There were moments their emotions spilled on the court. There were instances their body language suggested a subtle antagonism. There were times Joshna Chinappa and Dipika Pallikal exchanged angry looks in their quarterfinal clash at the Asian Games at the Yeorumul Squash Courts.
Birthday-girl Dipika gifted herself a much-wanted victory against teammate and once-best-friend Joshna, with whom she had fetched doubles gold in the Commonwealth Games, in five games to ensure India a second bronze after Saurav Ghosal had beaten Pakistan’s Iqbal Nasir in four games to enter the semifinals.
Under intense pressure, courtesy the unwanted controversy before the Games, Dipika said the report in an English daily in India that suggested she was scared to face Joshna spurred her on. “That news was in bad taste,” said Dipika, who turned 23 on Sunday. “I am here because of that particular news. I wanted to show I am not scared.”
Right from their rookie days, they had shared rooms. They were the best of friends. But down the years, because of their rivalry, things have changed. “We don’t share rooms anymore,” said Joshna, emphasising on the word don’t.
If Dipika was ecstatic, Joshna rushed to her chair and took out the phone and skyped her mother. She needed to share her sorrow. Her eyes were moist and at times, she was in pain to explain her loss. “This is the second loss in four years. I did not play well. I was not aggressive,” she explained. “I played well in patches.”
There was not even a post-match hug. Just a casual handshake ended the show as well as the more-than-a-month-old controversy. At one level, squash is like a contact sport where you run into your opponent more often than not. During Sunday’s game, Dipika and Joshna too ran into each other. At times, Joshna seemed agitated. On more than one occasion, she opened the door and complained to the referee: “She is not moving out.” Once accidentally, Joshna even hit Dipika on her forehead while trying to clear a shot.
Joshna, however, did not want to elaborate. “I was not blocking. I played clean,” said the Chennai girl. “She played well and deserved to win. I don’t play dirty. It’s a fact. As for others, I cannot comment right now. I don’t want to create any controversy as such.” But the tenor was not too friendly.
Dipika, on the other hand, explained the rivalry was healthy. “Before I came on the circuit, Joshna was the face of Indian squash. Now, there is a healthy competition between the two of us for the top spot.”
The match was hyped after a newspaper claimed that Dipika wanted to pull out of the Asian Games because she felt the draw was not fair. “I don’t know how anyone could say like this,” she said. “I am a professional player and I would take up any challenge. If I play well, I can beat anyone. We are friends.” Whether or not Dipika shared her birthday cake with Joshna will be known later. As of now, it seems a stalemate before the team competition.
Ghosal, who had a sensational match against Nasir, was pleased with his effort. He is a believer and every match begins with a small prayer. “It’s not that I am a very religious person, but I do believe in god and I pray every day. It helps me to rejuvenate and meditate,” he said.
“It was a tough match but playing a Pakistan player did not make much of a difference to my approach. I don’t think of my opponent’s nationality. I think about the match,” added Ghosal, the top seed here.