Abhay Singh and Veer Chotrani moving into second round feels nice,no doubt,but at same time Ramit Tandon and Anahat Singh going out early also hurts a bit .
Abhay Singh,currently ranked world No. 24,looked very sharp in his match against Colombia’s Matias Knudsen . He won 11-8,11-5,11-4 and that scoreline itself says match did not drift too much once he settled in.
And Veer Chotrani also pulled off strong win . Ranked world No. 44,he beat Pakistan's Noor Zaman,who is world No. 29,with scores of 11-8,12-14,11-6,11-7 . That second game going 12-14 shows it was not easy ah,but Chotrani held himself well.
Few things standing out from Indian side:
- Abhay Singh beat Colombia’s Matias Knudsen 11-8,11-5,11-4 .
- Veer Chotrani defeated Pakistan's Noor Zaman 11-8,12-14,11-6,11-7 .
- Ramit Tandon retired against Frenchman Auguste Dussourd at 14-12,4-7.
Now next round is where things become properly tough . Chotrani is set to face fifth-seed Welsh player Joel Makin,while Abhay will take on seventh-seed Egyptian Mohamad Zakaria . These are not small matches at all,especially in tournament like British Open where rankings and future opportunities matter so much.
But then there was bad luck for Ramit Tandon . He had to retire in his match against French player Auguste Dussourd while score was 14-12,4-7 . For someone who has been prominent figure in Indian squash,this early exit feels disappointing,especially because he would have hoped for deeper run.
In women’s draw,Anahat Singh also exited early after facing world No . 36 Nardine Garas . Anahat fought,but lost 11-8,8-11,11-8,11-9 . Losing India’s top female player this early is obviously not what Indian fans wanted rn .
Garas was clearly happy after win and said,"I’m so happy with the way I played today . I gave it my all..." She now goes on to play No . 8 seed Tinne Gilis on glass court in Birmingham,and that itself is big moment for her.
And tbh,this is how tournaments like British Open feel for Indian players right now . One side there is clear rise,with Abhay Singh and Veer Chotrani showing they can compete strongly globally . Other side,one injury or one tight match and campaign ends suddenly… so where does Indian squash go from here?
