ISLAMABAD - Abdullah Nawaz continued his giant-killing run and thrashed Zuriaz Naeem 3-0 in their U-13 semifinal of the National Junior Squash Championship 2019 here at Mushaf Squash Complex on Monday.
There was no competition in the semifinal, as Abdullah remained confident and unstoppable throughout the encounter. It was like a true champion facing a school-going kid. He took very little time to settle down in the first set and kept moving in all corners of the court freely. It could have been an easy ride for Abdullah, if he had not prolonged the game. However, he allowed Zuriaz too much liberty and space, but when he decided it is more than enough, he took 5 points in a row to seal the first set 11-5 in 5 minutes.
The second game started in almost identical situation. Although Zuriaz looked much more confident than the first set, yet he failed to resist his opponent’s pressure, as it was clearly evident that Abdullah is fully enjoying his authority. Zuriaz went out of gas, as he was looking tired and hapless, while Abdullah was enjoying the game. He put more pressure, used all his tricks, and took the set 11-6 after toying for around 7 minutes.
Abdullah continued with his heroics in the third game. Despite committing some mistakes and gifting few points to Zuriaz, he proved his talent and took the set 11-5 in 5 minutes to win the encounter in 17 minutes.
In second U-13 semifinal, Sakhi Ullah Tareen overcame Omar Arshad 3-1 to set final date with Abdullah. Sakhi Ullah won the match with tough competition, but his opponent Omar won the hearts of the crowd, which was mainly based on players, officials and few parents, as the organisers failed to attract fans for the event.
The first set started on a high-temp, as both the players fought very hard before Sakhi Ullah took the game 11-8. Then Omar came from behind to take the second set 11-8 before losing the third 9-11. Both the players gave their best in the fourth set. Omar had countless chances to clinch the game, but he committed many blunders, which were more than enough for Sakhi Ullah to take the game 12-10 and win the encounter in 26 minutes.
In U-15 semifinals, top seed Muhammad Amaad thrashed Usman Nadeem 3-0 in just 17 minutes, 11-4, 11-5 and 11-5, to set up his final against Humam Ahmed, who defeated Mutahir Ali 3-2 in 45 minutes, 11-9, 7-11, 8-11, 11-4 and 11-7.
The semifinals were played on the glass courts, which was a great experience for the youngsters, as they had never played at such courts before. Winner from each category will be declared national champion in the respective category till the next championship. Position holders will also get cash prizes. Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) Senior Vice President Air Vice Marshal Aamir Masood will grace the prize distribution ceremony as chief guest on September 23.