Indian sports wrap, July 24: Anahat reaches semifinals of World Squash Junior Championships
SQUASH
Anahat reaches semifinals of World Squash Junior Championships
India’s teen prodigy Anahat Singh entered the semifinals at the World Junior Championships on Thursday in Cairo after beating Egypt’s Malika Elkaraksy 3-0 (11-6, 13-11, 11-5).
Anahat, the first Indian girl to reach the semifinals since Dipika Pallikal in 2010, is assured of at least a bronze medal.
The second-seeded Indian will meet Nadien Elhammamy, another Egyptian, on Friday for a place in the final.
– Team Sportstar
FOOTBALL
FC Goa signs Spanish defender Pol Moreno
FC Goa announced the signing of Spanish defender Pol Moreno for the upcoming season on Thursday.
The 31-year-old centre-back joins the Gaurs after a four-year stint with Racing Santander in the Segunda Division, the second tier of Spanish football.
A product of the Catalan football system, Moreno has played over 200 professional games in Spain. Known for his composure on the ball, aerial dominance, and leadership at the back.
– Team Sportstar
BADMINTON
Badminton Asia Juniors Individual Championships: Tanvi Sharma, Vennala Kalagotla advance to quarterfinals
India’s young shuttlers Tanvi Sharma, Vennala Kalagotla and the top-seeded men’s doubles pair of Bhargav Ram and Viswa Tej continued their impressive form at the Badminton Asia Juniors Individual Championships 2025 in Solo, Indonesia on Thursday.
Second seed Tanvi Sharma showcased her dominance in the women’s singles category, overcoming China’s Shi Si Chen 21-19, 21-14 in the Round of 32, followed by a commanding 21-14, 21-15 win over Thailand’s Phannachet Passa-Orn in the Round of 16 to book her place in the quarterfinals. Vennala, meanwhile, won back-to-back rounds for a second consecutive day to book her spot in the last eight.
In men’s doubles, top seeds Bhargav Ram and Viswa Tej comfortably defeated Japan’s Haru Masuda and Shogo Miyashita 21-15, 21-15 to advance to the Round of 16. The World No. 1 Indian pair will now face China’s Wen Xin and Wei Gang Zheng later today for a place in the quarterfinals.
Elsewhere in men’s singles, Rounak Chouhan edged Thailand’s Utchan Ruaysap 25-23, 21-18, while Ansh Negi registered a 21-14, 21-16 win over Vietnam’s Le Minh Son, with both advancing to the Round of 16.
In women’s doubles, the duo of Vennala Kalagotla and Reshika U cruised past Hong Kong China’s Au-Yeung Wing Chi and Yi Kiu Yu 21-7, 21-16 to secure their Round-of-16 berth.
Meanwhile, Pranauv Ram Nagalingam concluded his campaign in the Round of 16, while Himar Lalthazuala, Tanvi Reddy Andluri, and the mixed doubles pair of Vishnu Kedhar Kode and Keerthy Manchala bowed out in the Round of 32.
– Team Sportstar
TENNIS
Bhambri-Venus pair enters quarterfinals in Washington
Yuki Bhambri, seeded fourth with Michael Venus, beat Andre Goransson and Sem Verbeek 6-7(1), 7-^(3), [10-6] in the doubles pre-quarterfinals of the $2,396,115 ATP tennis tournament in Washington DC, USA.
In the quarterfinals, the Indo-Kiwi pair will play Neal Skupski and John-Patrick Smith.
The results:
$2,396,115 ATP, Washington, USA
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Yuki Bhambri & Michael Venus (Nzl) bt Andre Goransson (Swe) & Sem Verbeek (Ned) 6-7(1), 7-6(3), [10-6].
€596,035 ATP, Kitzbuhel, Austria
Doubles (quarterfinals): Neal Oberleitner & Joel Schwaerzler (Aut) bt Sriram Balaji & Rithvik Bollipalli 6-4, 6-2.
$160,000 Challenger, Bloomsfield Hills, USA
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Niki Poonacha & Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan bt Jody Maginley (Ant) & Eliot Spizzirri (USA) 6-7(4), 6-4, [10-8].
€181,250 Challenger, Zug, Switzerland
Doubles (quarterfinals): Szymon Kielan & Filip Pieczonka (Pol) bt Arjun Kadhe & Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-3, 6-4.
€91,250 Challenger, Tampere, Finland
Singles (pre-quarterfinals): Sumit Nagal bt Max Houkes (Ned) 6-2, 6-4.
€100,000 WTA, Palermo, Italy
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Rutuja Bhosale & Peangtarn Plipuech (Tha) bt Ines Ibbou (Aus) & Naima Karamoko (Sui) 7-6(4), 6-3.
$30,000 ITF women, Porto, Portugal
Singles (first round): Laurent Lokoli (Fra) bt Manas Dhamne 6-3, 7-6(6).
Doubles (pre-quarterfinal): Ignasi Forcano (Esp) & Leonardo Rossi (Ita) bt Manas Dhamne & Vadym Ursu (Ukr) 5-7, 7-5, [10-6].
$30,000 ITF men, Denia, Spain
Doubles (quarterfinals): Prajwal Dev & Nitin Kumar Sinha bt Alvaro Serrano (Esp) & Darius Pop (Rou) 6-2, 6-4.
$15,000 ITF men, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
Singles (first round): Uisung Park (Kor) bt Vishnu Vardhan 6-3, 7-6(3).
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Jake Delaney (Aus) & Wishaya Trongcharoenchaikul (Tha) bt Manish Sureshkumar & Vishnu Vardhan 6-4, 5-7, [10-8].
$30,000 ITF women, Monastir, Tunisia
Singles (pre-quarterfinals): Jia-Jing Lu (Chn) bt Vaidehee Chaudhari 6-2, 6-2.
$15,000 ITF women, Huamantla, Mexico
Singles (first round): Kaitlyn Carnicella (USA) bt Saumya Vig 6-2, 6-3.
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Gala Arangio (Arg) & Diva Bhatia bt Sarah Barry (Nzl) & Dilana Rsovac (Aus) 5-7, 6-4, [10-2].
$15,000 ITF women, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
Singles (pre-quarterfinals): Zeel Desai bt Sarah Rokusek (Aus) 6-3, 7-5.
-Team Sportstar
ARCHERY
World University Games: India assured of at least two medals in compound archery
Compound archers assured India of at least two medals in team events at the World University Games in Essen, Germany, on Thursday.
Indian men and mixed teams gave consistent performances to reach their summit clashes, while its women’s team made it to the bronze medal match.
The top-ranked Indian men’s team, comprising Kushal Dalal, Sahil Jadhav and Hritik Sharma, got a bye before beating the USA 236-229 and Chinese Taipei 235-233 to set up a title clash with Turkey.
The second-ranked mixed team, featuring Parneet Kaur and Kushal, enjoyed a bye and went on to defeat Singapore 158-153, the USA 158-157 and Chinese Taipei 158-151 to book a place in the final. It will meet Korea in the gold medal contest.
The women’s team, also ranked second and consisting of Parneet, Madhura Dhamangaonkar and Avneet Kaur, received a bye and defeated Italy 232-226 before losing 233-230 to the USA in the semifinals. It will take on the United Kingdom in the bronze medal duel.
India’s recurve men and women teams lost in the quarterfinals, while its mixed team exited in the pre-quarterfinals.
-Team Sportstar
TENNIS
Nagal enters Tampere Open quarterfinals
India’s top singles player Sumit Nagal quelled a late challenge from Netherlands’ Max Houkes to advance to the quarterfinals of the Tampere Challenger event while Arjun Kadhe and Vijay Sundar Prashanth lost the doubles quarterfinals of the Zug Open in Switzerland.
Serving for the match, Nagal faced multiple break points in game 10 of the second set but came out unscathed to advance to the next round with a 6-2, 6-4 win.
He next takes on Argentine Qualifier Nicolas Kicker, who knocked out fifth seed Viktor Durasovic from Norway.
Finishing as a semifinalist as a qualifier in Trieste, Italy this month has been Nagal’s best performance this season. Nagal has won six Challenger singles titles.
Meanwhile, competing at the ATP Challenger event Zug Open, top seeded Indians Kadhe and Prashanth bowed out after losing the quarterfinal 3-6, 4-6 to Polish pair of Szymon Kielan and Filip Pieczonka.
They had beaten Czech duo of Jirij Barnat and Filip Duda 6-1 6-4 to make the last-eight pairs stage.
-PTI