
Pak squash girls shine in Aus Jr Open
Five Pakistani players, including two of the well-known Ali sisters, delivered dominant performances in the finals of the Australian Junior Open Squash Championship in Melbourne, securing four gold medals and one silver across various categories.
Four out of five Pakistani finalists emerged victorious at the Australian Junior Open Squash Championship, with each winner claiming their title without losing a single game, all posting identical 3-0 wins.
Among the standout performers were Mehwish Ali and Sehrish Ali, two of the three squash-playing sisters from Peshawar, often referred to as the Ali sisters.
Top seed Mehwish won the girls' under-17 title, defeating New South Wales' Reden Alma Paulava.
In the girls' under-13 category, top-seeded Sehrish overcame Queensland's Ryo Kua Bata in straight games.
In the boys' under-17 final, Rawalpindi's Azaan Ali Khan, seeded second, beat New South Wales' Henry Cross, while Ahmed Ali Naaz, also seeded second, clinched the boys' under-12 title with a win over the United States' Flee.
Sehrish Ali, who competed in two events, was the only Pakistani to miss out on gold. She earned silver in the girls' under-15 final after a tight five-game battle against Japan's M. Emily Senior, eventually losing 3-2.
This marks just the third time in squash history that three biological sisters qualified for finals in an international platinum-category event.

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However, he seldom gets any support from the university administration when it comes to highlighting his achievements as national athlete. "Mostly my fellow students and teachers are aware that I represent Pakistan internationally, even the Vice Chancellor of my university knows it, but they tend to ignore this, and of course it can affect me, the lack of support feels cold and cruel at times. We are here on our own," said Umar. Similarly, Shamil, who took silver medal in the 49 kg cadet weight category, believes that his training at the Karachi Academy helped keep his passion for taekwondo grow strong and attributes the balance between studies and training time to be essential for the quality of his game. "I have been training for four years, my family is very supportive of me playing in international events,," said Shamil, who was on call with his mother before the interview. "I think the tournament was tough because there were so many well-trained athletes here. "While I was in the fight I was only thinking about what I can do to make sure that I end this with a medal. "My mind was only focused on that, so I am glad I managed a silver." He said that his ultimate goal in life is to do what he loves: compete in taekwondo events, and become a male nurse. "I want to become a nurse, my whole family is in this profession, so I also want to continue the tradition. "The goal for me is to get the degree in nursing and get black belt in taekwondo," concluded the 14-year-old. Road to Nilai was paved with challenges Karachi Taekwondo Academy owner and coach Syed Rahman Shah, who has also been a sports trainer at reputable schools including Habib Public, added that the greatest challenge is to find sponsors and support from the government when it comes to taking the athletes to international events. "The way e have come to Malaysia is nothing short of a miracle, I can say that it was only with the help of Allah, the parents chipped in, and we asked people for help, but there is no institutional help of talented athletes. "But winning these medals after going through so much only ensures that we are on the right path, and my students are proving their mettle on the international stage," said Rahman, "We need support from the Pakistan Teakwondo Federation as well, because at the end of the day every athlete wants to compete at the highest level, and to achieve that there needs to be an effective system in place that can treat our players with respect and dignity," said Rahman.