Indian squash stars Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh missed out on a direct qualification for the Los Angeles Olympics 2028, after they lost their respective singles gold medal matches at the Asian Games 2026 on Sunday. Had the Indian won their games, they would have qualified directly for the 2028 in the United States.
While lost 0-3 to Malaysian Sivasangari Subramaniam in women’s singles final, Abhay went down against Eain Yow Ng, also from Malaysia in the men’s singles final. As a result, both the Indians had to settle for silver. In fact, Anahat became the first Indian woman to win silver in squash in the women’s singles at the
Anahat’s match lasted just 27 minutes. The 18-year-old lost the first two games 4-11, 4-11 before going down in the third game (7-11) with a fight. This is India’s 32nd medal at the ongoing Asian Games, having won four gold medals, 14 silver and bronze medals each.
Earlier, Abhay lost 9-11, 5-11, 5-11 to Eain Yow. Ranked 26th in the world, Abhay was unable to match the Malaysian world No. 17’s consistency. Squash is set to make its Olympic debut at the Games.
Abhay began the third game positively but could not maintain his momentum as Eain Yow gradually took control to close out the contest. The 28-year-old Abhay had reached the final after defeating Pakistan’s Muhammad Irfan 11-3, 12-10, 11-6 in the semifinals.
He became only the second Indian man after Saurav Ghosal to reach an Asian Games singles final. An Arjuna Award recipient in 2024, Abhay reached a career-high PSA ranking of No. 22 in April 2026 and is currently ranked No. 26.
He has also enjoyed a productive 2026 season, winning the Indian Open in Mumbai and his third Tuanku Muhriz Trophy title in Malaysia. He was part of India’s gold-winning team at the 2025 SDAT Squash World Cup in Chennai.
