ISLAMABAD: India defeated arch-rivals Pakistan on Saturday to bag the gold medal in the men’s squash tournament for the 19th Asian Games in China’s Hangzhou city, the World Squash Federation (WSF) confirmed.
It was the first time in 13 years that Pakistan had qualified for the squash tournament final in the Asian Games. Their journey to the final was sealed with a victory over No.3 seeds Hong Kong in the men’s team squash semifinal. Likewise, India secured their place in the final by defeating the defending champions, Malaysia, in a match on Friday.
“India defeat rivals Pakistan to win the men’s team squash championship at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou,” the World Squash Federation (WSF) announced on X, formerly Twitter known as Twitter.
Pakistan entered the Asian Games championships as the underdogs, with the team seeded fourth. Pakistan earlier beat No.1 seeds India during their pool stage of the match to finish on top of the table.
On Friday, Pakistan’s Noor Zaman, 19, and Nasir Iqbal won their games against the Hong Kong players to hand the South Asian side a 2-1 victory over their opponents, helping them qualify for the final.
