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Fri 29th, Final: 

[1] Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt [2] David Palmer (Aus)
      11/9, 8/11, 11/1, 4/11, 11/7 (77m)

Thierry:
Live from Pakistan
The new Pakistan Champion spoke to Framboise directly after his victory in a dramatic final ...

After my more or less catastrophic starts in earlier rounds , I had to assess the problem, I had to get in condition, in the best starting condition possible. It was all in the head, really, I told myself to start at my best, and to play the first rallies as I would play the crucial ones.

The pace of the first game is very high, I make very few mistakes. Also, I told myself that I had to be offensive at the back of the court, and that I had to prevent him from volleying. I had to avoid crosscourts, and when he was in front, I had to play straight counterdrop, or cross court very wide. I studied his game a lot, you know…

In the second, I cut the trajectories much better, was quick on the T, I was a bit more on the back foot, I had trouble coming back, I was a bit too static, a bit too passive, and my length was not good enough to pass him. He was controlling the game really.

I then make an excellent start in the third, lots of weight on the ball, tight, I take the ball early, I make him run, good shot variety, and there I’m lucky, all my shots are winning shots, drop shots, crosscourt backhand dropshots, back of the court dropshots, anything goes…

It goes so well that I want to do the same in the fourth, but got it all wrong! I wanted to play a winning shot far too soon, too short too soon, whereas in the third I was playing very well, very early, very quickly, but it was backed up with a good preparation, and I had created myself opportunities.

In the fourth, I was too impatient, I was also starting to get tired. I relaxed a bit, and wanted to do too much…

In the fifth, I made a good, a very good start. I think that David had also to dig in and spend a lot of energy to come back to 2/2. I felt he was a bit tired, he was a bit slower to come back on the T, he was a bit more passive, less heavy on the ball. So I told myself to take the ball as early as possible, and to send everything to the back, back, back, make him run, patience, patience, not to make the error. And then it was he who started to make the faults…

My two coaches helped me tremendously yet again during this tournament. First, my physical preparation with Paul Sciberras, and then racquet work with Franck Carlino, plus Franck’s support three times a day by phone during the tournament. Thanks to those two.

During the whole tournament, I was extremely focused, and although David was playing extremely well, I never thought the title was out of my reach. I’m happy to win, because I’m been looking for a major title for eight months now while being world number one. I wanted to confirm my ranking, it was crucial for me.

And because that victory was so important for me, it was a lot of weight on my shoulders, a lot of pressure. I lost in finals in New York, in London, in the World Games. So today, I’m delighted to win at last, and to win in the country that nursed Jahangir and Jansher…

Thierry Lincou

"I was restricted in my movements by 20 percent due to a sore back. It's disappointing to lose after playing well throughout the tournament." David Palmer

Head to Head ...

2001  Hong Kong (Final)        Palmer 3/0 2001  Qatar Classic (Qtr)       Palmer 3/0 2002  PSA Masters (Qtr)        Palmer 3/2 2002  S/Series (Final)           Palmer 3/2 2002  Qatar Classic (Qtr)      Palmer 3/1 2004  Gerrard GP (Group)    Lincou 3/2 2005  ToC New York (Semi)  Lincou 3/1 2005  Dutch finals (Semi)     Lincou 3/1 2005  Pakistan (Final)           Lincou 3/2

 Draw & Results

Reports
from earlier rounds

En Français

Lincou wants a
French Revolution

Lithsome Lincou Lifts Pakistan Title ... Shahid Hashmi reports from Karachi World number one Thierry Lincou of France prevailed over world number three David Palmer of Australia in five gruelling games in the final to lift the Pakistan Open squash title here on Friday. The 29-year-old Lincou, reigning world champion, won 11-9, 8-11, 11-1, 4-11, 11-7 in over an hour to record his first major title win of the year, but Palmer, who had a 4-1 record against his opponent in PSA ranking events, gave Lincou a run for the title as, despite back trouble, he exhibited his skilful play which earned him three British open and 2002 world open title in the career. Lincou started aggressively, opening up a 9-5 lead in the first game but Palmer staged a comeback of sorts by narrowing the gap at 10-9. Palmer then committed an unforced error to concede the first game at 9-11. Although restricted in his movement due to back trouble, Palmer pocketed the second game with some remarkable shots and came on level terms with a 11-8 win. Lincou unleashed some aggressive strokes in the third game and never allowed his opponent to come close, winning 11-1 to take a 2-1 lead. But Palmer was not finished as he led throughout the fourth game, winning it 11-4 to set up an intriguing fifth and final game. Palmer led 4-2 in the fifth, but after five unanswered points from Lincou and conceding a 5-9 lead the Australian showed his frustration, blaming his opponent for running into him instead of playing his own game. Lincou took the game with a crisp cross court shot at 11-7 and with it the match to win his first major title of the year, lifting the trophy along with 7,500 US dollars in prize money.

l'équipe Hi Fram, I didn't get in contact with you for a while. But I wanted to salute you for the quality of your sites. Difficult to be quicker and more comprehensive than this Pakistan week, where, thanks to you guys, we were able to follow the exploits of our little frenchies, in quasi live... And furthermore, beyond Pakistan, thanks for providing us with a follow up of squash in general, from the juniors (not to mention that our "bluettes", our girls in Belgium, are cute, aren't they???) to the big pros of the circuit. It's perfect. So, a big bravo and a huge thank you. There you go, see you next time you come to Paris Pascal Grégoire-Boutreau Senior Reporter, l'Equipe

Lincou puts France ahead

France's top seed Thierry Lincou recovered from a first game deficit to beat Anthony Ricketts in 69 minutes in Karachi, to reach his first Pakistan Open final.

Ricketts took a close first, but Lincou raised his game in the second, taking it 11/5 to level the match.

Ricketts streaked ahead 7/1 in the third, but Lincou fought back. Although Ricketts held game-balls at 10/7 the momentum was with the Frenchman, who saved five game balls in all before taking the 29-minute game 14/12.

In the fourth it was Lincou who started strongly, racing to 7/1 and holding on to win 11/3 and move into the final.

"It was a beautiful match, very disputed. I think that the third was definitely the “turning point” (in English in original, FG), I was told it lasted 29 minutes, which needs to be confirmed, as I was down, and saved a few game balls to eventually take the game. I feel that mentally, it must have been very hard, and that my game of pressure, precision and strategy was starting to get to him. Once again my mental toughness paid off. "In the fourth, I knew I had to start well and fast, as I was hoping he would be a bit down, mentally and physically. And I got lucky, I attacked hard from the start, my shots went in, and I took an early comfortable lead that he couldn't close back…" "To win this tournament is very important for me because I want a winning start before I go to Hong Kong to defend my world title in December." Thierry Lincou

 Draw & Results

HIGH TECH COVERAGE Today, we’ve used all modern ways to get the information from Pakistan. First, we had a “spy” who was texting us from the crowd after each game with the score and a quick report. Then, we had the Pakistan scoreboard to follow the matches minute by minute, quite accurate, apart from the moment they gave the match 3/1 for Palmer, whereas Grégory had actually equalised 2/2 … Then we had the quotes from David by mobile phone, Greg by text and later followed by email, and Thierry by landline … And the report from Shahid Hashmi arrived a few minutes after the last match by email. Except for the fax (that we mostly use for Mr Malcolm Willstrop), we used all modern communication to get the info from the action (where I couldn’t be as I’ve at last been operated on, and I'm hopping away like a French Kangaroo…) to you. And if some old fashioned “dinosaurs” are crying for the Old Times, when ink and paper were King, we say it loud and clear, we are proud of bringing you results, quotes and reports as the event happens… Yes, proud we are…

28-July Lincou sets a date with Palmer Shahid Hashmi reports from Karachi ... Reigning world champion Thierry Lincou of France set a final date with world number three Australian David Palmer after they earned hard fought wins in the semi-finals of the Pakistan open squash championship here on Thursday, with the final of the US dollars 85,000 prize money event to be played on Friday. Lincou, world number one, once again kept his cool to ward off the challenge of world number seven Anthony Ricketts of Australia, winning 9-11, 11-5, 11-10 (4-2), 11-3 in 69 minutes. The 29-year-old Lincou, who has yet to win a major title this year, committed too many unforced errors in the first game which Ricketts won 11-9 but came back strongly to take the second game without much ado at 11-5. Ricketts, who beat Lincou in the final of this year's Tournament of Champions in United States, led 10-7 in the third but Lincou staged a remarkable comeback, saving five game points to edge his opponent out in the tie-break at 14-12. Lincou acknowledged that that third game was crucial, and praised Ricketts, last year's Pakistan Open runner-up, as one of the most dangerous player on the circuit. Lincou opened up a healthy 9-3 lead in the fourth game with some slick drop and cross court shots as his tiring opponent had little answers to his skillful play. Lincou won the fourth 11-3 after his opponent hit the tin from the front of the court. Palmer denies Gaultier David Palmer, three-time British open winner and 2002 world champion, had to use all his guile and experience to beat number eight seed Gregory Gaultier of France 3-11, 11-10 (2-0), 11-6, 6-11, 11-4. Countering a back problem, Palmer was given a scare by fast improving Gaultier but the Australian eventually pulled through after a 58-minute vigil. Gaultier, runner-up at the world junior championship in Milan in 2000 and two-time European individual champion, pocketed the first game 11-3 with his opponent not at ease at the back of the court. Palmer then had to vie point for point in the second game which he won on the tie-break at 12-10. The 29-year-old Palmer then surged ahead with an 11-6 win in the third game only to see his 22-year-old opponent come back to level terms with a 6-11 win in the fourth to set up an intriguing last game. But Palmer gave no chance to his opponent, taking no time in completing the victory with a 11-4 win. Palmer leads Lincou 4-1 in their PSA head to head matches.

PAKISTAN REPORTS from previous rounds ...

[Q] Basit Ashfaq (Pak)
11/2, 10/11, 9/11, 11/7, 11/2 (50m)
[16] Simon Parke (Eng)

11/10(2-0), 11/5, 11/3 (25m)

Amr
Shabana

3/11, 11/10(2-0), 11/6, 6/11, 11/4 (58m)

[Q] Yasir Butt (Pak)
11/10, 11/7, 11/9 (37m)
[11] Adrian Grant (Eng)

David
Palmer

Aamir Atlas Khan (Pak)
11/4, 11/3, 11/1 (19m)
[5] James Willstrop (Eng)

    Qualifying:

    Qualifying finals:

    Shamsul Islam Khan (Pak) bt Adil Maqbool (Pak)     9/11, 11/9, 7/11, 11/5, 11/6 (47m)
    Dylan Bennett (Ned) bt Khalid Atlas Khan (Pak)        11/9,3/11, 11/8, 8/11, 11/8 (72m)
    Ramy Ashour (Egy) bt Amjad Khan (Pak)                 11/2, 11/1, 10/11, 11/5 (22m)
    Aquib Hanif (Pak) bt Bilal Zaman (Pak)                    11/8, 11/7,8/11, 11/6 (44m)
    Basit Ashfaq (Pak) bt Majid Khan (Pak)                    11/7, 10/11, 11/7, 11/8 (51m)
    Safeerullah Khan (Pak) bt Arshad Iqbal Burki (Pak)  11/4, 11/5, 11/4
    Khayal Mohammed (Pak) bt Farrukh Zaman (Pak)    9/11, 11/10, 11/8, 11/8 (52m)
    Yasir Butt (Pak) bt Bader Al Hussaini (Kuw)               11/10, 11/4, 11/1 (28m) 

23-July:
Qualification Complete in Karachi

Hosts Pakistan gained their expected six extra berths in the main draw as the qualifying finals took place at the Pakistan Navy RKJK Squash Complex, but were denied a clean sweep by Ramy Ashour and Dylan Bennett.

Shamsul Islam Khan, Yasir Butt, Aquib Hanif, Basit Ashfaq, Safeerullah Khan and Khayal Mohammed boosted the home representation in the main draw to nine.

World junior champion Ramy Ashour, who won in just nine minutes yesterday, qualified with a narrow 3/1 victory over former Pakistan champion Amjad Khan. Ashour meets Malaysia's 10th seed Ong Beng Hee, himself a former world junior champion, tomorrow,.

The Netherland's Dylan Bennett completed the list of qualifiers, and his reward is a match against sixth seed Nick Matthew in the main draw.

   First Round:
   Shamsul Islam Khan (Pak)                                     bye
   Adil Maqbool (Pak) bt Ibrahim Gil (Pak)                   11/10, 11/2, 11/3 (20m)
   Dylan Bennett (Ned) bt Ali Hassan Ayub (Pak)         11/3, 11/3, 11/5 (14m)
   Khalid Atlas Khan (Pak) bt Shah Nawaz (Pak)          11/9, 9/11, 11/2, 11/7 (45m)

   Ramy Ashour (Egy) bt Ahmed Hameed (Pak)           11/1, 11/1, 11/1 (9m)
   Amjad Khan (Pak) bt Sheroze Khan (Pak)               11/6, 11/10, 11/0 (15m)
   Aquib Hanif (Pak) bt Bradley Hindle (Aus)               11/10, 11/8, 3/1 rtd (30m) 
   Bilal Zaman (Pak) bt Khasif Khan (Pak)                  11/10, 11/10, 11/8 (28m)
 
   Basit Ashfaq (Pak) bt Jahanzeb Masood (Pak)         11/5, 11/6, 11/3 (20m)
   Majid Khan (Pak) bt Abdul Basit Opal (Pak)             11/4, 11/4, 11/5 (14m)
   Safeerullah Khan (Pak) bt Alamzeb Junior (Pak)     11/8, 11/5, 11/6 (20m)
   Arshad Iqbal Burki (Pak) bt Mubashir Gul (Pak)      11/4, 11/5, 11/4 (27m)

   Khayal Mohammed (Pak) bt M Naeem (Pak)           11/9, 11/6, 11/7 (23m)
   Farrukh Zaman (Pak) bt Khurram Shahzad (Pak)    11/3, 11/7, 11/5 (21m)
   Bader Al Hussaini (Kuw) bt Farzan Rashid (Pak)      11/10, 7/11, 11/10, 6/11, 11/10 (60m)
   Yasir Butt (Pak)                                                   bye

No Sweat for Ramy

After the pre-qualifying competition, which saw eight Pakistanis take up places in the qualifying draw, qualifying itself started today in Karachi.

The draw is dominated by local entrants, and with five of tomorrow's eight qualifying finals all-Pakistani affairs, the hosts are sure to gain significant extra representation in the main draw which starts on Sunday.

Egypt's world junior champion Ramy Ashour reached the qualifying finals in leisurely fashion, winning 11/1, 11/1, 11/1 in just nine minutes.

Australia's Bradley Hindle, one of the expected qualifiers, crashed out to Pakistan junior Lahore Aquib. According to GEO Sports, "Pakistan referee Sajjad Ahmed awarded the match to Aqib because of consistent body contact by the struggling Aussie, who earlier was warned for his conduct in the court." 

Pre-Qualifying finals:
Shahroze Khan (Sindh) bt Asif Khan (Sindh) 11-10, 11-7, 10-11,11-6 (26m)
Khurram Shahzad (Sindh) bt Atiq Butt (Punjab) 10-11,11-10, 11-6, 11-7 (37m)
Jahanzeb Masood (Sindh) bt M Naveed (Punjab) 11-8, 11-10, 11-8 (37m)
Alamzeb Jr. (NWFP) bt Jahangir Khan (Sindh) 11-7,11-9, 11-4 (22m)
M Naeem (Sindh) bt Khurram Shehzad (Punjab) 11-3, 11-5, 11-4 (17m)
Farzan Rashid (Punjab) bt Pir Usman (Balochistan) 11-4, 11-5, 11-3 (18m)
Aqib Hanif (Punjab) bt Naveed Alam (Sindh) 11-5, 11-8, 11-5 (33m)
Kashif Khan (Sindh) bt Ubaid Jahan (Balochistan) 11-3, 11-10, 11-4 (20m)

Round One:
Khurram Shahzad (Pb) bt Naveed Zaffar (Pb)  11/0, 11/1, 11/3
M Naeem (Sind) bt Mahad Javed (Sind)  11/6, 11/1, 11/9
M Naveed (Pb) bt Zohaib Ahmed (Sind)  11/3,11/9,8/11,10/11,11/2
Asif Khan (Sind) bt Faizan Nawaz (Pb)  11/5, 11/9, 7/11, 11/6
Jahanzeb Masood (Sind) bt Mohibullah (Sind)  11/6, 11/6, 11/8
Shahroze Khan (Sind) bt Zaki Muneeb (Sind)  11/6, 11/3, 11/4
Mohibullah (Sind) bt Bilal Sher (Sind)  11/4, 11/2 11/8
Farhan Sharif (Sind) bt Yasir Sabir (Sind)  11/6, 11/1 11/9 
Mahad Javed (Sind) bt Saad Shahid (Sind)  11/2, 11/3 11/9
Najeebullah (Sind) bt Zeeshan Khan (Sind)  11/5, 11/3
Jahangir Khan (Sind) bt Fahad Kakar (Sind)  11/8, 11/4
Farzan Rashid (Pb) bt Farhan Sharif (Sind)  11/0, 11/2
Khurram Shahzad (Sind) bt Mohammad Ali (Bal) 11/7, 11/5, 11/8
Attique Butt (Pb) bt M Hussain (Bal)  11/2, 11/8, 4/11, 11/8 17
Ubaid Jahan (Bal) bt Azam Khan Jndr (Sind) 11/10, 10/11, 11/8, 11/3 
Kashif Khan (Sind) bt Mohd Qasim (Sind)  9/11, 11/8, 11/6, 11/8
Alamzeb Jnr bt Ashfaq Hussain (Sind)  11/6, 8/11, 11/5, 11/5
Naveed Alam (Sind) bt Najeebullah (Sind)  11/10, 11/7, 11/2
Pir Usman (Bal) bt Noor Zaman (Sind)  11/7, 10/11, 11/5, 11/3
Aqib Hanif (Pb) bt Kalimullah (Bal)  11/3, 11/9, 11/1

Karachi looks forward
to Open return

The Pakistan Open squash championship returns to Karachi after a five year absence.

The metropolis staged its last Pakistan Open at the same venue in 1999 which was won  Peter Marshall of England.

The city was once considered one of the main squash venues in the world. It has the honour of staging two World Opens and two team squash championships before security fears caused the PSF to shift the venue to Islamabad.

France's world number one Thierry Lincou is top seed, with Australia's David Palmer seeded to meet the world champion in the final. England’s James Willstrop will defend his title.
   

  
Aamir Atlas gets
wild card entry

Upcoming Pakistani squash player Aamir Atlas Khan, the nephew of Jansher Khan and Asian Junior Champion,  has been awarded a wild card entry for the tournament, and will face defending champion and former world junior champion James Willstrop in the first round.

Aamir has just lost to the current world junior champion, Ramy Ashour, in the semi-finals of the Herald Maritime Services Open in Mumbai - Ashour is in the qualifying competition for Karachi.

Pakistan Open 2004