Tough day for Indian women as Japan, China dominate day 2

MAHABALIPURAM: Day two of the ASF Asian Surfing Championships 2025 shifted focus to the women’s events, with Round 1 of the Open Women and U18 Girls divisions taking place in challenging conditions off the Tamil Nadu coast.

Despite tricky sets from the Indian Ocean, the day showcased the rising calibre of women’s surfing in Asia, as athletes carved clean lines and demonstrated growing confidence and technical skill on the international stage.

Japan’s Anri Matsuno stood out in the Open Women category, scoring a dominant 15.34 to comfortably advance to the third round. Matsuno’s fluid movement and progressive turns were a class apart, as she finished well ahead of Saudi Arabia’s Lamar Mufti, who managed just 1.00.

China’s Siqi Yang dominated Heat 6 of Round 1 with a score of 13.17, finishing five points clear of Korea’s Lee Harin.

China’s Shuhan Jin kept the momentum going in Heat 7 of Round 1, posting 12.16 to win comfortably by over five points.

In the U18 Girls’ division, Thailand’s Isabel Higgs was the pick of the bunch, posting a seeding round-high of 17.00. Her performance on the long right-hand walls underlined her promise as one of the region’s rising stars, finishing well ahead of Taiwan’s Huai-Pen Chen (5.66) and India’s Aadya Singh (1.40).

For host nation India, it was a testing day in the surf. National champion Kamali Moorthy posted the highest Indian score of the day with 7.60 in the Open Women’s division, while Sugar Shanti (4.97) and Shrishti Selvam (4.60) showed flashes of potential.

In the U18 Girls’ heats, Saanvi Hegde managed a 2.63 and Aadya Singh 1.40, both gaining valuable experience at this level.

While results did not go their way, India’s young women surfers continue to break ground on the international stage. All five athletes will look to regroup and respond through the repechage rounds later in the week.