India have it easy in opener

CHENNAI: Adapting to the all-new 7-point format was the common refrain in the lead-up to the Squash World Cup. Adapting to the fast court and the Chennai heat proved to be an equally important factor on Day 1, and the local players Joshna Chinappa and Abhay Singh demonstrated it by getting into the groove from the word go. Both Joshna and Abhay registered dominating wins, while senior pro Saurav Ghosal and the up-and-coming Tanvi Khanna had to fight it out before emerging victorious. In the end, India clinically trounced sixth-seeded Hong Kong 4-0 to kick off their campaign on an encouraging note at the Express Avenue mall here on Tuesday.

Abhay broke no sweat in prevailing over World No. 164 Chung Yat Long in straight games 7-2, 7-3, 7-6 to fire the opening salvo for the second-seeded hosts. He was able to find the angles and the right length for his shots from the first game, and never let the momentum shift to make the match a one-sided affair.

After the match, the 24-year-old was pleasantly surprised by how well he began. “It is pretty unusual for me to start that well; I am a slow starter. He fought back a bit in the third, but I was lucky enough to recover,” Abhay said. He was able to adapt well to the shortened format by rewiring his approach. “The challenge of the seven-point format is very psychological. At 5-5, you tell yourself it is 9-9 and play accordingly,” the Chennai boy added.

It was a similar story for Joshna, who sailed smoothly to set aside World No. 84 Fung Heylie 7-1, 7-5, 7-2. The veteran India player acknowledged the advantage of playing in oh-so-familiar conditions and in front of a home crowd. “It is always so special playing here. It’s my home, has given me everything. The crowd was very supportive today,” Joshna said.

In the tie’s third match, World No. 151 Andes Ling took Saurav Ghosal by surprise in the opening game, drawing him to the front of the court and then forcing him back to induce errors, and playing some deft angular drops. The experienced Ghosal, however, returned the favour from the second game onwards, taking charge of proceedings and closing out points with cross-court drops of his own. The 36-year-old won the match 5-7, 7-2, 7-5, 7-1 to seal the deal for India with an unassailable 3-0 scoreline.

The fourth match, despite being a dead rubber, proved to be the most closely contested match of the tie. World No. 126 Toby Tse did all the early running to take the first two games, before Tanvi clawed her way back to win the next three games to clinch the match 5-7, 6-7, 7-1, 7-4, 7-3 and complete India’s 4-0 clean sweep.

The hosts will play seventh seeds South Africa in their second Pool B match on Wednesday.

Results: Pool A: Egypt bt Australia 4-0; Malaysia bt Colombia 3-1; Poll B: Japan bt South Africa 3-1; India bt Hong Kong 4-0.



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