I was too ill to play against Kuwait: Danish

Pakistan squash player terms poor health the reason for Asian Games defeat

KARACHI: Facing inquiry from Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) for a dismal performance in the recently concluded Asian Games, Danish Atlas Khan has revealed that he was suffering from high fever going into an important match against Kuwait.

Pakistan went onto lose the all-important match 2-1, which saw Danish lose to a player ranked 200 places below him in the Professional Squash Association (PSA) rankings.

The loss did not go down well with the federation, with the management launching an investigation into the Peshawar-based player’s defeat as well as the refusal of Farhan Mehboob to play against Kuwait due to ill health.

“I wasn’t feeling well for last two days before going into match against Kuwait and was on medication,” Danish told The Express Tribune.

“The manager and coach both knew that I was being treated in Korea for high fever and throat infection, but still I played in the match and unfortunately lost. It wasn’t something I did intentionally. My body just didn’t allow me to play my natural game at full throttle.”

Danish added that other top players of the world also lose to lower-ranked opponents, but their federations and management move on, whereas the PSF has decided to investigate it.

He further requested PSF President Tahir Rafique Butt to start a full-scale investigation into the matter so that things can become clear and the role of federation officials should also be checked.

“Why are only players targeted each time when someone loses? Why not the federation and the management? I request the PSF President to look into this whole episode so that those responsible should be punished. There were lot of factors in our downfall at the Asian Games.”

Meanwhile, a PSF official responded that players should accept their mistake instead of finding ways to deflect blame from themselves as despite being defending champions, Pakistan could not win a single medal in squash.

“The players were unable to win even a bronze medal, and these players are just giving excuses to save their skin, which isn’t the right attitude,” said the official.

“I feel the PSF should start looking at upcoming players like Tayyab Aslam and Ali Bokhari, because apart from Amir Atlas and Farhan Mehboob, the likes of Nasir Iqbal, Farhan Zaman and Danish don’t seem to be breaking into the top 20 or 30 anytime soon.”

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