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| Human Interest | |
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General Interest | |
| Other information | DOUBLES PARTNER RETURN After winning silver together in women's doubles at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia, her doubles partner Dipika Karthik took an extended break from the sport in order to start a family. The pair returned to competition at the 2022 World Doubles Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, where they claimed the women's doubles title. "Dipika worked very hard on her fitness to get back on court. The first day we met and played [after her return to training], it was as though she hasn't been anywhere. Dipika is a naturally very good doubles player as well. She makes my life on court better. For me, the reason I've extended my career this long is to play the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games for 2022. The preparation has started two years in advance. All with the aim to be fit and to win medals." (Instagram profile, 10 Apr 2022; timesofindia.indiatimes.com, 03 Apr 2022; sportstar.thehindu.com, 24 Mar 2022, 09 Feb 2022) ADAPTING HER TRAINING In 2022 she spoke about how she has adapted her training in her mid-30s in order to keep pace with the younger generation of players. "The game has become a lot faster, players are so much fitter and the depth of the women's game has increased tremendously. So obviously I have had to adapt and keep changing things up, whether it's with my physical training or on court work. The tour is really strong right now with the girls being really fit and strong physically, so, it's been important for me to train correctly and look after my body, especially as I get older. I work with an amazing team in the UK on my strength and conditioning and that has helped me get a lot fitter in recent years. Not that I wasn't putting the work in before but it has gone up a few notches. Staying fit and injury free is the most important aspect for any player." (timesofindia.indiatimes.com, 03 Apr 2022; sportageous.co, 21 Mar 2022) CAREER CHANGING INJURY The knee injury she suffered in 2011 changed her outlook on the sport. "I feel the knee surgery was the best thing that could have happened to me. It changed everything about my life, whether it was the company I kept or the way I approached my game. It was like starting my career from scratch after being on the couch for six months." (asianage.com, 28 Apr 2014) |
| Injuries | A knee injury in August 2022 caused her to miss a number of World Tour events. She returned to competition in December 2022 at the National Championships in Chennai, India. (sportstar.thehindu.com, 25 Dec 2022) An illness caused her to miss the 2022 World Championships in Cairo, Egypt. (sportstar.thehindu.com, 25 Dec 2022) She suffered a serious knee injury in 2011 that required surgery. The injury kept her out of action for six months. (asianage.com, 28 Apr 2014) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete |
| Languages | English, Hindi |
General Interest | |
| Hobbies | Playing sports, travel, watching television, spending time with her dog Zara. (psaworldtour.com, 07 May 2022; sportageous.co, 21 Mar 2022; indulgexpress.com, 01 Apr 2022) |
| Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs | "At the beginning of the match, I have to hit my first shot on the backhand side." (indulgexpress.com, 01 Apr 2022) |
| Milestones | She became the first Indian player to win an Asian championship title when she claimed victory at the 2017 edition of the tournament in Chennai, India. In 2014 she and Dipilka Karthik became the first Indian squash players to win gold at the Commonwealth Games when they triumphed in doubles in Glasgow, Scotland. (hindustantimes.com, 30 Apr 2017; thebridge.in, 24 Mar 2018; SportsDeskOnline, 13 Jun 2018) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Training Regime | She trains for up to four hours a day, six days a week. She begins training in the morning by playing squash, followed by a fitness and gym session. |
General Interest | |
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "Be passionate about what you do, work really hard and never give up." (indulgexpress.com, 01 Apr 2022) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Residence | Chennai, IND |
| Higher education | English Literature - Ethiraj College: Chennai, IND |
General Interest | |
| Famous relatives | Her family has been playing squash for the previous four generations. Her great-grandfather Field Marshall KM Cariappa, who was also the first Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army, was a regular player of squash, and her father Anjan Chinappa also played squash regularly and represented Tamil Nadu several times. (mapsofindia.com, 03 Feb 2014) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | Her father encouraged her to play squash. "He is my inspiration and he introduced me to the sport when I was a kid at the Madras Cricket Club. I owe taking the sport up seriously to him. I come from an army family with my great granduncle, granduncles and grandfather all serving the country. Squash is a popular sport in the army, so many people in my family played squash. I played tennis, badminton and squash growing up, but my folks made me decide on one sport and I chose squash because I had the most fun playing it." |
General Interest | |
| Hero / Idol | US basketball player Michael Jordan, Indian sprinter PT Usha, Egyptian squash players Nour El Sherbini and Raneem El Weleily. (wispa.net, 07 Jun 2007; sports.indiainfo.com, 22 Nov 2009; sportageous.co, 21 Mar 2022) |
| Ambitions | To win a medal in women's doubles at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, People's Republic of China. After she retires from the sport, she wants to work with children. (indulgexpress.com, 01 Apr 2022; sportstar.thehindu.com, 24 Mar 2022; sportageous.co, 21 Mar 2022) |
| Awards and honours | In 2018 she received the Asian Squash Federation's Dato Alex Lee Award for outstanding performance in the senior women's category. (timesofindia.indiatimes.com, 20 Mar 2018) In February 2018 she was presented with the Sports Achiever Award by the Rotary Club of Madras in Chennai, India. (thehindu.com, 06 Feb 2018) In 2013 she received the Arjuna Award from the Indian government. (mid-day.com, 31 Aug 2013) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | Chris Walker [national], ENG |
| Handedness | Right |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She began playing squash at age seven. |