Velavan Senthilkumar, the eighth seed and world No. 54, produced one of the upsets of the Budapest Open squash on 27 August, dismantling top seed and world No. 18 Eain Yow Ng of Malaysia 11-2, 11-9, 11-8 in the quarterfinals of the USD 43,500 PSA Copper event in the Hungarian capital. The Indian No. 4 needed just 53 minutes to seal his place in the last four.

How Senthilkumar Dismantled the Top Seed

Senthilkumar set the tone emphatically in the opening game, reeling off nine consecutive points from 2-2 to storm through 11-2. Ng mounted a late push in the second game but could not prevent the Indian from doubling his advantage at 11-9. Senthilkumar then closed out the match in the third, winning 11-8 to complete a commanding straight-games victory over a player ranked 36 places above him in the world.

All-India Semi-Final on the Cards

Senthilkumar will now face compatriot Veer Chotrani in what promises to be an all-Indian semi-final clash. The third seed and world No. 38, Chotrani defeated Egyptian sixth seed Mohamed ElSherbini (world No. 51) in a hard-fought four-game duel — 14-12, 12-14, 11-6, 11-8 — lasting 63 minutes. Both Indians had earlier advanced through the pre-quarterfinals with four-game wins each, underlining their solid form across the week.

Road to the Quarters

Chotrani's pre-quarterfinal run saw him overcome Rui Soares of Portugal 13-11, 12-14, 11-9, 12-10 after receiving a first-round bye. Senthilkumar, meanwhile, first dispatched Briton Will Salter 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 in the opening round before beating German fifth seed Raphael Kandra 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 11-2 in the pre-quarterfinals — a sequence that highlighted his growing confidence on the PSA circuit.

Farkas Thrills the Home Crowd

The other semi-final will feature Egyptian fourth seed Moustafa Elsirty against Hungarian wildcard Balazs Farkas, who continued his fairytale run on home soil. Farkas defeated Japan's Ryunosuke Tsukue — his second successive seeded scalp — 11-9, 11-6, 11-2 in just 30 minutes to reach the Budapest Open semi-finals for the first time. Elsirty had earlier beaten Abdulla Al-Tamimi of Qatar in four games to set up the contest.

What Is at Stake

Notably, all four semi-finalists — Senthilkumar, Chotrani, Elsirty, and Farkas — are chasing a maiden PSA World Events title this week. Friday's semi-finals will determine which two players contest the title decider, with India guaranteed at least one finalist if either Senthilkumar or Chotrani advances. This marks a significant moment for Indian squash on the international PSA circuit.