Asian Games 2023: India defeat Pakistan in thrilling men's squash final, win 2nd gold of Day 7

India added another gold medal to their collection in the ongoing Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, with the men’s squash team defeating Pakistan in the gold medal match on Saturday. LIVE: Asian Games 2023, Day 7 Abhay Singh defeated Noor Zaman 12-10 in a thrilling deciding game to take the match 3-2, helping India clinch gold. Singh won the opening game 11-7, before Zaman bounced back and helped Pakistan take the lead in the decider by winning the next two games 11-9 and 11-8.

A Glorious Gold 🥇by the 🇮🇳 #Squash men's Team!

Team 🇮🇳 India defeats 🇵🇰2-1in an nail-biter final !

What a great match guys!

Great work by @SauravGhosal , @abhaysinghk98 , @maheshmangao & @sandhu_harinder ! You guys Rock💪🏻#Cheer4India 🇮🇳#JeetegaBharat#BharatAtAG22… pic.twitter.com/g4ArXxhQhK

— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) September 30, 2023

Singh then won Game 4 11-9 to level the tie 2-2, and was on the verge of conceding the gold medal in Game 5 at 8-10 when he reeled off four points in a row, and helped Team India win their 11th gold medal of the ongoing Games, and their second of the day. Iqbal Nasir had blanked Mahesh Mangaonkar 3-0 (11-8, 11-3, 11-2) in the opening tie to help Pakistan take the lead before Sourav Ghosal fought back to keep India’s hopes alive, defeating Muhammad Asim Khan 3-0 (11-5, 11-1, 11-3). Before the tournament began, the Indian men’s team was expected to step on the top of podium after eight years with its main challenge coming from Malaysia and Pakistan, the sport’s powerhouse in the yesteryears. The Ghosal-led side managed to see off both the opponents on their way to glory. The win in the final against Pakistan came after the loss to the arch-rivals in the league stage. Zaman, ranked 113, had got the better of world number 69 Abhay in that contest earlier this week and for the major part of the match on Saturday, it looked going in Pakistan’s favour again. With the final locked at 1-1 after Ghosal and Iqbal won their respective singles, the gold was going to be decided in the match between 25-year-old Abhay and teenager Zaman. Zaman led 9-7 in the fourth game and had two match balls at 10-8 in the deciding game but the Indian somehow managed to turn it around for a memorable win. “We should have won three nights ago also as we were the better team. I am happy that we won today. No time for celebrations as have got matches tomorrow,” said Abhay. The athleticism from players was remarkable as the contest involved breathtaking rallies and winners. Zaman had the younger legs but was guilty of making more unforced errors than his opponent. “Considering the circumstances, it was surely the biggest win of Abhay’s career,” said Ghosal, the highest-ranked Indian at 19. Not a lot is known about Abhay who turned professional back in 2017 but that should change after Saturday. After he levelled the match 2-2, it was clear that he did not need a lot of coaching from his teammates. In his first Asian Games, he knew what we was doing. It was a tough loss to swallow for the young Zaman who was seen weeping after a 64-minute marathon. India last won a men’s team squash gold in the 2014 edition of the games in Incheon, while the Pakistanis last claimed gold in 2010 in Guanzhou. Ghosal, playing his sixth Asian Games, will now shift his focus to winning a maiden gold in the individual competition, having tallied three bronze and a silver in singles since Busan 2002. With inputs from PTI