Aisam ul Haq Qureshi and Jean Julien Rojer. -File photo

KARACHI: Pakistan's Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and his Dutch partner Jean-Julien Rojer eased into the second round of the men's doubles competition in Melbourne at the Australian Open on Wednesday with a straight-set win.

The sixth seeds overpowered the German-Belgian duo of Simon Stadler and David Goffin 6-3, 6-1 in less than an hour.

The Pak-Dutch pair will meet either Nicholas Monroe of USA and Grega Zemlja of Slovenia or Belgian duo of Xavier Malisse and Dick Norman.

Before departing for Melbourne, Qureshi had asserted that he intended to bring Grand Slam glory to Pakistan and hoped he could go beyond the quarter-finals at this year's Australian Open, a feat which he has not been able to achieve before.

"I hope I can make this happen this year. I want to make my presence felt,” he told a local newspaper.

“I will try my best to reach at least the quarters of the Australian Open this year, though my aim is to win the title,” he added.

Opinion

Editorial

On press freedoms
Updated 03 May, 2026

On press freedoms

THE citizenry forgets, to its own peril, how important a free and independent media is in the preservation of their...
Inflation strain
03 May, 2026

Inflation strain

PAKISTAN’S return to double-digit inflation after 21 months signals renewed economic strain where external shocks...
Troubled waters
03 May, 2026

Troubled waters

PAKISTAN’S water crisis is often framed in terms of scarcity. Increasingly, it is also a crisis of contamination....
Iran stalemate
Updated 02 May, 2026

Iran stalemate

THE US and Iran are currently somewhere between war and peace. While a tenuous ceasefire — extended largely due to...
Tax shortfall
02 May, 2026

Tax shortfall

THE Rs684bn shortfall in tax collection during the first 10 months of the fiscal year is a continuation of a...
Teaching inclusion
02 May, 2026

Teaching inclusion

DISCRIMINATORY and exclusionary content in Punjab’s textbooks has been flagged in Inclusive Education for a United...