Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Master Paints qualified for the semifinals of the Century Ventures National Open Polo Championship for Quaid-e-Azam Gold Cup 2023 here at the Lahore Polo Club. The fourth semifinalist will be decided on penalty shootouts among the three teams on tomorrow (Thursday).  In the first match, Master Paints defeated HN Polo by 12-6. From Master Paints, Manuel Crespo played a great game and smashed superb six goals while Pelayo Berrazadi hammered a hat-trick, Sufi Mohammad Haroon banged in a brace and Agha Musa Ali Khan scored one goal. For HN Polo, Raja Mohammad Mikael Sami thrashed in three goals, Santiago Loza scored two goals and Haider Naseem struck one.  Master Paints started the match in great style as they converted a field goal to take a 1-0 lead. HN Polo made a strong comeback with three back-to-back goals to gain a 3-1 lead. Master Paints first scored the only goal of the second chukker to make it 2-3 and then hammered a hat-trick in the third chukker to get back a 5-3 lead.  In the fourth chukker, HN Polo bounced back in style and thrashed in three goals against one by Master Paints to level the score at 6-6. The fifth and decisive chukker saw the total dominance of Master Paints, who smashed in superb six goals to win the match by 12-6, thus also qualifying for the semifinals.  In the second match, Diamond Paints team missed the opportunity to qualify for the semifinals directly as they lost the important match against FG Polo by 4-6. For FG Polo, Juan Ambroggio hammered three goals while Mian Abbas Mukhtar struck a brace and Ramiro Zavaleta scored one goal. For Diamond Paints, Chulo Corti scored two goals, Ahmed Ali Tiwana and Mir Huzaifa Ahmed hit one goal apiece.  FG Polo made a tremendous start in the match with two back-to-back goals to earn a 2-0 lead. They added two more goals in the second chukker to have a 4-0 lead but Diamond Paints then made their presence felt by thrashing in three back-to-back goals to reduce the deficit to 3-4. The only goal of the third chukker was converted by FG Polo that helped them enhance their lead to 5-3. In the fourth chukker, Diamond Paints struck one more to reduce the margin to 4-5 but FG Polo added one more in their tally, taking their lead to 6-4. No more goals were scored after that, thus FG Polo winning the match by 6-4.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Pakistan No 1 Aqeel Khan and Mohammad Shoaib were among the other top players, who advanced to the men’s singles quarterfinals of the All Pakistan National Invitational Tennis Tournament here at the DeSOM Club on Tuesday. In the men’s single pre-quarterfinals, Aqeel Khan beat Shehzad Khan 6-4, 6-4, Mohammad Shoaib Khan beat Mohammad Huzaifa Khan 6-2, 6-0, Mudassar Murtaza beat Ahmad Babar 6-3, 6-3, Yousaf Khalil beat Ahtesham Humayun 6-1, 6-2, Heera Ashiq beat Mohammad Salaar 6-3, 6-2, Ahmad Nael Qureshi beat Imran Bhatti 6-3, 6-3, Semi Zeb Khan beat Hamid Israr 3-3(Retd), Abdullah Adnan beat Nalain Abbas 6-2, 6-2. In the boys U-16 pre-quarterfinals, Mohammad Salaar beat Hafiz 6-0, 6-0, Husnain Ali Rizwan beat Abdullah Sajjad 6-1, 6-0, Hamza Roman beat Hanzla Anwar 6-0, 6-0, Mohammad Talha Khan beat Yousaf Manoo 6-1, 6-0, Hamza Ali Rizwan beat Arman Kamran 6-2, 6-1, Haider Ali Rizwan beat Aalay Husnain 6-2, 6-0, Ahtesham Humayun beat Abubakar Khalil 6-2, 6-0, Abubakar Talha beat Asad Zaman 6-1, 6-4.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: BN Polo and Master Paints/Newage Cables qualified for the semi-finals of the Century Ventures National Open Polo Championship for Quaid-e-Azam Gold Cup 2023 here at Lahore Polo Club on Tuesday.  The first match of the day proved a thrilling encounter where BN Polo defeated Remounts by a narrow margin of 8-7. Baber Naseem was the hero of the match as he hammered an impressive hat-trick in BN Polo’s victory while Tito Ruiz Guinazu and Hamza Mawaz Khan banged in a brace each while Elena Venot contributed one goal. For Remounts, Shahid Imran, Jota Chavanne and Sawar Naeem thrashed in two goals each while Manuel Sundblad struck one. Both the teams – BN Polo and Remounts – started well but BN Polo played comparatively better polo and finished the first chukker, having a slight 3-2 lead. The only goal of the second chukker was converted by Remounts that helped them equalize the score at 3-3. The third chukker was identical to the first one where once again BN Polo managed to score three goals against two by Remounts to gain a minor 6-5 lead.  Remounts started playing aggressively in the fourth chukker that helped them slam in two goals against one BN Polo to draw the blood at 7-7. Both the sides fought well in the fifth and decisive chukker but BN Polo succeeded in smashing in the match-winning goal through Elena Venot, who fired in a fantastic field goal to power her side to a well-deserving 8-7 win.  The second match of the day proved a one-sided affair, where Master Paints/Newage Cables comfortably beat DS Polo by 9-5. From Master Paints/Newage, Juan Cruz Greguol played extremely well and smashed six superb goals while Simon Prada hammered an inspiring hat-trick. For DS Polo, Hissam Ali Hyder thrashed in three goals and Javier Guererro struck two goals.  The match started well by both the teams, who managed to convert two goals each to equalize the score at 2-2 but just before the end of the first chukker, Master Paints/Newage fired in a field goal to take a slight 3-2 lead. The second chukker was fully dominated by Master Paints/Newage, who banged in a brace to take a good 5-2 lead.  DS Polo played better polo in the third chukker and thrashed in two goals against one by Master Paints/Newage to reduce the margin to 4-6. The fourth chukker was evenly poised as one goal each was converted by both the sides, with Master Paints/Newage still enjoying 7-5 lead. They added two more goals in their tally to win the the match by 9-5. Match Summary: BN POLO 8-7 REMOUNTS BN POLO: Baber Naseem 3, Tito Ruiz Guinazu 2, Hamza Mawaz Khan 2, Elena Venot 1. Total: 8.  REMOUNTS: Shahid Imran 2, Jota Chavanne 2, Sawar Naeem 2, Manuel Sundblad 1. Total: 7.  UMPIRES: John Fisher & Chris Hyde.   MASTER PAINTS/NEWAGE CABLES 9-5 DS POLO MASTER PAINTS/NEWAGE: Juan Cruz Greguol 6, Simon Prada 3. Total 9.  DS POLO: Hissam Ali Hyder 3, Javier Guererro 2. Total 5. UMPIRES: John Fisher & Chris Hyde. 

Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD: Pakistan number one wheelchair tennis player, Asif Gul Abbasi created another history by winning the "Lee Valley Wheelchair Tennis Tournament" in London, as Abbasi displayed great skill and determination throughout the tournament, beating their hard-hitting opponents to earn himself a place in the "Play Your Way to Wimbledon" National finals in August, which will be held on the iconic grass courts of Wimbledon. Despite carrying a shoulder injury from previous tournaments, Abbasi showed no signs of slowing down and played some outstanding tennis to secure his victory in the tournament. He was the top seed in the tournament and won the final with the score-line by 7-6 (6) and 6-1. The "Play Your Way to Wimbledon" initiative, which is a joint venture between the LTA and Vodafone, is aimed at giving national wheelchair tennis players the opportunity to compete in the National finals at Wimbledon. There are three qualifying tournaments, namely Lee Valley, Grantham, and Loughborough University wheelchair tennis tournaments, and the finalists from these tournaments will be competing in the finals at Wimbledon. Abbasi and the other finalists have now qualified for the national finals at Wimbledon, which is a significant achievement and a proud moment for the Pakistani tennis community. The fact that Abbasi was able to overcome his injury and still play at such a high level is a testament to his skill and dedication. In a statement, Abbasi expressed his joy and excitement at the prospect of playing at Wimbledon. He said, "This is a dream come true for me. I have always wanted to play on the grass courts of Wimbledon, and now that I have the opportunity to do so, I will give it my all and make Pakistan proud." The Pakistani tennis community has rallied behind Abbasi, congratulating him on his victory and wishing him the best of luck for the national finals at Wimbledon. This achievement by Abbasi is not only a personal triumph but also a symbol of hope and inspiration for disabled athletes.

Sports Bulletin Report PESHAWAR: The 14th National Ju-Jitsu Championship will begin in Peshawar on March 17, as the three-day event will feature elite local athletes, including current Asian medalist, with Pakistan WAPDA defending their titles in the men’s and women’s category, respectively Secretary of Pakistan Ju-Jitsu Federation (PJJF) Tariq Ali said: “We want to make Pakistan proud in the field of JuJitsu. Hopefully, the event will produce new talent for Pakistan. “The championship will be contested in 30 categories in which the country’s top teams includ­ing Navy, Wapda, Police, all provinces, GB & Islamabad will participate.” “Pakistani ju-jitsu players have been performing consistently in international events including Asian and World Championships and winning laurels for the country. This championship is being organized keeping in mind the current year’s international events including Asian Games and Asian Beach Games in China, Asian Martial Arts Games in Thailand and World Combat Games in Saudi Arabia. The best players of this event will be picked up for further train­ing and grooming to represent the country in these presti­gious events.”

Sports Bulletin Report PESHAWAR: The Bank of Khyber (BOK) All Pakistan Women's Senior Squash Championship will start from March 14, 2023 at Qamar Zaman Squash Complex, Peshawar. The final of the championship will be played on March 17 at the same venue. According to an official of Khyber Pakhtunekawa Squash Association (KSA), after successfully conducting All Pakistan Men’s Senior Squash Championship last Month in February, Khyber PakhtunKhwa Squash Association is all set to hold “All Pakistan Women's Senior Championship 2023. The prize money will be 100 thousand rupees, which will be disbursed among the players. Names of players: Noor Ul Ain (Wapda), Mariam Malik (Army), Komal Khan (Wapda), Noor Ul Huda (Army), Mehwish Ali (Wapda), Rushna Mehboob (ZTBL), Kainat Amir (KP), Umm-e-Kulsoom (KP), Amna Malik (Army), Hira Aqeel (KP), Sana Bahadur (Army), Zohra Abdullah (KP), Manahil Aqeel (KP), Hifsa Yousaf (KP), Maira Hussain (KP), Naheed Faiz (KP), Wajeeha Altaf (KP), Nimra Aqeel   (KP), Ayesha Shahbaz (Punjab), Maliha Shah (KP), Bushra Shahbaz (Punjab), Sarah Noor (KP), Nashia Shahid (KP), Mashal Khan (Punjab), Rida Hussain    (KP).  

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD: The upcoming talented bowler, Fazil Maniya has won the title of the National Tenpin Bowling Championship that concluded at Leisure City Bowling Club Jinnah Park Rawalpindi on Sunday night. Member, National Assembly, Dr. Samina Matloob was the chief guest at the concluding ceremony and gave away the prizes and cash awards to the winning players. President, Pakistan Tenpin Bowling Federation (PTPB), Ijaz ur Rehman, Secretary General, Mohammad Hussain Chatha, and a large number of peoples were also present on the occasion. Fazil Maniya got first position, Ahmar Saldera secured second position, and Mohammad Hussain Chatha and Shabbir Lashkarwala obtained 3rd and 4th position respectively. About 150 men and women took part in the 9 different disciplines including Inter Schools, deaf women, men deaf, Amateur, and Ladies team’s event, men singles, men doubles, and Masters.    Noor Al Ain won the Deaf Women's title of National Tenpin Bowling Championship while Muaz Baig and Amna bagged the Deaf Amateur Open and Ladies single titles respectively. Amna got ladies’ single title while Maryam and Tania received second and third positions respectively. Robert Shangara stood men's single group matches and Ayaz ur Rehman won inter Schools event of the National Tenpin Bowling Championship. Ali Saldera stands the 2nd Position while Mohammad Fazil Mania obtained 3rd position and Sajjad Shah bagged 4th position. Ahmar, Robert, Sajjad and Fazil claimed the title of men's team event title. Afzal, Sikander, Danyal Shah and Ali Suria obtained second position while Ijaz ur Rehman, Mohammad Hussain Chattha and Rana Shahzad Akhtar bagged third position.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Top seed Aqeel Khan crushed out Ahtesham Arif 2-0 in the first round of Men’s Singles of the All Pakistan National Invitational Tennis Tournament, which started in Lahore on Monday. The secretary Punjab Lawn Tennis Association (PLTA) Rashid Malik formally inaugurated the tournament. A total of 30 matches were played on the first day of the championship. All the top players advanced to the second round with comfortable victories and a high-standard of tennis was witnessed during some of the matches. Results: Men’s Singles (Round-I): Aqeel Khan beat Ahtesham Arif 6-1, 6-1, Davis Cupper Shehzad Khan beat Rai Asim Zafar 6-1, 6-2, Nalain Abbas beat Col Atif 6-2, 6-3, Mudassar Murtaza beat Mahatir Muhammad 6-2, 6-0, Ahmad Babar beat Mohammad Talha Khan 6-0, 6-0, Hamid Israr beat Sikandar Hayat 6-3, 6-3, Semi Zeb Khan beat Fayyaz Khan 6-2, 6-3, Heera Ashiq beat Saqib Hayat 6-0, 6-3, Mohammad Salaar beat Faizan Fayyaz 6-3, 4-6, 7-6, Yousaf Khalil beat Kamran Khan 6-1, 6-1, Ahmad Nael Qureshi beat Asadullah 6-2, 6-2, Imran Bhatti (Gymkhana) beat Abdul Hanan Khan 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, Mohammad Shoaib beat Bilal Asim 6-4, 6-1. Boys’ Under-16 (Round-I): Hafiz Hussain beat Hafiz Hassan 6-4, 4-6, 12-10, Yousaf Manoo beat Mohammad Hameed 6-1, 6-3, Abubakar Khalil beat Mustafa Zaidi 6-2, 6-2, Hamza Ali Rizwan beat Ismail Ahmad 6-2, 6-3, Aalay Husnain beat Moavia Butt 0-6, 7-5, 12-10.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Diamond Paints and Master Paints carved out contrasting victories in the Century Ventures National Open Polo Championship for Quaid-e-Azam Gold Cup 2023 here at the Lahore Polo Club on Monday.  In the first match of the day, Diamond Paints defeated HN Polo by 12-9. High-flying Mir Huzaifa Ahmed from Diamond Paints played a great game and smashed superb seven goals while Chulo Corti fired four fabulous goals and Ahmed Ali Tiwana struck one. For HN Polo, Raja Mikail Sami thrashed four goals while Santiago Loza hammered a hat-trick and Raja Jalal Arslan and Haider Naseem converted one goal apiece. The match began with both the sides playing well and scoring two goals each to make it 2-2. Diamond Paints dominated the second chukker with three goals against one by HN Polo to take a 5-3 lead. HN Polo played better game and managed to convert three against two by Diamond Paints, who still had a 7-6 lead. The entire fourth chukker saw dominance of Diamond Paints, who fired five fabulous goals to earn a healthy 12-6 lead while the fifth and last chukker was dominated by HN Polo, who converted three goals, yet lost the match by 9-12.  In the second match of the day, Master Paints defeated FG Polo by 9-8 in sudden death chukker. From Master Paints, Pelayo Berazadi emerged as star of the day as he pumped in four fabulous goals while Manuel Crespo and Sufi Muhammad Haroon banged in a brace each and Agha Musa Ali Khan hit one goal. For FG Polo, Juan Ambroggio slammed three goals while Ramiro Zavaleta and Mian Abbas Mukhtar thrashed two goals each and Saqib Khan Khakwani struck one goal.  Both the teams were off to a flying start as they banged in a brace to level the score at 2-2 by the end of the first chukker. FG Polo dominated the second chukker with two back-to-back goals to take a 4-2 lead, which couldn’t last long as Master Paints bounced back in the third chukker with a brilliant brace to equalize the score at 4-4.  The highly-charged fourth chukker saw both the teams playing well but FG Polo got a slight edge of 7-6, as they converted three goals against two by Master Paints. FG added one more in their tally in the beginning of fifth chukker to stretch their lead to 8-6, but Master Paints made a strong comeback with a superb brace to level the score at 8-8. No more goals were scored after that, and the match was then decided in the sudden death chukker, Pelayo Berazadi smashed a match-winning goal to steer Master Paints to a well-deserving 9-8 win. MATCHES SUMMARY:   Diamond Paints beat HN Polo (12-9): DIAMOND PAINTS: Mir Huzaifa Ahmed 7, Chulo Corti 4, Ahmed Ali Tiwana 1. Total: 12 HN POLO: Raja Mikail Sami 4, Santiago Loza 3, Raja Jalal Arslan 1, Haider Naseem 1. Total: 9 UMPIRES: John Fisher & Chris Hyde.   Master Paint beat FG Polo (9-8): MASTER PAINTS: Pelayo Berazadi 4, Manuel Crespo 2, Sufi Muhammad Haroon 2, Agha Musa Ali Khan 1. Total: 9 FG POLO: Juan Ambroggio 3, Ramiro Zavaleta 2, Mian Abbas Mukhtar 2, Saqib Khan Khakwani 1. Total: 8 UMPIRES: John Fisher & Chris Hyde.   

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: With one eye on the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and the other on ensuring the careers of their elite cricketers are extended by strategically managing their workloads, the Pakistan cricket selectors today named a new-look and highly-talented 15-player squad for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, which will be played from 24 to 27 March in Sharjah. All-rounder Shadab Khan will captain the side that includes four uncapped players, namely, Ihsanullah, Saim Ayub, Tayyab Tahir and Zaman Khan, while Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf and Imad Wasim have been recalled. Pakistan captain Babar Azam, along with Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi have been rested, while Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Mohammad Hasnain and Khushdil Shah have been dropped. These nine players were part of the Pakistan squad that reached the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. Apart from the Shadab, players retained from the last T20I series are: Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Junior, Naseem Shah and Shan Masood. Chair of PCB Management Committee, Najam Sethi said: “I want to congratulate Shadab Khan on his appointment as the Pakistan team captain for the series against Afghanistan. Shadab Khan has been the Pakistan vice-captain in white-ball cricket for the past couple of years and it is logical that he takes over the side in the absence of Babar Azam for the short three-match T20I tour of Sharjah. “For the short Sharjah tour and to ensure continuity, we have also appointed Mohammad Yousuf as the interim head and batting coach. Yousuf has been with the national side since last year as a batting coach and has also been working in the National High Performance Centre.” Chair of the selection committee, Haroon Rashid said: “For the short three-T20I series against Afghanistan, the selection committee has followed the standard rotation policy by resting the leading performers and providing high-performing domestic performers with opportunities to demonstrate their talent and potential at the international level. This will also allow us to test the temperament and abilities of these players and helping us to strengthen our pool of players as we look forward to building and preparing a formidable side for next year’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies and United States. “However, and in doing so, we have ensured that we select a side that is equally strong and capable of winning the series against a strong Afghanistan side for whom Sharjah is like a second home. And to achieve that, we have retained seven players from the last series, recalled four experienced cricketers and clubbed them with four uncapped players to make the 15-member side a truly mixture of youth and experience. “In this background, I want to congratulate Ihsanullah, Saim Ayub, Tayyab Tahir and Zaman Khan who have broken into the national side after a series of strong performances in the domestic circuit as well as the HBL PSL 8. Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf and Imad Wasim have been recalled after they too demonstrated in the HBL PSL 8 that they are capable of exceling in the shortest format and also providing experience and stability in the side. “Babar, Fakhar, Haris, Rizwan and Shaheen have been provided breaks from the short Sharjah trip to allow them to switch-off from competitive cricket so that they can complete their rehabilitations, regroup, recompose and recharge their batteries and be fully fit for the challenges in the tough and challenging 2023-24 season.” About the uncapped and recalled players: In the HBL PSL 8, Azam has scored 280 runs in nine match at a strike-rate of almost 163, Saim Ayub has scored 309 runs in 10 matches at a strike-rate of 167, Tayyab Tahir has scored 137 runs in five matches at a strike-rate of 144 after aggregating 413 runs in 11 National T20 matches at a strike-rate of 138, whereas Ihsanullah has picked up 20 wickets in 10 matches at an economy-rate of 7.36 and Zaman Khan has claimed 12 wickets in 10 matches at an economy-rate of 8.68. Abdullah Shafique has scored 193 runs in seven HBL PSL 8 matches at a strike-rate of 144, Faheem Ashraf has scored 210 runs and taken seven wickets, while Imad has scored 404 runs (strike-rate of 170) and taken nine wickets (economy-rate of 7.93). Pakistan squad Shadab Khan (captain), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah,  Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Junior, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan, Reserve players: Abrar Ahmed, Haseebullah, Usama Mir