PV Sindhu has spent much of her career carrying India’s challenge in women’s singles badminton. Now, as the 31-year-old returns to the world’s top six, she is seeing a group of younger Indian shuttlers begin to make their mark on the international circuit.Tanvi Sharma, Anmol Kharb, Unnati Hooda, Devika Sihag and Ashmita Chaliha have all had notable results in 2026. Sindhu is pleased to see more Indian names competing at this level.“I am really happy to see so many youngsters doing well. Ashmita has done really well, Anmol has been doing really well, and of course, there are Unnati and Tanvi,” Sindhu said during a virtual media interaction on Wednesday.“We are seeing a lot of youngsters, and I am really happy that there are four or five girls coming up, doing well and representing the country. It is always nice to have your fellow athletes and youngsters coming up, doing well and representing the country. What else do we need?”Sindhu also recalled a period when the next generation in women’s singles was difficult to identify.“Initially, there was a gap, and we did not know who the juniors coming through would be. But now I can say that there are these girls who are doing really well in the women’s circuit. I am happy to see so many youngsters doing well,” she added.The results this season give an indication of the depth Sindhu is referring to. Tanvi, 17, became the youngest champion in Taipei Open history in August, beating Vietnam’s Nguyen Thuy Linh 21-16, 21-16 in the final. It was India’s first women’s singles title at the tournament since Saina Nehwal won it in 2008.Ashmita won her maiden BWF World Tour title at the Korea Masters, coming back from a game down to beat China’s Han Qianxi 14-21, 21-14, 21-14. The 27-year-old from Assam then beat former world champion Akane Yamaguchi 21-19, 21-18 at the French Open to reach her first Super 750 quarterfinal.
Unnati, who has climbed to a career-best World No. 19, reached the women’s singles quarterfinals at the Asian Games. She took a game off Yamaguchi before going down 16-21, 21-14, 17-21.Anmol won the Turkiye International Challenge in October and followed it with a semifinal appearance at the HYLO Open. She beat Unnati in three games in the quarterfinals before losing to Sindhu 13-21, 16-21.Sihag had opened India’s BWF World Tour title account for the year by winning the Thailand Masters Super 300 in February.
HYLO Open title takes Sindhu back to World No. 6
The younger players have been making progress while Sindhu has put together one of her stronger seasons in recent years. Her HYLO Open victory was her second BWF World Tour title of 2026, following her Japan Open triumph in July. She had also reached the French Open final the previous week, where she lost to World No. 1 An Se-young.In Germany, Sindhu beat Denmark’s Line Højmark Kjærsfeldt 21-12, 21-14 in 39 minutes. She completed the campaign without dropping a game. The title took her back to World No. 6, a ranking she had last held in 2022.“Touchwood, I am happy that I am back again. After 2022, I am back in the top six, if I am not wrong. I am happy that things are going well,” she said.
Sindhu, though, believes there is still considerable room to improve. “I would say there is a lot more room, a lot more space for improvement and I am getting there. I am happy with this, and I think definitely there are a lot of things to work on. There is a lot more space to improve. I am really looking forward to that,” she added.The former world champion is confident she can return to the level she reached during her most successful years. Sindhu won the World Championship in 2019 and has two Olympic medals.“If you take care of your body, definitely yes. The answer is yes. There are a lot of athletes playing in their 30s, at 31 or 32, and there have been a lot of athletes who were at their top. So why not get back there at the top again?” she said.“I am getting there, and I am there. I am saying this because I know that I can still do it. That is why I said there is a lot of space, a lot of room to improve.”
’31 is the new 21′: Sindhu on managing her body
Sindhu’s recent run has come with a more selective approach to her tournament schedule. Her support team includes strength and conditioning coach Wayne Lombard, her physiotherapist and coach Irwansyah Adi Pratama. The group assesses her condition regularly before deciding on training loads and tournament participation.“More than anything, we make sure we smartly take decisions about which tournaments are to be played and how the body condition is. Am I feeling good or am I feeling my 100 per cent? Every single day, we analyse it accordingly,” she said.“At times, you make sure you change the schedule or work accordingly, depending on my body condition. That way, it has really been working out. With my experience, I do tell them how I feel and accordingly we work on that.”Sindhu’s decision to skip the Korea Open and subsequent tournaments after a long stretch of competition was part of that plan. She wanted time to return home, recover and prepare before getting back on court.“The initial plan was that I would be playing other tournaments as well. But I think it was important for me to take this decision because I needed to take care of my body and get back stronger on court again,” she said.But she is clear that playing week after week without being fully fit is not an option.“You are not 20 anymore and you cannot keep playing tournaments back-to-back. You need to make sure that whatever tournaments you play, you give your 100 per cent. To give that 100 per cent, you have to make sure you are physically and mentally at your best,” she said.“If you are at 50 per cent, you make sure you step back, recover, come back stronger and bounce back stronger. Accordingly, you work on your mistakes and your game.“If you are not at 100 per cent and go at 50 per cent, that is not how it is going to be. You would lose a lot more confidence because you cannot give your 100 per cent. Losing to some unknown player when you are not at your 100 per cent can make you feel really low, and you might not get that confidence back,” she said.
An Se-young challenge and badminton’s 15-point format
Sindhu’s French Open final against An Se-young gave her plenty to review. She won the opening game but could not hold on to the advantage, eventually losing the match. That extended the South Korean’s dominance over the Indian to 11-0.“After taking that first game, I just felt that in the second game I gave her a huge lead. By the time I covered it, it was almost too late,” she said.“In the third game, I was there, I was leading by two or three points, and I should have gone with the same tempo. I felt that I could have played the right stroke at the right time. I gave her two or three points easily. I made some unforced errors, which is what I felt.”Sindhu expects to make changes before their next meeting.“I am definitely very certain that in the coming days or coming months, there will be some changes in making sure it will be difficult for her,” she said.The demands of women’s singles also have changed over the years, Sindhu said, with rallies getting longer and patience becoming increasingly important.“Badminton as a sport has been changing every single time. Back then, it was more about attacking play, but now there are longer rallies and you have to stay more patient on court,” she said.The switch to a 15-point scoring format from next year will require another adjustment. Sindhu believes players will have less time to recover from a slow start.“We have been playing 21 for so many years now. It is important that we make sure we train and practise that scoring system as well,” she said.“In 21 points, there was still time. Even if five points had gone, people could come back. But now, once those five or six points go, half the game is over. It is important that you are alert from the beginning,” she said.“You cannot give away easy points because by the time you realise it, half the game is over. You have to be on your feet every single time.”Having secured her place in the season-ending BWF World Tour Finals, Sindhu will now turn her attention to the tournament as she looks to finish the season on a strong note.
