Pakistan’s Ashab Irfan, Noor Zaman reach Nash Cup Squash semifinals

LAHORE: Pakistan’s squash players Ashab Irfan and Noor Zaman advanced to the semifinals of the Nash Cup tournament on Friday with commanding performances, defeating India’s Veer Chotrani and Colombia’s Ronald Palomino, respectively.

Ashab Irfan delivered one of the standout performances of the Nash Cup Squash tournament on Friday, pulling off a dramatic comeback to knock out India's Veer Chotrani and secure a place in the semifinals.

Ashab, seeded No. 8, looked in trouble early as Chotrani, the No. 4 seed, took control of the match with a 9-11, 4-11 start. But the 21-year-old Pakistani regrouped impressively to make a comeback after going 2-sets down, using aggressive shot-making and sharp retrievals to turn the momentum in his favor. He claimed three straight games 11-8, 11-8, 11-8 to seal a 3-2 victory.

The result confirmed Ashab’s reputation as one of Pakistan’s brightest growing squash prospects.

In another match, Pakistan’s Noor Zaman also booked his place in the last four with a 3-1 win over Colombia’s Ronald Palomino. The fifth seed started strongly with an 11-4 opening game, dropped the second 10-12, but quickly regained control to close out the match 11-7, 11-7 in 52 minutes.

With both Ashab Irfan and Noor Zaman advancing, Pakistan will have two representatives in the semifinals of the $31,250 tournament, a PSA World Series event.