LAHORE, May 8: Shahnawaz (Punjab) continued his winning streak outclassing fourth seed Naseem Takali (PAF) to reach the final of the National Junior Squash Championship Under-19 at the Punjab Squash Complex courts Wednesday.
Eighth seed Shahnawaz, will now meet third seed Khayal Mohammad in the final on Thursday, making it an all-Punjab affair. Khayal defeated Syed Hassan (Punjab) in the other semifinal.
Shahnawaz ousted Naseem after a five-game semifinal which lasted 90 minutes with the final score 9-15, 15-12, 15-11, 8- 15, 15-7.
Khayal defeated Hassan 3-1 with the score being 11-15, 15- 12, 15-2, 15-6.
The winner who was ranked favourite against Naseem displayed an excellent game and earned most of the winners through powerful back and forehand shots.
Being erratic at certain stages, Naseem hit the tin conceding no less than 12 points in the match.
The loser managed to win the first game easily, however, Shahnawaz with a consistent improved performance won the next two games to take a 2-1 lead. Naseem tried to come back in the match by winning the fourth game easily but was no match for the formidable Shahnawaz who won the fifth game comfortably.
In the other semifinal a similar situation was witnessed when Hassan took the first game easily against Khayal.
Thereafter Khayal playing superbly won the next three games to end the match which lasted an hour.
In the Under-17 section, Farhan Mehboob (PAF) and Aqib Hanif (Punjab) set the clash in the final.
Unseeded Farhan stunned top seed Alamzeb (PAF) in the semifinal winning 3-1. The final score was 11-15, 17-15, 15-14, 15-4.
Second seed Aaqib struggled to eliminate the challenge from the sixth seed Aurangzeb (PAF) 3-1 in the other semifinal. Aaqib won with the score 15-13, 15-12, 8-15, 15-11.
In matches of other age categories, following were the results
BOYS:
Under-13 (semifinals): Aamir Atlas (PAF) bt Waqar Mahboob (PAF) 15-7, 15-12, 15-8; Alamzeb (PAF) bt Adnan Khan (Punjab) 15- 5, 15-6, 8-15, 15-7.
Under-15 (semifinals): Adil Atlas (PAF) bt Zahir Shah (PAF) 15-7, 15-8, 8-15, 13-15, 15-8; Majeed Hussain (PAF) bt Farzan Rashid (Punjab) 15-11, 15-7, 15-13.
Under-17 (semifinals): Aqib Hanif (Punjab) bt Aurangzeb (PAF) 15-13, 15-12, 8-15, 15-11; Farhan Mahboob (PAF) bt Alamzeb (PAF) 11-15, 17-15, 15-14, 15-4.
Under-19 (semifinals): Shahnawaz (Punjab) bt Naseem Takali (PAF) 9-15, 15-12, 15-11, 8-15, 15-7; Khayal Mohammad (Punjab) bt Saeed Hassan (Punjab) 11-15, 15-12, 15-2, 15-6.
GIRLS:
Under-13 (semifinals): Marhaba (Punjab) bt Rabia Mahboob (Punjab) 9-7, 9-2; Qandeel (Punjab) bt Roshana (Punjab) 9-7, 9-4.
Under-15 (semifinals): Maira Yaqub (Punjab) bt Sadia Riaz (Sindh) 9-3, 9-1; Alia Sarfraz (Punjab) bt Gull Zaman Khan 9-0, 9-0.
Under-17 (final seeding-matches played on league basis): Muqadas (Punjab), Shafaq (Punjab), Kiran (Punjab, Asma (Punjab).
Under-19 (final seeding-matches played on league basis): Sara (Punjab), Misba (Punjab), Saima (Punjab), Sasaf (Sindh), Shakila (Punjab), Rozina (Sindh).
Following are the results of two quarterfinals of Under-19 and one of Under-17 which were played late on Tuesday night.
Under-19: Khayal Mohammad bt Waseem Shad 17-14, 14-17, 15-12, 10-15, 15-6; Syed Hassan bt Safeer Khan 8-15, 15-12, 14-17, 15- 12, 15-8.
Under-17: Farhan Mehboob (PAF) bt Yasir Butt (Punjab) 17-14, 16-17, 13-17, 15-10, 15-12.