The nation saw a star in the making when a 20-year-old PV Sindhu stepped up to the occasion in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and went head-to-head against Spain's Carolina Marin in the match of a lifetime, was overwhelmed by the experienced Spaniard and won the silver medal in the Badminton women's finals.

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Since then, Sindhu has dominated women's badminton. Winning significant awards like the silver medal in singles and the gold in mixed doubles during the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, she had established herself as one of the greatest, most talented sportswomen in the world.

But, it was time for her to get paid for her greatness and China's sports accessories giant Li-Ning realised her true worth. 

Sindhu, who was once a brand ambassador for the Chinese brand back in 2014-15, signed with the brand for the second time in 2019. While back in the day, India looked at Saina Nehwal  as the only successful female shuttler, now, this young Hyderabad-born prodigy has shown to the world that she is worth every penny (maybe even more?) as Nehwal.

In this extremely lucrative four-year contract between Li-Ning and Sindhu, the star is going to be paid â¹40 crore as sponsorship money while approximately â¹10 cr. for equipment, making for a deal worth a sum total of a whopping â¹50 crore.

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One of the biggest deals in Badminton, the handsome contact came Sindhu's way a month after Kidambi Srikanth signed a four-year â¹35 cr. deal with the same brand.

Sindhu was ranked seventh on the Forbes List of the richest sportswomen of 2018 according to which, the shuttler was worth $8.5 million (Rs. 64 cr. approx.). Add this big fat paycheque to the mix and you've got yourself a really comfortable lifestyle.

Sindhu's deal is remarkably similar to that of Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli, who signed an eight-year deal with Puma for a total of â¹100 crore split in annual payouts, i.e., â¹12.5 crore per year.