Mahesh Mangaonkar has been playing rock solid so far in the PSA Challenger Tour squash tournament here. Be it his touch play or the powerful strokes unleashed with a lot of variety from the backcourt, the 27-year-old top seed has been one-up against all opponents.
Against an improving Abhay Singh, Mangaonkar never let his guard down as he tamed the 22-year-old fellow Indian 12-10, 8-11, 11-4, 11-9 to reach the men’s final on Thursday.
The top seed will meet a tough challenger in Todd Harrity of the USA, who dismantled Egypt’s Karim El Hammamy 11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 11-1.
Mangaonkar will be the lone Indian player in the finals as Tanvi Khanna was outplayed by Hana Moataz of Egypt 11-6, 11-4, 9-11, 11-5 in 32 minutes in the women’s semifinals.
Tanvi showed signs of a comeback when she won the third game, but Hana proved to be way too powerful and crafty for the Indian, closing out the fourth in a jiffy.
Earlier, in the all-Egyptian semifinal, the left-handed and unseeded Malak Kamal defeated Rana Ismail, seeded seventh 11-13, 11-6, 11-2, 12-10. Malak will now take on Hana in the final.
The results (semifinals): Men: Mahesh Mangaonkar bt Abhay Singh 12-10, 8-11, 11-4, 11-9.
Todd Harrity (USA) bt Karim El Hammamy (Egy) 11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 11-1.
Women: Malak Kamal (Egy) bt Rana Ismail (Egy) 11-13, 11-6, 11-2, 12-10.
Hana Moataz (Egy) bt Tanvi Khanna 11-6, 11-4, 9-11, 11-5.
