Hamza wins British Junior Open under-15 title

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Hamza Khan won the first title for the country at British Junior Squash Open since 2012 in Birmingham on Monday when he defeated Yousuf Sheikh of England 11-4, 11-3, 11-7 in the under-15 final.

It was Israr Ahmed who had clinched the last title for Pakistan at BJO in 2012 (in under-15 category). Hamza did not concede a single game during the entire tournament.

“I am thankful to Almighty Allah for this victory. I started the event as the second seed and I knew well I had a chance but never thought that I would win every match so easily and in straight games,” Hamza said while taking to ‘The News’ from Birmingham just after winning the title.

He said he would be back next year and win the under-17 category. “I want to continue with the same vein in future. My next target is to win the British under-17 junior next year,” Hamza said.

To a question about his performance in the semi-final and then in the final, he said he faced tough resistance from the Egyptian opponent in the semi-final. “My opponent was playing body game and tried to dissuade me with rough and body play. I concentrated on my game and went on to beat him in straight games,” he said.

In the final, Hamza took little time in settling down. His top-of-the-court drops were a treat to watch. Yusuf Sheikh seemed clueless.

“I tried to control the game from beginning and I succeeded in that with ease. Though in the third I relaxed a bit, I recovered in time,” said Hamza, who was the only Pakistani to have reached the final of any category in the British Open this year.

Four out of nine Pakistan players made it to the quarter-finals and three reached the semi-finals stage of their respective categories.

Meanwhile, Abdullah Nawaz secured 6th position when he lost to Hamdy Ehab of Egypt 4-11, 6-11, 3-11 in the under-13 category.

In the under-15 category, Anas Ali Shah took 13th position after beating Caleb Boy of England 11-6, 5-11, 11-6, 11-5. M Ammad got fourth place after losing to Yasin Shoddy of Egypt 8-11, 11-8, 11-3, 4-11, 10-12.

In the under-17 category, Asadullah Khan secured 25th position after winning against Azhan Khan of England 13-15, 11-5, 11-5, 13-11.

In the under-19 category, Haris Qasim won 13th position after getting walkover against Nicholas Spizzirri of the US.