Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinappa have all but assured India of their first ever medal in squash at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea on Saturday.
The duo won their respective opening games, to qualify for the quarterfinal, where the draw has pitted them against each other. Hence, at least one of them will progress to the semifinals of the event. In squash, both the losing semifinalists are awarded the bronze medal.
Chinappa, who is currently ranked 21st in women's squash, destroyed the 183rd-ranked Song Summi of South Korea 11-9, 11-7, 11-7.
Meanwhile, Pallikal faced the 150th-ranked Jinyue Gu of China. Although Pallikal struggled a bit initially, the Indian, ranked number 12, eventually managed to overcome her Chinese counterpart 11-6, 10-12, 11-6, 11-4.
The quarterfinals will be held on Sunday, when the two players, who know each other's game well, go head-to-head.
The duo had previously won their first gold medal together in the women's doubles squash event at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, earlier this year. This has been the first ever medal in squash.
However, both the players seem to have decided to look at the other side of the coin, calling the draw "unfortunate".
Pallikal had even gone to the extent of thinking about pulling out of the Asian Games, believing that certain conspiracies are at play behind this draw, since it means that only one of them can win a medal for India.
