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Ever happened that you had the passes of a fancied music concert in your city? All your peers and comrades are buoyed by it. But then your mind is constantly inclined to that football match or a reality show which you are only keen to watch at the airing time. So you just disregard the concert and get glued in front of your screens to catch the thrilling action.
If you’ve been through an iota of the aforementioned experience, then welcome to Urwashi Joshi’s journey of playing squash. Watching her brother bring trophies home from age-group tournaments, she jumped into the squash court to add some of them to her shelf. More than showing interest in the sport, it was the gifts that winners were awarded that lured the Kalyan-born girl to experiment with the racket sport.
Soon she was under the tutelage of the late Mr. Sunil Verma at the Jindal Squash Academy in Vasind, which is 64 kilometres away from Mumbai. Within eight months of joining, she started winning the trophies with aplomb.
However, there was a juncture in 2015 when Urwashi kept her racket aside to make her academics the focal point. It wasn’t an influential decision, but the one that came from her own mind.
"After my U19, I stopped playing because there weren't many tournaments happening in India. I stopped playing and was focusing on my studies for the final year," Urwashi told Sportskeeda in an exclusive interaction.
Urwashi Joshi turns down job offer and returns to squash
As the quote from Donamaria goes by ‘a true passion never dies, it simply lies asleep in the burrows of the heart, waiting to be reawakened.’
Though Urwashi Joshi was offered a remunerative job from a renowned financial service firm Motilal Oswal in Mumbai, she rejected it because she couldn’t part ways with her squash passion. Despite clearing the selection process, the game withheld her from joining the firm.
The then 20-year-old Urwashi opted for coaching in a bid to resume her playing career, but the process wasn’t as smooth enough as it was planned before.
"That was difficult when I got back again because I was not into practice but I jumped into matches, and tournaments and that hit me hard because I used to lose to the juniors. And that's when I lost my confidence. That was the difficult phase after I joined," the three-time national junior champion said.
Even though she wasn’t able to find her mojo very soon, she ruminated on one thing in her mind every time the doubts crept into it.
"No matter what, you should be able to play your best squash on your worst days," she would tell herself.
With this mantra, Urwashi reached the final of the 2018 National Squash Championship. Though she lost to the top-seeded Joshna Chinappa, it was a moment of rejuvenation in her career. The player was bestowed with the Shiv Chhatrapati Award, which is the highest sporting award for a Maharashtrian player, for achievements in 2017-18.
Urwashi Joshi finds her idol in Egypt star
Three years later, Urwashi and Joshna were in the Indian team which won a bronze medal at the Asian Squash Team Championship in Malaysia. The Maharashtra squash player takes suggestions from her Tamil Nadu counterpart but admires Egypt’s seven-time world champion Nour El Sherbini’s antics on the court.
Urwashi lost to India’s prodigy player Anahat Singh last month in the semifinals of the 79th National Squash Championship in straight games 11-7, 11-3, 11-8. However, she was not "disappointed" with her performance.
"I could have done better as always, but I am not disappointed because I played some quality squash. I think it was a good fight for her. It was not an easy match to take away. I went wrong in a few places like where I just lost focus and took the casual approach. I will make sure I give a good fight and win next time," Urwashi said.
'Squash in Olympics is best news ever' - Urwashi Joshi
Urwashi is a JSW athlete and she tied the knot with Rohan Mane a year ago. She credits her in-laws for being supportive of her professional career.
"I extend my gratitude to my family, particularly my brother who doubles as my coach, for their unwavering support and encouragement. A heartfelt thanks to JSW, the steadfast backbone behind me, for sponsoring my journey and for their ongoing support in the future," she added.
The news of squash getting included in the Los Angeles Olympics 2028 has been a massive boost for the 28-year-old, just like many young squash players.
"Best news ever, we have been waiting for it since 2020. When the news came I was all shouting out loud like Squash is in Olympics," Urwashi concluded.
Urwashi also won a bronze medal at the National Games 2023 in Goa, where Maharashtra won the annual event with a total of 228 medals.
