Anahat crowned world junior squash champ
Mumbai, July 26 -- Even as Anahat Singh was taking rapid strides on the professional squash tour, a long-standing goal lingered almost desperately in her mind - the world junior title. She kept trying to win it but kept falling short.
By the Niagara Falls in Canada's Ontario, she finally made the leap. And with it scripted history for the country.
Anahat, 18, became India's first world junior squash champion, beating Ruqayya Salem of Egypt 11-3, 11-7, 11-9 in the girls' final of the World Squash Junior Championships on Saturday.
The Indian, ranked 20th in the world and seeded No.1 in the event, played every bit like the favourite through the week, showing no signs of pressure or nerves in her quest to upgrade her medal colour in her final crack at the title as a junior.
That wasn't always the case for this highly-talented teen who has been growing in stature among the pros but kept falling short in squash's most prestigious junior event. In the previous edition, Anahat returned with a bronze after losing in the semi-finals despite being among the top contenders in the draw.
The semi-finals was as far as she had been to even in the editions before that. Every time the box remained unticked, and the desperation only grew.
And so, once she finally got the job done, she flung her racquet and looked straight towards her team and parents who were cheering on from the stands.
Less than 24 hours after becoming the first Indian since Joshna Chinappa in 2005 to reach the final of the junior worlds, the top seed completely dominated the second-seeded Egyptian across the first two sets, giving away just 10 points....
इस लेख के रीप्रिंट को खरीदने या इस प्रकाशन का पूरा फ़ीड प्राप्त करने के लिए, कृपया
हमे संपर्क करें.