Anahat Singh Withdraws From Canadian Women's Open Quarterfinal Due to Injury

New Delhi, Oct 28: India's teenage squash star Anahat Singh has withdrawn from her quarterfinal match at the Canadian Women's Open due to an injury, bringing her campaign to an unexpected end. The sixth seed was scheduled to face Egyptian top seed Fayrouz Aboelkheir in the quarterfinals.

"India's Anahat Singh has withdrawn from her Canadian Women's Open 2026 quarter-final match tomorrow due to injury. The 18-year-old was due to face top seed Fayrouz Aboelkheir in the opening match tomorrow night at Brookfield Place after defeating Saran Nghiem yesterday. Aboelkheir has received a walkover to the semi-finals in Toronto as a result," PSA Squash Tour wrote on its website on Tuesday.

The 18-year-old Indian had entered the quarterfinals after an impressive performance against England's Saran Nghiem in the previous round. Anahat secured an 11-6, 4-11, 11-5, 11-7 victory to book her place in the last eight. She had received a bye in the first round of the tournament.

Her withdrawal comes at a crucial stage of the competition and is a setback for the young Indian, who has been enjoying an impressive run of form in recent weeks. Her performances on the international circuit have underlined her growing stature in women's squash.

Last month, Anahat created history at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan by winning India's first-ever silver medal in the women's squash category. The achievement marked a significant milestone for Indian squash and further strengthened her reputation as one of the country's most promising young athletes.

She continued her impressive form at the Silicon Valley Open in Redwood City, USA, last week, reaching the semifinals after registering two notable victories. Anahat defeated world number one and top seed Nour El Sherbini before overcoming sixth seed Salma Hany in back-to-back matches.

However, her campaign ended in the semifinals against Malaysia's Sivasangari Subramaniam. The Malaysian had also defeated Anahat in the gold medal match at the Asian Games.

Despite the injury-enforced withdrawal in Canada, Anahat's recent performances have demonstrated her ability to compete against some of the world's leading players. Her immediate priority will be recovering from the injury before returning to action on the international squash circuit.