Pakistan defeat India, clinch 7 medals in Asian Junior Squash Championship
In the boys' under-13 final, Pakistan's Sohail Adnan outclassed India's Ayaan Dhanuka in a dominant display, winning the match with scores of 11-5, 11-2, 11-13, and 11-6.
The boys' under-15 final was an all-Pakistani affair, where Nauman Khan triumphed over Ahmad Rayyan Khalil, securing gold with game scores of 12-10, 11-6, and 11-2.
Rising squash stars shine in Scottish Junior Open 2024
In the girls' under-13 final, Mahnoor Ali put up a strong fight but narrowly lost to China's Yan Xiuwan in a five-game thriller. The Chinese player won 9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10, with Mahnoor earning a silver medal for Pakistan.
The tournament concluded with Pakistani players clinching five medals in the main event and two additional titles in the Plate Division, earning accolades for their determination and skill on the international stage.
Following the team's success, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the young athletes and the nation, calling their achievements a source of immense pride for Pakistan.
In a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office, he commended Nauman Khan and Sohail Adnan for winning gold medals in the under-15 and under-13 categories, and also lauded Ahmad Rayyan Khalil and Mahnoor Ali for securing silver in their respective events.
'The victories in the finals and the overall tally of seven medals have won the hearts of the entire nation,' the Prime Minister said.
'The whole nation is proud of you,' he added, expressing hope that the players' winning streak would continue in the future.
The Prime Minister's Office extended heartfelt congratulations to the athletes, their families, and coaches, recognizing their hard work and dedication in bringing international glory to Pakistan.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Express Tribune
Record-breaking Root bats on, Eng 433-4
England's Joe Root celebrates his century on day three of the fourth Test against India at Old Trafford. Photo: REUTERS Joe Root climbed to second on the all-time list of Test run-scorers after hitting a sparkling 38th century on Friday as England hunted a series-clinching win against India. Ben Stokes' men, 2-1 up in the five-match series, were 433-4 at tea on the third day of the fourth Test at Old Trafford, 75 runs ahead of the toiling tourists. The imperious Root, who had just overtaken retired Australia great Ricky Ponting in the run-scoring charts, was 121 not out, with Stokes unbeaten on 36. Earlier, Ollie Pope (71) put on 144 for the third wicket with Root before he was dismissed by Washington Sundar, who also removed Harry Brook cheaply to give India renewed hope. But skipper Stokes ensured England regained the initiative, celebrating at the non-striker's end as Root reached 13,379 runs with a single behind point, moving one ahead of Ponting's figure. "Congratulations, Joe Root. Magnificent, second on the table," Ponting said on Sky Sports. England earlier resumed on 225-2 following a blistering opening partnership of 166 in 32 overs between Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett on day two, with Pope 20 not out and Root on 11. India's pacemen had too often been wayward on Thursday and Jasprit Bumrah saw his first ball Friday drift down the legside to be clipped away for four by Root in elegant fashion. Root then uppercut Mohammed Siraj over the slips for another boundary. On 21, the former England skipper walked a long away across his stumps only to miss an intended glance off Siraj. India reviewed for lbw after Ahsan Raza ruled in Root's favour but replays upheld the Pakistani umpire's decision, indicating the ball would have missed leg stump. There was another scare when Root, on 22, was nearly run out but Ravindra Jadeja's shy at the stump missed. Root then leapfrogged India's Rahul Dravid and South Africa's Jacques Kallis into third place in Test cricket's list of run-scorers. Pope, who drove Siraj for a superb four between cover and mid-off, completed a 93-ball fifty before Root followed him to that landmark in 99 balls. Spin, however, eventually paid dividends for India where pace had failed. Pope had added just one run to his lunchtime score of 70 when, beaten by the drift from off-spinner Sundar, he edged a flicked front-foot drive to KL Rahul at slip. England were soon 349-4 when Brook, on three, was stumped by Dhruv Jurel, deputising for injured India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. Root reached his century in 178 balls with a leg glance for four off debutant paceman Anshul Kamboj. His 38th Test century drew him level with Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara in fourth place on the list of most hundreds in a Test career. Most Test runs Player Runs Sachin Tendulkar (India) 15,921 Joe Root (England) 13,380* Ricky Ponting (Australia) 13,378 Jacques Kallis (South Africa) 13,289 Rahul Dravid (India) 13,288.
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Express Tribune
Wimbledon — the glitz, the glam, the hypocrisy
The writer takes interest in humanism and futurology. He has an MS from Houston and DDS from Nashville, Tennessee. He can be reached at bhasnain@ Listen to article Breakfast at Wimbledon' is a long-cherished tradition in sports. Here in America, as in London and across the globe, we can't wait to pour cream over strawberries or enjoy scones with hot tea or English muffins or even have Bangers and Mash. As the Commodores would say, "It's easy like Sunday morning." But for the die-hard tennis fans in Pakistan, it's "Dinner at Wimbledon." This year was no different. We lounged in front of our big screen TV sets. We picked our favourites. It was Carlos Alcaraz defending his title against Jannik Sinner. These two youngsters, the new kids on the block, have raised the level of competition to new heights. In an epic battle, Jannik Sinner outplayed Carlos Alcaraz defeating him in four sets, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, avenging his defeat in the French Open final earlier this year. A slew of Hollywood celebrities attended the final match. Keira Knightly, Matthew McConaughey and Nicole Kidman, as well as London's Mayor Sadiq Khan were seated in the Royal Box. Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, presented the trophies to the winner and the runner-up. But beyond the glitz and the glam, hidden from our view and undetected from all the camera angles, lies the shameless hypocrisy of the All-England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club that organises this tournament. In 2022, the club banned players from Russia and Belarus from participating in Wimbledon in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The ban was lifted in 2023, but in subsequent tournaments, players from Russia and Belarus have been forced to play in Wimbledon as "neutrals" as if they don't belong to any country. This includes the Russian players Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev as well as the world number one female tennis player, Aryna Sabalenka, who hails from Belarus. The All-England Club justified its apparently discriminatory decision "to prevent the Russian regime from using the tournament for propaganda purposes". Supporters of the decision argued that "it was a necessary step to condemn Russia's actions and show solidarity with Ukraine." Critics of the double standard argued that "it is discriminatory to punish individual athletes for the actions of their governments." What about the tennis players from the USA and Great Britain? After all, the United States, along with its ally, Great Britain, invaded Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003 - and that too under false pretenses. Both countries have a chilling history of military interventions in foreign lands and territories. The British Empire is known to have established colonies from North America to South Africa, and beyond. In 1877, Queen Victoria imposed herself as the Empress of India. The British Empire not only stole billions (if not trillions as reported) from India, they subjected the local population to heinous and barbaric crimes. In the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre in 1919, for example, Gen Dyer who was commanding the British Indian Army ordered opening fire on a peaceful gathering of unarmed Indians who had gathered to protest against the colonial rule. Over one thousand innocent people died that day. In short, athletes from the USA and Great Britain are not to be discriminated at Wimbledon as those from Russia and Belarus. That's that.
Express Tribune
4 days ago
- Express Tribune
Faheem slams Mirpur pitch
Faheem Ashraf's maiden T20I half-century went in vain as Pakistan suffered an eight-run defeat in the second T20I against Bangladesh. Photo: AFP Pakistan all-rounder Faheem Ashraf has voiced concerns over the pitch conditions at the Shere Bangla Stadium, attributing the challenging surface to hot weather and recent rainfall after Pakistan's defeat in the second T20I against Bangladesh on Tuesday. Speaking at the post-match press conference, Ashraf drew comparisons between the current surfaces and those seen during the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). "You mentioned the BPL and the current matches — the BPL takes place in December-January, so the weather is cold during that time, whereas now the weather is hot. So the pitches you're seeing now are totally different. At that time, there wasn't as much spin or grip, and the pace wasn't coming through like this," Ashraf remarked. Ashraf also emphasised how changing weather and ground conditions have impacted surface behaviour. He elaborated that while BPL pitches gradually improve for batting, the current series is unfolding on tracks that remain inconsistent in nature. "Early on in those matches, there's usually a bit of grass, so the initial games can be slightly challenging, but later the pitches become good for batting. However, that's not the case in this series because the surface is becoming hard, yet underneath it still feels soft," he said. The 31-year-old also revealed insights shared by the ground staff. "We spoke with the groundsmen as well, and they said maybe due to the rains, the pitches haven't been prepared in the usual way," he revealed. "But if you compare it with the BPL, there's a big difference. I played last year and this year as well — the pitches in the BPL are much better compared to the ones we're playing on now," he concluded. Pak slip in rankings Pakistani cricketers have experienced a significant decline in the latest ICC T20I rankings, following inconsistent performances in the ongoing three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Mirpur, where the national team has lost the first two encounters. Wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Haris has fallen 20 places, now sitting at 50th with 514 rating points. Out-of-form opener Saim Ayub dropped three spots to 64th, while top-order batter Hassan Nawaz saw a sharp decline, slipping 22 positions to 68th. Even players not part of the current squad, such as star batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, have not been spared, with both dropping one place to 13th and 14th respectively. Fakhar Zaman, who showed discipline in his batting across consecutive matches against Bangladesh, rose eight spots to 79th with 426 rating points. White-ball captain Usman Khan, who struggled with the bat and managed only nine runs off 23 deliveries in the second T20I, dropped 18 places to 93rd with 396 points. Australia's Travis Head continues to lead the T20I batting rankings, followed by India's Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma in second and third place, respectively. In the bowling rankings, pacer Abbas Afridi slipped two places to 22nd with 608 rating points, while Haris Rauf fell four spots to 24th with 593 points. Left-arm quick Shaheen Afridi, currently not part of the T20I squad, also dropped two positions to 36th with 591 points. Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed showed improvement, climbing 12 places to 49th with 499 points. Vice-captain Shadab Khan fell four spots, landing at 65th in the latest update. New Zealand's Jacob Duffy retained his number one position in the T20I bowling rankings, followed by England's Adil Rashid and India's Varun Chakaravarthy in second and third place, respectively.
