Asian Games 2023: Saurav Ghosal marches into squash men’s singles SFs, assures medal for India

India’s senior squash player Saurav Ghosal produced another impressive performance to overshadow Japan’s Ryunosuke Tsukue 3-0 to storm into the semi-finals of the men’s singles event at the ongoing 19th Asian Games on Tuesday.

The star of Indian squash, Ghosal, wrapped the game in a mere 45 minutes and registered a commanding scoreline of 11-5, 12-10, 11-3, and leaving no room for his opponent to comeback.

It's a great day for the 🇮🇳 Squash team with another qualification for the Semis! @SauravGhosal defeats 🇯🇵's Ryunosuke Tsukue 3-0 to secure a spot in the Semis Finals, confirming a 🎖️for 🇮🇳

Great job💪🏻, go get us the 🥇golden glory 🥳#AsianGames2022#Cheer4India#HallaBol pic.twitter.com/gtQw3WhC3B

— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) October 3, 2023

In the first match, Saurav Ghosal started with a 3-point lead after a big rally and cruised past the World No.61 with a dominating score of 11-4. While Ryunosuke Tsukue showed signs of life in the second game and put up a fight, the Japanese offered a little bit more resistance early in the second game as he tied at 3-3.

However, a beautiful forehand drop from Ghosal gave him to a 7-4 lead at the end of the rally. While, a stroke awarded to Ghosal saw him earn a match point with a combination of a brilliant backhand followed by a perfectly executed backhand drop shot, finishing the second set by 12-10.

In the third game of the play, the Japanese player was no match to Ghosal’s aggressive matchplay. Ghosal without breaking a sweat in the third game got the victory and secured his ninth Asian Games medal.

Victories in doubles

Earlier in the day, Indian squash veteran players Dipika Pallikal and Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu registered a 2-1 victory in the mixed doubles quarterfinals, against the Philippines’ Jemyca Aribado and Robert Andrew Garcia.

Dipika Pallikal and Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu assure India of medal by moving into mixed doubles semifinals at #AsianGames #Squash

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 3, 2023

Meanwhile, Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh won against the Korean duo and secured the spot in the semifinal. The Korean duo managed to put up a fight but in the end, they were no match for the Indian duo as they registered a 2-1 victory in the quarterfinals.