Exciting PPFL games on cards after Eid break
By Abdul Ahad Farshori
As the teams and the players take a break from Pakistan Premier Football League, to be with their families for the holy sacrifice, one thing occupying their mind will be the one final push for the glory as the last phase (third leg) of the contest commences after Eid-ul-Azha.

Almost five years after joining the international professional circuit at just 14, Aamir Atlas Khan finally made his presence felt on the World Tour when he toppled newly-crowned world number one Gregory Gauliter in what was one of the squash's biggest upset of the year.

Aamir, a talented Peshawar-born youngster, earned the biggest scalp of his professional career when he stunned the Frenchman 11-6, 7-11, 12-10, 11-9 in 53 minutes in the second round of the Qatar Classic in Doha earlier this month.

The result sent shock waves in the world of professional squash and even though Aamir went on to lose against Englishman Peter Barker in the quarterfinals of the $147,500 PSA World Tour Super tournament, he was widely hailed as the one player who will go on to revive Pakistan's squash glory.

Pakistan are the most successful nation in world squash history but have failed to produce a champion since the exit of the mighty Jansher Khan in the late nineties.

The country's squash dynasty that was established by Hashim Khan in the fifties and which included legends like Azam Khan, Mohibullah Khan Sr, Qamar Zaman and Jahangir Khan has been looking for a worthy successor for the last ten years but without any success.

Is Aamir the one it has been looking for?

His win against Gaultier has given experts enough reason to believe that with more hard work, he can go on to the top of the world rankings.

Even his estranged uncle Jansher -ñ the last Pakistani to win the World Open and British Open crowns -ñ was forced to come out with glowing tribute for Aamir, saying that the 19-year-old has the potential to join the top-five players of the world in the near future.

Aamir, himself is thinking even bigger and wants to be the world number one just like Jansher, who occupied that title for a record ten years before injury problems ended his career in the late nineties.

"I'm confident that one day I'll reach the number one position, and world champion, I'm working very hard for it, and one day Inshallah I'll get there," Aamir said after beating Gaultier.

Aamir, who achieved his career-high world ranking (14) last September, is all set to climb up the rankings' ladder when the next list is issued by the Professional Squash Association (PSA) early in December.

The hard-hitting player says that he would producing such results more frequently in the future as he is now high on confidence after beating a player like Gaultier, regarded as one of the fittest players on the circuit.

"I've probably been lacking the confidence to beat the top guys in the past but now that I've beaten a player of his (Gaultier's) class, I should be doing it more often in future," said Aamir, whose father Atlas Khan is a former son of British Amateur Championship finalist.

Aamir said that his father, who also happens to be his coach, gave him a quick word of advise before the match against Gaultier.

"My father told me, 'listen, you can win this -ó you've got the talent, you've got the stamina'. I kept focusing on that during the whole match, and thinking how lucky I was to belong to such a squash family. And that really carried me through."

Aamir has been on the circuit for quite sometime, managing a minor upset occasionally. But against Gaultier, he was in devastating form.

Gaultier, who has reached eight Tour finals in the past 12 months, was unable to counter the attacking game from his young opponent. The 26-year-old from Aix-en-Provence recovered from losing the first game to draw level -ó then dropped the third game in a tie-break.

But Aamir maintained his focus to record a morale-boosting victory by clinching the fourth game 11-9.

"Beating him (Gaultier) is the biggest moment of my career," he said. "I really didn't expect it, because Greg has been playing so well recently ó- he is such a great champion," said Aamir.

However, a day later Aamir was sent packing out of the tournament by the experienced Barker as the left-hander, ranked nine in the world, cruised to an 11-5, 11-6, 12-10 victory in 40 minutes.

It is such inconsistency that has so far stopped Aamir, who was recently nominated for the Young Player of the Year Award by the PSA, from becoming a world champion like his predecessors like Jansher and Jahangir Khan. The two JKs and other Pakistani squash champions before them blossomed at a very young age and were almost unbeatable at their peak.

Aamir was hailed as the next world champion when he made his PSA debut back in 2004 but before the upset win against Gaultier, he was not really able to translate his potential into good results.

In 2009, he has won just one PSA title -ñ the COAS Open ñ- and that too on home soil. His failure to have won any worthwhile event abroad is one aspect that raises doubts whether Aamir will ever be able to become a world champion.

Jansher, however, believes that he can do it.

"I've never doubted Aamir's talent and now that he has beaten the world number one, his confidence will grow and will help him to be in the top-five soon," says Jansher, who won the World Open for a record eight times, besides claiming the prestigious British Open crown on six occasions.

By beating the reigning world number one, Aamir has once again revived interest in squash ñ game that gave Pakistan recognition in the world of sports just years after its Independence. But the youngster will have to make it a habit to win the big ones to be able to realize his childhood dream of becoming a world champion.

Pakistan's recent victory in the Under-18 Asia hockey cup is very significant as it is country's first global or continental title win since the 1996 junior Asia cup. By virtue of this, Pakistan has also qualified for the next year's youth Olympics in Singapore.

It was a newly formed outfit and all the players were selected from the national under-18 super hockey league held two months back which was hailed by all and sundry as the best effort to unearth the young hockey talent in Pakistan for many years.

Strict age scrutiny, highly competitive matches and exciting talent in every outfit made it a memorable and satisfying event. And it proved immediate dividends on the international stage with green shirts lifting the Asian under-18 title.

One of the stars for Pakistan at Myanmar was Bilal Qadir. The brilliant left side forward was a live wire and also scored crucial goals, against India in the pool match, and also in the semi final.

Bilal first came into the national limelight during the super hockey league. From quarter final onwards all the ties were televised live by the Geo Super.

Though Bilal's side, Lahore, lost the final still he was a popular choice for the Man of the Match in the final watched by millions across the country. His two goals in that match were real gems especially the one scored by a superb top of the circle reverse shot. Bilal caught everyone's eye throughout the tournament with his superb stick work, speed and scoring.

The young lad, hailing from a small village near Peer Mahal, district Toba Tek Singh gives a lot of credit of his success to the Tanvir Dar hockey academy in Lahore where he has been training for the last three years.

"I had been playing hockey in my village school since childhood. My elder brother, a soldier who plays hockey for his army unit team, brought me to the academy."

Are you happy here?

"It has always been my dream to excel in hockey. The academy not only provides top class training but also takes care of every thing including diet, sticks, shoes, etc. Otherwise, it would have been very difficult given my humble back ground."

Is hockey your sole aim or do you consider getting some educational qualifications as well?

"No, I am also serious about my studies and regularly attend classes at the Model High School, Model Town, and have recently cleared my class 9 papers. I intend doing graduation at least."

Any ideal in hockey?

As a little kid, I was fascinated by Shahbaz Ahmad. Presently, my favourites are Rehan Butt and Shakeel Abbasi.

Are you satisfied with your progress during these three years in the academy?

"Very much. It will not be wrong to say that it has been rise and rise. I represented the Punjab under-14 side and then captained the Punjab under-15 which won the national title. I scored three goals in the final and was also declared the Player of the Tournament. More recently, the successes during the national under-18 super league made me noticed nation wide. Selection for the under-18 Asia hockey cup followed and in my maiden international appearance I helped Pakistan win the title. Even in the wildest of my dreams, I would not have thought to achieve so much in such a short span of time."

How was your experience of the national under-18 super league?

"Fantastic. A galaxy of former Pakistani stars was present every day, and to perform well in front of them was a real challenge. Then as from the quarter final onwards the games were televised live on the Geo TV, my entire village watched the matches and when I was declared the Man of the Match in the final they felt really proud.

When I came back after the tournament, scores of my village mates gave me a hero's welcome at the Peer Mahal railway station."

So now you are a star in your village?

"Ha! Ha! Well, I derive immense satisfaction from the fact that my televised achievements have resulted in a great increase in the number of boys playing hockey in my area."

An evidence of the role of media in popularising a sport.

How was the Asia cup experience?

"My childhood wish to don the green Pakistan shirt got fulfilled. We were a newly raised side and the players didn't have much time to develop understanding with each other. The Malaysians were more experienced. One of their players had even played for the national senior side in the recent World Cup qualifiers. Yet, we managed to defeat them twice, in the pool game as well as in the final.

The whole one week was a surreal experience."

And what about 'after' the team's success?

"Well, the accolades started arriving when we were still in Myanmar. The Prime Minister also sent a congratulatory message. The president PHF announced Rs 50,000 for each player. I feel really proud and at the same time motivated to achieve greater glories."

The speed with which young Bilal Qadir is scaling heights, he is on his way to be a star admired by the entire Pakistani nation, not only by a village in Peer Mahal.

As the teams and the players take a break from Pakistan Premier Football League, to be with their families for the holy sacrifice, one thing occupying their mind will be the one final push for the glory as the last phase (third leg) of the contest commences after Eid-ul-Azha.

Navy are leading the table with 54 points from their 25 matches. The sailors and PIA are the only two teams to have played 25 matches in the league. Following Navy are the impressive Khan Research Laboratories (KRL), trailing the leaders by only seven points, having played only 20 matches which gives them a window of five matches to regain the spot they had occupied for most of the season.

KRL, who have never won the championship in their last 12 attempts and were third in the last edition are being lead by Samar Ishaq -- the most valuable player of the 2008 season of PPFL.

WAPDA, who are looking for their third straight title, favorites to hold on to the silverware are having a tough time this season and are at the fourth spot. They have 42 points from their 19 outings ñ the least number of matches played by any team in the league. They still have a great opportunity to retain the title, and win it for a record eighth time.

Third-placed Army have also started to show form and will go all out in the last phase to keep the record of top two finishes in the last six years intact.

With 156 matches played in the two phases of the league a massive 392 goals have been scored with WAPDA and PIA sharing the honours of the top scoring teams of the league with 45 goals each.

PIA, who have played four matches more than the soldiers, are on the fourth spot.

The national carrier, who have won the league a massive nine times -- but haven't won since 1997, have taken a stunning u-turn to recover from their worst possible start in the league when they had only 10 points from their eight matches, in the first phase.

Under coach Tariq Lutfi and with a new home ground -- Shadab stadium -- they have shown signs of recovery and are now gunning for at least a top-three finish.

Lahore-based Pak Elektron Limited -- who were 11th in the last edition -- are at the sixth spot with ten wins from their 23 matches in the league so far.

Just a point behind them are KPT, who are also making a promising turnaround after being a few spots away from the relegation zone to a secured berth. They have failed to impress their fans, by losing form and stepping away from their winning tactics which helped them secure the fourth spot in the last season of the PPFL.

Star-studded KESC, on the other hand, are showing no signs of recovery from their slump in form in spite of the star power in their side and are trailing way down on the eighth spot.

The team with the most drawn matches (8) in the league, Habib Bank Limited (HBL) are at the ninth spot. They have lost ground since the last break which they went into with a sixth spot.

Not far from the relegation zone are PAF, who are lying on the tenth spot. They caused quite a sensation and looked promising enough to stage an upset under their new coach Qazi Muhammad Asif during the first phase of the league, but their charm faded away with time. They have only seven wins from their 25 games.

NBP, in spite of being one of the big clubs of the country, have failed to impress their critics as it took them five matches to register their first win. And they now sit at eleventh spot hoping they may not have to face the humiliation of getting relegated at the end of the season.

PMC Athletico, a club co-owned by Punjab Medical College and Zenith Sports, is at the twelfth spot.

The relegation zone is occupied by the two Balochistan clubs -- Chaman's Afghan FC and Nushki's Baloch FC.

PFF, citing security fears, decided to move the league from Balochistan only to cause a dispute between the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) and Balochistan Football Association. It was decided that Afghan FC will have to play their home matches at the KPT Benazir Sports Complex while Korangi Baloch Football Ground in Sharafi Goth will serve as home venue for the Baloch FC.

The BFA said that they will not play any of their home matches in Karachi and termed the decision as an act to destroy the growing sport of football in the province.

BFA sticking to their decision have not shown up for two of their matches, in which the walkovers were awarded to the opposing teams -- Army and Navy.

Meanwhile, a protest demonstration led by Haji Saeed was held in Chaman to condemn the decision of the PFF to move the home matches. There is also a possibility that the officials of the BFA boycott the Congress meeting of the PFF which would be held in Lahore on December 30.

When the third phase commences after Eid, which may be also a last ditch efforts for most of the teams and players to prove their worth and standing, it will most definitely be an encounter where everyone will come out with all guns blazing.

Interesting to watch could be the fight for the crown of the league as the PFF and BFA row has most certainly identified the teams to be relegated from the league.