
