Joshna Chinappa Clinches Women’s Title At 80th CCI Western India Squash Tournament

Mumbai: Joshna Chinappa outwitted Sanya Vats to win the women's title in the 80th CCI Western India Squash Tournament. Chinappa rallied to win the final 3-1 (7-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-5) at the Cricket Club of India courts on Sunday. Veer Chotrani won the men's title after beating Suraj Chand, 3-0 (11-9, 11-9, 11-2) in the final.

The women's final was a lot closer than the men's final. Top seed Chinappa showed her experience, and second seed Vats displayed her quality. The left-handed Sanya surged to a 7-4 lead before Chinappa unleashed some smart shots and drops to close the gap. However, Vats kept churning out winners and was 9-7 ahead. She closed the game with two consecutive points and took a 1-0 lead.

However, 39-year-old Chinappa showed aggression in the second game and romped to a 3-0 lead. She stood ahead 4-1, before the longest rally of the match was on display, and Chinappa showed her composure to take the point and break Vats' resilience to take a 7-2 lead. However, Sanya fought back, but the damage was already done, and Joshna prevailed 11-8 to level the match at 1-1.

The third game was a lot closer, with both players giving nothing away. Joshna received 'yes let' on interference from Sanya and later 'no let', making her visibly frustrated as she thought Sanya was trying to block her way. But Joshna kept her composure to break shackles after being on even keel at 7-7. She took a 10-8 lead and came up with a smart drop shot to go ahead 2-1.

Pressure was on Sanya in the fourth game to stay alive in the contest. But Joshna was in a destructive mood and took the game comparatively easily at 11-5 to wrap up the match.

“I have been playing here at the CCI since I was 12 years old and have trained here regularly. Hence, winning here at the CCI is very special. I feel very proud of winning the title,” said Chinappa after winning the title for the fifth time. The last time she won the crown was in 2007-08.

 Men's top seed Chotrani marked his second triumph at the CCI tournament in front of his father and former national champion Manish Chotrani. Veer had won the last crown in the 2022-23 season. He outclassed second seed Chand in the final.