National Squash Championship: Velavan Senthilkumar & Anahat Singh clinch titles

It was the second national title for Velavan, and he asked Abhay not to dwell on the loss.

“Whenever we play, there is always a different kind of pressure. This was our fourth national final against each other. Both of our games are evolving and we have been supporting each other to improve,” Velavan told The Indian Express.

The win wasn’t a straightforward one with Abhay pushing Velavan all the way. But the latter stayed calm and used his variations to create angles that neutralised his opponent.

Currently training with former world number 1 David Palmer at Cornell University, Velavan graduated from Columbia University in 2022 with a psychology degree.

He will return to the United States to start his season and play on the PSA tour.

“For the next few weeks, we’ve got the season starting and then probably at the end of October, I have a few tournaments in the US. So, I am going to be playing that and hopefully squeeze in some training if I have some time,” the champion said.
Velavan is currently placed 44th in the PSA World Rankings and feels that more PSA tournaments here will be helpful for Indian players.

“It is great to have all these PSA events for the players. It really helps a lot to compete on home soil. That will help us get more ranking points,” he felt.

Anahat romps to third title

While the men’s final was a tight one, it was a very one-sided women’s final as reigning champion Anahat Singh defeated Akanksha Salunkhe in straight games (11-7, 11-6,11-4) without breaking a sweat.

Playing at a breakneck pace, Anahat gave no chance to Akanksha to gain any momentum. The latter was coming off a victory over former world number 10 Joshna Chinappa but had no answers to Anahat’s mastery on the court.

“We have played multiple times before. So I knew what I had to do. The execution of the plans was important and I did it,” Anahat said. This was the third straight national title for Anahat.

She dropped just one game in the tournament, against Tanvi Khanna in the semi-finals.

“Anahat is an intelligent player and her understanding of the game is what makes her such a dominant player,” former India international and her mentor Saurav Ghosal said.

Anahat was particularly precise with her drops which left Akanksha flat-footed at times. The final started with Anahat going with power but as the match progressed, she placed her drops beyond her opponent’s reach and used combinations of high and low shots to disrupt her rhythm.

“Such skills of playing drops is what makes a world-level player in squash. Anahat is using her skills and with time, it is going to improve. The more she plays on the PSA tour, the more she is going to improve,” quipped her coach Stephane Galifi.

This is the transition year for 17-year-old Anahat, who has been playing both on the junior and senior circuits.

“I have been playing constantly as the off season of the seniors is when the junior tournaments take place. I will take a break for a month before playing on the PSA tour,” she said.