Sisters Au Yeong Wai Yhann (left) and Au Yeong Wai Iynn (right) at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena. Photo: SNOC/ Kong Chong Yew
National squash player Au Yeong Wai Iynn, 19, who is slated for her first Professional Squash Association (PSA) World Tour event at the Venus ABC Open in October, came into her Asian Games debut with plenty of motivation.
Chief among them was the chance to play in the same tournament as her older sister, nine-time consecutive national champion Au Yeong Wai Yhann, 27
With an eight-year age gap, the sisters have never competed in the same tournament together.
And so, making their maiden appearance at the continental competition held extra significance as they both featured in their women’s singles round of 16 matches simultaneously at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena on Thursday (Sep 24) afternoon.
“She's always at the senior events, and I'm at the junior ones. This is one of my first major senior events,” Wai Iynn said.
“Since I was young, it's always been a dream to be able to play alongside (Wai Yhann). So I've always been trying to improve to be able to start playing the senior events earlier on. Definitely, there's a lot more to come, and I'm very happy and proud that we are representing Singapore together.”
Despite eventually bowing out, it was a dream come true and one that had been a long time in the making.
The U23 national champion opened with a 3-0 win over Uzbek Anna Ugay before falling to 2023 two-time bronze medallist and world no.17 teenage prodigy Anahat Singh 3-0.
“It was quite a tough match. Anahat is an up-and-coming junior, and she's made her mark on the professional squash tour as well. I knew the match was going to be really tough, but I'm quite happy with how I played. I tried my best and left it all out there.”
Wai Yhann dispatched Pakistan’s Mahnoor Ali in the first round before facing Indian veteran Tanvi Khanna. She stayed close to her opponent, taking the first game in six minutes before conceding the next two.
She was 10-8 up in the fourth game but concluded her singles campaign after Khanna came back to win 13-11.
“I'm pretty pleased to have pushed it pretty close. I knew it was going to be a tough match. A bit gutted not to take the fourth game, especially when I was 10-8 up. Had a few chances, but she fought really hard as well, so credit to her,” she said.
Having set a goal of reaching the top eight, she added that the narrow loss was a slight disappointment.
“It was a bit disappointing, but there were quite a few positives to take back… I was able to focus on my own game. She had her strengths, and there was a big crowd… but I went in today telling myself the things I wanted to focus on, and I did. I stayed positive, controlled the T (the intersection of the short line and the half-court line), stepped up in front of my opponent and moved her around to all four corners.”
A first taste of Asian Games competition has also whetted their appetite for a potential bid at the Olympics, with the international tournament including the sport in its programme for the 2028 edition.
Based in Bristol in the United Kingdom, the pair will continue to compete against top-tier squash players, with Wai Yhann having plied her trade in the Challenger Tour for a few years now.
There, they can also take inspiration from another sibling pair based in the Southwestern English city, Egyptian-English players Mohamed ElShorbagy and Marwan ElShorbagy, who have been top ten in the world for years.
“Within Bristol, there are many players in the top 50 based there. Being able to see them train and get on court with them has been really good exposure,” Wai Yhann said.
“I'm just gonna keep working, keep trying to be consistent in tournaments and see where that takes me.”
Mixed doubles pair Jayna Lim, 16, and Samuel Quek, 21, also had a commendable showing on their debut, cruising to a 2-0 opening win against Mongolian pair Khulan Purevjav and Amartuvshin Mandakhbayar.
They exited in the next round to Hong Kong’s Toby Tse and Lai Cheuk Nam, but showed an improved and cohesive display since their loss to the same duo in June’s Asian Doubles Championships, which was their first competition together.
“Definitely a big improvement from a few months ago when we played them. We managed to keep in the rallies a bit more and keep up with their pace a bit more. It’s a performance that both of us should be proud of,” Quek said.
“In June, it was really hard facing them, but I think this time round the rallies were quite close,” Jayna added.
The Games also gave them a peek into the routines of some of the world’s best.
“It's good to see world-level players here and (being able) to learn from them and how they play their games… I think it's really inspiring to see them here and watch them play live,” the Raffles Girls’ School student said.
Jayna will return to the court with the Au Yeong sisters and U19 national champion Naisha Singh in the women’s team event on Monday (Sep 28).
That will mark the first time a women’s team has been sent since 1998, the same year that Della Lee and Mah Li Lian won Singapore’s only silverware in the sport with two joint-bronzes in the individual women’s event.
The 20th Asian Games are held in Japan from 19 September to 4 October 2026. For the latest Team Singapore coverage and news, follow Team Singapore on their social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) or visit the official Team Singapore website.