Ontario, July 30 (IANS) Fifth-seed Indian men advanced to the second consecutive semi-final of the Squash Junior Team Championships with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over No. 3 seeds England, while the women lost in the quarterfinals to the United States 1-2.
Indian men will meet the United States in the semifinals, who also progressed to the semi-finals after defeating No.8 seeds Japan, as they look to better their bronze medal-winning semifinal finish last year.
Gurveer Singh clinched the decider with a straight-games victory over George Griffiths after Aryaveer Dewan put India ahead before Yusha Nafees lost a five-game thriller to Ismail Khalil.
History was rewritten for France’s men’s team as they reached the semi-finals of the World Squash Junior Team Championships for the first time in 26 years.
France stole the headlines by beating No.6 seeds Malaysia 2-0 to secure their first World Squash Junior Team Championships semi-final appearance since 2000.
Meanwhile, in the women’s draw, the No.3 seeds USA came from behind to defeat India and reach the semi-finals.
India made the stronger start, with No.1 string and reigning World Junior Champion Anahat Singh defeating Diya Yadav in straight games. However, they were unable to build on the early advantage as Charlotte Sze levelled the tie by overcoming Rudra Singh 11-6, 11-4, 11-8 to force a deciding match.
With momentum firmly on the USA’s side, No.3 string Lily Bourell sealed her team’s place in the final four with a straight-games victory over Anika Dubey. The USA women’s team will now face defending champions Egypt, who advanced to the semi-finals with an impressive 3-0 victory over Australia.
Elsewhere, No.2 seeds Hong Kong, China continued their pursuit of the women’s World Squash Junior Team Championships title with a convincing victory over hosts Canada.
They will now take on No.4 seeds Malaysia, who reached the final four after overcoming No.6 seeds England.
–IANS
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