KARACHI: Pakistan’s squash players made a disastrous start to the Venus ABC Open International Squash Championship, with nine of them losing their matches here at the Defence Authority Creek Club on Wednesday.
Nasir Iqbal, Abdullah Nawaz, Abdul Basit, Anas Shah, Abdul Saeed and Azan Ali Khan all lost in the men’s category, while Sana Bahadur, Rushna Mehboob and Anam Aziz were beaten in the women’s section.
Nasir, Azan, Basit and Abdullah lost in straight games, while Anas and Saeed went down 3-1. In the women’s draw, Sana, Rushna and Anam all lost in straight games.
The national players will return to action on Thursday in a bid to keep their hopes alive in the tournament.
Pakistan’s eighth seed Mohammad Asim Khan had a first-round bye and will begin his campaign against Mohammad Syafiq Kamal on Thursday. The 30-year-old Syafiq won his opening match 3-1 against Sri Lanka’s Ravindu Laksiri.
A total of 15 matches were decided on the opening day of the five-day championship, featuring 48 male and female players from 12 countries. The tournament, organised by the Sindh Squash Association, carries a total prize purse of US$82,000, with the final scheduled for Oct 25.
Results:
Men’s: Ameeshenraj Chandaran (Malaysia) bt Abdullah Nawaz (Pakistan) 3-0; Yee Xian Sow (Malaysia) bt Anas Shah (Pakistan) 3-0; Naoki Hayashi (Japan) bt Saeed Abdul (Pakistan) 3-1; Ziad Ibrahim (Egypt) bt Azan Ali Khan (Pakistan) 3-0; Salah Eltotgman (Canada) bt Nasir Iqbal (Pakistan) 3-0; Chi Him Wong (Hong Kong) bt Abdul Basit Khan 3-0; Matthew Lai (Hong Kong) bt Yusuf Thani (Bahrain) 3-0.
Women’s: Akari Midorikawa (Japan) bt Sana Bahadur (Pakistan) 3-0; Wai Yhann Au Yeong (Singapore) bt Rushna Mehboob 3-0; Malak Fathy (Egypt) bt Anam Aziz 3-0; Habiba Rizk (Egypt) bt Katerina Tycova (Germany) 3-0; Tessa Ter Sluis (Netherlands) bt Kenzy Abou Elenien (Germany) 3-0; Noor Khafagy (Egypt) bt Tamara Holzbuerova (Czechia) 3-0; Rui Jean Yek (Malaysia) bt Maya Weishar (Germany) 3-0.
Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2026
