India’s Velavan Senthilkumar won his maiden PSA Copper-level squash title after beating Hungarian No. 1 Balázs Farkas in straight games in the Budapest Open 2026 final on Friday.
The eighth-seeded Senthilkumar, world No. 54, dominated the title clash to beat ninth-seed Farkas 11-4, 11-2, 11-3 and cap an impressive week in the Hungarian capital.
It was the third meeting between Senthilkumar and Farkas on the PSA Tour, with the Indian now leading 2-1 in their head-to-head record. Senthilkumar had won their previous encounter in 2024 after Farkas prevailed in their first meeting in 2019.
Velavan Senthilkumar’s biggest result of the week, however, came in the quarter-finals when he stunned world No. 18 and top seed Eain Yow Ng of Malaysia in straight games.
The Indian produced an emphatic 11-2, 11-9, 11-8 victory over the reigning Asian Games champion, marking one of the biggest wins of his career.
Senthilkumar had begun his Budapest Open campaign with a straight-games victory over England’s Will Salter, winning 11-9, 11-6, 11-5.
The 28-year-old Indian squash player then overcame fifth seed Raphael Kandra of Germany 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 11-2 in the second round to set up his meeting with Ng.
After dispatching the Malaysian top seed, Senthilkumar faced compatriot and third seed Veer Chotrani in the semi-finals.
The all-Indian contest proved to be his toughest match of the tournament. Senthilkumar recovered after losing the opening game and eventually prevailed 9-11, 11-8, 11-7, 1-11, 12-10 in five games to reach the final.
He then needed only three games to see off Farkas and secure his 11th PSA Squash Tour crown.
The triumph also comes ahead of the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, where Senthilkumar will have an added incentive in the men’s singles event.
Squash will make its Olympic debut at LA 2028, and the men’s and women’s singles champions at the Asian Games 2026 will earn qualification spots for the Olympics.
READ MORE: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/velavan-senthilkumar-budapest-open-2026-squash-psa-tour-title
