Maiden World Cup win a boost for Indian squash

CHENNAI: It was a week to remember for Indian squash. As the Indian Squash Academy, the home of the sport in the country, celebrated 25 years of its existence, the national team delivered the perfect gift by winning their maiden World Cup gold medal at home here on Sunday.

India’s run through the tournament was nothing short of phenomenal. The hosts not only remained unbeaten as a team but also did not drop a match across the competition. Led by the experienced Joshna Chinappa and backed by Abhay Singh, Anahat Singh and Velavan Senthilkumar, India were cruising from start to finish.

The closest India came to being tested was in the semifinal against Egypt. Though the Africans fielded a relatively lower-ranked side, the contest was far from straightforward, and the 3-0 scoreline does not tell the full story. India passed the final examination against top seeds Hong Kong with flying colours.

Talking to TOI, India head coach Harinder Pal Sandhu summed up the contrast in challenges, saying: “Against Egypt, it was more about physicality than squash, whereas against Hong Kong, it was more about skill. Egypt in general push hard and impose their physicality; they like to hit hard and use quick movement. It was a good win for us.”

Harinder said the player participating in back-to-back PSA tournaments ahead of the World Cup played a key part in India’s preparation. “We had just three days of preparation and were getting used to the seven-point system. The PSA events our players competed in before this really helped everyone prepare. Those tournaments were very intense, very long and at a very high level. Those events helped the players maintain intensity because they are used to playing longer 11-point games.”

Explaining the difference in formats, the former player added: “A seven-point game usually looks very fast and intense. The duration of each game is shorter, so you can be aggressive from the start. In an 11-point game, you can afford to take your time and even come back if you’re down 3-7 or 4-8. Here, there isn’t much time to stage a comeback.”

The Indian contingent ended the year on a high but has already shifted focus to the next major target – the Asian Games in Japan in September-October. Harinder felt the World Cup triumph has offered both confidence and clarity. “The Asian Games is the next big tournament for us. This win gives us confidence and also shows us exactly where our level is, in terms of what we need to improve in our game, physically, mentally and tactically. It helps us a lot,” he said.