Joshna Chinappa: 'I was encouraged to quit' but will compete at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games
Joshna Chinappa told The Hindu on September 24, 2026 that she had been encouraged to stop playing after knee injuries but is competing at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, taking part in the women's team event and mixed doubles.
At 40, Chinappa is making her seventh Asian Games appearance — the article states she is the first Indian sportsperson to reach seven Asiad participations — and remains active nearly 24 years after her debut in Busan in 2002. She is a five-time Asian Games medallist, a winner of 11 PSA Tour titles and is listed at World No. 73, behind teammates Anahat Singh (World No. 17) and Tanvi Khanna (World No. 71).
Chinappa is entered only in the women's team and mixed doubles in Aichi-Nagoya, pairing with Velavan Senthilkumar in mixed doubles. Seeded third in mixed doubles, the Velavan–Joshna pair received a bye and will face the Indian duo of Suraj Chand and Shameena Riaz in the round of 16. In the women's team event, India are the No. 3 seeds in Pool C alongside Japan, China and Iran, with Anahat Singh, Tanvi Khanna and Shameena Riaz named as Chinappa's teammates.
She described adjustments to her preparation while underlining the longevity of her career and the breadth of players she has faced on the PSA World Tour. The article notes her career has overlapped with three generations of elite players and that many of her contemporaries — Nicol David (43), Laura Massaro (42), Jenny Duncalf (43), Alison Waters (42) and Annie Au (37) — have retired. Saurav Ghosal is quoted as saying: "First and foremost, she really, really loves the game. She’s immensely talented, but she has also worked tirelessly on every aspect of her game to remain at the top for as long as she has. I hope that she comes back from the Asian Games with quite a few gold medals."
Reflecting on her Asiad career, Chinappa singled out 2018 as her strongest performance, saying: "Performance-wise, 2018 would probably be the best I played (singles bronze and silver in women’s team)." She also recalled a memory from her first Games in Busan in 2002 when hockey great Dhanraj Pillay told her she "had to be in my India clothing," adding: "It’s something we should always be proud of."
On reaching the top 10 of the PSA rankings for the first time, Chinappa recalled the effort involved in returning from injury: "The top 10 is a special place. It took a lot of effort, especially coming back from my ACL surgery, and years of work with my team." She listed top opponents from that period, including Nour El Sherbini, Raneem El Welily, Nouran Gohar, Camille Serme and Laura Massaro, and discussed the significance of competing with and beating players of that calibre.
Chinappa recounted her Japan Open victory in 2025, which ended a decade-long gap between Tour titles. "I didn’t expect to win in Japan. It felt great to win after ages, especially since I beat girls who were in their early 20s and were ranked way higher than me," she said, adding: "The difference now is that I am a lot more relaxed towards competing and I am more performance-oriented than result-focused."
She outlined the two serious knee procedures that threatened her career and the steps she took to return. "I tore my ACL on the right knee in 2011 and was out of the game for a year. I was encouraged to quit playing and get into coaching. I had no financial support but I moved to Bombay (Mumbai) and worked with a really good Egyptian physio and trainer — Ahmed Youssef. When I got back to playing, coach Ritwik Bhattacharya helped me," Chinappa said. She added: "And in 2023, during the last Asian Games, I found that there was no cartilage in my right knee and it also needed a surgery. But I did the surgery more for quality of life as it was painful to do basic things like driving, getting out of bed comfortably and jogging. My surgeon, Dr. Jagdeesh, who did my ACL surgery, also did my cartilage surgery and told me that I would be able to compete again. So I moved to Bengaluru and worked with Yash Pandey at Peak Performance. I got back on court after five months of rehab. I decided to train and play for a couple more years to see if I could play the Asian Games."
Chinappa credited her family and support team for sustaining her career, saying: "The main reason I am able to still compete today is my parents. My team, including my coach, strength and conditioning trainer, physios, nutritionist and sports psychologist, has been amazing." She also noted her continued objective at Aichi-Nagoya: "We have a strong team and yes, it would be great to win another medal. I have always taken my matches one at a time, so I am as prepared as I can be."
