Unnati Hooda was only 14 years when she won her first BWF title, the Odisha Open Super 100 tournament back in 2022. She was subsequently a part of India's Uber Cup and Asian Games squad, before the pandemic delayed the tournament.
Three years later, she is in the middle of her first proper BWF World Tour season, playing the biggest names in the game in major international competitions. From world No. 1 An Se Young to world No. 2 Wang Zhi Yi (whom she took a game off in her last competition), 17-year-old Hooda is getting hands-on experience of the grind of the badminton tour, at the biggest arenas of a tournament. Now ranked at a career high of world No 37, Unnati is fast learning the tricks of the trade at the very top level.
"I've played so many tournaments this year and got a lot of experience," she tells ESPN. "I learned many things like adaptability, having to make plans according to different opponents and their games, adjust ourselves to the conditions of the tournament, the court conditions and drift."
At her age, it's the experience of being in the thick of things that counts more than results and she's shown that with a solid show in the Asia leg across May-June. She reached the semifinals at the Taipei Open in May, before losing to Tomoka Miyazaki, who is arguably the most highly-rated teenager on tour. After a training block back home in Rohtak, Haryana, Unnati is raring to go after all the lessons she has learned.
The biggest takeaway for her so far has been adaptability. "I have to adjust to court conditions... like in Singapore [where she took the first game against Wang] the conditions were totally different after the side change, so I had to adapt to the situation... when to increase the pace and when to slow down the pace." This adjustment was a lesson learnt the hard way against China's top player and is clearly something she is working on improving.
Unnati's game style is very attacking - one where she likes to keep the points on her racquet and go for her shots, with all the fearlessness of her age. She says she has transformed into a more risk-taking player when she came onto international senior circuit, starting off at the famous-for-wrestling Chotu Ram Stadium in Haryana, before being coached full-time by her father Upakar Hooda at the Hooda Badminton Academy, which they have established at home.
Her sort of style can be a double-edged sword in the current landscape of women's singles, which is leaning towards longer rallies and intense defence, and she is aware of this. The balance between both is something she is working on. "Yeah sometimes, like in the last five points, I have to stay like a bit more patient. If I play without thinking it will go out, so I have to control myself... sometimes it's pay off and sometimes it doesn't."
That's an insightful analysis of her own game from the teenager who seems to have a good grasp of badminton basics and where she wants her game to be. She shared this with an example of playing the best player in the world and how their games differ in intent.
"I had the opportunity to play An Se Young in the Orleans Masters and saw how she never gives up a shuttle on court, she picks each and every shuttle and she has a very good retrieval. She has a different game plan... I have a different style, that's attacking. For me, I think there should be a mix of both. But I have to think when to attack and when to play patiently till the right time comes. We should have both, I have to change my plan so I'm not only picking one thing."
At 17 years of age, one of the basic foundations to finding this balance on court is physicality. As PV Sindhu has shown, attacking intent has to be backed by elite fitness to stay at the top. The teenager has to condition her body for long matches - with an hour being the average length of games these days - as well as build muscle power for her smashes, much like Sindhu's fierce winners.
This is currently taken care of by the Reliance Foundation, who looks after her sports science needs with a physio, strength and conditioning trainer and nutrition which helps in recovery. Mentally too, she has been working to build up and feel like she belongs on the biggest stages. "I have my psychologist who is working with me, that's also from Reliance Foundation. So, she's helping me when I have to play big matches. I just keep in my mind that I have also worked hard and deserve to be there playing in the same competition. So, I have to just stay there and keep focused and just play one point at a time."
Once again, her thoughts show a maturity beyond her age which explains why she is knocking on the door of the Top 32 already. While she has transitioned to the senior circuit, Unnati hopes to play BWF World Junior Championships at home - to be held in Guwahati later this year. "I might play the trial for World Junior since it's happening in India. Also, it's the last chance I have to play the junior and then I'll be senior from next year."
In a year when Indian badminton has little to cheer from the top tier, it's the young bench strength that has risen to occasion to show their growth. This second rung is even more eagerly awaited in women's singles, where there has been a long void since the teen Sindhu took the torch from Saina Nehwal.
Unnati Hooda is part of that unit that can fill in the void and a plyer to watch out for in the next few years for Indian badminton.