Lahore: Abu Bakar Talha and Bismil Zia won the U-18 boys and girls titles at the 2024 Aitchison College Junior Tennis Championships held at Aitchison College, Mall Road here.
In the U18 boys final, Abubakar Talha, a Federal Government Educational Institutes (FGEI) student and SA Gardens sponsored player, clinched the double crowns in the prestigious event as he first won the U18 singles title and then doubled it. By winning the under-18 doubles title.
In the U-18 boys’ singles final, Abu Bakr defeated Asad Zaman 6-2, 6-3 to secure the championship title. Abu Bakr later teamed up with Haider Ali Ridwan in the U-18 boys’ doubles final, where they dominated Kashan Tariq and Yafat Nadeem with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win.
In the girls category, Bismil Zia, sponsored by Ali Tatraz Mills and trained and mentored by famous coach Rasheed Malik, performed brilliantly in the U-18 girls final, defeating Rumaisa Malik 6-2, 6-3. She thanked Ali Embroidery Mills CEO Tariq Zaman for his generous support and also expressed her gratitude to her coach and mentor Rashid Malik for his able guidance and training that helped her excel in the national tennis circuit.
Bismil Zia’s bid for a double win in the U14 girls’ final was thwarted, with Hajra Rana clinching the title with a 4-2, 4-2 win. Hajra then dominated Khadija Khalil 4-1, 4-0 in the U-12 girls final to double her title. Other notable results included Hassan Usmani’s victory over Omar Jawad, a promising student at the Beaconhouse Defense School campus.
In the U-14 boys final, the team won 6-0 and 6-2. In the U-12 boys final, Rachid Ali Bashani defeated Mohamed Moaz in two competing sets, to win the title with a score of 5-4, 5-4. The doubles finals witnessed the victory of Muhammad Moaz and Muhammad Ayan in the category of boys and girls under 12 years, over the victory of Rashid Ali Bashani and Ibrahim Hussein Gil 4-0 and 5-4. In the final of the Punjab U-16 category (Punjab classification), Abdul Basit defeated Amir Mazari 6-2. In the final of the U-10 boys and girls category (Punjab classification), Muhammad Ayan defeated M Ibrahim Hussain Gill 7-5.
Omar Zaman of Aitchison College Lahore was the chief guest of the event, who congratulated the young athletes on their performance and encouraged them to continue pursuing their passion for tennis. Senior Executive Vice President of PLTA, Rashid Malik, thanked Principal Aitchison College SM Turab Hussain and the management for sponsoring the event and expressed hope that they would continue to support sports especially tennis in Pakistan.