From Suruchi Phogat to Sachin Yadav: India's breakthrough athletes of 2025

The 2025 season was full of ups and downs for Indian sports, featuring the impressive rise of a few youngsters and a slew of disappointing results from a few established performers.

In the larger scheme of things, it was a familiar post-Olympic year phenomenon where many elite athletes either don't compete much or try different techniques, equipment, to gear up for the next Olympic cycle.

This also offers an opportunity for young and rising players to showcase their potential and put their hat in the ring for the upcoming three-year cycle. 

India has also seen such surprising results this year, including Samrat Rana's historic World Championship gold medal and the rise of players like Suruchi Singh Phogat, Sachin Yadav and others.

Here, we take a look at such breakout stars for India in 2025:

Samrat Rana (Shooting)

Samrat Rana was one of India's biggest finds of the year, making his senior international debut and then claiming a world championship title in the same year.

He clinched three medals at his maiden ISSF World Championships, which included India's first-ever 10m air pistol gold medal at the global event.

He then backed it with a bronze medal at the 2025 ISSF World Cup Finals in Qatar to finish off his season and boost his confidence ahead of an important year.

Suruchi Singh Phogat (Shooting)

Another shooter who caught the limelight this year was Suruchi Singh Phogat. The 19-year-old also made her debut this year and remained unbeaten in women's air pistol on the World Cup Circuit.

She clinched an individual gold medal in all three World Cups she played this year and then finished off her season with a fourth gold at the ISSF World Cup Finals.

Her dominating run throughout the season also saw her rise as the world's best to be ranked world No. 1.

Minakshi Hooda (Boxing)

Minakshi Hooda rose to a standout figure in Indian boxing this year after pulling off a major upset against former world champion Nitu Ghanghas at nationals.

This marked her return to the national team after three years. She grabbed the opportunity with both hands to win the World Championships gold in Liverpool.

She played three tournaments this year, finishing on the podium each time. She will now try to continue her momentum next year with multiple major events lined up.

Pratika Rawal (Women's Cricket)

Pratika Rawal, a crucial member of the World Cup-winning Indian women's cricket team, had a remarkable year, becoming the joint-fastest player to score 1,000 WODI runs.

She made her international debut late last year and climbed up the ranks to become a vital member of the team, ending India's long search for a consistent opening partner for Smriti Mandhana.

She has played 21 ODIs this year, scoring 976 runs, which is the third highest in 2025, just behind Mandhana and Laura Wolvaardt of South Africa.

Kranti Goud (Women's Cricket)

Another shining face for the Indian women's cricket team this year was the pacer Kranti Goud, the third-highest Indian wicket-taker in 2025, with 23 wickets in 15 matches.

Kranti came into the limelight after her good season in the 2025 WPL for UP Warriorz, which helped her get her maiden ODI call for the Indian team in May.

She proved her quality within a few months and became the youngest Indian woman to take a six-wicket haul in ODIs in a match against England in July this year.

Sachin Yadav (Javelin Throw)

Sachin Yadav was the earliest breakthrough star of the year for India. He put his name on the javelin throw map with an 84.49m throw at the 2025 National Games.

He has been on an upward graph since then and is now among India's all-time top-5 javelin throwers after his massive 86.27m throw at the 2025 World Athletics Championships.

Although he marginally fell short of the podium with a heartbreaking fourth-place finish at the global event, he etched his name as the one to watch out for in the coming season.

Other rising stars

There were a few more Indian athletes who have shown immense potential this year and can convert this into something bigger next year.

Pooja Singh, an 18-year-old high jumper, was the talk of the town when she was crowned the Asian Champion in South Korea ahead of some renowned jumpers of the continent.

After such a promising start, the youngster's season was hampered by an injury that kept her out of competition for almost five months. But she returned back to action by securing the 2025 Khelo India University Games gold in Jaipur and is now eyeing to get her peak ahead of the 2026 Asian Games.

Animesh Kujur, the young sprinter, also had a sensational start to 2025 by setting multiple national records and becoming the first Indian male 100m runner to qualify for the World Athletics Championships.

Divya Deshmukh stood out in chess, becoming the youngest to win the women's world cup title. Aravindh Chitambaram also impressed with his outings over the board early in the year. 

Equally impressive was Sujeet Kalkal, winning the U23 world wrestling championships gold medal, while a certain Ved Bamb became India's first-ever esports world champion.

Meanwhile, a sport that has been disappointing this year was badminton, where the Indian senior players have struggled with form and fitness, and the youngsters looked inconsistent. 

Despite that, a few young talents like Ayush Shetty (2025 US Open champion) and Tanvi Sharma (Junior Worlds runner-up) displayed remarkable fighting spirit and could emerge as India's key hopes for the coming year.