Hong Kong, Feb 2:
Indian boys came up with a fabulous display, beating arch rival Pakistan to top Pool A in the Asian Junior Team Squash Championship here today.
Like yesterday, India had two matches scheduled in the day but the one most looked forward to was against Pakistan.
Things panned out well early in the day for the Velavan and company when they got past Iran 3-0 with Abhay Singh setting the tone and Velavan Senthilkumar providing the finishing touch for the winning margin and Aryaman Adik ensuring the 3-0 verdict.
Pumped up now, the boys returned to continue where they left off against Iran or so it seemed as Abhay, as National coach Cyrus Poncha described was in “sublime form”.
The energetic Indian had his comparatively junior opponent but Asian junior U-17 champion Abbas Zeb running all along the court. With exceedingly good volleying, Abhay took control after shrugging off the initial resistance from Zeb. The Indian finished off the match in straight games and Velavan took over against Mehran Javed. The Pakistani made his intentions clear by eking out the first game but the Indian was back in touch from there and eventhough the fourth game went to extra points, he ensured the winning margin.
It was the left for Ranjit Singh to make it a 3-0 verdict with his hard earned win over Manzoor Zaman.
However there was little to cheer for the girls, virtually an experimental side with second seed Hong Kong blasting them 3-0 and Japan following it that up with another 3-0 verdict. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel