Squash: Our main challenge starts now: Aamir Atlas

Asian champion urges PSF to invest in national players.

KARACHI: Asian Champion Aamir Atlas Khan believes the Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF), along with the players, should adopt the right approach to ensure that the national athletes are ahead of the foreign players in the Pakistan International Squash Tournament scheduled for October.

The $25000 Professional Squash Association (PSA) tournament will be the first of its kind in six years, where international players will be allowed to participate —the international body recently lifting its ban on Pakistan.

“Getting the ban lifted is a great achievement, but our main work starts now,” Aamir told The Express Tribune.

“The PSF should invest more in players before the event arrives so that we are fully prepared for the tournament. It is important that a local player wins for us to be able to make a strong statement.”

Meanwhile, the federation has already started the camp for the Asian Senior Championship in Islamabad, which will continue to run till July. National Coach Jamshed Gul is heading the camp where players are being made to undergo strenuous training, while making them play practice matches amongst themselves to attain top fitness.

Last year, the PSF and Gul opted to take players in mountainous areas for tough physical drills in order to prepare them for the Asian Individual Championship, but so far that has not been on the schedule for this season.

Aamir, who became the first Asian winner for Pakistan after more than a decade, stressed that even though the camps were of great importance, they still needed to be fed three or four PSA tournaments for a more competitive form.

“It would be really great if we can get some important PSA tournaments under our belt because that would boost our confidence.

“I’m not denying that camps are important, they should run side by side, but we can only get into the top 30 or top 20 by playing PSA competitions.”

Aamir and other Pakistani players have already been set a realistic target of achieving the top 30 rank this year.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 21^st, 2014.

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