Anahat Singh eyes Asian Games and LA Olympic pathway after historic World Junior triumph

Fresh from becoming India's first World Junior Squash champion, 18-year-old Anahat Singh is taking a gap year before college and plotting her next steps. She says she is keeping her focus despite rising expectations and has the Asian Games and the road to the LA Olympics on her agenda.

Anahat scripted history as India's first World Junior Squash champion and has immediately turned her attention forward. She has spoken about staying grounded amid growing attention and about shutting out the hype around ending Egypt's dominance. In conversations since her victory she has highlighted the role her support network plays, noting she leans on her parents and coaches in pressure moments. That combination of calm and support has helped shape the goals she is now pursuing.

Singh has emphasised the importance of mental composure after a breakthrough that drew national notice. Rather than dwell on the idea of having ended a long run of Egyptian success, she has repeatedly chosen to minimise external noise and keep preparations central to her plans. The decision to take a gap year before college gives her a window to manage expectations and concentrate on immediate competitive objectives. Her measured approach has been a recurring theme in her remarks since the title run.

Her family and coaching staff are prominent in the narrative she presents about handling pressure. Anahat credits her parents and coaches for providing grounding and practical guidance at crucial moments, and has described their support as a key factor in navigating big-match situations. That reliance on close mentors appears to be a deliberate part of how she intends to sustain performance under scrutiny. Those around her are positioned as stabilising influences as she faces heightened attention.

With short-term aims clearly stated, Singh has identified multi-sport events as milestones on her pathway. The Asian Games figure among the targets she is prioritising, and she has also set her sights on the longer-term objective of qualifying for the LA Olympics. Those goals now occupy the foreground of her planning as she balances the immediate aftermath of her world junior success with the next phase of her career.

Anahat’s choice to pause before starting college allows her to formalise priorities and rely on her established support system while managing expectations. Her focus on the Asian Games and the road to the LA Olympics underscores the ambition that followed her historic win, even as she stresses the need to remain grounded and tuned in to the process that produced her breakthrough.