Rising Indian squash ace Sachika Ingale’s run came to an end in the quarter-finals of the Edinburgh Sports Club Open 2016 on Saturday. The World No. 84 lost 11-5, 8-11, 8-11, 4-11 to the 15-year-old Egyptian Nada Abbas, who is ranked just three places below her.
The 21-year-old Ingale, who began the year by playing at the Premier League 6th Round in England, had earlier won her first round at the Edinburgh Open comfortably. The fourth seed beat Scottish wildcard Elspeth Young, 11-8, 14-12, 11-5.
She had begun her quarter-final against Abbas playing confidently and surged to an 11-5 lead. But the young Egyptian, who had reached the quarter-finals at the London Classic last November, came back with a bang. Sachika fought hard in the next two games but could not prevent Abbas from marching ahead.
In the fourth game, the Indian failed to keep up with her opponent's brilliant movement and attacking play and bowed out.
After making the quarter-finals in three consecutive tournaments between March and July last year, Ingale had suffered five first-round exits in a row August onwards. She would be keen to build on her quarter-final appearance at the Edinburgh Open for more confidence-boosting results.