PESHAWAR:
Two younger gamers from the Peshawar captured gold medals on the Asian Junior Squash Championship in China, marking a big milestone for Pakistan’s resurgence within the sport.
Within the Underneath-15 closing, Peshawar’s Ahmad Rayan Khalil delivered a dominant efficiency to defeat Malaysia’s Vedoran Rotheran 3-0 and safe the Asian junior title.
Pakistan added a second gold medal within the Underneath-17 class, the place Nauman Khan outclassed India’s Shiven Agarwal in straight video games to change into the Asian Underneath-17 champion.
The dual triumphs ended a protracted title drought for Pakistan within the Asian junior circuit and highlighted the rising energy of grassroots squash programmes in Peshawar.
Former world champion Qamar Zaman and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Squash Affiliation President Dawood Khan hailed the achievements as a significant increase for the revival of squash within the nation.
Dawood Khan mentioned the affiliation had continued to organise month-to-month tournaments regardless of restricted assets to supply younger gamers with common aggressive alternatives.
“These victories mirror the arduous work and dedication of our younger athletes and coaches,” he mentioned, expressing confidence that each champions would proceed to excel on the worldwide stage.
Qamar Zaman described the success of Ahmad Rayan Khalil and Nauman Khan as a optimistic signal for the way forward for Pakistani squash, including that the outcomes demonstrated the effectiveness of grassroots coaching initiatives in Peshawar.
He urged the provincial authorities to increase better help to the game, noting that the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Squash Affiliation had not obtained its annual grant for the previous six years.
“Regardless of monetary constraints, producing two Asian champions is nothing wanting outstanding,” he mentioned, reaffirming the affiliation’s dedication to coaching and growing younger expertise.
