Anupama Upadhyaya - a story of grit, determination, and prodigious success

“Make her play badminton and I will support her and make her a champion.” These were the words from renowned badminton coach DK Sen to Anupama Upadhyaya’s father Naveen, a former cricketer.

Naveen was of the conviction that sports have more scope than studies and that’s how he pushed his kids to take up sports from a young age itself. Anupama initially started with swimming until Naveen enrolled her in a summer camp in their hometown of Almora, Uttarakhand, at the age of nine in 2014.

That’s when the young girl caught the attention of DK Sen, a former Sports Authority of India coach and also the father of India’s current emerging shuttler Lakshya Sen. Ahead of the camp, Anumpama had no clue what badminton was apart from having heard the name of Saina Nehwal.

So what impressed coach Sen about the nine-year-old kid? It was simply her determination as Anupama Upadhyaya went down memory lane to recall how rigorously she would train. She recounted her father waking her up at 4 AM to understand the basics like tossing up the shuttle, dropping it beneath the net, setting an action, and working on the wrist position.

The coach was of the opinion that a lot of hard yards were required because she started a bit late since kids usually start around the age of 5-6.

“I was more focused because he (DK Sen) used to tell me you are late, and you need to catch up early. That's all you can do right now. So I did that only. And I think he saw my determination and how focused I am during the game, training and all,” Anupama told Sportskeeda in an exclusive interaction.

In September 2022, Anupama Upadhyaya attained the World No.1 ranking in the BWF Juniors in the women’s singles category. Even before this, the Almora-born prodigy had already announced her talent on the international stage with a couple of titles - India International Challenge (Bengaluru, 2021) and Polish Open (Arlamow, 2022).

Fast forward to October 2023, the 18-year-old accounted for two national titles - Senior National Championships and National Games - along with the Tajikistan International Series 2023. She has already broken into the top 100 in the world rankings and further aims to intensify her game in a bid to enter the top 50 with the sole purpose of playing at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“Earlier whenever I used to play games and if there was a long lead, I used to give that set only. But now I fight for each and every point and I don’t see the scores. That’s something that has helped me in these tournaments recently, whichever I have played,” Anupama mentions about her technical shift in game plan and tactics.

“My fighting spirit has improved and my aggression as well. My warm-up has improved, now whenever I start the match, I start aggressively with long rallies,” she added.

In December 2017, at the age of 12, Anupama Upadhyaya moved to Haryana’s Panchkula after Naveen quit his job in Delhi Police and took the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) to enter the business of property management. Consequently, the teenager was influenced to switch her state association from Uttarakhand to Haryana. She then trained under coach Rohit Mandhan at the Tau Devi Lal Badminton Hall in Panchkula.

Riding on the momentum of her brilliant winning spree at the sub-junior levels, Anupama Upadhyaya got the opportunity to train at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy in Bengaluru in early 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Anupama Upadhyaya loses dear family member in Covid-19 times

Just a few months after the Upadhyaya family shifted to the Karnataka capital, the Covid-19 virus forced everyone to stay behind closed doors. Barring Anupama and her younger sister, everyone in their family contracted the contagious virus.

To make matters worse, her parents weren’t present in Bengaluru. The responsibility shifted to Anupama, the oldest among three siblings. Stranger to the city at the most troublesome of times, the young shuttler broke down after her grandmother passed away.

“My dad had Covid and he was admitted into a hospital. My mom lost her father, so I along with my brother and younger sister were only there. Only me and my younger sister tested negative with my brother also getting Covid. I was the one taking care of my grandmother and I don’t know what suddenly happened to her and she was hospitalized. After two-three days they told me that she was no more,” the emotional teenager narrated the torrid period three years ago.

“I was a bit sad because she was always there for me in my starting journey. Sometimes my dad used to scold me and tell me you are not playing this stroke properly. My grandmother would tell me not to listen to him and just go to your sessions. I would sleep with her and she would tell me this (badminton) is the only thing you have. Now you have to become a good player like Saina and Sindhu,” she added.

Anupama Upadhyay presents every one of her medals in front of her late grandmother’s photograph to commemorate the valuable life lessons she passed on to her eldest grandchild.

A strong bond with Lakshya bhaiya and following the footsteps of Sindhu didi

Born in a Brahmin family, Anupama strictly followed a vegetarian diet even while playing age-group tournaments. Despite her father’s admonishment for not having chicken to gain muscle strength, the player refused to adhere to the notion. Anupama’s childhood inspiration Lakshya Sen, who also hails from Almora, stepped in.

The world championships bronze medallist took his fellow shuttler to one of the popular fast-food chains for non-vegetarian food and soon the consumption pattern saw a turnaround. Not just Anupama but her younger sister has also been influenced by Lakshya Sen’s move.

“It was because of Lakshya bhaiya only because he took me to KFC and told me you start eating these all. Then I started eating chicken and then I was like… Yeah this is tasty only and not that bad,” she explained how changes in her food consumption changed.

“Because of me only my younger sister started having non-veg. She likes it a lot. Everytime I order chicken malai tikka…. She is like I want to have four pieces, not more or less than that,” Anupama added.

Anupama Upadhyaya made her debut at the recently concluded Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China. She was part of the women’s team event, where she rallied past Mongolia’s Khulangoo Baatar 21-0, 21-2 in an utterly lopsided contest. The 18-year-old didn’t miss the opportunity to pick the brains of established international players PV Sindhu and South Korea’s An Se-Young.

It was a great moment for Anupama to spend time with her idol in the camp. Naveen always cites the example of Sindhu’s resilience when his daughter doesn’t match her own expectations on the court.

“When I lost in Bareilly in the quarter-finals, my dad said it’s ok. Even Sindhu dii lost so many matches in the first/second round and now she is playing two semi-final matches continuously," the recently crowned National Games medalist revealed.

"My dad told me to look at her… She is still fighting even though she is losing. Because she fought that’s why she is playing semifinals continuously and now she is again in top 10. That thing helps me a lot during the national games,” she added.

What’s next for Anupama Upadhyaya?

Anupama Upadhyay wants to break into the top 50 BWF rankings in women’s singles to chase her dream of playing at the Olympic Games, likely in the Los Angeles edition in 2028. She will next participate in the Bahrain International Challenge scheduled between November 14 and 19.

On the academic front, the Haryana-based player completed her 12th standard this year with an arts background and will enroll for Bachelor of Arts (BA) with Honors in English and simultaneously push her international career.