The fast and furious rising star of Pakistani tennis, Yasir Khan, has yet another title win to his name. The young gun has won the men’s singles of the 9th Siraj ul Haq Memorial Open Tennis Championship. The event was being held at the PTF Tennis
Complex, Islamabad.
The final match made for a very exciting watch and saw both players displaying their best game. However, Yasir dominated the game and showed the world that he was in it to win it. The player beat his opponent, M. Waqas Malik, in a straight set of 7-6, 6-4.
Currently Number 3 in Pakistan, he has a number of achievements to his name. At the junior level he was consistently Number One in Pakistan throughout his tenure. He has also been representing the country in the Davies Cup for the past 3 years. However,
despite the player dominating the local tennis scene, he is far from ready to take on International tennis.
Other players who won events at the tournament include M Abid, who beat Usman Rafiq in the Under 18 category. In the Under 14 category for boys, Talal Almas won over Nofil Kaleem by a score of 4-1, 4-1. The ladies single final was won by Anoosha Aslam, who
got the better of Meheq Khokhar and grabbed a 6-0, 6-2 win.
Pakistan is a talent rich region as far as sports are concerned. Recently, the focus has been shifting a little towards tennis. This shift can mainly be credited to Aisam-ul-Haq’s success in the international circuit. But Aisam was just one of many. There
are still many immensely talented players who do not have access to the facilities necessary to take their game to the next level.
Another problem that players face is the lack of proper coaching. Most players are self taught and have learned how to play through DVDs etc. These players have the raw talent for the game but are very rough around the edges and therefore unable to compete
on an international level.
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