Abhay Singh powered into the men's singles squash final at the Asian Games 2026 with a commanding straight-games victory over Pakistan's Muhammad Irfan
on Saturday, assuring India of another singles medal in Nagoya.
The Asian Championships gold medallist defeated Irfan 11-3, 12-10, 11-6 in around 30 minutes to become only the second Indian man after Saurav Ghosal to reach an Asian Games singles final.
Abhay Singh dominates Muhammad Irfan
Abhay made an authoritative start to the semifinal, racing into a 6-2 lead in the opening game before maintaining control of the contest. He continued to dictate the rallies and closed out the game 11-3.
Irfan offered greater resistance in the second game, forcing Abhay into a tighter contest. The Indian, however, held his composure in the crucial exchanges to take the game 12-10 and move within one game of the final.
Abhay continued to hold the upper hand in the third game, eventually winning 11-6 to complete a straight-games victory and book his place in the gold-medal match.
Abhay joins Anahat Singh in Asian Games squash finals
Abhay's victory came shortly after Anahat Singh produced a remarkable comeback to reach the women's singles final.
The 18-year-old Indian recovered from two games down to defeat Japan's world No. 6 Satomi Watanabe 9-11, 11-13, 12-10, 11-6, 11-3. Anahat had trailed 0-2 before turning the semifinal around by winning the next three games.
Her victory avenged her earlier five-game defeat to Watanabe this year and moved her one win away from an Asian Games gold medal.
With both Anahat and Abhay through to their respective singles finals, India are guaranteed two singles medals in squash and will have two opportunities to compete for gold.
Abhay's run also adds to India's medal haul in squash, with Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar having already secured a bronze medal in mixed doubles.
