Tanvi Sharma’s hard-fought silver at Guwahati BWF World Juniors signals bright future

Guwahati, Oct 20: The Centre of Excellence here was bursting at its seams on Sunday, with chants echoing through the packed stands as home favourite Tanvi Sharma stepped onto the court for the BWF World Junior Championships final. The 16-year-old from India, ranked World Junior No. 2, carried the weight of a city’s hopes on her young shoulders.

But despite the electrifying atmosphere and expectations, Tanvi fell short of the coveted gold, losing 7-15, 12-15 to Thailand’s Anyapat Phichitpreechasak. The result, however, did not dim the brightness of her achievement – a silver medal on home soil.

“I mean, silver is a great achievement,” Tanvi said, her voice steady yet reflective. “Of course, I am very happy I won the silver medal at my home ground – it means a lot to me.”

The Hoshiarpur girl admitted that the pressure of the occasion and the sight of the jam-packed arena did play on her mind. “I was confident, but a little nervous when I entered the court. There was so much crowd… but it’s okay,” she confessed. “From the start, I made a lot of mistakes. In the second game, I did manage to play my strokes, but once again I ended up making errors after 8-5. My coach told me to keep playing, and I did that, but she (Anyapat) was reading my strokes very well.”

Tanvi’s run to the final had been nothing short of impressive – marked by her aggressive play and composure against some of the best juniors in the world. Sunday’s defeat, though painful, added another layer of maturity to her young career.

“Today was a hard day, but overall it’s been a very good, positive campaign,” she said. “I think I’ve learned how to take life when we are down. We have to stay cool – we can always come back, even when we’re behind.”

Asked what lies ahead, Tanvi smiled and replied, “I’ll rest for a few days and then get ready for another tournament – the Asian Youth Games in Bahrain.”

For the home crowd, the gold may have slipped away, but as Tanvi waved to the cheering fans with her silver medal glinting under the lights, it felt like a moment of pride nonetheless – the rise of a young star who has already begun to make her mark on the world stage.