Gul lauds Asian junior champion Bukhari

U19 squash player’s win at individual event pleases coach.

KARACHI: Ali Bukhari’s triumph at the Asian Junior Individual Squash Championship has increased the country’s chances of winning the world event, said Pakistan head coach Jamshed Gul.

Bukhari, the second seed at the U19 event, prevailed in a battle of nerves to beat top-seed Ahmad al Saraj of Jordan 11-4, 9-11, 7-11, 11-8, 12-14 to grab another title for the country.

Aamir Atlas Khan had earlier clinched the Asian Senior Individual Squash Championship in May.

Gul said Bukhari is now a genuine title-contender at the World Junior Championship.

“Bukhari has a lot of potential and he’s showing that now at the international stage,” Gul told The Express Tribune.

“He’s a talented player and he’s now utilising it well enough to win titles and that’s a great sign. He has really come of age in the last two years.”



Gul, who has been working with the junior players, had termed Bukhari and another team member Tayyab Aslam as the two to watch out for at the event.

It needs to be mentioned that Bukhari had ended as runner-up at the last edition of the Asian junior championship. With the Asian title in the bag, Gul is now gearing up to prepare players for the World Junior Individual Championship that commences this month in Poland.

“We’ve got several days left before the mega event and as soon as the team returns, we’ll start preparing for the world championship.

“Bukhari and Aslam have done well so all they need is a little bit of training to compete against the top junior players of the world.

“The fitness level required to fight for honours in global events is different so we need to make sure that our players are in the best possible shape before they leave for Poland.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 1^st, 2013.

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