Pakistan Win Squash Silver, Exit Volleyball

Pakistan’s wait for a men’s team squash gold medal at the Asian Games continued on Friday after Malaysia defeated them 2-0 in the final at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena.

Sixteen years after Pakistan beat Malaysia 2-0 in Guangzhou to claim their last Asian Games men’s team squash title, history was reversed in Nagoya as Malaysia secured gold and Pakistan had to settle for silver.

The result marked Pakistan’s second consecutive silver medal in the event, following their runners-up finish to India at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.

Nasir Iqbal gave Pakistan a promising start against Malaysia’s Ameeshenraj Chandaran, taking an early 6-1 lead. However, Chandaran fought back to close the gap before Nasir held his nerve to win the opening game 11-8.

The Malaysian responded strongly in the second game, producing a six-point run to move from 4-2 down to 10-2 before closing it out 11-3. Chandaran maintained his momentum in the third, staying level with Nasir at 6-6 before winning four successive points to take the game 11-6.

The 22-year-old Malaysian then completed the comeback in the fourth game, breaking away from 5-3 with five consecutive points before sealing an 11-4 victory to give Malaysia a 1-0 lead in the final.

Pakistan’s top-ranked Noor Zaman was then tasked with keeping the tie alive against Malaysia’s Eain Yow Ng, who had also defeated Noor in the individual singles semi-final earlier in the Games. The rematch went the distance, with Ng taking the opening game 11-8 after establishing a 9-4 lead.

Noor responded in the second, winning four consecutive points from 3-3 and going on to level the match with an 11-6 victory.

The third game produced the most intense battle of the match, with neither player able to establish a significant advantage during a series of lengthy rallies. Noor eventually pulled clear late in the game to win 11-7 and move 2-1 ahead.

Ng responded emphatically in the fourth, racing to a 5-0 lead before wrapping up the game 11-4 in just five minutes.

The Malaysian then dominated the decider, building an early advantage and eventually winning 11-4 to secure Malaysia’s second point and the gold medal. With the final already decided, Pakistan’s third player Mohammed Ashab Irfan did not need to take the court.

Iran End Pakistan’s Volleyball Run

Pakistan’s promising volleyball campaign ended in the semi-finals after they suffered a 3-0 defeat to three-time defending champions Iran at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Gymnasium.

Iran won 25-13, 25-15, 25-11 to book their place in the final, while Pakistan will now compete for the bronze medal on Saturday.

Ali Usman Faryad led Pakistan’s scoring with 11 points, while Murad Khan contributed nine. Afaq Khan scored three points, with Jabran and Musawer Khan adding two each.

Iran dominated the match statistically, scoring 75 points compared with Pakistan’s 39.

The defending champions were particularly dominant at the net, converting 43 of 68 spikes for a 64 per cent success rate, compared with Pakistan’s 27 of 81 attacks at 34 per cent.

Iran also held a commanding 15-1 advantage in blocks and won the digs battle 64 per cent to 42 per cent.

Pakistan had reached the semi-finals with an impressive 3-0 quarter-final victory over India, but their run came to an end against a powerful Iranian side.

Pakistan will face either Japan or China in the bronze-medal match on Saturday, while Iran will contest the final after edging South Korea 3-2 in a thrilling quarter-final.

Wrestling and Taekwondo Hopes End

Pakistan also suffered setbacks in wrestling and taekwondo on Friday.

Mohammad Abdullah was eliminated from the men’s freestyle 65kg competition after losing 13-2 to North Korea’s Kwang Jin Kim by technical superiority at the Nagoya City Inae Sports Centre.

Kim, ranked 14th in the world in the 65kg category, secured an unassailable lead in just over two minutes.

In the 86kg freestyle category, Noman Zaka advanced to the quarter-finals with a 10-4 victory over Cambodia’s Vuthy Heng.

However, he was beaten by Japan’s Hayato Ishiguro, the 2025 World Championship silver medallist, by technical superiority without scoring a point.

Zaka then entered the repechage but suffered another defeat, losing 10-0 to Kazakhstan’s Azamat Dauletbekov, a two-time world bronze medallist and three-time Asian champion.

In taekwondo, Shahzaib Khan was beaten 2-1 by Vietnam’s Hong Trong Nguyen at the Toyohashi Gymnasium.

Nguyen, a SEA Games gold medallist, edged a closely contested bout despite a determined effort from the Pakistani fighter.

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