Aqeel Khan, Samir Iftikhar, and Yousaf Khalil face humiliating defeats in the tournament
Abdul Jabbar Faisal
ISLAMABAD: Top Pakistani tennis players, Aqeel Khan, Samir Iftikhar, and Yousaf Khalil faced humiliating defeats in the ATP Challenger Cup, which is being played at PTF-SDA Tennis Complex, Garden Avenue, Islamabad.
According to a press release of the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF), Aqeel Khan, Samir Iftikhar, and Yousaf Khalil succumbed under the pressure of heavyweight foreign players. Aqeel Khan showed some resistance and lost to Dinko Daniv 1-2 in a well-contested match of the day.
The Pakistan ATP Challenger Cup officially commenced on 23rd November 2025. A total of 25 international players from Romania, Turkey, Ukraine, USA, Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, Australia, Italy, Bulgaria, Austria, Sweden, Georgia, Great Britain, and Switzerland, along with 10 top Pakistani players, are participating in this prestigious event.
Elias Ymer of Sweden, currently ranked 169 in the ATP World / PIF rankings, is the top seed, while Jay Clarke of Great Britain, ranked 213, is the second seed of the tournament.
Results (Men's Singles - Round of 32):
[6] Mert Alkaya (TUR) beat [Q] Samir Iftikhar (PAK) 6-2, 6-2
[Alt] Dinko Dinev (BUL) beat [WC] Aqeel Khan (PAK) 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-1
[WC] Muzammil Murtaza (PAK) beat [Q] Yousaf Khalil (PAK) 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
Nikita Bilozertsev (UKR) beat [3] Saba Purtseladze (GEO) 6-2, 3-0 (Retired)
Gian Luca Tanner (SUI) beat [Alt] Alexey Aleshchev 6-1, 6-3
[4] Denis Yevseyev (KAZ) beat [Alt] Ivan Gretskiy 7-6 (7), 6-3
[7] Leo Borg (SWE) beat [Alt] Matthias Ujvary (AUT) 6-2, 6-4
Dragos Nicolae Cazacu (ROU) beat Preston Brown (USA) 7-6 (2), 6-4
Zach Stephens (GBR) beat [Alt] Gokberk Saritas (TUR) 6-1, 6-0
Johan Nikles (SUI) beat [Alt] Adrian Arcon (AUS) 6-1, 6-1
