Does the fact that only three players are directly supported by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports’ field arm, Sports Authority of India indicate a belief that the Squash team will not able to replicate the five medal showing achieved both in Jakarta-Palembang in 2018 and in Hangzhou in 2023?
Abhay Singh (men’s world No. 25), Veer Chotrani (men’s world No. 43) and Anahat Singh (women’s world No. 20) are the among the 133 athletes in the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) Development Group; there is no squash player among the 110 athletes in the TOPS Core Group or among the 45 athletes in the Target Asian Games Group.
Abhay Singh remains the only active player from the men’s squad which won the Asian Games gold in Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games three years ago while Anahat Singh, World No. 74 Tanvi Khanna and World No. 77 Joshna Chinappa, part of the women’s team which won bronze in Hangzhou, are expected to lead India’s campaign in Aichi-Nagoya later this year,
Squash is one sport in which India has won 18 medals in five editions of the Asian Games since it was introduced to the continental sporting extravaganza’s programme in 2006. However, there are but three squash players who have been identified for support under schemes of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
It may be rather late in the day for the Ministry to consider including more Squash players in the Target Asian Games Group but if India is keen on doing well in the Ahmedabad 2030 Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games that follow, it must start investing more in a sport that not only offers multiple medals but in which Indians cam make to the podium.
Though Squash is now on the Olympic Games programme, not a single Squash player is among the 2904 athletes identified for support as a Khelo India Athlete. And this despite there being three boys and five girls Indians among the top 50 in the world Under-19 rankings. Similarly, not a single Squash academy is accredited under the Khelo India Scheme.
That does not reflect well on the thinking of those charged with the task of driving Indian sport higher. Of course, the Ministry supports the Squash Rackets Federation of India under the Assistance to National Sports Federations Scheme. But when one looks at the numbers, it will become clear that a ramping up will be in order.
The allocation went up from Rs 1.16 crore in 2019-20 – the Covid19 years when it was Rs. 25 lakh in 2020-21and Rs. 6 lakh in 2021-22 – to Rs 3.2 crore in 2022-23, Rs. 3 crore in 2023-24 and Rs. 4.45 crore in 2024-25. Curiously, SRFI utilised only Rs 4.73 crore of the Rs 7.45 allocated over the last two years for which the Ministry has shared data in public.
If India’s sports thinktank is serious about emerging as a sports power, it is imperative that the country looks at sport that can fetch it medals in the Olympic Games and Asian Games. It must soon support a few Squash Academies and take on more than few Squash players as Khelo India Athletes. The sport can do with infusion of greater support across all levels.
When the onus remains on parents of junior players to sustain fueling their children’s journeys, it should not surprise anyone if quite a few talented players drop out from the scene before making the transition to the senior ranks or almost immediately thereafter. One way of ensuring that this does not happen is to offer additional support during this phase of development.
The support is a lot more now than some years ago. However, India must ensure support to players with high potential. Then again, coaching at the grassroots levels also can do with an upgrade. With more quality coaches imparting the basics among a larger number of young players, the creamy layer may be wider and deeper.
To be sure, SRFI has done well to get the World Squash Federation Levels 1, 2 and 3 Coach Certification programmes to India and to consider developing its own facilitators for such courses. But a lot more has to be done to foster India’s growth in Squash, especially at the lower rungs of the sport before the benefactors queue up to support elite players.
Photo: Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu and Dipika Pallikal Karthik after winning Mixed Doubles gold in the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games
