ISLAMABAD: Tayyab Aslam carries Pakistan’s hopes in the CAS International Squash Tournament that now shows a diverse semi-finals field following action packed quarter-finals here at the Mushaf Ali Mir Complex on Wednesday.
One player each from Pakistan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Egypt would flex muscles today (Thursday) for a place in the final.
Pakistan’s No 1 Tayyab, who got better of local lad Asim Khan following a five-game thriller, now set a date with top seed Leo Au of Hong Kong in the semi-final while the other pre-final would see Egyptian Youseff Soliman playing against Malaysian No 2 seed Nafizwan Adnan.
Tayyab beat Asem 11-3, 10-12, 14-16, 11-5, 11-9 following tough 85 minutes battle. The see saw quarter-final gave Asem early edge as he won the first two of three games. The third game could have gone either way.
Asim was seen reaching for the ball in a better way and was good enough to keep his opponent at bay for most of time at early stages of the match. His sizzling top of the court shots had no answer.
Tayyab, however, recovered well to win the fourth game rather easily. At the far end of the fourth game, Asim almost conceded some points in an effort to give his full in the last. The fifth game turned out to be a real tough one for both.
Some top of the court drops backed by near the tin squeeze shots helped Tayyab take slight advantage. However, Asim never looked far behind and every time seemed plugging the gap well. At the end, lady luck seemed going Tayyab’s way as he just managed to hang on for win.
“It was a tough match that could have gone either way. Asim played really well. He is a fighter and had shown signs of that fight in the match,” Tayyab said after the match.
The Pakistan No 1 hoped to give his all out against top seed and super fit Leo Au in the first semi-final. “He is the best and fittest of all. I hope to do well against him.”
Earlier, Leo gave no clue to Mazen Gamal during his 11-8, 11-7, 11-6 victory in the quarter-final.
In the women’s competition, both Pakistani players Faiza Zafar and Madina Zafar lost in straight games against their opponents.
Results: Men’s quarter-finals: Leo Au (Hkg) bt Mazen Gamal (Egy) 11-8, 11-7, 11-6; Tayyab Aslam (Pak) bt Asim Khan (Pak) 11-3, 10-12, 14-16, 11-5, 11-9; Youseff Soliman (Egy) bt Omar Abdel Meguid 12-10, 11-3, 12-10; Nafizwan Adnan (Mas) bt Mostafa Asal (Egy) 11-6, 11-5, 11-4.
Women’s quarter-finals: Rowan Elarby (Egy) bt Faiza Zafar (Pak) 11-5, 11-6, 11-5; Farida Momen (Egy) bt Menna Hameed (Egy) 13-11, 4-11, 11-6, 13-11; Tong Tsz-Wing (Hk) bt Madina Zafar (Pak) 11-8, 11-4, 11-5; Nada Abbas (Egy) bt Tessa ter Sluis (Ned) 11-6, 11-2, 7-11, 11-7.
