Pakistan teenager Nasir Iqbal walked away with the PSF-AVT
Khyber Pakistan International Circuit No4 title after beating fellow
countryman Danish Atlas Khan in today's final of the PSA World
Tour Challenger 10 squash event at the Mushaf Squash Complex
in Islamabad.
Whilst unseeded Kahn had to overcome two seeded players on his way to
the final - New Zealand's No3 seed Kashif Shuja in the
quarter-finals and second-seeded Yasir Ali Butt in the semis -
18-year-old Iqbal, the fourth seed, triumphed without facing a single
higher-ranked opponent throughout the event.
Only eight ranking positions separated the two 18-year-olds from
Peshawar in the final - but, after surviving a tie-break in the opening
game, world No90 Iqbal maintained his superiority over Khan for the next
two games to record a 12-10, 11-3, 11-7 victory after 50 minutes.
The
win marks the third PSA World Tour title of Iqbal's career.
Pakistan teenagers Nasir Iqbal and Danish Atlas Khan will
contest the surprise final of the PSF-AVT Khyber Pakistan
International Circuit No4 after surviving hour-long clashes in
today's semi-finals of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash
event at the Mushaf Squash Complex in Islamabad.
In
a match which only lasted two games, fourth seed Iqbal prevailed over
Farhan Mehboob when his compatriot - who dismissed top seed Aamir
Atlas Khan in the previous round - retired injured with the score
13-11, 11-13 after 67 minutes.
In
the other semi, unseeded Danish Atlas Khan - also 18 and also
from Peshawar - overcame second seed Yasir Ali Butt 11-7, 9-11,
11-8, 11-9 in 60 minutes.
Iqbal is celebrating his fourth PSA Tour final, while Asian Junior
Champion Khan is marking his sixth.
Top
seed Aamir Atlas Khan, the Pakistan number one, crashed out of
the PSF-AVT Khyber Pakistan International Circuit No4 after
losing to unseeded compatriot Farhan Mehboob in today's
quarter-finals of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash event
at the Mushaf Squash Complex in Islamabad.
Mehboob, a 24-year-old from Peshawar, defeated Khan - more than 100
places higher in the world rankings - 14-12, 11-7, 12-10 in 58 minutes
to earn an unexpected semi-final clash with fourth-seeded fellow
countryman Nasir Iqbal.
Teenager Iqbal, also from Peshawar, despatched Pakistani Waqas
Mehboob 11-9, 15-13, 12-10.
There was positive news for Aamir's younger brother Danish Atlas Khan
in the other half of the draw. The unseeded 18-year-old ousted New
Zealand's No3 seed Kashif Shuja 12-10, 11-3, 11-9 to claim a
place in the other semi-final.
His
opponent will be Yasir Ali Butt after the second seed scored the
swiftest win of the day, beating Muhammad Saqib Yousaf 11-8,
11-8, 11-9 in 37 minutes.
Semi-final line-up: Farhan Mehboob (PAK) v [4] Nasir Iqbal (PAK)
[2] Yasir Ali Butt (PAK) v Danish Atlas Khan (PAK)
