Celebration time for the Leela-Switcher winners |
Mekhala Subedar is back in business. She is back to her winning ways. In the final of the women's invitation event of the Switcher-The Leela Squash Masters on Saturday, the former National Champion was absolutely ruthless in her decimation of Mumbai's Deepali Anvekar. Mekhala defeated the under-19 National champion 15-5, 15-10, 15-6 in no time at all to take home the winner's purse of Rs. 8,000. Deepali, who looked totally out of sorts against a superbly fit and nimble Mekhala had to settle for the consolation runners-up prize of Rs.5,000. Earlier, in the final of the men's doubles handicap event, Chandrakant Pawar of The Leela and Niraj Shirgaokar of Otters Club teamed up to defeat Saket Wali and Amitpal Kohli of Khar Gymkhana 15-11, 15-14. Pawar and Shirgaokar, who played their semi-final match less than an hour before their final, also took home Rs.8,000. The women's final got off to a whirlwind start, with both players refusing to give an inch. However, after the early skirmishes, which saw both players argue hotly with the referee, Mekhala settled down to a smooth rhythm. Deepali, who seemed heavy on her feet was struggling to keep up with the ball, which was being controlled masterfully by Mekhala. Mekhala raced to | |
| a 4-0 lead, before Deepali got her first point.
However, it was always an uphill task for the girl from Mumbai, who seems
to be carrying a few pounds of extra weight for a dextrous game like
squash. Mekhala won the first game 15-4 and seemed set to do an encore in
the second, before Deepali came upwith a brief resurgence. She managed to
come up to 10-14, before Mekhala close out the game with a brilliant faked
drop shot. In the Third, Deepali seemd to be tiring and Mekhala had to
just bide here time as points were coming her way in a steady stream.
Mekhala seemed to be hardly breathing heavy when she walked off the court
after her straight-set victory. The doubles final too was well contested.
Pawar and Shirgaokar, who got a handicap of five points in the first
game, won that quite easily at 15-11, but in the second, when the handicap
was reduced to two points, it was tough fight all the way. Trailing 11-14
Pawar and Shirgaokar pulled up to 14-14 before winning the single point
for victory Results : Finals : Women's singles
Mekhala Subedar (Deolali) bt Deepali Anvekar (Mumbai) 15-5 15-10 15-6.
Men's doubles :Chandrakat Pawar (The Leela) and Niraj Shirgaokar
(Otters) bt Saket Wali and Amitpal Kohli (Khar Gym) 15-5 15-10 15-6.
Bruno Goveas |
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| Ganguly of Squash
! Kolkatta's Saurav Ghosal is the new kid off the blocks in Indian squash.
Saurav won the under 15 title at the otters Open but lost in the under 17
to Sahil Vora. His two titles in the Malaysian and Singapore Junior opens
prove this. This 14-year-old is in his third season. Saurav is luck with
sponsors. He gets Rs. 40,000 from Powr, while the Calcutta Rackets Club
gives him Rs.35,000 for his travelling expenses. Starting from last year,
Saurav gets Rs. 150,000 from Caltex. Besides this, he also gets his
rackets and kit bag from Head, which leaves him with a tidy sum, saved for
his future exploits. his academic year will be crucial for him as Saurav
enters the 10th Unlike the majority of squash players who use the game to
gain scholarships in the US, both vow to stay on and play for the country.
Gaurav hopes to get admitted to either St. Stephens or Sriram College,
which are among the best in Asia. He will then help popularize the game.
Gaurav of the country : Breaking the strangehold of Maharashtra players is Delhi's Gaurav Nandrajog. The 16 year old is in his fourth year of competitive squash. Gaurav was an easy winner in the Otters-Old Castle Indian Open Squash Championships. Gaurav swept all the under-17 titles that were up for grabs last season, even finishing among the top eight in the men's category of the senior |
Sachika national's which prompted him to opt for the under-19 and men's categories in the Otters Tournament, rather than enjoy an easy run in the under-17. He lost in the final of the under-19 to charged-up Junaid Nathani and in the men's semi-final |
to eventual champion Manish Chotrani, making it a profitable outing, the prize money coming to Rs.30,000. Gaurav, a son of an Army Major General, hase been encouraged to travel. But they have to break even. Dhampur Sugar Mills take care of his train journey. Nike provide him with apparel and shoes, while Head gives him his rackets and kit bag. Last season, Gaurav won Rs. 75,000 in prize money, more than enough to take care of his miscellaneous expenses. Bubbly Sachika Sachika Balwani has begun playing squash at the age of seven. The tiny tot can be seen wining her No.11 full-size Wilson racket at the Otters Club courts and picking up the rudiments of the game from Chandrakant Paar, who is particularly good with kids of this age. Pawar sees a bright future for this bubbly player. Sachika has been playing the game for six months now and father Ashwin already sees her gaining in self-confidence. Sachika was playing tennis earlier at the Willingdon Catholic Gymkhana. Rehmat Khan had advised her to play tennis and squash on alternate days, saying it would be good for her squash. She followed it for some time. Now it is only squash. The Bombay Scottish student can always look to brother Ishaan for guidance. The lad who has been improving steadily over the years was ranked four in the Air-India juniors in the under-13 last year. The brother-sister duo is bound to raise eyebrows in the years to come having taken to the game like the proverbial fish to water. |
Pradeep Vijayakar