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India's top women's squash player, Anahat Singh, had a season to remember as she bagged two major honours at the PSA Awards 2024-25. The 17-year-old was named the Women's Challenger Player of the Season and also shared the Women's Young Player of the Season award along with Egypt's Amina Orfi, according to Olympics.com.
Her season began on a high note in August when she successfully defended her national title and won the HCL Squash Tour in Kolkata. That strong start earned her the PSA Challenger Player of the Month award. Over the season, she won nine titles in 11 tournaments, including eight Challenger-level wins across different tiers (3k, 9k, 12k, and 15k). At one point, she went on a 29-match unbeaten run, showing her dominance on tour. One of her standout moments came at the Indian Open (15k-level) in Mumbai, where she beat veteran Joshna Chinappa on her way to winning the title. She clinched the Under-17 title at the British Junior Open in January and played a key role in helping India win bronze at the Asian Junior Team Championships in Hong Kong, China. Her excellent performances pushed her into the top 70 in the PSA world rankings, and she is currently ranked world No. 56, making her India's highest-ranked women's player. In April, Anahat booked her place at the World Squash Championships in Chicago by winning the Asian qualifiers held in Malaysia. In her senior World Championship debut in May, she pulled off a big upset by defeating world No. 29 Marina Stefanoni of the USA in a five-game thriller. She eventually lost in the second round to Egypt's world No. 14 Fayrouz Aboelkheir. Anahat shared the Young Player of the Season award with Amina Orfi, the reigning world junior champion from Egypt, who also had a standout season. Orfi won her first PSA Gold-level event at the Singapore Open and made it into the top five in the world rankings. (ANI)
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