Anupama Upadhyaya is an Indian badminton player. She is known for winning many laurels at a very young age. In September 2022, Anupama became the second Indian shuttler in the under-19 girls singles category to win the top title in the latest BWF Junior rankings.
Wiki/Biography
Anupama Upadhyaya was born on Saturday, 12 February 2005 (age 17 years; as of 2022) in New Delhi, India. Initially, Anupama Upadhyaya’s father, Naveen Upadhyaya, took her for Badminton training at the Yamuna Sports Complex, New Delhi, during her vacations. Anupama and her family, originally from Almora of Uttarakhand, visited Almora during her school holidays, where she met coach D K Sen, father of the 2021 world championship bronze medallist Lakshya Sen. Subsequently, Anupama decided to train under coach D K sen for the following three years, until 2018. Later, Coach D K Sen shifted to Bengaluru, following which Anupama and her mother relocated to Panchkula, Haryana for the next eighteen months, where they resided in a rented apartment. In Panchkula, Anupama participated in various district-level and national-level badminton championships before moving to Bengaluru. In Bangaluru, Anupama started her training at the Prakash Padukone Academy.
A picture of Anupama Upadhyaya when she was ten years old
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 7″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Anupama Upadhyaya
Family
Anupama Upadhyaya’s family originally belonged to the Khanuli (Masi) village of Chaukhutia tehsil area of Almora district.
Parents & Siblings
Anupama Upadhyaya’s father, Naveen Upadhyaya, served as a Delhi police sub-inspector; however, in March 2020, he resigned and shifted to Bangaluru to focus on Anupama’s Badminton career. In an interview, Naveen Upadhyaya talked about this and said,
We have now completely shifted from Delhi to Bengaluru. I was in Delhi Police but I resigned in March 2020 as a sub-inspector to focus on my daughter’s badminton career. We have taken a flat on rent near PPBA. Staying together will provide her mental support. She won’t have to worry about anything if we are close to her. We want to see our daughter represent the senior Indian team one day in the Olympics.”
Anupama Upadhyaya’s father
Anupama Upadhyaya with her mother
Anupama has a younger sister.
Anupama Upadhyaya’s image with her younger sister
Career
In 2016, Anupama Upadhyaya won her first national-level tournament in the U-13 category in the national singles and doubles event at Vijayawada. Then in 2018, she made her international debut by participating in the Asian Junior Badminton Championships held in Myanmar. Anupama Upadhyaya reached the quarter-finals in the tournament. In 2019, she participated in the next edition of the Asian Junior Badminton Championships. In the Badminton tournament, Anupama reached the quarter-finals. The same year, she won a bronze medal in the BAI U-19 nationals held in Bengaluru, India. In 2019, she won the U-15 national singles title in Orissa. In a media interview, she talked about her Badminton career and said,
I started playing badminton as a leisure activity and it was not before I shifted to Almora to train under DK Sen sir that I thought about playing it professionally. Whenever Lakshya Sen bhaiya would visit Almora, I would take tips from him too. In 2018, when Sen sir shifted to Bengaluru, I shifted to Panchkula for 18 months staying at a rented accommodation with my mother. Reaching the quarters in the Asian Junior Championship in 2019 was a motivating moment in my career.”
In 2020, Anupama Upadhyaya relocated to Bangaluru to attain her Badminton training from the Prakash Padukone Academy. subsequently, in 2021, Anupama participated in the Infosys Foundation India Open International challenge tournament. In the tournament, she clinched a gold medal.
Anupama Upadhyaya during her match in the 2020 Infosys Foundation India Open International challenge tournament
In 2022, she participated in the Syed Modi International Super 300. Anupama reached the semi-finals in the tournament.
Anupama Upadhyaya during her match in the Syed Modi International Super 300
The same year, she won the Uganda Junior Open tournament. In the competition, Anupama Upadhyaya scored a 17-21, 21-14, and 21-17 win over Aditi Bhatt to win the title while she scored a win over Meghna Reddy to claim the title in the Uganda Junior Open. In an interview, she talked about the Uganda Junior Open Tournament and said,
Post-pandemic, I stayed in Delhi for some time and would focus on improving my fitness. Winning the Infosys Open title last year made me believe that my training has been going well. To win the title in Poland was a special moment. I am now aiming to do well in Nagpur International Challenge and Raipur International Challenge apart from Vietnam Open, a BWF Super 100 event. At the academy, coach Vimal Kumar sir makes us work on increasing the shuttle speed like Saina Nehwal didi and PV Sindhu didi.”
In March 2022, she won the maiden seniors title at the Polish Open Tournament, held in Poland, Europe.
Medals
- In 2019, Anupama Upadhyaya won a bronze medal in the U-15 Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior Grand Prix in Indonesia.
- In 2021, Anupama Upadhyaya won a bronze medal in the Bahrain International Series.
- In 2021, Anupama Upadhyaya won a gold medal at the Infosys Foundation India Open International challenge tournament.
Anupama Upadhyaya after winning a gold medal in the Infosys Foundation India Open International challenge tournament
- In 2022, Anupama Upadhyaya won a gold medal in the Polish Open International Challenge Tournament.
Anupama Upadhyaya after winning a gold medal in the Polish Open International Challenge Tournament
- In 2022, Anupama Upadhyaya won a gold medal at Uganda Junior International Tournament.
Anupama Upadhyaya after winning a gold medal in the Uganda International challenge 2022
Favourites
Facts/Trivia
- At the age of nine, Anupama Upadhyaya started playing badminton. Initially, Anupama played badminton as a leisure activity, but after receiving training from Coach DK Sen, father of World Championship bronze medalist Lakshya Sen, she started playing badminton professionally.
- Anupama Upadhyaya idolizes Tai Tzu-Ying, the Taiwanese badminton player who won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
- In September 2022, Anupama Upadhyaya ranked first in the World Junior Rankings released by Badminton World Federation. She also became the sixth Indian and second Indian female player to claim the first rank with 18.060 points in 18 tournaments in the BWF world junior ranking. In an interview, she talked about this and said,
It’s a great feeling to see my name at the top of the BWF world junior rankings and this will motivate me for the senior career as well. Competing in the junior circuit means a lot for me and the coming years will be a transition period for me from junior to senior level. It will be a challenging phase for me as I need to work on my speed and court movement to excel in the senior circuit too. But this moment is special too for me and my coaches.”
- Anupama Upadhyaya follows a non-vegetarian diet. ((YouTube
- In a media interview, Anupama said that apart from playing badminton, she likes playing table tennis in her leisure time.
- Her hobbies include dancing, watching Korean dramas, and photography.