Published: March 19, 2026 at 10:01 pm
Egypt’s Ibrahim Elkabanni pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament as he squashed the hopes of top seed Yahya Elnawasany 3-2 in a 66-minute battle as day 2 of the JSW Indian Open 2026 delivered high-octane squash at the CCI, with a mix of dominant performances, stunning comebacks, and marathon five-game thrillers, as Indian stars Anahat Singh and Abhay Sinigh rose to the occasion, delivering commanding performances.
The standout clashes came from Egypt’s Ibrahim Elkabbani and Mohamed Sharaf, both of whom emerged victorious in gripping five-game encounters. Elkabbani pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, defeating top seed Yahya Elnawasany 3-2 in a 66-minute battle. Additionally, Sharaf edged past Hong Kong’s Chi Him Wong in another pulsating five-setter.
Ibrahim Elkabbani pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, defeating top seed Yahya Elnawasany 3-2 in a 66-minute battle. Pics: PSA Squash Tour
The 23-year-old Elkabbani has a career-high ranking of No.58 in the world but has endured a tough few months of late, dropping outside the world’s top 100. He did, however, come into this event in good form, winning his eighth Tour title at the Egyptian Squash Federation 4 just a few days ago.
His opponent, Elnawasany, had also enjoyed a successful run of results recently, though, reaching a bronze-level final and winning a maiden copper title in his last two events.
Elkabanni finds his range against Yahya
It was the No.1 seed who made by far the better start in this encounter, too, needing less than 10 minutes to take the opening game 11-4, but Elkabbani found his range in game two, displaying a powerful approach to his hitting and moving well around the court.
Having won game two 11-8, he then closed out the third on a tiebreak, keeping his composure after seeing three game balls come and go at 10-7 up.
India’s Abhay Singh produced a clinical performance to overcome Matthew Lai of Hong Kong. Despite a tight start, Abhay found his rhythm and dominated proceedings to secure a commanding 3-0 win
A run of five straight points for Elnawasany from 6-6 in the fourth sent the match to a decider, and at 6-4 up, the World No.25 would have been sensing victory was within his reach.
But having seen that lead quickly disappear, Elnawasany would never lead again in the match, as Elkabbani took his second match ball at 10-9, crouching down in a state of disbelief in the moments that followed.
India’s Abhay Singh produced a clinical performance to overcome Matthew Lai of Hong Kong. Despite a tight start, Abhay found his rhythm and dominated proceedings to secure a commanding 3-0 win.
Tanvi packs off Egypt’s Nour
In the women’s draw, Tanvi Khanna impressed with a composed and confident display against Egypt’s Nour Khafagy. While Khafagy pushed hard in each game, Khanna held her nerve in crucial moments to wrap up a 3-0 victory.
Despite being unseeded, Tanvi is only ranked three places below Khafagy in the world, and made a dominant start in front of her home crowd, needing just seven minutes to take game one 11-5.
Game two was a far closer affair, but once again it was Tanvi who came out on top, clinching her third game ball at 10-9 to move within one game of glory.
Game three would prove to be the closest of them all, with the score never separated by more than two points, and tension was rising at 9-9.
Tanvi, though, kept her cool, closing out victory on back-to-back no-lets, letting out an emotional scream after the final decision was announced.
Tanvi Khanna impressed with a composed and confident display against Egypt’s Nour Khafagy. While Khafagy pushed hard in each game, Khanna held her nerve in crucial moments to wrap up a 3-0 victory
Top seed Anahat Singh also continued her strong run, registering solid straight games win over Farida Walid of Egypt. Anahat maintained control throughout the match, blending precision and consistency to secure her place in the next round, winning the game 3-0.
Veer Chotrani stamped his authority early, racing ahead before an unfortunate retirement from Omlor cut the contest short. Joshna Chinappa showcased her class and big-match temperament, powering past a gritty Breanne Flynn in a hard-fought four-game clash.
Lee and Chandaran pack off Ramit and Velavan
Malaysians Duncan Lee and Ameeshenraj Chandaran had other ideas, both playing some outstanding squash, with Chandaran showcasing his trademark deception and Lee finding his targets to all four corners.
Having gone 2-0 up, Lee found himself with four match balls at 10-6 up in the third and could easily have wilted under the pressure after seeing the first three come and go, with the crowd cheering every point Ramit Tandon won.
But instead, the unseeded Malaysian found a moment of magic when it mattered most, reaching high for a forehand which he placed perfectly just above the tin.
Almost simultaneously, Chandaran was clawing his way back from a 7-1 deficit in game three – having won the first two games against Velavan Senthilkumar – and soon had two match balls of his own at 10-8 up.
Wild card Om Semwal saves five match balls, downs Salazar in a thriller at JSW Indian Open
Like Lee, he was unable to convert the first but took the second with a well-weighted forehand cross-court, with Senthilkumar’s back-wall boast attempt falling short.
Lee and Chandaran will now go head-to-head for a place in the semi-finals of the men’s draw, which has been blown wide open by today’s results, results that also included a win for Yassin Shohdy over No.8 seed Dewald van Niekerk.
Results: Men’s singles: Ameeshenraj Chandaran (MAS) beat Velavan Senthilkumar (IND) 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-9), Duncan Lee (MAS) beat Ramit Tandon (IND) 3-0 (11-9, 11-4, 11-9), Yassin Shohdy (EGY) beat Dewald van Niekerk (RSA) 3-0 (11-6, 11-8, 11-6), Abhay Singh (IND) beat Matthew Lai (HKG) 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-6), Ibrahim Elkabbani (EGY) beat Yahya Elnawasany (EGY) 3-2 (4-11, 11-8, 12-10, 6-11, 11-9), Sanjay Jeeva (MAS) beat Om Semwal (IND) 3-0 (11-5, 11-5, 11-2), Mohamed Sharaf (EGY) beat Chi Him Wong (HKG) 3-2 (10-12, 11-3, 9-11, 11-7, 11-6), Veer Chotrani (IND) beat Yannik Omlor (GER) 3-0 (5-3 retd).
Women’s singles: Sehveetrraa Kumar (MAS) beat Enora Villard (FRA) 3-0 (11-7, 12-10, 11-8), Anahat Singh (IND) beat Farida Walid (EGY) 3-0 (11-6, 11-9, 11-5), Tanvi Khanna (IND) beat Nour Khafagy (EGY) 3-0 (11-5, 11-9, 11-9), Ainaa Amani (MAS) beat Danielle Ray (CAN) 3-1 (11-3, 9-11, 11-4, 11-2), Hana Moataz (EGY) beat Sofía Mateos (ESP) 3-0 (11-7, 11-6, 11-4), Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS) beat Elise Romba (FRA) 3-1 (8-11, 11-7, 11-2, 11-4), Joshna Chinappa (IND) beat Breanne Flynn (IRL) 3-1 (12-10, 11-4, 8-11, 11-9), Nadien Elhammamy (EGY) beat Ambre Allinckx (SUI) 3-0 (11-4, 11-4, 11-7).
Quarterfinal fixtures (March 20): Men: 15:45: Mohamed Sharaf (EGY) vs Veer Chotrani (IND); 17:15: Duncan Lee (MAS) vs Ameeshenraj Chandaran (MAS); 19:15: Ibrahim Elkabbani (EGY) vs Sanjay Jeeva (MAS); 20:45: Yassin Shohdy (EGY) vs Abhay Singh (IND).
Women: 15:00: Nadien Elhammamy (EGY) vs Joshna Chinappa (IND); 16:30: Tanvi Khanna (IND) vs Ainaa Amani (MAS); 18:30: Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS) vs Hana Moataz (EGY); 20:00: Anahat Singh (IND) vs Sehveetrraa Kumar (MAS).
