Mumbai: The Otters Club squash courts are set to buzz with activity and will witness top-quality action from India’s leading senior and junior squash players in the Otters Club Vedanta Squash Open, organised by 5 Sports, from April 9 to 13.
Khar Gymkhana will also be hosting the first two days of the tournament. Given the tournament is a PSA satellite event, this will help the professional players to score points on the PSA circuit.
Rhea Bhandare, co-founder of 5 Sports academy, who herself is a four-time Indian Junior National Squash Champion and a former world No. 3 in the junior category, said that a tournament like this holds value as players require exposure to quality opponents to hone their skills for international tournaments.
(L to R) – Aishwarya Khubchandani; Rhea Bhandare, Co-Founder, 5 Sports; Veer Chotrani, Annanya
Agarwal, (Vedanta Sports), Parth Ambani, Jay Jhaveri Co-founder, 5 Sports |
“We go to different cities, which have squash courts, but lack proper coaching facilities. We then organise programmes and camps with our accredited coaches at clubs, schools and sports complexes and make players ready for tournaments like these.”
The junior tournament has attracted entries from leading Indian players. According to the Championship Director Srikanth Seshadri, the event has received 446 entries across the categories of boys and girls under 11, 13, 15, 17, 19 and men and women. The Tournament has a total prize fund of Rs 5 lakh, from which Rs 3 lakh is allotted for the juniors, while Rs 2 lakh is up for grabs among the open category.
Seeding
Men: 1. Vijay Kumar, 2. Ranjit Singh, 3. Abhishek Agarwal
Boys’ U-19: 1. Veer Chotrani, 2. Tushar Shahani
Women: 1. Urvashi Joshi (Mah) 2. Sachika Balvani
Girls’ U-19: 1. Jannia Singh, 2. Tanaya M Parakh
