MELBOURNE: In a stellar performance, Pakistan’s sisters Mehwish, Sehrish and Mahnoor Ali advanced to the semi-finals of the Australian Junior Open at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre on Tuesday.

Mehwish, the top seed in the Under-17 category, is on track to defend her title after a convincing 11-6, 11-3, 11-2 win over Maeghan Wang of Hong Kong.

She’ll face local hope Tina Ma in the semis, who won the Under-15 title at last year’s Australian Junior Open.

Mehwish’s dominant display in the quarter-finals has set the stage for a thrilling encounter.

In the U-15 category of the event, Sehrish and Mahnoor are also moving forward with confidence.

Sehrish, the second seed in the tournament, defeated Chelsea Paule 11-2, 11-3, 11-1 and will meet Olivia van Zon in the last-four clash.

The 12-year-old Mahnoor dominated her quarter-final against New Zealand’s Meriam Ibrahim, winning 11-1, 11-0, 11-3. She’ll face Elizabeth Wang in the semi-finals.

A potential all-sister showdown looms if both Mahnoor and Sehrish win their respective semi-finals.

Mahnoor is currently Pakistan’s top-ranked player while Mehwish is at No. 5 and Sehrish at No. 14 in the women’s rankings as of March as the trio have consistently demonstrated their prowess on the court.

In contrast, Nouman Khan’s campaign ended with a loss to Elijah Rolls in the round-of-16, failing to score a single point.

Earlier this month, Pakistan’s Noor Zaman won the Under-23 World Squash Championship in Karachi.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2025