Saina Nehwal Divorce: Who Is Parupalli Kashyap? Ex-Couple's Love Story, Divorce, Age Gap & More

Saina Nehwal-Parupalli Kashyap Divorce: Another divorce in the Indian sports world. After Hardik Pandya-Natasha Stankovic, Yuzvendra Chahal-Dhanashree Verma and Mary Kom-K Onler, badminton champion Saina Nehwal has announced divorce with her husband after 7 years of marriage. Yes, you read that right! Indians woke up to the shocking news of Saina Nehwal's divorce and have been wondering what went wrong in their marital life. As fans mourn Saina Nehwal-Paurpalli Kashyap's separation, let's take a look back at how their love story began...

Saina Nehwal Divorce Reason: Olympic Star Announces Separation After 7 Years Of Marriage

In the late hours of Sunday (July 13), Badminton champion Saina Nehwal took to her official Instagram handle and announced her divorce with her husband Parupalli Kashyap. The two decided to part ways amicably after 7 years of exchanging wedding vows, leaving the country in shock. While the exact reason behind their separation is yet to-be-known, speculations of strain in their marriage have resurfaced on the internet.

Announcing the same, the former world number 1 badminton player shared a note that read, "Life takes us in different directions sometimes. After much thought and consideration, Kashyap Parupalli and I have decided to part ways. We're choosing peace, growth, and healing - for ourselves and each other.

I'm grateful for the memories and wish nothing but the best moving forward. Thank you for understanding and respecting our privacy during this time. (sic)"

Saina Nehwal Husband (Now-Ex): Who Is Parupalli Kashyap?

Like Saina Nehwal, her ex-husband Parupalli Kashyap also comes from the badminton world. Born on September 8, 1986, Kashyap was the first male player from India to reach the quarter-finals of men's singles at the 2012 London Olympics in Badminton. The former World No. 6 Badminton player now serves as the coach at Gopichand Badminton Academy.

Parupalli was awarded the prestigious Arjuna Award back in 2012. Even though Parupalli is yet to share the divorce announcement on his social media handles, his latest Instagram activity has sparked buzz. Nearly 6 hours before Saina announced their divorce, Parupalli had shared a happy picture of himself enjoying the Awakenings Festival, held from July 11-13 in Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands, with a group of friends. He captioned his Instagram story, "Bestest."

Saina Nehwal-Parupalli Kashyap Love Story, Age Gap

Before tying the knot on 14 December 2018, the ex-couple dated for more than a decade. It was back in 1997, when Saina and Parupalli had crossed each other's paths for the first time as teenagers at a badminton coaching camp.

The two had started to meet frequently in 2002. "We connected because we would always have the same mindset. Her every conversation was about badminton and I liked it," Kashyap had once said in one of his live sessions on Instagram, as per Olympics.com. He continued, "I really liked her. I really liked the way she trained, it motivated me a lot and her pure effort, her attitude in matches, the way she fought. I was almost a fan. She would keep on motivating me to work hard and push extra," further adding, "We dated for a long, long time. It was childish that we hid it from all our friends. We would be very secretive about it. We were shy and scared."

Facing multiple injuries from 2016, Parupalli Kashyap decided one day to switch his career and become a badminton coach. He wanted to train Saina and help her soar higher. Recalling the days, he had told, "That is when I asked Gopi sir (Pullela Gopichand) that I am sitting idle and extremely bored and I feel no motivation. I feel motivated to train and help Saina. I have some inputs and I want to try it on her. He was like - 'okay do that.'" It was under Parupalli's coaching that Saina had won the bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games.

Born on 17 March 1990, Saina Nehwal is currently 35 years old. On the other hand, Parupalli Kashyap is set to turn 39 years old this year in September. That means there was nearly a 4-year age difference between the ex-couple.