Winning the World Championships last August in Basel, Switzerland, was special considering no Indian had won the title before. Becoming the first from our country to do so felt great. It was a much-awaited win and I was happy. I had a lot of things to take back from this [World Championships win] and that includes a big boost to go further.

Irrespective of the result, I would have kept working hard and the desire to win would have stayed. The World Championships was a good week for me. Every match was a tough one and I had to give my 100 per cent. The next year is going to be crucial — not just for me but everybody. It's not going to be easy on the women's circuit, because all of them are at the same standard. It's just that whoever plays best on the day, emerges the winner. So, we have to keep ourselves fit and keep going. Being the Olympics year, everybody is going to play all the tournaments and each and every tournament is going to be important.