Dipika, Joshna clinch India’s first-ever squash medal
Joshana Chinappa and Dipika Pallikal gave India their first gold medal in squash by winning women's doubles Squash event at Commonwealth Games (Photo: AP)
Chennai: In what could give squash much-needed fillip in the country, Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinappa on Saturday netted India’s first-ever medal — a gold, at that — at the Commonwealth Games since the sport was introduced in 1998.The Chennai girls, who have largely made headlines for their glam quotient despite being achievers in the unheralded racquet sport, on Saturday put it across the No.1 English pair of Laura Massaro and Jenny Duncalf to win the doubles gold 11-6. 11-8.
For a sport that has been routinely denied the opportunity of being involved in the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games comes as the blue riband event and the Chennai girls are over the moon having scaled the summit.“They say winning a medal at the Olympics is the ultimate dream of any sportsperson and for us it’s the CWG. It’s the only opportunity we get to be involved in a multi-sports event,” Dipika, who made her Games debut at Glasgow after she fell sick on the eve of the 2010 edition in New Delhi, told this newspaper.
“I can’t express the excitement in words. Standing on top of the podium with our national anthem reverberating the arena was the proudest moment of my life.”
Dipika and Joshna are bitter rivals, yet best friends off the glass court. They do not play doubles regularly as the Tour hosts only singles events, but the two girls took the event by storm.The Indians raced to an early lead as they made it 8-4 before Dipika’s forehand drop sealed the game at 11-6. While the first game was comprehensive, the second was a thriller. From 2-7 down, the Chennai girls staged a superb comeback and equalised it at 7-7 with a brilliant backhand winner off Joshna’s racquet. Then, Dipika, with fiancé Dinesh Karthik watching from the stands, came up with a couple of forehand drops to stun the no. 1 pair.
Dipika said the gold medal means a lot to squash in India. “I hope more and more players will take up the sport and start believing that a medal is a reality as long as they work hard and dream big,” she said. Joshna added: “We need more support from the government. I hope the sport gets more backing from sponsors now.”
( Source : c. santhosh kumar )
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