Bokhari shocks Asian Champion Atlas

Unseeded youngster hands 3-2 defeat to senior player in squash.

KARACHI: Former Asian Junior Champion Ali Bokhari caused a major upset on the opening day of the Hashim Khan Memorial Squash Tournament as he defeated current Asian Champion Amir Atlas Khan 3-2 in the first round match in Peshawar.

Unseeded Bokhari shocked Amir by claiming the first frame, but the senior pro hit back to win consecutive games and made the score 2-1.

However, the fourth seed’s comeback was dented by in-form Bokhari, who finished the match by claiming the fourth and fifth sets and wrapping up victory with a scoreline of 11-2, 4-11, 8-11, 11-4 and 11-5.

Bokhari recently participated in the World Junior Individual Event and was the most successful Pakistani player as he reached the semi-finals. He was also part of the World Junior Team Championship when Pakistan lost to Egypt in the finals last week.

Another unseeded youngster Ammad Fareed stunned sixth seed Khawaja Adil Maqbool  in a 70-minute match with scores of 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 12-14 and 11-8.

On the other hand, top seed Nasir Iqbal beat qualifier Aqib Hanif 3-2 and while Farhan Zaman thrashed qualifier Zahir Shah in straight sets, winning with a scoreline of 11-7, 11-9 and 11-7.

Left-hander Farhan Mehboob had an easy outing against former Pakistan number one Mansoor Zaman, winning the encounter 3-0. Meanwhile, Danish Atlas also won in a similar fashion against Sheikh Saqib.

Youngsters Tayyab Aslam and Waqas Mehboob were involved in a 76-minute match, which the former player won with scores of 11-8, 7-11, 13-11, 7-11 and 11-4.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 26^th, 2014.

Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.