Teen titan Anahat Singh's rise continues

Bengaluru: Think about Indian squash and the name Anahat Singh is hard to miss. Being handed a Senior debut at the age of 14, that too at a big-ticket event like CWG 2022, the teen titan has continued punching above her weight ever since.

"The idea of throwing Anahat into the deep end that early in her career was to give her exposure," said Cyrus Poncha, secretary general of the Indian squash body (SRFI).

"She made it on merit too by beating higher-ranked Indian players in the trials. We didn't expect her to win medals from the onset, more of a foundation for the major events to come in the next Olympic cycle."

Fast forward to 2025, the youngest child of Gursharan Singh and Tani Vadehra of Greater Kailash I, Delhi is living up to all the promises. At just 17, Anahat is the women's singles World No. 28, a double Asian Games bronze medallist on debut, a double Asian Champion, and recently a World Champion at the World Cup in Chennai last week.

She was the youngest member of the team that consisted of Indian squash legend and Padma Shri awardee Joshna Chinappa, along with men’s partners Abhay Singh and Velavan Senthilkumar. The quartet had a flawless run throughout the tournament, including their semifinal victory over squash giants and two-time champions Egypt.

Anahat, for that matter, had to fight hard world No. 44 Nour Heikal in an intriguing battle that stretched to the fifth and decisive game. Unlike the PSA tour, each game was a best of seven instead of the 11-point game.

Except for that rubber, Anahat won all of her remaining matches in straight games, including the final against No. 31 Tomato Ho of Hong Kong China.

Ask Anahat and her World Cup triumph sits atop all her success in her nascent career, irrespective of the fact that she became the first Indian in 15 years to win an individual medal at the World Junior Championships in Cairo this July.

“The World Cup medal is really special,” Anahat told DH. “It has been a busy year for me in the PSA tour (professional tour) but winning the World Cup in front of home fans was a different experience. In Chennai, fans were rooting for every points you take, their backing in crunch situations made the difference too. It was a moment to remember.”

Badminton to squash

Coaches and experts, who have often seen the youngster up close, have often expressed their awe about Anahat’s aggressive game and feet movement. Her mother Tani described her as “a dog playing fetch” while her former coach and World Doubles Championships silver medallist Ritwick Bhattacharya compared her game to Pakistan great Janser Khan, who was considered a pioneer of the game back in the late 80s and early 90s.

Turns out, her intuitive foot movement on the court came from her early days in another racket sports, badminton, as her father Gursharan, a former state-level hockey player, wanted his daughter to be a national champion in two sports. Anahat eventually followed her elder sister Amira’s footsteps to squash but not before she claimed a few medals at the Sub-junior level.

“She was at a much higher level than I was at her age,” said Amira, who has moved away from the game to pursue a study abroad. “Unlike a budding squash player, she won’t wait for the ball to come to her but try to hit it on the volley as much as she can to win the points. It’s something that came from badminton and stood her apart from the rest.”

It's destiny that squash and Anahat were always meant to be as her success at such a young age speaks volumes. The squash prodigy is not resting anytime soon as for her, all roads lead to 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. 

"I am super excited with the Olympics in the picture this time. The CWG and Asian Games are also there next year and with the four of us already playing as a team and winning such a big event together gives us the confidence and get comfortable around each other," concluded Anahat.