Joshna clinches gold by beating Pakistan’s Maria Wazir in a high-octane clash at SAG

Top seed Joshna, ranked 14th in the world, recovered from one set down to beat second seeded Wazir 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7. With Joshna’s gold, India has so far won three medals in squash with Sourav Ghosal and Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu having grabbed a bronze each after losing to their Pakistani opponents on Sunday. 

Speaking to DT Next, Joshna said the final was the hardest match in the tournament. “Maria is an aggressive player and I knew she would keep me on my toes. It was a good game, of course with some hiccups, but I managed to keep my nerve in crunch situations.” Joshna said. 

The squash star said clinching the third game was the crucial point in her win. “I knew Pakistan was our biggest competitor in the Games. Crawling back from a 6-8 score in the third game after being 1-1 was the turning point as I managed to get my confidence back on track and was able to play well,” the 29-year-old player added. 

Joshna was not happy with the way her opponent played in the match and complained to the match officials on a couple of occasions after Maria had ‘blocked’ the Chennai player. “I play in the professional circuit and there, these kind of things, likes lot of interference does not happen,” she said. 

With Dipika Pallikal not playing the individual tournament and the men bowing out of the competition on Sunday, Joshna was the flag bearer of the country and according to her it wasn’t an added pressure. “I love playing for my country and it is a matter of pride for me. There was no pressure as I did not think about these circumstances as they were beyond my control. I am happy to win the gold for my country,” Joshna added.