We often talk about who will be PV Sindhu’s successor in the women’s singles for India. The two-time Olympic medallist has taken Indian badminton to new heights in the past few years. This question has ignited hope in the fans that there will be better players in the women’s singles circuit in the future. The spotlight often gravitates to prospects like India’s second top-ranked player in women’s singles, Malvika Bansod, 19-year-old Anupama Upadhyaya, Akarshi Kashyap, or Anmol Kharab. Yet, in between the fanfare and chatter, there exists an emerging talent whose adroitness is quietly evolving—17-year-old Rakshitha Ramraj. Talking about recent events, Rakshitha, on Thursday, made it into the quarterfinals of the Thailand Masters, beating Taiwan’s player Tung Ciou-Tong in straight games. She has played some remarkable badminton over the past year.
Rakshitha played 18 tournaments since 2024
Despite being just 17 years old, she has played 18 tournaments since 2024. The shuttler is continuously gaining points, which helped her to jump at 48th position in the world rankings with 32,020 points. She is closely behind Anupama Upadhyaya (ranked 42 with 35,240 points) and Aakarshi Kashyap (ranked 46 with 33,350 points), while these two have played 22 tournaments so far.
Rakshitha ahead of Anmol Kharb
Anmol Kharb made the headlines when she helped India win the Thomas Cup in 2024, many experts call her the future of Indian badminton, however, Rakshitha Ramraj is much better than her. Anmol currently 18, has played 12 tournaments since 2024, scoring 26,112 points. She is sitting at the 62nd position. Meanwhile, this 17-year-old shuttler is much better with 48th position.
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Four finals in 18 tournaments for Rakshitha
Rakhsitha Ramraj has appeared in four finals in the 18 tournaments she has played, which is very decent. If we compare this with Anupama Upadhyaya or Aakarshi Kashyap, she holds the better record in terms of finals. Anupama has reached two finals in the last 22 tournaments, including the Kazakhstan International Challenge 2024 and the Orlen Polish Open 2024, which she won. Meanwhile, the only final Akarshi played was Uganda International Challenge 2024, where she won the tournament. Rakshitha has won 2 finals and lost 2 finals.
Rakshitha Ramraj since 2024
YEAR / WEEK | TOURNAMENT | RESULT | POINTS |
---|---|---|---|
2025 / 4 | DAIHATSU Indonesia Masters 2025 | 17/32 | 2,220 |
2025 / 3 | YONEX-SUNRISE India Open 2025 | 17/32 | 2,660 |
2024 / 50 | YONEX-SUNRISE Odisha Masters 2024 | 5/8 | 3,030 |
2024 / 48 | Syed Modi India International 2024 | 9/16 | 2,750 |
2024 / 46 | CM TROPHY India International Challenge 2024 | 1 | 4,000 |
2024 / 45 | NMDC – TELANGANA International Challenge 2024 | 2 | 3,400 |
2024 / 44 | Hylo Open 2024 | 5/8 | 3,850 |
2024 / 37 | YONEX-SUNRISE Vietnam Open 2024 | 9/16 | 2,110 |
2024 / 36 | YONEX Taipei Open 2024 | 17/32 | 1,670 |
2024 / 35 | WONDR by BNI Indonesia Masters 2024 | 5/8 | 3,030 |
2024 / 27 | ST DENIS Reunion Open 2024 | 2 | 3,400 |
2024 / 25 | VICTOR Kaohsiung Masters 2024 | 9/16 | 2,110 |
2024 / 20 | I FEEL SLOVENIA LI-NING Open 2024 | 1 | 2,500 |
2024 / 19 | STATE Denmark Challenge 2024 | 17/32 | 920 |
2024 / 13 | TOYOTA International Challenge 2024 | 33/64 | 360 |
2024 / 11 | Vietnam International Challenge 2024 | 9/16 | 1,520 |
2024 / 7 | LI NING Sri Lanka International Series 2024 | 9/16 | 920 |
2024 / 6 | LI NING Sri Lanka International Challenge 2024 | 2 | 3,400 |
A hope for the future
Rakshitha Ramraj is a good prospect to look for. At just the age of 17, she has more tournaments to come, which will serve more opportunities for her; she still has a lot of things to work on. If she keeps going with this pace, soon she can make it into the bigger tournaments, achieving greater heights in the future, She’s definitely one player who can do well in the coming years.
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