ISLAMABAD: Hamza Khan, the Pakistani squash prodigy, Tuesday was warmly received at the Islamabad Airport after a historic win in the World Junior Squash Championship held in Melbourne, Australia last month.
Air Vice Marshal Kazim Hammad, Senior Vice President of the Pakistan Squash Federation, welcomed the young squash hero upon his homecoming after achieving the remarkable feat.
In the final match of the grand tournament, the teenage athlete beat Egypt’s Mohamed Zakaria with a scoreline of 10-12, 14-12, 11-3, and 11-6.
Despite losing the first game, Hamza made a remarkable comeback, winning three consecutive games. His achievement is significant as he became the first Pakistani player to claim the title since Jansher Khan, who achieved the feat 37 years ago.
Meanwhile, World Squash Federation (WSF) confirmed on July 28 that they received concern over Hamza’s age from Egyptian Squash Federation (ESF).
In a released statement, WSF said that ESF submitted a request to verify the age of 17-year-old Hamza.
“Prior to all WSF-sanctioned junior events, players must submit their passport and Squash Personal Identification Number (SPIN) to prove identity, nationality and age,
“As the recognised International Federation of the sport, the WSF has a responsibility to fully investigate the request from the Egyptian Squash Federation. There will be no further comment until the investigation is complete,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, an official of the Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) has said that the PSF is a professional organisation and it conducts all required tests before sending a player to any age-group event.
“Like any other event, Hamza Khan’s age was medically tested before he was nominated for World Junior Squash Championship,” said Zafaryab Iqbal, secretary of PSF.
“We have all documentary evidences of his age which prove him eligible to play in world junior championship,” he added.
Zafaryab further said that WSF has not formally contacted PSF on the matter and whenever a formal contact will be made, they will reply to it accordingly.
Hamza’s father Niaz Khan confirmed to Geo News that Hamza’s date of birth is November 2, 2005, and according to that, he is not even 18 years old at this stage.
