Dipika, Harinder clinch Challenger titles

PUNE: Dipika Pallikal won her second consecutive squash title when she defeated Misaki Kobayashi 11-6, 11-2, 11-8 in the last leg of the JSW Challenger Circuit in Chennai.
Dipika, who had triumphed last week in Mumbai, said: "Every win is special to me and since I won this at home, this is all the more special to me. I have worked on my game quite a bit and am delighted that all my efforts have yielded positive results."
In the men's section, Harinder Pal Sandhu made it a hat-trick of wins as he overwhelmed Karim Ali Fathi of Egypt 11-8, 11-3, 11-6 in the men's final.
Sandhi had earlier taken home the trophies in Jaipur and Mumbai as well.
Chennai's home favourite Pallikal gained an early lead against Kobayashi.
As the lead extended, the Japanese started to feel the pressure, ending a short rally with a shot into the tin.
The second game began in a similar fashion as Pallikal took the first point yet again with a nice corner shot 1-0, a press release said.
A couple of lovely boasts gave the top-seeded Indian a lead of four points. Pallikal then recovered from a counter drop by Kobayashi and sent it deep past her opponent to seal the game.
Kobayashi tried to keep pace with her rival as a Pallikal drop just outside of Kobayashi's reach made it 3-3. What followed was a battle of attrition until corner drop from Pallikal made it 7-6 in her favour.
It was not long before the Asian Games bronze medallist wrapped up the game, match and championship in 35 minutes.