Aqeel off to winning start in ITF Futures

ISLAMABAD: Top Pakistani player Aqeel Khan got off to a winning start in the Begum Kulsum Saifullah Khan ITF Futures-II Tennis Tournament here at the PTF Complex on Tuesday.

Aqeel beat Shamael Chaudhry of Britain 7-5, 6-1. Shamael did well to put up a decent show in the first set where Aqeel finally broke his serve to go 1-0 set up. In the second set, Shamael was no match to Aqeel and he won with utmost ease.

Second seed Rio Noguchi made short work of Muhammad Abid Ali Khan Akbar beating in straight sets 6-2, 6-2. Abid was in no mood to show resistance or seriousness to take the match to his opponent.

Pakistan’s Yousaf Khalil was the other local making it to the next round with easy win against Mudassir Murtaza 6-4, 6-3.

Results: Cheong-Eui Kim (Kor) bt Ahmad Asjad Qureshi (Pak) 6-0, 6-0; Ray Ho (Tpe) bt Filip Fichtel (Ger) 6-3, 6-1; Alexis Canter (Gbr) bt Muzammil Murtaza (Pak) 6-4, 6-0; Darko Jandric (Srb) bt Hayat Saqib (Pak) 6-1, 6-0; Niklas Johansson (Swe) bt Abdaal Haider (Pak) 6-4, 7-5; Lorenzo Bocchi (Ita) bt Chandril Sood (Ind) 6-1, 6-2; Hamidreza Nadaf (Iri) bt Shonigmatjon Shofayziyev (Uzb) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3; Yousaf Khalil (Pak) bt Mudassir Murtaza (Pak) 6-4, 6-3; Rio Noguchi bt Muhammad Abid Ali Khan Akbar (Pak) 6-2, 6-2; Dmitry Myagkov (Rus) bt Muhammad Shoaib (Pak) 6-3, 6-4; Aqeel Khan (Pak) bt Shamael Chaudhry (Gbr) 7-5, 6-1; Saida’lo Saidkarimov (Uzb) bt Heera Ashiq (Pak) 6-3, 6-3; Kai Wehnelt (Ger) bt Muhammad Abid (Pak) 6-2, 6-2; Anton Chekhov (Rus) bt Michal Wozniak (Pol) 6-2, 1-6, 6-1; Sora Fukuda (Jpn) bt Alexander (Rus) 6-3, 6-4; Worovin Kumthonkittikul (Tha) bt Ahmed Choudhary (Pak) 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.

Meanwhile, the Begum Kulsum Saifullah Khan National Ranking Tennis Tournament also got underway.

Following are the results: Boys’ singles under-18 1st round: Kashan Umar bt Ahmed Nael 6-0, 6-0; Hasam Khan w/o M Huzaifa Khan; Abdul Hanan Khan bt Hamidullah Yaqub 6-2, 6-0; Kamran Khan bt Hamza Jawad 6-2, 6-2; Hamza Asim bt Sikander Amin 6-1, 6-1; Subhan bin Salik bt Uzair Khan 3-6, 7-5, 7-5; Azan Sajid w/o Talha Khan; Faizan Shahid bt Huzaima Abdul Rehman 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Boys’ singles under-14 1st round: Abdul Basit w/o Hammad Shah; Kashan Umar bt Kamran Khan 6-3, 7-5; Ahmed Nael bt Hamidullah Yaqub 6-1, 2-6, 6-3; Talha Khan bt Azan Sajid 6-1, 6-1; Abdul Hanan bt Haziq Asim 6-1, 6-0.