Mumbai, March 21 (IANS) Hana Moataz and Abhay Singh rose to the occasion with commanding performances to storm into the finals of the Indian Open, registering hard-fought 3-1 victories in their respective semi-finals on Saturday.

Second seed Hana Moataz shook off a slow start to outclass her third-seeded compatriot Nadien Elhammamy 3-1 (11-8, 5-11, 11-5, 11-7).

The opening game was a closely fought see-saw battle, with the lead changing hands at regular intervals before Moataz edged ahead to take it 11-8.

The second followed a similar pattern early on, but Nadien found momentum midway, breaking away at 7-5 and closing it out 11-5 to level the match.

Moataz, however, raised her intensity in the third game, dominating proceedings to win 11-5. She carried that momentum into the fourth, building a healthy lead before Nadien mounted a brief comeback, but Moataz held firm to seal the game 11-7 and wrap up the match.

In the men’s semi-final, Abhay Singh overcame a strong challenge from Malaysia’s Ameeshenraj Chandaran 3-1 (11-9, 9-11, 11-3, 11-8).

The unseeded Chandaran matched Abhay for much of the contest, with both players trading powerful forehands and clever angles in an engaging battle. Abhay started strongly, racing to a 9-4 lead in the opening game, but Chandaran clawed his way back with five consecutive points to threaten an upset before the Indian held his nerve to take it 11-9.

The second game was evenly poised throughout. Trailing 8-9, Chandaran stepped up at the right moment, winning three straight points to claim the game 11-9 and draw level.

Abhay responded emphatically in the third, cruising to an 11-3 win. The fourth game proved to be another test, as he trailed 2-6 at one stage before fighting back to level at 7-7 and eventually closing out the match 11-8 to secure his place in the final.

–IANS

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