November 16, 2014 will go down in Indian sporting history as a red-letter day for Indian badminton. A day when Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal became toasts of the China Open badminton championships by emerging champions.

Srikanth’s feat is nothing short of a miracle. He humbled the greatest shuttler in history, Lin Dan in two games. Not only did he become the first Indian male to win a Super Series singles title by going into the den and collaring the tiger, but also signalled that the Gopichand-led Indian badminton team has now arrived in sensational fashion on the world stage.