Key Takeaways
- Noor Zaman and Mohammad Ashab advance in squash.
- Pakistan’s kabaddi team suffers first defeat at the Asian Games.
- Asim Khan secures bronze in MMA.
Pakistan’s squash duo Noor Zaman and Mohammad Ashab progressed to the last-16 stage of the Asian Games, securing impressive victories over their opponents.
Noor Zaman, ranked 29th in the PSA standings, defeated Van Aero Dalida of the Philippines 11-2, 11-4, 11-3 in just 20 minutes, while 22-year-old Ashab registered a 11-2, 11-3, 11-0 win over Lebanon’s Jason Karam in 18 minutes.
Both players will face tougher opponents in the coming rounds, with Noor set to take on Ammar Altamimi, and Ashab up against Mohammad Al Alnafsan of Saudi Arabia.
In contrast, Pakistan’s kabaddi team suffered their first defeat of the Games, losing 48-45 to Thailand in a Group B match. Leading 23-16 at half-time, Pakistan’s defense was overwhelmed by Thailand’s second-half comeback, which saw them score 32 points to Pakistan’s 22.
Pakistan’s mixed doubles pair Asim Khan and Mehwish Ali also advanced to the round-of-16, defeating Nepal’s Arhant Simha and Bipana Bhlon 11-6, 11-10 in 19 minutes.
In the MMA event, Asim Khan secured a bronze medal in the -60kg category, having already reached the semi-finals on Sunday. He lost his semi-final bout to Mirzobek Umarov of Tajikistan.
Pakistan’s table tennis team remained winless, with the men’s side losing 3-0 to India. Mohammad Khan, Abbas Khan, and Taimur Khan all lost their matches.
The women’s table tennis team also failed to secure any victories, with Mahnoor Ali and Sana Bahadur both losing their matches in the round-of-32.
In the pool events, Hareem Malik finished last in the women’s 100m breaststroke, while Hamza Asif failed to qualify from the 50m freestyle heats.
