Indian Circuit Hat-Trick For Harinder

There was unexpected home success in the JSW PSA Indian Circuit 4 when India's Harinder Pal Sandhu upset top seed Karim Ali Fathi in today's final of the PSA Challenger 10 squash event at the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai to win his third title on the four-event JSW Indian Squash Challenger Circuit.

"Both set a furious pace from the start, and each game saw lightning exchanges and brilliant play by both," explained Circuit Director Liesl Goecker. "But Sandhu zeroed in on Fathi's weakness early on and sent drop after drop into the corners to take the lead.

"The Egyptian couldn't find an edge against Sandhu, and briefly held the lead in the third game, but couldn't hold on."

The Chennai-based 25-year-old took the match 11-8, 11-3, 11-6 in 42 minutes to bring his Indian Circuit success to three titles after winning events number one and three, in Jaipur and Mumbai, respectively.

"It feels really great," said Sandhu. "I'm very relieved after four weeks coming to a good end.

"I felt a slight pressure playing at home. I know he likes to play fast. I just wanted to weather the storm. He wasn't moving quickly to the corners. I used that to my advantage."