ISLAMABAD, Aug 16: When the PIA men's Junior Squash Championship begins on Tuesday, Pakistan will be bidding for their first individual title in almost 18 years.
No player since the legendary Jansher Khan's triumph of 1986, has been able to win it and this 13th edition of the championship now provides Pakistan their best chance yet.
Coach Rehmat Khan has the talent that can help make this dream become a reality through Farhan Mahboob, Yasir Butt, Basit Ashfaq and Khalid Atlas, who were all brimming with confidence on the eve of the championship.
Amir Atlas, at 15, has been tipped by both Jansher and Rehmat as a future champion, although they consider him too young to handle the pressures of a world championship.
Rehmat feels that Amir would require a bit more time before he is able to strike it big and ruled out his chances of achieving glory this time. "Yes there is no doubt about his talents but he is just too young to make a big impact right now."
Amir is to play Egyptian Omar Abu Zid, the under-17 British Open champion in his opening match on Tuesday in what is certain to be a tough match. The other Pakistanis on show on the opening day will be Aqib Hanif who is to play New Zealand's Chris McEldowney and Bilal Zaman, up against Malaysian Elyinn Chung. Shah Nawaz will also be in action and has been drawn to meet Scotland's Lyall Paterson.
Four other home players who will be carrying the burden of Pakistani hopes - Yasir, Khalid, Basit and Farhan - have all been given first round byes. Indian Saurav Ghosal heads the seedings in the championship that features a total of 23 countries including United States and England.
The Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) has made extensive arrangements for holding the event in an impressive manner and have had an entirely new complex ready within a year to stage the show.
The Mushaf Squash Complex, just next to the Roshan Khan Complex, has a four-side glass court, and the home players have had a good feel of it ever since its inauguration in June.
The flags of all the participating countries are up and the sponsors' publicity banners in and around the venues add colour to the championship for which everything is spick and span. The stage is now set for the show to begin. The organizers meanwhile had planned a welcome dinner for the participating players and officials while the customary managers' meeting took place earlier in the evening.
