Combaxx Roshan Khan National Team Squash begins today

The five-day event will feature country's top male and female players

The five-day Combaxx Roshan Khan National Squash Team Championship 2024 will commence on Sunday (December 22, 2023) at the Pakistan Navy Roshan Khan Jahangir Khan Squash Complex.

The tournament, scheduled from December 22 to 26, will feature the country's top male and female players representing their provincial and departmental teams.

During a media briefing, the Organizing Committee Chairman and former world champion Jahangir Khan shared details of the event.

Present at the occasion were Combaxx Sports General Manager Zubair Macha, Championship Director Shiraz Saleem, Event Coordinator Tariq Khanzada, Asif Azeem, and Tournament Referee Naveed Alam.

The championship is named after Jahangir's father, former British Open champion Roshan Khan.

The men's event will see nine teams in action, with SNGPL seeded as the top team and Pakistan WAPDA as the second seed. Teams from Pakistan Army, Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Air Force, Pakistan Railways, Sindh, Punjab, and Balochistan will also participate.

In the women's team event, Pakistan WAPDA has been awarded the top seed, followed by Sindh as the second seed, while Pakistan Army, Punjab, and Balochistan will also compete.

Jahangir Khan expressed optimism, saying, "This championship provides a great platform for emerging talent to showcase their skills and talent. With 14 squash events organized this year, we have made significant progress.

After years of effort, squash has been included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and we must start preparations now."

The former champion said he is sincerely hoping that the next year will see even more squash tournament getting staged in Pakistan and hopefully the youngsters will carry forward the rich legacy of Pakistan squash at the international level.

"With hard work and support from the govt and the sponsors, we can surely regain our place in squash," said Jahangir. "But yes, I would like to tell the youngsters that hard work and fitness is the key to success and excellence in squash.

"In my playing days, myself and other top players used to train seven to eight hours a day which helped us attain great heights. That sort of dedication is missing among the players today," he observed.

He also praised Combaxx Sports CEO Umar Saeed for his all-out support of squash, emphasising the critical role sponsors play in the development of sports. He urged other private organizations to come forward to support the game and its players.