Pak players get bye in Asian Squash C’ship

KARACHI: All seeded players, including four Pakistanis, in the first round of the 19th Asian Individual Squash Championship got byes to move into the second round.

In the second round of the event, which is to be held in Chennai, India, from April 26–30, Waqar Mehboob will face Abdullah Al-Tamimi of Qatar and Tayyab Aslam is to face Ahmad Al-Saraj of Jordan.

The opponents of Farhan Mehboob and Farhan Zaman will be decided after the first round. Meanwhile, Pakistani players have not yet got visas from India.

The four Pakistan players will be accompanied by coach Fahim Gul and manager Tahir Sultan. It is to be noted here that Max Lee and Annie Au, both from Hong Kong, are the top seeds in men and women categories.

Farhan Mehboob and Farhan Zaman were directly selected for this event, while trials were conducted from March 9–12 for the selection of the other two players. Waqar Mehboob and Tayyab Aslam were also picked for the championship after the trials.