Pakistan’s Ashab Irfan, Asim Khan advance to Charlottesville Open round of 16

KARACHI: Pakistan’s squash players Asim Khan and Ashab Irfan booked their places in the round of 16 at the Charlottesville Open, a PSA World Tour Bronze event offering a prize purse of $31,250.

Asim Khan overcame JP Tew of the United States 11-6, 11-3, 8-11, 11-6 in a 54-minute contest, while Ashab Irfan staged a brilliant comeback to defeat Egypt’s Omar Said in five games 5-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-2, 11-5 in 61 minutes.

Meanwhile, Noor Zaman, who received a first-round bye, will also feature in the round of 16. Zaman is riding high on confidence after clinching the Nash Cup in Canada last week, another PSA World Tour event.

In the upcoming matches, Asim Khan will take on top seed Timothy Brownell of the United States, Ashab Irfan will face India’s seventh seed Veer Chotrani, while Noor Zaman is set to meet England’s Tom Walsh, who edged compatriot Finnlay Withington in a five-game thriller.

Earlier this year, Ashab Irfan produced a stellar performance at the Johns Creek Open in the United States, where he clinched his third PSA title of 2025.

The $12,000 tournament saw Irfan rally past Malaysia’s Nathan Chua in the final, as he recovered from a game down to secure a 3-1 victory with scores of 8-11, 11-2, 11-2, 11-6 in just 40 minutes.

The Pakistani star had stormed into the final by defeating Brazil’s Diogo Gobbi 3-1 in the semi-final (11-7, 14-12, 4-11, 11-5). 

On the other hand, compatriot Asim Khan fell short in the other semi-final, suffering a 3-1 defeat to Nathan Chua (11-9, 4-11, 11-7, 11-9).

Both Asim and Ashab had impressed in their quarterfinal outings: Asim battled past Egypt’s Omar El Kattan 3-1 (10-12, 11-3, 11-3, 13-11), while Ashab swept aside Mexico’s Cesar Segundo 3-0 (11-3, 11-8, 11-3).

Their strong campaigns had begun in the second round, where Asim defeated Egypt’s Kareem Badawi 3-1 (11-3, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8) and Ashab dismantled USA’s Christopher Gordon 3-0 (11-2, 11-4, 11-4) in just 20 minutes.