Pakistan’s Noor Zaman and Ashab Irfan Reach Asian Games Squash Quarter-Finals
Sports Correspondent: Imran Sohail
Pakistan’s Noor Zaman and Mohammad Ashab Irfan have progressed to the quarter-finals of the men’s singles squash competition at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya.
Both Pakistani players secured convincing straight-game victories in their respective matches on Thursday and will return to action in the last eight on Friday.
Noor Zaman Records Another Win
Noor Zaman continued his strong run by defeating Kuwait’s Ammar Altamimi in three games.
The Pakistani player won the match 11-4, 11-9, 11-4, securing his second consecutive victory in the competition.
He will now compete for a place in the semi-finals when the quarter-final matches are played on Friday.
Ashab Irfan Also Advances
Ashab Irfan also produced a solid performance against Saudi Arabia’s Mohammad Al Nasfan.
Irfan controlled the contest and completed an 11-9, 11-3, 11-5 victory to book his place in the quarter-finals.
The two Pakistani players will now look to continue their progress in the singles event.
Mixed Doubles Pair Makes Comeback
Pakistan also secured a place in the mixed doubles quarter-finals through Asim Khan and Mehwish Ali.
The Pakistani pair recovered after losing the opening game against Japan’s Erisa Sano and Naoki Hayashi.
They responded strongly to win the next two games and completed an 8-11, 11-10, 11-4 victory.
Asim Khan and Mehwish Ali will face Hong Kong’s Toby Lam Ye Tsee and Nam Cheuk Lai in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Nasir Iqbal and Sehrish Ali Eliminated
Pakistan’s other mixed doubles combination, Nasir Iqbal and Sehrish Ali, could not progress to the last eight.
They were beaten by Hong Kong’s Hong Ming Tong and Ye Ka Lee in straight games, losing 11-2, 11-6 in the pre-quarter-finals.
Maria Rind Exits Boxing Event
Pakistan’s campaign in boxing suffered another setback as Maria Rind was eliminated from the women’s 51kg competition.
Rind lost to Mongolia’s Yesugen Oyuntsetseg through a referee stoppage in the third round of their preliminary bout.
She became Pakistan’s second boxing casualty at the Games after Sumama Rahman was defeated in the opening round.
More Pakistani Boxers Set to Compete
Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Fatima Zehra is scheduled to face Tajikistan’s Mijgoma Samadova in the women’s 60kg preliminaries on Saturday.
Earlier that day, Pakistan’s Irfan Khan will take on South Korea’s Gichae Kim in the men’s 90kg preliminary round.
Pakistan has entered two male and two female boxers in the Asian Games boxing competition.
The country’s most recent Asian Games boxing medal came in 2014, when Mohammad Waseem won bronze.
