Squash star Saurav Ghosal scripts history, becomes first-ever Indian to win Malaysian Open

Squash player Saurav Ghosal on Saturday scripted history as he became the first-ever Indian to win the Malaysian Open. This is the first time in three years that Ghosal has managed to bring a PSA Tour title under his belt. Ghosal defeated top seed, Miguel Rodrigues, after winning three straight sets in 55 minutes. The Colombian was outplayed by Ghosal, who looked in full control of the game right from the start. 

Ghosal won the first set 11-7 and then followed it up with a victory in the second game by beating Rodrigues 11-8. Rodrigues did give Ghosal a hard time in the third set but the Indian star managed to stage a comeback as he won the game 13-11 and also bagged the Malaysian Open title in style. Ghosal came into the final on the back of consecutive wins in the preliminary stage of the competition. Ghosal did not lose a single game in the tournament. 

Earlier, the 35-year-old beat France's Victor Crouin 3-0 in the semifinal to book a place in the final. Ghosal had come into the semifinal after defeating Crouin's compatriot Lucas Serme and Egyptian Mazen Gamal in the quarterfinals and pre-quarterfinals, respectively. He had won both games with the same scoreline of 3-0. The previous best result by an Indian male squash player in the Malaysian Open had come from Ghosal himself after he finished runner-up in 2003. 

Ghosal's records

The world's No. 13 ranked player turned pro in 2003 and since then he has won five titles for India on the international stage. Ghosal has also won four individual medals for India at the Asian Games - one silver and three bronze medals. In 2013, Ghosal became the first Indian to reach the quarterfinals of the World Squash Championship. In the same year, he also became the first Indian to reach the quarterfinals of the World Championship.  

Image: PTI