Glasgow: India's Anaka Alankamony, Harinder Pal Sandhu and Mahesh Mangaonkar won their respective opening singles convincingly in the squash competition of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games here on Thursday.
Alankamony breezed past Kenya's Khaleqa Nimji 11-2, 11-3, 11-6 to reach the round of 32 at the Scotstoun Sports Campus. The Indian faces 15th seed Delia Arnold of Malaysia later on Thursday.
India's top female player Dipika Pallikal and the experienced Joshana Chinappa have been given first round bye and take to the court later on Thursday.
In the men's singles, Mangaonkar made short work of Kenya's Hardeep Reel in the round of 64. He faces a mighty challenge later in the day when he will meet England's third seed Peter Barker. Barker hammered Manda Chilambwe of Zambia 11-4, 11-1, 11-3.
Mangaonkar's senior teammate Sandhu defeated Northern Ireland's Michael Craig 11-9, 11-5, 11-5. India's best male player and fourth seed Saurav Ghosal takes on Jules Snagg of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines later on Thursday.
India has not won a squash medal since sport's inception in the Commonwealth Games programme in 1998.
