Awais, Mahoor reach National Badminton quarters

KARACHI: Defending champions Awais Zahid and Mahoor Shehzad have reached the quarter-finals of the 55th National Badminton Championship being held in Lahore.

Awais of WAPDA faced no problem in men’s singles pre-quarter-final on Monday as he whacked his teammate Waqas Ahmed 21-13, 21-9.WAPDA’s Mahoor, who was part of Pakistan’s squad in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games and won gold in the recently held international event in Islamabad, defeated her teammate Saba Rasheed 21-10, 21-6.

Hafiz Irfan Saeed, experienced Azeem Sarwar, and Hashir Bashir of WAPDA and highly talented international Murad Ali of National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) also qualified for the quarter-finals. Six players of WAPDA and one each of NBP and Higher Education Commission (HEC) were able to make it to the next round of the men’s singles.

In women’s singles, the other girls to reach the quarter-finals are WAPDA’s Hina Isabat, Bushra Qayyum, Sehra Akram and Huma Javed, Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited’s (SNGPL) Zubaira and Ghazala Siddique and former national champion Palwasha Bashir of NBP.

Men’s singles pre-quarter-finals: Irfan Saeed (WAPDA) bt Raja Hasnain (WAPDA) 21-15, 21-14; Abdur Rehman (WAPDA) bt Ali Larosh (SNGPL) 22-20, 21-11; Awais Zahid (WAPDA) bt Waqas Ahmed (WAPDA) 21-13, 21-9; Azeem Sarwar (WAPDA) bt Soban Jamil (WAPDA) 21-19, 11-21, 21-12; Ali Mehdi (WAPDA) bt Ahsan Asif (WAPDA) 21-15, 21-11;

Hashir Bashir (WAPDA) bt Amir Saeed (WAPDA) 21-13, 19-21, 21-15; Muteeb Sohail (HEC) bt Anjum Bashir (SNGPL) 21-15, 21-9; Murad Ali (NBP) bt Muqeet Tahir (HEC) 21-11, 21-14.

Women singles pre-quarter-finals: Hina Insabat (WAPDA) bt Manaal Tariq (Army) 21-7, 21-15; Bushra Qayyum (WAPDA) bt Mehmoona (WAPDA) 21-14, 21-7; Sehra Akram (WAPDA) bt Javeria Tahir (SNGPL) 21-9, 21-17; Ghazala Siddique (SNGPL) bt Sara Mohmand (NBP) 16-21, 21-19, 21-18; Mahoor Shahzad (WAPDA) bt Saba Rasheed (WAPDA) 21-10, 21-6; Zubaira (SNGPL) bt Maryam (Sindh) 21-7, 21-3; Huma Javed (WAPDA) bt Aneela Irshad (WAPDA) 16-21, 21-16, 21-15.

Men’s doubles first round: Irfan and Azeem (WAPDA) bt Harrison and Daniyal Ali (NBP) 21-13, 21-8; Rohan and Rohail (Punjab) bt Waqas and Aoun (WAPDA) 21-25, 21-17;

Larosh and Noman (SNGPL) bt Masood and Tahir (Police) 19-21, 21-12, 21-10; Waqas & Aoun (WAPDA) bt Nadeem & Waseem (Railways) 21-17, 21-13; Ali Nawab & Abdur Rehman (WAPDA) bt Tariq & Asad (KPT) 21-16, 21-16; Anjum & Shahmeer (SNGPL) bt Raja Zulqarnain & Ahmar (Punjab) 21-12, 16-21, 21-19; Muqeet & Uaakeph (HEC) bt Shahab & Shujaat (Islamabad) 21-16, 21-10; Shehroz & Gohar (WAPDA) bt Ali & Umer Zeshan (WAPDA) 21-16, 21-18; Rizwan & Kashif (NBP) bt Abuzar & Ali (HEC) 21-18, 21-13; Irfan & Zunain (WAPDA) bt Shabbar & Tahir (WAPDA) 21-18, 21-17; Attique & Husnain (WAPDA) bt Rizwan & Tehseen (WAPDA) 21-14, 21-8. Women’s doubles first round: Sidra & Javeria (SNGPL) bt Aqsa & Sehar (Balochistan) 21-8, 21-6; Kausar & Aqsa (HEC) bt Shumaila & Ayesha (Sindh) 21-6, 21-3; Hina & Nida (WAPDA) bt Abida & Maria (Balochistan) 21-6, 21-11; Maryam & Sumaira (WAPDA) bt Anmol & Rida (Army) 21-7, 21-17; Kainat & Yasmeen (Army) bt Muntaha & Zainab (Army) 21-14, 21-14.

Mixed doubles first round:

Ali Nawab & Rosheen (WAPDA) bt Wajid & Kainat (Army) 21-8, 21-10; Irfan (WAPDA) & Ghazala (SNGPL) bt Hayyan & Aqsa (HEC) 21-12, 21-14; Azeem & Saba (WAPDA) bt Iqra & Shujaat (Islamabad) 21-9, 21-14; Zohaib & Aneeqa (WAPDA) bt Awais Zahid & Huma (WAPDA) 21-15, 21-18; Zunain & Mehmoona (WAPDA) bt Shahmeer & Javeria (SNGPL) 22-20, 21-19; Nouman & Zainab (SNGPL) bt Haider & Bakhtawar (Railways) 21-13, 21-12; Ali Chishty & Rida (Islamabad) bt Aoun & Anmol (WAPDA) 21-15, 19-21, 21-17; Ammar & Khadija (HEC) bt Uzair & Alja (Islamabad) 25-23, 21-17.

Mixed doubles pre-quarter-finals: Waqas & Saima (WAPDA) bt Rizwan & Maryam (WAPDA) 21-9, 21-11; Irfan (WAPDA) & Ghazala (SNGPL) bt Ali & Rosheen (WAPDA) 21-13, 21-15; Azeem & Saba (WAPDA) bt Zohaib & Aneeqa 21-12, 21-19; Zunain & Mehmoona (WAPDA) bt Larosh & Nida (SNGPL) 21-16, 21-15; Attique & Manaal (WAPDA) bt Noman & Zainab (SNGPL) 21-16, 21-7; Rizwan & Sara (NBP) bt Ammar & Khadija (HEC) 21-9, 21-7.