Teenage Stars Zakaria & Singh Win Indian Open Crowns

Teenage stars Mohamad Zakaria and Anahat Singh have won the Daly College SRFI Indian Open titles, beating compatriots Youssef Soliman and Joshna Chinappa, respectively, in contrasting matches on finals day in Indore.

The final day of competition was bringing the curtain down on a memorable week of squash at one of the most spectacular venues in sport, with Daly College's main building - illuminated in different colours throughout the week - providing a breathtaking backdrop for the action on court.

Both finals were played between players from the same countries, with Egyptian duo Zakaria and Soliman contesting the men's showdown, while Indian pair Singh and Chinappa went head-to-head on home soil.

Singh and Chinappa are separated by 22 years in age, but there was almost nothing between them on court as they produced a classic final that was fit for the occasion.

17-year-old Singh - one of the rising stars of the women's game - had needed all five games to get past Hannah Craig in the semi-finals, and was once again pushed to the very limit here.

Having taken game one 11-8, she then saw three game balls come and go in the second as Chinappa reeled off five points out of six to take the tiebreak 13-11, after being 10-7 down and on the brink of a 2/0 deficit.

The 39-year-old - a former world No.10 and record 19 times Indian National champion - continued to play some outstanding squash, moving well and hitting with exceptional length, with Singh needing to be almost perfect at times to get herself the point.

A no-let decision against Chinappa handed Singh game three 11-9, but Chinappa came out firing in the fourth, racing into a 4-0 lead in the blink of an eye, needing only seven minutes to level the match and send the match into a decider.

Momentum swung back and forth in that decider as the packed-out crowd - which was seated around three sides of the court in an arena-style setup - cheered both Indian players in equal parts, showing its appreciation for the squash that was on display.

Chinappa continued to test Singh in every way possible, too, once again forcing the teenager to hit immaculate lines and inch-perfect drops in order to win the rallies - at one point leading 6-4 - but the rising star had enough to get over the line, taking her third match ball on a stroke, when Chinappa left a forehand volley down the line just a fraction too loose.

Victory for Singh secured her a 13th PSA Tour title in just her 20th PSA event, capping off an impressive few weeks after beating Tinne Gilis in Canada last month.

It also left the Indore crowd eagerly anticipating the men's PSA Squash Tour Bronze final between Zakaria and Soliman, who were separated by just a single place in the world rankings going into the contest.

Zakaria had won the pair's last encounter 3/0 and he made an impressive start here, winning 10 points on the bounce to take game one 11-3 after falling 3-1 behind.

No.1 seed Soliman responded well to clinch the second 11-6, but at 1-0 down in the third, was forced off court for an injury break after slipping and hurting his leg.

He returned after briefly receiving treatment from the physio but played only one more point, turning around and shaking Zakaria's hand to concede the match.

"It's definitely not how I wanted to win," Zakaria said after collecting his trophy.

"But I put a solid week together, and I'm happy to win my first Bronze.

"Going into a final not dropping a game gives me an edge, knowing that he has the pressure to draw first blood, it gives me confidence, and I like to be like that every match."