Unnati Hooda is turning heads as she goes from playing in parks to defeating India's biggest badminton star PV Sindhu

17-year-old Unnati Hooda created headlines on Thursday, July 24, by defeating double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu in the pre-quarterfinals of the China Open 2025. The youngster, who hails from a small village in Haryana, won the thrilling match 21-16, 19-21, 21-13, marking the biggest victory of her career so far.

Even though Hooda failed to progress past the quarterfinal stage, where she suffered a crushing straight-set defeat against two-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, she caught the eyeballs of many in India. She had just defeated the best badminton player in the country.

Who is Unnati Hooda and how her badminton career began

According to Hindustan Times, Unnati grew up in Haryana, where her love for badminton began at just 7 years old. She first played street badminton with her father and in the nearby park. Seeing her interest and talent, her father decided to get her professionally trained under coach Parvesh Kumar in Rohtak’s Chhotu Ram Stadium in 2014.

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Unnati’s first major win came at the U-11 level, after which her father started taking her career seriously. He quit his job and to accompany her to tournaments. Unnati started winning local tournaments, then district and state events. She went on to win the U-13 and U-15 national championships in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

From admiring PV Sindhu to beating her at the biggest of stages

Unnati revealed in an interview in 2022 that her biggest inspiration was PV Sindhu, and now she has defeated her idol in an international match. “PV Sindhu is my role model and just like her, I want to win a medal for my country at the international level one day,” she was quoted as saying by HT.  

In 2022, Unnati shocked everyone by winning the Odisha Open Super 100, becoming the youngest Indian ever to win a BWF World Tour Super 100 title. She beat top players like Malvika Bansod and Samiya Farooqui on her way to the trophy.

That win also got her a place in the Uber Cup squad, where she eventually got to train and travel with Sindhu. When Unnati finally got the chance to play her Idol for the first time in 2024, she lost badly. But the teenager stunned everyone by beating Sindhu at the China Open 2025.