January 07, 2008	Monday	Zilhaj 27, 1428

LONDON, Jan 6: Pakistan’s hope of winning any title in the British Junior Open Squash Championships ended on Sunday when Nasir Iqbal was beaten in the final of the Boys’ Under-15 class in Sheffield.

Karim Ali Fathi emerged a deserving winner 9-2, 9-6, 9-1.

Nasir succeeded Fathi as the Boys’ U-13 champion last year but the Egyptian enjoyed a distinct advantage over the much younger Pakistani, who, nevertheless, stroked the ball extremely hard.

Fathi was generally in charge of the rallies and the many errors from Nasir in the first game did not help his cause.

The Pakistani fared better in the second, recovering from 8-1 down but could not close the gap and a quick 5-0 start for the Egyptian in the third game sealed the title.

Meanwhile India made its presence felt in the championships when Dipika Pallikal lifted the girls U-17 crown outlasting Heba El Torky of Egypt 9-6, 5-9, 9-6, 1-9, 9-5.—APP