Trailing the best-of-five match 1-2, and down 1-3 in the fourth, India’s squash sensation Anahat Singh pulled off one of the most impressive wins of her career in the quarterfinals of JSW Indian Open at the Bombay Gymkhana on Wednesday.
It wasn’t that the opponent, 17-year-old Egyptian Nadien Elhammamy, was higher-ranked or a much better player, but having lost to her on two occasions in the junior circuit, Anahat had more than a point to prove. With the World Juniors coming up this July, it was good for the Indian to get a win over her.
The victory will also give Anahat – who turned 17 this month – the much-needed confidence that she’s on the right path as she navigates a tricky juncture in her career, transitioning from juniors to the professional senior circuit. A shift that she says “demands more than just raw talent”.
While Anahat is in a transition phase, the sport itself is transitioning too, having finally been included in the Olympic Games for LA 2028. It means that Anahat has to focus on rankings too while she is redefining her approach to the game.
Balancing act
Having dominated junior squash, she has now largely moved on from the circuit, playing only the biggest junior events such as the British Junior Open and the World Juniors to maintain her ranking. “I don’t play the smaller junior tournaments anymore—just the main ones that count,” Anahat told The Indian Express.
This shift has meant she has to make several changes to her game. “The transition from juniors to seniors is completely different. In juniors, I was winning because my basic game was strong, and I loved playing. But in seniors, strength and nutrition matter so much more. It’s not just about what happens on court—off-court preparation is just as important.”
Anahat acknowledges that adapting to the physicality of the senior circuit is a work in progress. “When you’re younger, you’re not supposed to do too much weight training, but now I’m getting more into it. Everyone says I need to work on my strength more, so that’s a big focus.”
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With a packed tournament schedule, however, intensive gym sessions have taken a backseat. “During tournament season, it’s tough to train too hard because you risk getting sore or injured. But once the season slows down, I’ll spend more time in the gym.”
The problem is that she doesn’t really have an off-season. “For seniors, the summer is the off-season, but since I still play some junior tournaments, my junior off-season is my senior on-season and vice versa. I’m constantly traveling,” she says.
Apart from the physical aspects, Anahat is also embracing the mental demands of senior-level squash. “Mental conditioning is huge. In seniors, matches are not just about skill but also about how well you can handle pressure.”
Her mentor, Indian squash legend Saurav Ghosal, concurs.“We’ve seen that in matches, her mental toughness has ups and downs. On the senior circuit, it’s imperative that it doesn’t happen. But she’s still young. We don’t want to put too much pressure on her and wear her down. There are a lot of changes she needs to make to her game, too, but we’re only making subtle changes. Our aim is to enter the top 10, so we have to take everything slowly,” he says.
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Chasing Olympic Dreams
Anahat’s rise has made her a strong contender to represent India at the Olympics, though she isn’t thinking ahead too much. One thing is certain – she has to maintain her rankings.
“You can only start playing PSA when you’re 15, so I could only get my membership at 15. But I wasn’t really at the level to compete in the bigger tournaments then,” Anahat admits. Her early days on the PSA tour were spent playing smaller events, as her ranking wasn’t high enough to qualify for the premier competitions. Now, with a PSA ranking of 68, she is gradually breaking into more elite tournaments.
“The criteria for the Olympics are a bit confusing, and you never want to be stressing out at the last moment about whether you’re in or out. Right now, being in the top is important, just to be confident that you’re going to make it.”
As she continues to bridge the gap between dominating the junior field to finding her footing on the senior circuit, she remains focused on the long game. “It’s about playing smart, training well, and making sure I’m always improving. The senior circuit is a different challenge, but I’m ready for it.”
