Mandhian promises best is yet to come
Indian teenager upsets top players en route to Under-19 honours at Dubai Squash Championships
Indian teenager Maanav Mandhian has set his sights on dominating his sport after becoming the latest champion at the Dubai Open and Junior Squash Championships that concluded at the Al Nasr Leisureland earlier this week.
Played on a round-robin basis, Mandhian won all his five matches to end with an unbeaten record and win the competition for under-19 boys, while Zeeshan Basharat went on to claim the men’s open crown.
Held under the auspices of the UAE Squash Association, the annual tournament was organised by head coach Faheem Khan with sponsorship from Al Nasr Leisureland. The competition was held in eleven different age categories for boys, girls and an open competition in the Super Men’s category that was claimed by Basharat.
Winning with ease
Impressing one and all was Mandhian, the debutant in the under-19 category, as he won all his matches with ease, including convincing victories against top juniors Rithik Jalali and Adham Al Wassimy. Basharat too was in fine form as he upset former Iraq’s top-ranked player Ahmad Al Kiremli on his way to the title.
“It’s really a great feeling to win my first-ever major tournament in the UAE. I’ve worked hard to get to this stage, and most of the credit ought to go to my coach and mentor Abbas Khan as he has passed on his experience to me,” Mandhian told
Mandhian was never an assured convert to squash. After taking up the sport a few years back and competing in the under-12 and under-14 age categories, the Indian came in contact with former Pakistan international Khan. “Last year on his advice [Khan] I played in three tournaments in India — the NSCI Open and Mumbai Gymkhana Open in Mumbai and the Indian Open in Jaipur. During the Indian Open I lost to Malaysia’s number four and that suddenly gave me the belief and confidence that I can take squash seriously,” he mentioned.
Spurred by this success, Mandhian has now decided to divert his attention to the international stage, preferably with a tour to Europe later this summer. “I would target at least the Dutch Open and the Cologne Open in Germany to start with, and then head to India for a few more competitions,” said the student from Emirates International School in Jumeirah.
“All these are experiences for me that will eventually help me in my growth as an individual and professional squash player,” Mandhian added.