2002 Pakistan Open


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Pakistan Open 2002 Draw Bronsteins Preview Walkers Preview Qualifier Local prequal Qual Round 1 Qual Round 2 Results Round one I Round one II Round of 16 Quarters Semis Finals Final - PNS Chris Walker Friday Report Saturday Rpt Features Amjad Peter Nicol History '80-'02 Winners Player Profiles Pakistan Squash Power-Nicol head to head Chris Walker endorses Green Magic			Squashtalk Pro Squash Headlines Event Engine Squash: Tourney of Champs US Open YMG Capital Classic World Men's Open Qatar Classic Cathay Pacific Superseries Qatar Masters '02 British Open Pakistan Open Macau Open Melbourne 01 Al Ahram Video recordings Player profiles Rankings Calendar
		Top Players Opt for Pakistan by Martin Bronstein © 2002 SquashTalk.
		March 13, 2002 by Martin Bronstein, may not be reproduced without express permission. [Pakistan Open Draw] NEVER MIND THE WAR, LET'S PLAY SQUASH. The top players have elected to ignore the scaremongers regarding the recent political confrontations and the threat of war between Pakistan and India. With just two exceptions they have all entered the postponed Pakistan Open which takes place in Lahore March 20 -27. The entry list for the Pakistan Open, which starts with qualifying on March 20 shows that only two players, Paul Price of Australia, ranked 16, and England's Simon Parke, ranked 25, have declined to enter this $105,000 tournament. Originally scheduled for last December, the Pakistan Open was postponed due to the massive military action in Afghanistan following the September 11 atrocities. With the cooling down of activity and assurances of complete safety from the Pakistani government, the tournament is going ahead with final rounds being played on a brand new ASB glass court that the Pakistan Squash Federation have recently purchased at a cost of over $100,000. Many of the players are intending to first travel to Dubai; and then fly in to the tournament venue the night before the event. Australian Joe Kneipp, Belgian Stefan Casteleyn and Tommy Berden of Holland have all made the main draw, having done well enough in the north American triple header - the YMG in Toronto, the US Open in Boston and the Tournament of Champions in New York - to avoid having to play in the qualification rounds. Joe Kneipp, up to 23 in the world, got a tough draw, having to play French champion Thierry Lincou up to his highest ever ranking at world number four. Casteleyn has drawn world number seven Ong Beng Hee while Tommy Berden has a chance facing an off-form Paul Johnson. AMJAD GETS A BREAK Strangely, Amjad Khan, whose present ranking is 50, is given a wild card entry into the main draw, (where he meets Welshman Alex Gough) while Pakistan's top ranked players, Mansoor Zaman, ranked 31, and Shahid Zaman (33) are among the 24 players in the qualifying rounds. Pakistan Open 2002 Main Draw Pairings [1] Peter Nicol (Eng) vs Graham Ryding (Can) [10] David Evans (Wal) vs Olli Tuominen (Fin) [5] Thierry Lincou (Fra) vs Joseph Kneipp (Aus) [15] Anthony Ricketts (Aus) vs Qualifier [4] John White (Sco) vs Qualifier [9] Chris Walker (Eng) vs Qualifier [8] Mark Chaloner (Eng) vs Qualifier [13] Martin Heath (Sco) vs Omar Borolossy (Egy) [12] Alex Gough (Wal) vs Amjad Khan (Pak) [6] Stewart Boswell (Aus) vs Qualifier [14] Paul Johnson (Eng) Tommy Berden (Ned) [3] Jonathon Power (Can) vs Karim Darwish (Egy) [11] Lee Beachill (Eng) vs Qualifier [7] Ong Beng Hee (Mas) vs Stefan Casteleyn (Bel) [16] Del Harris (Eng) vs Qualifier [2] David Palmer (Aus) vs Qualifier.
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