• Young shuttler Tasnim Mir became the first Indian girl to achieve the world No.1 ranking in the under-19 girls singles in the latest BWF junior rankings.

• The 16-year-old from Gujarat had secured titles in three junior international tournaments last year to jump three places to grab the top position in the junior world rankings. She won three events in Bulgaria, France and Belgium.

• Tasnim’s feat has never been achieved by any Indian girl, including two-time Olympic medallist P.V. Sindhu and London bronze winner Saina Nehwal.

• While Sindhu was world No.2 in her under-19 days, Saina didn’t make the cut for being a junior with the BWF junior rankings starting only in 2011. Samiya Imad Farooqui of Telangana, came close but could only reach the second spot in the BWF junior rankings.

• In Boys singles, Lakshya Sen, Siril Verma and Aditya Joshi had become the world No.1.

• Tasnim got her first lessons on badminton from her father Irfan Mir, who is a badminton coach and also ASI in Mehsana police. Her younger brother Mohd Ali Mir is state junior champion.

• She won the national junior championship (U-19) at the age of 14 and also claimed the national crown in the under-13, under-15 and under-19 girls’ singles categories.

• Tasnim also won U-15 singles and doubles titles at the All-India Sub-Junior ranking tournaments in Hyderabad and Nagpur in 2018.

• At the 2019 World Junior Championships in Russia, she could not go past the round of 32 but returned to win the title at the Asian U-17 & U-15 Junior Championships the same year in Indonesia.

• She also emerged victorious at the President Cup Nepal Junior International Series 2020 in Kathmandu. 

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