International squash event kicks off with two upsets

LAHORE: Two upsets were witnessed in eight matches played on the opening day of the Faletti’s International Men and Women Squash Tournament on Saturday.

In the first upset Immad Fareed of Pakistan stunned Hong Kong’s Hanry Loang and in the second, Ali Bokhari prevailed over much superior compatriot Israr Ahmed. Apart from these, all the seeded players won their respective matches with ease. Three Pakistani players including Amaad Fareed, Syed Ali Mujtaba Bukhari and Farhan Zaman registered victories on the opening day while Khawaja Adil Maqbool, Israr Ahmad, Zeeshan Khan, M Uzair and M Hassaan Raza lost their matches.

In the first match of the day, Immad Fareed of Pakistan shocked Henry Leung of Hong Kong by 11/7, 11/7, 11/6 in 32 minutes, TSZ Kwan Lau of Hong Kong outpaced Navid Maleksabet of Iran by 11/6, 11/7, 11/5 in 21 minutes, Sean Conroy of Ireland overcame Pakistan’s Khawaja Adil Maqbool by 11/7, 11/5, 13/11 in 22 minutes, Syed Ali Mujtaba Shah Bukhari of Pakistan stunned compatriot Israr Ahmad by 10/12, 3/11, 11/3, 11/2, 12/10 in 51 minutes.

Pakistan’s Farhan Zaman took 25 minutes to outlast countryman Zeeshan Khan by 11/6, 11/7, 9/11, 11/7, Chi Him Wong of Hong Kong beat wildcard entrant Muhammad Uzair of Pakistan by 13/11, 11/2, 11/4 in 34 minutes, Malaysia’s Addeen Idrakie tamed local player Muhammad Hassaan Raza by 11/5, 11/3, 11/5 in just 17 minutes while Hong Kong’s Tang Ming Hong edged out English player Robert Downer by 11/6, 8/11, 7/11, 11/8, 11/5 in 52 minutes. As many as eight matches of the second round of the championship will be contested on Sunday here at the Punjab Squash Complex. Pakistani players, while talking to media, vowed that they will give out their best and try to win their respective matches to make way to the quarterfinals.

The foreign players also expressed the same feeling and showed their eagerness to play flawless squash and overpower their respective opponents to advance to the next round. They vowed to continue their good performance throughout the event to lift the coveted trophy.