A curse broken, a fairytale begins: Anahat Singh's World Squash Junior C'ships triumph

In Anahat Singh’s mind, the World Squash Junior Championships was always a curse; a tournament she could never win. She had been here four times before, exiting in the quarter-finals in her first three attempts before losing a semi-final and settling for a bronze on her fourth try.

So, as she headed into the 2026 World Squash Junior Championships in Ontario, Canada for the fifth time, she knew she had to make it count. 

Now, 18, and already an established name in the senior PSA circuit, this was her last chance to have a junior world title in her bag. For, she would be ineligible to compete by the time the next edition of the tournament comes around.

Anahat played like it.

Last week, she wrote a new chapter in Indian squash history, becoming the first player from the country to win the World Squash Junior Championships. She surpassed Joshna Chinappa’s runner-up finish from over two decades ago in 2005.

As she registered a clinical 11-3, 11-7, 11-9 win in the final against Egypt’s Ruqayya Salem, Anahat also brought an end to the African nation’s 15-year hegemony in the junior women’s singles crown.

"It was my last year playing this event," she said in a media interaction felicitated by the Sports Authority of India.

"There was pressure, but it also pushed me to give it my all," she added.

The win also arrives on the back of Singh's rapid rise on the senior PSA Tour, where she is currently ranked inside the world's top 20. She credits that experience for helping her improve under pressure.

"The amount of experience that I've gotten in the last one year playing against people in the top 10, top 20, not every single player gets that opportunity," said Anahat. 

"It gives me more confidence in case I feel like I'm not playing my best squash."

With squash set to make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, and a direct qualification spot on offer to the upcoming 2026 Asian Games gold medallist, the timing of her title win could not be better. 

In Aichi-Nagoya, Anahat will be up against the likes of Malaysia’s world No 5 Sivasangari Subramaniam, and world No 6 Satomi Watanabe of Japan among others, as she guns for the direct qualification spot. These, by now, are familiar foes for the Indian.

"Asian Games alone is a huge deal, whether or not the Olympics was a part of the picture," a level-headed Anahat said. 

"The fact that there's the Olympics, I'd just say it's an added bonus."

Anahat, for long, has been one of the most hyped young prospects in Indian sports. The junior world championship win only puts a renewed focus on the teenager.

For years, she has juggled academics and squash hand-in-hand. She’s now out of school and is raring to go for the bigger titles in the sporting world.

The fact that it began with a tournament she felt was a curse might be the most fitting start to the Anahat Singh fairytale we’ll write about for years to come.