ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s doubles pair of Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and Muzammil Murtaza made history by reaching the ATP Challenger Cup final while Mert Alkaya of Turkiye caused a major upset, eliminating top-seeded Swede Elias Ymer here at the PTF Tennis Complex on Friday.

The Pakistani duo secured a commanding 6-1, 6-4 victory over Turkiye’s Alp Horoz and Mart Alkaya in the semi-finals. This marks the first time a Pakistani pair has reached the final of an ATP Challenger Tour event.

The final will be the last ATP Challenger match of Aisam’s illustrious career.

They will face the Czech-Kazakh pair of Dominik Palan and Denis Yevseyev, who advanced with a 6-1, 7-5 win over Ukraine’s Nikita Bilozertsev and Preston Brown of the US.

In Friday’s later match, world number 473 Alkaya defeated the 169th-ranked Ymer 7-6(10/8), 4-6, 6-0 in a match lasting two hours and five minutes.

In other singles matches, second seed Jay Clarke of Britain edged past Ukraine’s Vadym Ursu 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(8/6), Denis overcame Johan Nikles of Switzerland 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 and Britain’s Zach Stephens downed Palan 7-5, 6-3.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2025