India's finest sportspersons: Then and now

India has produced several world class athletes over the past few decades. From Viswanathan Anand to Leander Paes, these athletes have consistently excelled at the sport that they love, making their country proud time and again. If Sachin Tendulkar is the grand ‘old’ man of Indian cricket, there are several other versions of him from other sports in India.But you will be surprised to see the transformation of these sporting legends, from their budding years to the present day. On that note, here are five childhood images of Indian sportspersons, alongside pictures of how they look today:

#1 Saina Nehwal

Saina Nehwal is currently ranked number three in the world

India’s first ever medal winner in badminton at the Olympics, Saina Nehwal has most definitely staked her claim as one of the finest athletes India has ever produced. The 24-year old is ranked number three in the world.

Her talent was hailed from a young age, and she won gold at the junior world championship in 2008. She medalled at the Commonwealth Youth Games at the age of just 14 in 2004, before winning gold four years later.

Nehwal has also won several tour events including the Hong Kong Super Series, China Open and the Swiss Open.

#2 Leander Paes

Leander Paes has consistently proved he is one of India’s finest

If there is any international representation for Indian tennis in the past couple of decades, it’s thanks to this man. The 41-year old turned professional in 1991 and has amassed over $8 million in prize money in a career, which has spanned over two decades.

During his formative years, Paes’ highlight performance was at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He defeated Brazil’s Fernanado Meligeni to secure QIndia’s first individual medal in 44 years, since K D Jadhav.

He recently won grand-slam number 15, pairing up with Martina Hingis of Switzerland to lift the Australian Open title.

#3 Viswanathan Anand

Viswanathan Anand has been playing chess for 26 years

In 1988, at the age of 18, Viswanathan Anand became the youngest Grand Master in India. Now, 27 years on, he is still fighting for the honour to be number one against competitors, half his age.

Currently ranked number sixth in the world, Anand held the World number one ranking for four years (2007, 2008, 2010, 2011). He even held the FIDE World Chess Championship from 2000 to 2002. He is also one of the eight players to break the 2800 mark in the FIDE Ranking list.

Most recently, Anand lost the 2014 World Chess Championship to Magnus Carlsen, 6.5-4.5.

#4 Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza has retired from the singles format of tennis, but she continues to excel in doubles

From 2003 till the point she retired from singles in 2013, Mirza was India’s highest ranked tennis player. In August 2007, Mirza reached a career-high ranking of 27 in the world. However, injuries forced the 28-year old to switch to doubles.

Her doubles career has been terrific, to say the least, especially the mixed event. Apart from Wimbeldon, Mirza has won every other Grand Slam. She has reached the quarter-finals of Wimbeldon in 2011 and 2013.

In 2014, she also won gold at the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. A silver medal in the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games also highlighted her performances from the multi-discipline events.

#5 Bhaichung Bhutia

Even though the Sikkimese striker has retired from professional football, his legacy still remains. Bhutia retired in 2013, after playing just three games for his last club, United Sikkim FC, which he incidentally owns as well.

With 107 caps, Bhutia is Indias most capped player and 42 goals puts him second on the goal scoring list, only behind Sunil Chhetri, who has 45. Bhutia also became only the second player in Indias history to ply his trade abroad at that point.

His stint with Bury FC might have only been for three seasons, but Bhutia definitely rewrote Indian football history.