New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) Aryaveer Dewan will lead India’s campaign at the Asian Junior Individual Squash Championships in Panzhihua, China, from May 20 to 24. The country aims to build on its impressive medal haul from the last edition.

Dewan, who won the boys’ U-17 title last year, moves up to the U-19 category this season and enters the tournament as the third seed. This talented player will lead a strong 32-member Indian team competing in categories from U-11 to U-19.

India had a successful outing in the last championships, coming home with seven medals: two gold, two silver, and three bronze. With several seeded players this year, the Indian team hopes to improve on that performance in China.

In the boys’ section, India has strong medal chances in several age groups. In the U-13 category, Abhyuday Arora and Amarya Bajaj are both seeded 3/4, while Shresht Iyer is the second seed in the U-15 competition.

Joining Dewan in the U-19 boys’ category are Gurveer Singh, Yusha Nafees, and Purav Rambhia.

The girls’ team also has several promising players. Divyanshi Jain is the second seed in the U-13 category, while Shanaya Parasrampuria is seeded 3/4 in the same age group.

In the U-15 girls’ section, Aadya Budhia will carry Indian hopes as a 3/4 seed, while Anika Dubey enters the U-17 draw with the same seeding.

India’s U-19 girls’ team will include Unnati Tripathi, Eesha Shrivastava, Akanksha Gupta, and Vyomika Khandelwal.

The Indian team will have support from officials Mekhala Srivastava, Surbhi Misra, Avinash Bhavnani, and Saatvik Joshi during this continental event.

With a good mix of experienced junior internationals and rising talent, India looks to make a strong impact at one of Asia’s top junior squash competitions and continue its growth in the sport at the continental level.

–IANS

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