After beating seventh seeds Ireland 2-1 inthe first qualifying round of the Women's Squash World Team Championship,10th-seeded India topped Pool G by dispatching Argentina 3-0 to secure theirplace in the pre-quarterfinals here.
India will next play eighth seeded Netherlands. This is onlythe third time that India have participated in this event which has beenrunning since 1979. India finished 18th in 2002 and 11th in 2010.
Against Argentina Tuesday, Anaka Alankamony led the way forIndia beating Maria Eugenia Bonilla 11-4, 11-4, 11-7 before Joshna Chinappatook just 19 minutes to overcome Cecilia Cerquetti 11-6, 11-3, 11-4.
In the final match, top-ranked Argentinean AntonellaFalcione battled hard against World No.13 Dipika Pallikal, who won 11-8, 11-7,11-8 against an opponent ranked 100 places below her.
Earlier, Pallikal paved the way for India's 2-1 win overIreland with a four-game victory over experienced Irish champion and WorldNo.10 Madeline Perry.
In the second singles, Chinappa played with great spiritagainst World No.23 Aisling Blake, but let slip a 2-1 lead to lose the tie.
However, teenager Alankamony held her nerve to see off LauraMylotte 12-10, 11-3, 11-7 to give India a sensational victory.
"It's huge," said India's national coach CyrusPoncha when asked about the significance of the success in the event so far.
"Our aim was to top the pool and make thequarter-finals is our goal. Beating Ireland definitely gave us a lot ofconfidence and we hope to have a great performance against the Dutch tomorrow.
"Last year, it was a first for us to finish in the topeight in the men's World Team Championship. So if we can make the top eighthere this year, it will be a huge achievement and another significant stepforward for Indian squash."
The results: 10-India beat 7-Ireland 2-1 (Dipika Pallikal btMadeline Perry 11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 11-8; Joshna Chinappa lost to Aisling Blake9-11, 11-7, 11-6, 8-11, 9-11; Anaka Alankamony bt Laura Mylotte 12-10, 11-3,11-7).
10-India beat 17-Argentina 3-0 (Anaka Alankamonybt Maria Eugenia Bonilla 11-4, 11-4, 11-7; Joshna Chinappa bt Cecilia Cerquetti11-6, 11-3, 11-4; Dipika Pallikal bt Antonella Falcione 11-8, 11-7, 11-8).