NEW DELHI: In the past three months, 14-year-old table tennis star Divyanshi Bhowmick has made a huge leap forward. She is now aiming for the Youth World Championships in Romania this November.
Divyanshi recently did something very unique in the history of Indian table tennis:
Historic Asian Title: In July 2025, she became the first Indian in 36 years to win the U-15 girls’ singles continental title at the Asian Youth Table Tennis Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
In a shocking turn of events, she beat Zhu Qihi of China in the final with a score of 4-2 (13-11, 11-8, 8-11, 12-10, 9-11, 11-8). Most importantly, she beat Chinese players in both the quarter-finals and the semi-finals, which is a huge accomplishment for an Indian paddler. This was a big step forward for her personally, since she had lost to the Chinese quarter-finalist and semi-finalist in the prior.
A Strategy Pays Off: Divyanshi said that her analytical approach helped her win by realizing that her quarter-final opponent, Yang Huize, “was not particularly strong at the center,” which she took advantage of. She said she was most nervous about the semi-final, but she thought she was ready.
S. Bhuvaneswari was the last Indian to win the Asian youth title, which he did in 1989.
Recent Success and Goals for the World Championship
following winning in Tashkent, she swiftly won another title at the 2025 WTT Youth Star Contender in Skopje, Macedonia. There, she and Ananya Muralidharan won the U-15 doubles gold following a close 3-2 win over Zhao Wangqi and Liu Ziling of China in the final.
Divyanshi is currently ranked World No. 3 (U-15) and is ready for her next challenge in Romania:
“There’s no fear,” she said, adding that even if the Chinese are very good, she isn’t scared. She says that Chinese kids commonly start playing table tennis when they are 4 to 4.5 years old, but she didn’t start until she was 9.
Worlds Confidence: She is sure about the World Championships because most of the girls she has beaten recently will also be there, which gives her a “fair understanding of their game.”
Training and Goals for the Future
Divyanshi’s training plan is quite smart and focuses on studying her opponents in great detail. Sachin Shetty in Mumbai and Anshuman Roy in Bengaluru are her coaches.
Training with a Robot: She trains using a robot called “Power Pong,” which helps her get used to the high level of spin that Chinese and Japanese players put on the ball. This is a technique that most Indians can’t properly prepare against. She has been working out with the robot for less than a year.
Idol and Style: Divyanshi looks up to Manika Batra, who has won several medals at the Commonwealth Games, and she employs long pimple rubber on her backhand, just like Manika.
Areas for Improvement: She wants to immediately move up to the senior circuit, but she needs to work on two important things: making her forehand stronger and more accurate, and building up her strength and stamina, since she gets tired after playing two matches in a row.
Divyanshi is a Class 10 girl who is worried about her approaching board examinations. She carries her books with her when she travels and says she is “quite scared” of the exams. The Dani Foundation helps her with her job.