Anahat Singh placed her palm on her head and pulled her tongue out. Minutes ago, she had been on the verge of being eliminated from the Asian Games semi-final.
India’s Anahat Singh after winning the women’s singles semi-final against Japan’s Satomi Watanabe at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya on Saturday. (PTI) Satomi Watanabe, the world No. 6 Japanese player, had three match balls in the third game. Anahat, the world No.17 Indian, had little room for error left. Then came the opening at 10-10.
A stroke was awarded to Anahat. Suddenly, Anahat had a match ball. She took it and let out an emotional roar.
She roared away in the next two games, turning the tide spectacularly in a semi-final that was almost lost. The Indian teen stepped out a 3-2 (9-11, 11-13, 12-10, 11-6, 11-3) winner. The brilliant fightback and commendable victory on Saturday landed her in uncharted territory, putting her within sight of an early spot for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The 18-year-old is the first Indian female squash player ever to make the singles final at an Asian Games. Add Abhay Singh, who beat Pakistan’s Irfan Muhammad 3-0 (11-3, 12-10, 11-6) in his men’s singles semi-final, and there will be two Indian pros in Sunday’s finals. Indian squash has never had that at the Asian Games, or a gold medal in singles.
There’s more than just a gold riding on this final, though. The winners will be the first couple of players to secure an Olympic berth in squash, which will debut at the 2028 Games.
The biggest challenge for the junior world champion teen in the quest of having a shot at that would come on Saturday.
Satomi, the 27-year-old Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist, is a vastly experienced player. In her only previous clash with Anahat, she eked out a close 3-2 win in the Sprott Tournament of Champions in January. The Indian teen, fairly new at the elite PSA level after her exceptional rise over the last year, can be a bit of an unknown for most top players in the first meetings.
Satomi knew what to expect from Anahat this time, and came out
Read More