Squash ace Anahat becomes junior world No 1, aims for higher goals

Delhi-based Anahat Singh, one of the world’s most promising squash players, has become the junior world No 1. Calling it a “special moment”, she is determined to attain her ultimate goal — the senior world No 1 ranking. This is the culmination of her impressive season on the professional tour, having won the Squash on Fire Open in January in Washington and the Indian Open in March in Mumbai.

Now, 18-year-old Anahat is keen to develop her game further, with her main focus now being professional squash as she prepares to enter college.

Along with being the junior world No 1, Anahat is currently world No. 20 in the senior category. However, her career-best ranking among seniors remains No 18, a position she attained this February.

“Becoming junior world No 1 is a very special moment for me. At the same time, I know it’s just one milestone. It motivates me to keep improving and working even harder because my ultimate goal is to do well on the senior tour,” Anahat told Patriot from Prague, where she is training these days.

Anahat, who recently wrote her Class XII examinations, became junior world No 1 in the rankings released by the world squash body a few days ago. She climbed one spot to No 1 after four-time world junior champion and world champion Amina Orfi of Egypt turned 19 on June 29 and became ineligible for the junior category.

Anahat will make a similar progression to the senior category next year when she turns 19 on March 13.

“It gives me confidence that I’m moving in the right direction, but I also know the senior circuit is much more challenging. There’s still a lot to learn and improve. My focus is on continuing to develop my game and gradually establishing myself among the seniors,” she says pragmatically, looking at the tougher road ahead.

Anahat’s next assignment will be the World Junior Championships, to be held from July 20 to 31 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. She will then compete at the 20th Asian Games, to be held from September 19 to October 4 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, for which Anahat is among the eight-member Indian squad. She is already an Asian Games medallist, having won bronze medals in the team and doubles events at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.

Anahat’s ultimate desire is to play at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, to be held from July 14 to 30 in Los Angeles. With all these goals in sight, Anahat is currently training under the watch of renowned French coach Grégory Gaultier, a former world champion and former world No 1, in Prague.

Alongside squash, Anahat says she would like to continue her education and will be taking admission to a college soon.

“I’ve completed my Class XII examinations, and now my main focus will be on professional squash. At the same time, I do want to continue my education and go to college. It’s important for me to have both,” she underlines.

Rankings motivate Anahat, and she has stated that she would like to become world No 1 one day.

“One thing I definitely want to improve is my ranking and make sure that I’m at the top one day. Winning all of these tournaments, at the end of the day, just builds up to that. Ranking is definitely one motivation for me,” she had told Patriot in an interview in September, clearly implying that she was referring to the senior world No 1 ranking.

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