Latest news with #Unnati
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First Post
3 days ago
- Sport
- First Post
Unnati Hooda is turning heads as she goes from playing in parks to defeating India's biggest badminton star PV Sindhu
17-year-old Unnati Hooda from Haryana stunned Indian badminton by defeating her idol PV Sindhu at the China Open 2025. Here's how the young prodigy went from playing in parks to winning major titles and making history. read more 17-year-old Unnati Hooda created headlines on Thursday, July 24, by defeating double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu in the pre-quarterfinals of the China Open 2025. The youngster, who hails from a small village in Haryana, won the thrilling match 21-16, 19-21, 21-13, marking the biggest victory of her career so far. Even though Hooda failed to progress past the quarterfinal stage, where she suffered a crushing straight-set defeat against two-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, she caught the eyeballs of many in India. She had just defeated the best badminton player in the country. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Who is Unnati Hooda and how her badminton career began According to Hindustan Times, Unnati grew up in Haryana, where her love for badminton began at just 7 years old. She first played street badminton with her father and in the nearby park. Seeing her interest and talent, her father decided to get her professionally trained under coach Parvesh Kumar in Rohtak's Chhotu Ram Stadium in 2014. Unnati's first major win came at the U-11 level, after which her father started taking her career seriously. He quit his job and to accompany her to tournaments. Unnati started winning local tournaments, then district and state events. She went on to win the U-13 and U-15 national championships in 2018 and 2019, respectively. From admiring PV Sindhu to beating her at the biggest of stages Unnati revealed in an interview in 2022 that her biggest inspiration was PV Sindhu, and now she has defeated her idol in an international match. 'PV Sindhu is my role model and just like her, I want to win a medal for my country at the international level one day,' she was quoted as saying by HT. In 2022, Unnati shocked everyone by winning the Odisha Open Super 100, becoming the youngest Indian ever to win a BWF World Tour Super 100 title. She beat top players like Malvika Bansod and Samiya Farooqui on her way to the trophy. That win also got her a place in the Uber Cup squad, where she eventually got to train and travel with Sindhu. When Unnati finally got the chance to play her Idol for the first time in 2024, she lost badly. But the teenager stunned everyone by beating Sindhu at the China Open 2025.
India Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- India Today
China Open: Satwik-Chirag storm into semis, Unnati Hooda's dream run ends
Indian men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty booked their spot in the semifinals of the China Open, but young sensation Unnati Hooda's dream run in the tournament came to an end on Friday, July 25. Satwik-Chirag secured a comfortable 21-18, 21-14 win over Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi of Malaysia in 40 win also helped the Indian duo to improve their head-to-head record against Sin and Yi to 7-3. Satwik-Chirag will face will the world number two pair of Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik of Malaysia in the got off to a flying start in the first game on Friday, but the Malaysian duo fought back. The Indian duo kept their cool and ensured they secured the game in the end. The second one was more even until 15-14, when the Indian duo changed gears and secured the next six points to secure the win. This will be the fourth semi-final appearance for Satwik-Chirag this year. Unnati's magical run ends Unnati lost to to world number 4 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 16-21, 12-21 in the women's singles quarter-final on Friday. The match got wrapped in 33 minutes as the young Indian sensation's valiant effort went in vain against Yamaguchi. Unnati had come into the game on the back of a sensational win over her idol and compatriot PV Sindhu. The young sensation had stunned former world champion Sindhu 21-16, 19-21, 21-13 in the the youngster's loss, India's challenge in the singles events came to an end. In the opening game, Unnati had kept pace with the World No.4. However, she failed to maintain the momentum and Yamaguchi raced ahead and secured five points on the trot to take the first set 21-16. The second game followed a similar script. Unnati had got a brief comeback in the game when she secured four straight points. However, Yamaguchi showed her class and secured six straight points to secure the second set 21-12 and the win. In the end, Yamaguchi won 42 of the 70 points played across both games. - EndsMust Watch
Canada News.Net
4 days ago
- Sport
- Canada News.Net
China Open: Unnati's campaign ends in quarterfinal loss to Yamahuchi
Changzhou [China], July 25 (ANI): Young Indian shuttler Unnati Hooda's campaign in the ongoing China Open came to an end with a defeat to world number four and former world champion Akane Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals on Friday, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) Media said in a release. During the final eight clash, Unnati went down to Akane by 16-21, 12-21. Playing in her very first BWF Super 1000 event, the young 17-year-old made headlines with her fearless performances. According to the release, she became only the fourth Indian women's singles shuttler to ever reach the quarterfinals of a BWF Super 1000 event. Unnati delivered a sensational performance to overcome two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and book her place in the women's singles quarterfinals on Thursday. The match was a showcase of India's present and future in badminton, with the rising star Hooda taking on the seasoned champion Sindhu. Hooda started strong, claiming the opening game 21-16, but Sindhu struck back in the second, edging it 21-19 in a tense finish. In the decider, Hooda displayed remarkable play, sealing the contest 21-13 to advance to the quarterfinals. Earlier on Wednesday, Unnati delivered a commanding performance to outplay experienced Scottish shuttler Kirsty Gilmour 21-11, 21-16 in just 36 minutes. India's top men's doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, continued their winning momentum at the China Open 2025, a BWF Super 1000 tournament, to book a place in the quarterfinals on Thursday. The World No. 12 duo delivered another composed performance, edging past Indonesia's Leo Rolly Carnando and Bagas Maulana 21-19, 21-19 in straight games, underlining their strong title men's singles, HS Prannoy played against World No. 6 Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei but concluded his campaign after a hard-fought encounter. (ANI)
United News of India
5 days ago
- Sport
- United News of India
China Open 2025: Unnati looses to Yamaguchi in QF's
Changzhou, July 25 (UNI) Unnati Hooda's spirited run at the China Open 2025 came to an end today as she lost to Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in the women's singles quarterfinals. World No. 4 beat the Indian teenager 16-21, 12-21 to enter the semi finals. Playing in her very first BWF Super 1000 event, 17-year-old Unnati made headlines with her fearless performances, becoming only the fourth Indian women's singles shuttler ever to reach the quarterfinals of a BWF Super 1000 event. Unnati delivered a sensational performance on Thursday to overcome two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and book her place in the Women's Singles quarterfinals at the China Open 2025. UNI RKM
News18
5 days ago
- Sport
- News18
Unnati Hooda Creates History, Becomes Fourth Indian Woman To...
Last Updated: Unnati Hooda has made history as the fourth Indian woman to reach a Super 1000 quarterfinal, defeating PV Sindhu at the China Open. Star shuttler Unnati Hooda on Thursday created history to become just the fourth Indian women's singles player to qualify for the quarterfinals of a Super 1000 event on the BWF Tour, joining Olympic medallists Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu, besides Malvika Bansod, in the illustrious list. In a defining moment of her fledgling career, Unnati stunned Sindhu in a gripping three-game match to storm into the quarters of the China Open. While Saina and Sindhu have multiple appearances, Bansod had also reached the quarterfinals of the tournament last year. Facing Sindhu for just the second time, Unnati held her nerve in crunch moments to register a brilliant 21-16, 19-21, 21-13 win against the former in 73 minutes, marking her first quarterfinal appearance at a Super 1000 tournament. Unnati, who has won Super 100 titles at the 2022 Odisha Masters and 2023 Abu Dhabi Masters, will next face Japan's Akane Yamaguchi, the third seed and a two-time world champion. Sindhu, ranked world number 15, came into the match on the back of a solid victory over Tomoka Miyazaki but found herself outplayed by Unnati's speed, precision and unrelenting energy. This is the first time that Sindhu has lost to a compatriot in an international tournament in seven years, the last being the 2018 Commonwealth Games final defeat to Saina. She had lost to the latter in the 2019 National Championships too. In a match that featured high-octance rallies, momentum shifts and moments of brilliance from both ends, it was Unnati's fearless approach that made the difference. From 13-all, Unnati surged ahead with four straight points before sealing the game 21-16, leaving Sindhu on the back foot. The second game was tighter, with neither shuttler able to pull away. At 19-all, Sindhu executed a clinical cross-court drop that left Unnati stranded and followed it up with a precise smash to push the contest into a decider at 21-19. The final game saw a noticeable dip in Sindhu's consistency. Unnati capitalised on a string of unforced errors from the former, including mistimed smashes and poor judgment at the net. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
