Niagara-on-the-Lake. Indian squash player Anahat Singh has created history. 18-year-old Anahat won the girls’ singles title at the World Junior Squash Championships 2026 held in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada. In the final held on July 25 (Saturday), top seed Anahat defeated second seed Ruqayya Salem of Egypt 11-3, 11-7, 11-9 in consecutive games.
This achievement of Anahat Singh is also special because no Indian player had become champion before in the history of Junior World Squash Championship. Anahat went one step ahead of Joshna Chinappa, who had reached the final in 2005, and won the trophy.
Anahat Singh was completely dominant in the title match from the beginning. In the first game, he played aggressively and allowed Salem to score only three points. In the second game, the Egyptian player tried to make a comeback, but the Indian star maintained her composure and retained the lead. Salem also gave a tough challenge in the third game, but in the decisive moments, Anahat played brilliant shots and ended the match in straight games.
Anahat Singh’s performance was not limited to the finals only. He dominated his game throughout the tournament. During six matches, they lost only two games, while winning the first three matches without losing a single game. She started her campaign by defeating Lily Wilson of Australia 3-0. After this, she defeated Chloe Lo of Hong Kong and Doyce Ye San Lee of Malaysia in straight games and made it to the quarter-finals.
In the knockout stage, Anahat Singh faced three Egyptian players consecutively. She proved that she was the strongest contender for the title by defeating Habiba Rizk 3-1 in the quarter-finals, Barb Sameh 3-1 in the semi-finals and Ruqayya Salem 3-0 in the final.
Egypt’s dominance ended
Anahat Singh’s victory also ended Egypt’s long dominance in junior squash. Since 2011, the girls’ singles title had been held by Egyptian players for 13 consecutive editions. Now Anahat broke this trend and wrote a new history. Not only this, she has also become the first non-Egyptian player to become Junior World Champion since America’s Amanda Sobhi in 2010.
This success of Anahat Singh did not come suddenly. Last year, he ended India’s 15-year wait by winning the bronze medal in the Junior World Championship held in Cairo. That performance had given indications of his bright future and this time he went even further and fulfilled his dream of becoming world champion. Anahat Singh, who has reached number 20 in the senior PSA Tour rankings at the age of 18, is now one of the biggest hopes of Indian squash.
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