Unnati Hooda is only 17 years old, still a junior in her first proper season on the BWF World Tour, still learning to adapt to the different conditions on badminton's biggest courts. Opposite her is PV Sindhu, a legend whose career at the top of the game spans 13 years, one who has conquered some of the biggest peaks in the sport. It's a clash of generations for Indian badminton. A clash for a place in the quarterfinals of a Super 1000 event.
This was supposed to be one-sided: after all, the last time they played, in November 2024, Sindhu won with ease, a senior making a statement. All the odds are against the youngster...except Unnati Hooda doesn't play the odds. In a performance that defied expectations and a mentality that belied her age, Unnati beat the great Sindhu 21-16, 19-21, 21-13 at the China Open Super 1000.
It turned out to be quite a resounding win and could well end up being a seminal moment for Indian badminton.
Sindhu had come into the match off one of her best wins of the year, beating rising star and 6th seed Tomoko Miyazaki in the first round, and looked sharp at the start of the match. But she was worn down by Unnati's sharp strokes, dogged defence and remarkable resolve. In an earlier conversation with ESPN, Unnati had spoken about learning to adapt on the big courts being a big goal, and that's exactly what she did at the Olympics Sports Centre Gymnasium.
There were no signs of nerves from the youngster in what was an intense battle, both in terms of the game and the vibes. Sindhu was locked in, celebrating vocally with an aura that ought to have intimidated a young Indian who had grown up watching her. But Unnati was unfazed, putting aside the errors and conversations with umpires over line calls, to be focussed on her next point and keep putting the proverbial one extra shuttle back.
In the first game, both Indians were close, but Unnati had a slight edge throughout and went into the interval with an 11-9 lead. Post this, Sindhu levelled up with a forceful display but her recent tendency (which is fast becoming a huge flaw) of line misjudgement let her down repeatedly. She kept hitting long and wide, and Unnati capitalised on these faults with superb strokeplay.
From 13-13, Unnati built a solid lead of 17-14 and then went on a tear to have 6 game points. Sindhu saved two but it was a matter of time before the youngster had the advantage. It was a just reward for her confidence and court coverage is such a tense match.
The second game saw a much better show from Sindhu, who seemed to understand the drift and control the shuttle. There were more long rallies with good stroke play from both ends.
She cleaned up her errors and went for big sweeping winners to wrong foot Unnati. From a tight start, the veteran edged ahead at the interval at 11-8. Sindhu being vocal in winning points, upping her aggression and reducing her line errors.
The line calls were a contentious point in the match, with frequent delay due to challenges. At a crucial point, 16-16 in the second, Unnati was convinced Sindhu had overhit but had no challenges remaining. Her long discussion with the umpire yielded no results but she regrouped well to take the game to the wire at 19-19 after getting into lead multiple times.
What followed were two highlight reel worthy points as Sindhu pulled off two fantastic winners after testing rallies. It was a peak Sindhu sequence, as she kept getting to the shuttle and then delivered the killer blow - wrong footing her opponent and placing a wonderful winner.
This could have been the moment where it all caught up with Unnati... the pressure of a decider after having the edge, the court presence of a dialled-in Sindhu. Instead, Unnati reset mentally and showed her big-game nous with a terrific third game.
SHE HAS DONE IT AND HOW! �� �� ��
17-year-old Unnati Hooda defeats PV Sindhu in their Round-of-16 clash at the BWF China Open Super 1000 ��
➡️ Read here for full results: https://t.co/XSjwku7hzl pic.twitter.com/X282k3ZVvd
- ESPN India (@ESPNIndia) July 24, 2025
In the decider, from the side where Sindhu erred more often, the teenager amassed a big lead and went into the interval 11-6. The veteran continued spraying errors and was down 6-13, staring at a lopsided game. Sindhu recovered from the other side and was trying to reduce the gap to 15-12 when a slightly restless Unnati dropped three straight points.
And then, from 17-13, Unnati grabbed the momentum after a correct challenge and went on to win five straight points to win the match. An angled smash, a forced long shot from Sindhu, a one-two cross court punch winner and the 17-year-old had done it.
The story of the match was in how Unnati closed out points in the tight moments, a skill which has been a work in progress. "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," she had told ESPN in June.
From there to winning the last five points of this match in succession is a solid proof of Unnati's growth this year. She has played the world's top two players in An Se Young and Wang Zhi Yi this year and spoken about what she learnt in those losses. She's now beaten her country's greatest ever player in a three-game battle, using all the things she had learned.
Up next, another veteran and legend in 3rd seed Akane Yamaguchi for a place in the semifinals of a Super 1000. Unnati, as her name says, is making great progress in her first full season.