Squash: Shameena, Semwal pull off big upsets at SRFI PSA Challenger tournament
Mumbai, June 30
Shameena Riaz and Om Semwal of India pulled off massive upsets on an action-packed day at the USD 15,000 SRFI PSA Challenger Squash Tournament, being hosted by the Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana Club at their air-conditioned courts in Mumbai.
While Shameena accounted for top seed Hayley Ward of South Africa in four games, Semwal displayed immense discipline and stamina as well as skill and guile to outlast third seed Diego Gobbi of Brazil in five games.
In other matches featuring Indians, third seed Tanvi Khanna outplayed Pooja Arthi Raghu 3-0, while 5th seed Suraj Kumar Chand lost in three games to Egypt's Ziad Ibrahim on Monday night.
Shameena, who grabbed the last spot on the Indian team for the Asian Games, rallied from the loss of the first game to keep her nerves and play strongly against the top seed, Hayley Ward of South Africa. With Hayley trying all the tricks in the book to upset the rhythm of Shameena, it was the 20-year-old from Chennai who managed to come up trumps in tight situations and win 8-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9.
"It took me some time to settle down and adjust to the conditions, and I then started moving the ball around the court, making my opponent work harder," said an elated Shameena, daughter of former India hockey captain Mohammed Riaz.
"She is ranked around 62 in the world, but I was determined to hang in there. I was a bit winded in the third and fourth games but managed to keep up with my opponent," she added.
Shameena will meet Japan's 6th seed Akari Midorikawa, who scored a straight-games win over Korean opponent Bo Ram Ryoo. With a 1-1 head-to-head record, an interesting contest is on the cards on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Semwal, who trains at the Jindal Centre in Vashind under Deepak Mishra and Laxman Joshi, had his work cut out against Gobbi, who is one of the fastest and fittest players on the tour.
"It was a tight and tough match, and I just played the game one point at a time, determined to stay with my opponent," said Semwal after the 6-11, 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9 victory. Semwal goes on to meet Egypt's 8th seed Ziad Ibrahim, who took out India's 5th seed Suraj Kumar Chand 11-4, 11-6, 11-5.
Results:
Men's singles 2nd round: 9/16-Salah Eltorgman (Egypt) bt (LL) A Altamimi 3-0 (11-4, 11-2, 11-1; 9/16-M Syafiq Kamal (Malaysia) bt 9/16-Viktor Byrtus (Czech Republic) 3-0 (11-6, 11-7, 11-7); Om Semwal (India) bt 3-Diego Gobbi (Brazil) 3-2 (6-11, 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9); 8-Ziad Ibrahim(Egypt) bt 5-Suraj Kumar Chand (India) 3-0 (11-4, 11-6, 11-5)
Women's singles 2nd round: 9/16-Shameena Riaz (India) bt 1-Hayley Ward (RSA) 3-1 (8-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9); 6-Akari Midorikawa (Japan) bt Bo Ram Ryoo (Republic of Korea) 3-0 (11-9, 11-2, 11-9); 8- Zoe Foo (Japan) bt 9/16-Rathika Suthanthira Seelan (India) 3-1 (7-11, 11-6, 11-2, 11-3); 3-Tanvi Khanna (India) bt Pooja Arthi Raghu (India) 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-6).
— IANS
Reader Comments
So proud of Shameena! Her father was a hockey legend, and now she's making her own mark in squash. The way she handled the pressure at 8-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 is pure champion stuff. 🇮🇳🏸
Impressive performance from both Indian players. But we really need to see more depth in men's squash—Om is the only bright spot after Suraj's straight-games loss. Focus on developing more talent at the grassroots level would be great.
Semwal's five-game win over Gobbi is the stuff of legends! "One point at a time" mentality—perfect for a young player. And to think he trains at Jindal Centre in Vashind, not some fancy academy. Proper desi hard work pays off! 💪
Great to see Indian players stepping up globally. Tanvi Khanna's win was clinical too. But the real story is Shameena—making the Asian Games team and then beating the top seed. That's the kind of momentum we need in Indian squash.
Slightly disappointed with Suraj Kumar Chand's performance. Being a 5th seed and losing 3-0 to Ziad Ibrahim is a bit concerning. Hope he learns from this and comes back stronger. Om and Shameena have set a high bar today! 👏
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.