HAUBSTADT, Ind. – The Pride of Princeton ruled Saturday night’s Indiana Sprint Week finale, as Kyle Cummins raced to his second victory of the mini-series after a thrilling duel with Stephen Schnapf.

Cummins, who started fifth but quickly fought his way into contention, trailed Schnapf for 26 laps before making the winning pass by forcing his way to the inside in turns three and four and sliding in front.

Once he finally cleared Schnapf, Cummins never looked back, racing out to a 1.604-second margin over the final four revolutions for his fifth career AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car Series win.

“Two in one week feels pretty good,” Cummins exclaimed. “I don’t know if it’s really sunk in yet. I took my helmet off and drove around there one time and watched everyone yell and scream. I just tried to take it in a little bit more than just one and done. To keep winning USAC races, that’s what means something to me.

“When you win one or two, okay, but if you keep winning them, it proves you can run with them.”

Cummins entered the night unbeaten at Haubstadt, with three wins in three starts this season, but for much of the night it appeared Schnapf was going to be the one to end that streak.

After two failed tries at the initial start for back-to-back four-car incidents, Schnapf finally got the measure of polesitter Brody Roa on the third attempt at the green flag, racing out to a sizable early lead.

Cummins was lurking for most of the night, though. He found his way into the runner-up spot on lap 11 and slowly but surely began reeling Schnapf in as traffic got heavier and heavier inside of the final third of the race. Just when it appeared Schnapf might be able to get the upset, there Cummins was to strike.

When Schnapf raced underneath the lapped car of Isaac Chapple in turns three and four with seven laps to go, Cummins was a single car length behind.  Schnapf maintained the advantage for another full lap until, with just five laps remaining, Cummins gained ground off the bottom of turn two.

From there, though there was plenty of traffic ahead, Cummins navigated his way through the congestion with relative ease en route to the victory – leaving Schnapf to settle for an impressive, yet heartbreaking runner-up finish.

Justin Grant completed the podium, followed by Chase Stockon and Brady Bacon.

C.J. Leary finished 10th to secure the Indiana Sprint Week title for Reinbold-Underwood Motorsports.

To view complete results, advance to the next page.

KNOXVILLE, Iowa – Gio Scelzi was already the youngest-ever winner with the World of Outlaws and at Williams Grove Speedway, but Saturday night he added Knoxville Raceway to that list.

At just 17 years and eight months old, Scelzi became the track’s youngest winner with a $5,000 triumph with the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions during Weiler Night.

The win came aboard Bernie Stuebgen’s Indy Race Parts No. 71, and rang in six days earlier than the late Danny Young’s previous record victory in 1988.

In additional action, Cory Eliason topped a non-stop 360 feature event to record his first ever win at the Knoxville Raceway aboard the Rudeen Racing No. 26.

It was the second win in as many years for the Rudeen team on this night, after Joey Saldana captured the 360 win a year ago.

Before a lap could be completed in the 25-lap All Star main event, Shane Golobic came to a stop in turn two after contacting the wall. Brock Zearfoss also went to the work area.

On the second try, a number of cars stacked up in turn two, with Matt Juhl and Thomas Kennedy getting upside down. Both walked away.

The event went non-stop from there, with Kerry Madsen leading early over Scelzi and Brian Brown. Brown used the low side to motor by Scelzi, but the youngster battled back by, cruising on the cushion.

Madsen entered lapped traffic on the seventh circuit, and Scelzi began reeling him in. He made his winning pass on lap 10 and never looked back. Eliason was on the move as welll, gaining a top-five standing early and passing Terry McCarl for fourth on lap 14.

Up front, Scelzi extended his lead ahead of Madsen and Brown.

Scelzi lapped up to ninth place and finished a whopping 7.8 seconds ahead of Madsen at the finish. Brown chased the lead pair, ahead of Eliason and Aaron Reutzel.

Terry McCarl, Parker Price-Miller, James McFadden, Austin McCarl and Rico Abreu rounded out the top 10.

“That’s pretty cool,” said Scelzi of being the youngest to win at Knoxville. “I couldn’t have done it any later! This is cool. This place is unique. I couldn’t have picked a better time to do it than before Nationals. It’s a dream come true to win here.

“The lapped traffic went my way, and I kept pushing,” Scelzi added. “I looked at the scoreboard with three to go, and really hoped there wasn’t a slider coming. When you have guys like Kerry and Brian, and even Cory, you have to go as hard as you can for 25 laps.”

Madsen was good, but had nothing for Scelzi on this night.

“We got a good start,” said Madsen.  “We just weren’t quite good enough. Gio deserved to win.  Congrats to him and Bernie. It was a good finish, and being on the podium was a good night. The team has really been putting in the hours.

“We’ve got the Cappy (Aug. 4) yet, and we’ll keep working.”

An entertaining 18-lap 360 feature began with Travis Rilat leading Carson McCarl and Sammy Swindell early. Eliason was moving forward, however, and passed Sammy by lap three for third.

He took second from McCarl the next time around, and tried reeling in the leader.

Scelzi was showing signs of things to come even then, climbing from his 18th starting spot to eighth by lap five. Up front, Eliason was battling Rilat for the point, as the two went back and forth. Finally, Eliason wrestled the lead away on lap seven.

Swindell continued moving up as well, garnering third from McCarl on lap seven.

Eight-time track champion Clint Garner looked like he would be a contender when he passed McCarl for fourth on lap 10. He would slow and exit immediately after, however, ending his run. Meanwhile, Scelzi kept his charge going, as he also passed McCarl.

Swindell grabbed second from Rilat with five to go, while Scelzi followed him into the show position on lap 15.

Eliason’s first ever win at Knoxville came ahead of Sammy Swindell, Scelzi, Rilat and Jeff Swindell. McCarl, Davey Heskin, Ryan Giles, 19th-starting Aaron Reutzel and 21st starting Jon Agan completed the top 10.

“My car was a Cadillac tonight,” said Eliason in Victory Lane.  “My hat’s off to my guys.  It’s a been a long week.  I thought I was going to be the one falling out of the seat early.”

The finishes:

410 A-main (25 laps): 1. Gio Scelzi (2); 2. Kerry Madsen (1); 3. Brian Brown (4); 4. Cory Eliason (3); 5. Aaron Reutzel (10); 6. Terry McCarl (5); 7. Parker Price-Miller (8); 8. James McFadden (6); 9. Austin McCarl (16); 10. Rico Abreu (17); 11. Josh Schneiderman (7); 12. Brooke Tatnell (20); 13. Paul McMahan (12); 14. Dale Blaney (13); 15. Wayne Johnson (21); 16. Shane Golobic (22); 17. Craig Dollansky (9); 18. Gerard McIntyre Jr. (26); 19. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (15); 20. Chris Martin (18); 21. Josh Baughman (14); 22. Davey Heskin (11); 23. Jeff Swindell (23); 24. Brock Zearfoss (25); 25. Thomas Kennedy (19); 26. Matt Juhl (24).

360 A-main (18 laps): 1. Cory Eliason (3); 2. Sammy Swindell (4); 3. Gio Scelzi (18); 4. Travis Rilat (2); 5. Jeff Swindell (8); 6. Carson McCarl (1); 7. Davey Heskin (7); 8. Ryan Giles (6); 9. Aaron Reutzel (19); 10. Jon Agan (21); 11. Joe Beaver (22); 12. Kyle Bellm (11); 13. Parker Price-Miller (13); 14. Sawyer Phillips (10); 15. Calvin Landis (9); 16. McKenna Haase (23); 17. Matt Moro (16); 18. Ryan Roberts (12); 19. Josh Higday (20); 20. Scottie McDonald (17); 21. Clint Garner (5); 22. Wayne Johnson (15); 23. Matt Covington (14); 24. Jamie Ball (24).

FAIRBURY, Ill. — Brandon Sheppard snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to win Saturday night’s Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury Speedway.

Bobby Pierce took the white flag as the leader in the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series event, but Sheppard was not going to be denied.

Pierce had led every lap since he took the lead from Sheppard in traffic on lap 26. But after driving the entire race without power steering, Pierce’s arms were giving out with just four corners to go.

Sheppard got a great run out of turn two on lap 99, riding the big cushion that caked the outside wall. Once he got to the mid-point of the backstretch, Sheppard knew it was time for his one last-ditch effort. He drove his Rocket Chassis house car deep into turn three with plenty of speed to get back up the banking and slid up in front of Pierce.

With little time to react, Pierce mashed the throttle and leaned hard on the cushion in an effort to turn his steering-stiff machine back down underneath Sheppard to counter the slide-job. But the crossover attempt was unsuccessful, and Pierce soon found himself in the rear-end of Sheppard’s Rocket Chassis house car, bouncing off the turn four wall.

“Brandon did everything right,” Pierce said. “That’s when I had to make a ‘get up on the wheel’ move. But by then, my arms were Jell-O and I just couldn’t do it, so I tried to do it with the gas pedal to get the car sideways and go down the hill.”

Sheppard drove off of turn four and across the stripe to an incredible sea of applause and cheers from fans, mostly stunned at what they had just seen. Sheppard had done the unthinkable – steal the lead in the final corners to win his second Prairie Dirt Classic.

“After that caution with 11 laps to go, I just kept going harder and harder each lap,” Sheppard said. “And then I saw five-to-go and I just let it all hang out. It all worked out for us.

“I figured, nine times out of ten, the guy would have crossed me back over and beat me to the line,” he continued. “Luckily, the track was slick enough that I was able to death-slid across it, and we were able to stay in front of him.”

The restart with 11 laps remaining set 2018 PDC runner-up Mike Marlar and Sheppard on the rear bumper of Pierce, applying more pressure than they ever had on the leader. But Pierce opened up a gap that Sheppard was forced to close in the final circuits in order to have a shot at the leader. By the white flag, he had done exactly that, using a line he found earlier in the race.

“Bobby was cutting the corner off getting in, like I was doing earlier in the race,” Sheppard said. “Then, I started entering in right against it, and that was what let me get enough momentum to get next to him down the back straightaway.”

Upon Sheppard’s arrival in victory lane, Pierce walked over to the Rocket1 celebration before Sheppard emerged from his car to shake hands with the team and Brandon’s father, Steve. A true display of sportsmanship between the two Illinois-natives, despite the beating-and-banging in the final laps, goes to show just how much respect is shared for each other’s driving tactics.

“Yes, I had to lift. But Brandon threw a perfectly executed slider. The only thing is, if I had a car that was working properly, it would have been one hell of a drag race to the finish,” Pierce said.

Pierce said the problem with his power steering components actually began after his win in Friday night’s second Showdown qualifier, and despite tedious efforts by his crew to repair the system, those issues remained in the big show.

Pierce said he was able to muscle through for most of the race, but never expected to lead the field around for as long as he did.

“On lap zero, I was thinking, ‘OK, how many laps am I going to make it before I pull in?’” Pierce said. “Ever since I pulled out of the pit area, I didn’t have, or had very little, power steering. After we made about eight laps, I had almost none.”

“At times, I had two hands on top of the steering wheel just to turn it back left so I didn’t hit the wall coming out of the corner,” Pierce added.

All things considered, a solid podium finish for the three-time DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Model champion ties his best finish in the Prairie Dirt Classic, which he scored in the event’s very first year under World of Outlaws sanctioning – 2013. Pierce was understandably disappointed with a third-place, but held his head high to admire his great achievement against a record-breaking 72-car field.

Amidst all of the Sheppard-Pierce commotion, Mike Marlar slipped under the radar, and Pierce in the final corner, to claim the runner-up spot. After battling it out with Sheppard for over half of the race, Marlar said he anticipated Sheppard’s slide ob in the final corner and braced himself to take the extreme bottom lane in an effort to get by both drivers. He was only able to swipe away the spot from Pierce, but was happy with another runner-up finish in the PDC for the second year in-a-row on a track surface that he always enjoys competing on.

“The whole track was just super racy,” Marlar said. “We started off in the middle for a few laps, then it moved to the bottom and back to the cushion, then back to the bottom… It was just really racy, as it always is here. It was awesome, fun getting to race here.”

The finish:

Feature (100 Laps) 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard [2]; 2. 157-Mike Marlar [6]; 3. 32-Bobby Pierce [3]; 4. 7-Ricky Weiss [12]; 5. 11-Gordy Gundaker [13]; 6. 25-Shane Clanton [1]; 7. 99jr-Frank Heckenast [15]; 8. 22-Chris Ferguson [4]; 9. 3s-Brian Shirley [10]; 10. 18-Chase Junghans [18]; 11. 75-Billy Drake [7]; 12. 97-Cade Dillard [23]; 13. 29-Darrell Lanigan [20]; 14. 20-Jimmy Owens [19]; 15. 71-Hudson O’Neal [21]; 16. 40B-Kyle Bronson [14]; 17. 99B-Boom Briggs [9]; 18. 28-Dennis Erb [8]; 19. 12-Ashton Winger [17]; 20. 18b-Shannon Babb [11]; 21. 7r-Kent Robinson [16]; 22. 9-Devin Moran [5]; 23. 24-Ryan Unzicker [25]; 24. 77m-Jay Morris [22]; 25. B1-Brent Larson [24]; 26. 6-Blake Spencer [27]; 27. B12-Kevin Weaver [26] 

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – After enduring a four-year winless drought at Williams Grove Speedway, Donny Schatz was not going to be denied during Saturday night’s Champion Racing Oil Summer Nationals finale.

Schatz forged forward from third on the grid, charged past point leader and rival Brad Sweet on lap 10 and then held off a determined Sheldon Haudenschild late to capture his 20th career Williams Grove victory – banking a $20,000 payday in the process.

The win was Schatz’s seventh of the season and the 290th of his World of Outlaws sprint car career.

“To win here tonight is awesome. It’s been a long time since we’ve been standing out here (on the frontstretch at Williams Grove) getting the trophy and the flag,” noted Schatz. “This team has been digging. I haven’t necessarily made the best laps every night and every race, but they’ve been giving me great cars. All we can do is keep building and working. When you’re having fun, that’s all you can do.

“We got qualified well both nights, kept trying things and made it all work out. It feels good,” Schatz added. “I had to move around in traffic and keep shifting my line. There were laps where I could roll the bottom and laps where I had to hustle the top. Luckily tonight, everything we did worked out for us.”

Though Schatz was consistent all night – qualifying fourth-fastest and winning his heat race – it was Haudenschild who started from the pole after winning the DIRTvision Fast Pass Dash.

However, following a red flag on the initial start for the flipping CJB Motorsports entry of Shane Stewart, Haudenschild lost the lead on the ensuing restart as Sweet surged to the point from the outside pole.

From there, the race went green to checkered uninterrupted, with the leaders reaching traffic by the sixth revolution and Schatz tossing a slider at Sweet for the lead in turns one and two on the ninth round.

Sweet countered on the other end and officially edged out Schatz for the top spot on lap nine by .002 seconds at the stripe, but Schatz pulled clear down the backstretch on lap 10 and never looked back after that.

Once Sweet had been dispatched from the front of the field, the man on the move in the second half was Haudenschild, who moved past Sweet and took over the runner-up spot on lap 13 before setting his sights on Schatz.

With 13 to go, Schatz held a second and a quarter over Haudenschild, but as traffic got thicker and more treacherous, Haudenschild shaved the advantage down to mere car lengths inside of 10 to go.

However, Schatz methodically found his way back into cleaner track in the final laps, holding the NOS Energy Drink No. 17 at bay and bringing his Toco Warranty-backed No. 15 to the twin checkers 1.484 seconds clear of Haudenschild in the end.

For the second-place finisher, Saturday night’s race was a massive turnaround from the Morgan Cup doubleheader in May, when Haudenschild failed to qualify for the feature on both Friday and Saturday.

“This is a testament to how much we’ve worked on our program, our qualifying and getting better early,” noted Haudenschild. “We missed the Dash Friday night, but qualified better tonight and got our car a little better. Trying to figure out how to pass here is big. Donny just doesn’t make any mistakes.”

Sweet, still seeking his first Williams Grove win, completed the podium ahead of Daryn Pittman and David Gravel. It marked a World of Outlaws sweep of the top five positions against the PA Posse.

Friday night winner Tim Shaffer lost an engine in his No. 49x at the end of his heat race and had to race his way in through the Last Chance Showdown. He ended up 25th out of 26 cars in the 30-lap feature.

To view complete race results, advance to the next page.

Shreyas Iyer has an opportunity to end India's search for a reliable ODI No. 4 as they head to the Caribbean, where he has had recent success with the India A side. But he wants to have some sort of continuity in the side, because "getting in and out of the team doesn't create a good pattern."

"If you are really a good talent, then you need a certain amount of chances to prove yourself and get acclimatised to the conditions," PTI quoted Iyer as saying. "If you keep coming in and going out [of the team], it doesn't really set a good pattern for one's self and you start disbelieving yourself. If you are a great talent, then you need some time."

Iyer, who at 24 is among India's most consistent domestic performers, made 187 runs at 62.33, including two half-centuries in four innings, for India A during their 4-1 unofficial ODI series win in the Caribbean earlier this month. In April and May, Iyer played a key role in steering Delhi Capitals to their first IPL play-off spot since 2012, impressing not just with his run-making but also his leadership under head coach Ricky Ponting.

In December 2018, Iyer admitted to being "emotionless" after being overlooked repeatedly despite consistent scores. He was part of India's T20I squad against Australia in March, but couldn't break into the XI. Iyer admits it's only natural to lose patience, but wants to try and put past frustrations behind him.

"Yes, you tend to lose patience but selection is not in your hands," he said. "All you can do is perform, perform and perform and that is what I enjoy doing. You have to keep performing and keep showing people that you are capable of playing at the higher league. Once you get that sniff, you never look back."

Iyer also said "it was difficult to not get selected" for the World Cup, but wants to build towards the next edition through his consistency.

"It was my dream to play the World Cup for my country. I know there are a few opportunities that I got but unfortunately the team combination was such that it didn't demand me to be there.

"There was a lot of buzz about me before the World Cup selection because I was consistent and aware about the hard work and smart work that I had put in. It will definitely reap benefits and help me in future when I play for India. I just kept myself positive and always in high spirits. It didn't disturb me from inside at all. It was a dream to play the World Cup and I will play for sure in the future."

Iyer's strength is his back-foot game, and he is quite a good puller of the short ball, an area he admits to have worked on with Ponting. For now, as he gears up for a second wind of sorts, he believes the familiarity of having played in the West Indies will help him.

"The A tour has always given me an opportunity to prove myself in the higher league as this is the stepping stone," he said. "I was in West Indies for the List A series and I had an idea of how the pitches play and also it's so hot out there that you need to keep yourself hydrated. These are little things that you learn as you start playing.

"You have to always work on your batting as you are never perfect. I am working on my batting every day and trying to perfect a few shots that will help me score all around the world. Pull and sweep are two shots that can help me score runs outside India. These are two shots that can immediately put pressure back on bowlers."

GWANGJU, South Korea -- Simone Manuel completed a sweep of the 50 and 100-meter freestyles at the world swimming championships on Sunday night, the first American woman to achieve the feat.

Manuel raced one length of the pool in 24.05 seconds to earn her third gold and fifth medal overall on the last night of the eight-day competition.

She held off Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden, who took silver in 24.07, and Australian Cate Campbell, who earned bronze in 24.11.

In the 100 free, Manuel topped Campbell and Sjostrom finished third.

Manuel's other medals came in three relays: gold in the mixed 4x100 free and silvers in the 4x100 free and 4x200 free.

Lilly King won the 50 breaststroke, giving the American two victories over Russian rival Yuliya Efimova on Sunday.

They were denied a third meeting when King was disqualified in the heats of the 200 breast for not putting both her hands on the wall at the same time in a turn.

King touched in 29.84, the only swimmer under 30 seconds in the final.

Benedetta Pilato, a 14-year-old Italian, took silver in 30 seconds flat.

Efimova, who won the 200 and finished second to King in the 100, earned bronze in 30.15.

Florian Wellbrock of Germany made history with his victory in the 1,500 freestyle.

With his earlier win in the 10-kilometer open water race, Wellbrock became the first swimmer to win golds in two sports at a single world championships.

He pulled away going into the final turn to win in 14 minutes, 36.54 seconds.

Mykhailo Romanchuck of Ukraine took silver. Gregorio Paltrinieri of Italy, a two-time champion, earned bronze.

British number two Cameron Norrie has narrowly missed out on a place in the final of the Atlanta Open for the second year in a row.

The world number 54 lost 1-6 6-3 3-6 to American Taylor Fritz in the last four, the same stage he reached last year.

Fritz broke twice to take the first set in 25 minutes, but Norrie, 23, managed to win the second to level the match.

The Eastbourne champion broke again in the sixth game of the third and secured victory with his second match point.

Fritz, the world number 32, will play Australian Alex de Minaur in Sunday's final.

"To get to two finals in a month really shows that my level has gone up and that the first time wasn't a fluke," said Fritz, "I know I'm improving, so it feels really good."

Norrie lost to American Ryan Harrison in the semi-finals at Atlanta in 2018.

Diego dazzles in home triumph
By HOWARD HARDING – Squash Mad International Correspondent

USA’s Amanda Sobhy and Peruvian Diego Elias, both ranked eight in the world, celebrated historic squash success in the XVIII Pan American Games in the Peru capital Lima.

Harvard graduate Sobhy became the first woman to win individual gold in successive Pan Am Games when she beat her US team-mate Olivia Blatchford Clyne in a repeat of the 2015 final in Toronto.

Sobhy suffered a career-threatening Achilles injury two years ago which resulted in a 10-month layoff.

But the 26-year-old from New York, the highest-ranked US-born player of all-time, has bounced back to her best – dismissing world No.19 Blatchford Clyne 7-11, 11-5, 11-7, 11-8 in 33 minutes in the gold medal playoff at the Villa Deportiva Nacional Videna in Lima.

“Stoked to defend my 2015 PanAm Games gold medal today in the Individual Event,” Sobhy later told her Twitter followers.

Winning their country’s first medals in the Games, Canadians Hollie Naughton and Samantha Cornett claimed the bronze medals.

It was a historic first squash gold medal in the Games for hosts Peru when top seed Diego Elias defeated Colombia’s defending champion Miguel Rodriguez 11-6, 7-11, 12-10, 11-8 in 65 minutes in the men’s final.

The triumph, before a jubilant and packed partisan crowd at the Videna venue (pictured in the Gallery), was revenge for Elias’s defeat in the 2015 final, when former British Open champion Rodriguez won his second successive singles gold medal.

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The victory also marked the 22-year-old Peruvian’s first ever win over his 33-year-old regional rival from Bogota – the highest-ranked South American of all-time – in seven meetings since 2014.

Bronze medals went to Mexican Cesar Salazar and Argentina’s 5/8 seed Robertino Pezzota, a 36-year-old from Rosario who was the only player to be making his fifth successive Games appearance since making his debut in 2003 in the Dominican Republic. 

XVIII Pan American Games Squash Championships, Lima, Peru.

Men’s Individual Quarter-Finals:
[1] Diego Elias (PER) bt [5/8] Todd Harrity (USA) 12-10, 11-5, 11-5 (30m)
[3/4] Cesar Salazar (MEX) bt Max Camiruaga (CHI) 11-2, 11-5, 11-4 (19m)
[5/8] Robertino Pezzota (ARG) bt [3/4] Arturo Salazar (MEX) 14-12, 11-5, 5-11, 6-11, 13-11 (65m)
[2] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) bt [5/8] Chris Hanson (USA) 11-5, 11-7, 13-11 (41m)
Semi-finals:
[1] Diego Elias (PER) bt [3/4] Cesar Salazar (MEX) 11-1, 11-9, 11-8 (33m)
[2] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) bt [5/8] Robertino Pezzota (ARG) 9-11, 16-14, 11-6, 11-7 (70m)
Final:
[1] Diego Elias (PER) bt [2] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) 11-6, 7-11, 12-10, 11-8 (65m)

Women’s Individual Quarter-Finals:
[1] Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt [5/8] Giselle Delgado (CHI) 11-4, 11-4, 11-3 (29m)
[3/4] Hollie Naughton (CAN) bt [5/8] Antonella Falcione (ARG) 11-5, 11-2, 11-6 (24m)
[3/4] Samantha Cornett (CAN) bt Anita Pinto (CHI) 11-6, 11-5, 11-6 (27m)
[2] Olivia Blatchford Clyne (USA) bt [5/8] Diana Garcia (MEX) 11-8, 11-4, 11-4 (21m)
Semi-finals:
[1] Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt [3/4] Hollie Naughton (CAN) 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 (27m)
[2] Olivia Blatchford Clyne (USA) bt [3/4] Samantha Cornett (CAN) 11-7, 11-5, 11-6 (25m)
Final:
[1] Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt [2] Olivia Blatchford Clyne (USA) 7-11, 11-5, 11-7, 11-8 (33m)

Pictures courtesy of WSF 

‘We can’t afford to send a team to America just for a joyride’
By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor

Squash in Pakistan slumped to a new low this week as the nation that once ruled the men’s game blamed their players as they defended their decision not to send a squad to compete in the Men’s World Team Championship in America in December.

The nation that dominated squash for almost four decades, starting with the legendary exploits of Hashim Khan in the early 1950s, has come under fire for the decision not to take part in the tournament, which is being hosted by the Squash On Fire Club in Washington DC from December 14-22.

Pakistan, with Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan dominating through much of the 1980s and 90s, won the men’s World Team event six times, the last triumph coming in 1993 in Paderborn, Germany.

A report in The Nation claimed that the deadline for paying a $5,000 entry fee for this year’s tournament elapsed on July 16.

The article named the officials responsible for the decision not to take part: Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) executive committee, comprising PSF President Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan, SVP Air Marshal Shahid Akhtar Alvi, Director PNSA Air Commodore (Ret) Aftab Sadiq Qureshi, Secretary Group Captain Tahir Sultan and squash legends Qamar Zaman and Jahangir Khan.

Quoting an anonymous Federation source, the report blamed senior professional players for refusing to attend training sessions and claimed that it would be a waste of money just to send players to America for “a joyride”.

The source claimed: “Senior players including Farhan Zaman, Tayyab Aslam, Asim Khan, Israr Ahmed, Ammad Fareed and Farhan Mehboob, never wanted to train as per modern day requirements and whenever they were called for the training camp at Mushaf Squash Complex, Islamabad, they simply refused, so the PSF and PAF had to take such a harsh decision.

“Sending a team for a joyride and wasting a huge amount of the national kitty is also not a sensible move. I personally feel that we must invest heavily on juniors, as they are giving satisfactory results.”

Pakistan did, indeed, win the Men’s World Junior Team Championship in 2016, but several nations complained that the entire squad was over the age limit, as reported exclusively by Squash Mad at the time.

Clearly, Pakistan squash is in a state of total chaos. Blaming the players, rather than an incompetent federation, is a typical response. After one poor showing in the World Teams, Pakistan chose to ban the whole squad, but this ridiculous decision was overturned by the World Squash Federation.

Sadly, we keep hearing reports of squash in Pakistan being damaged by personal family feuds and favouritism in terms of funding and selection, and the federation wheeling out former champions every few months to criticise current players.

This latest scandal comes at a time when new President Imran Khan, the former Pakistan cricket captain, has encouraged Jahangir, the 10-times British Open champion, to tour the world supporting the Shahid Afridi Foundation (led by another former Test cricket captain) aimed at providing sporting opportunities for deprived children. It also campaigns for clean drinking water and better education in remote areas.

A government report published in 2016 highlighted the fact that 40 per cent of the Pakistan population of more than 200 million people lived in poverty, rising to more than 70 per cent in some areas of the country.

Despite the international success enjoyed by their squash players in previous decades, courts and facilities are scarce. Clearly, squash is very low on the list of priorities set against such a stark background, and rightly so.

However, a federation totally controlled by the Pakistan Air Force needs to find funding from somewhere if they are serious about rescuing the sport.

A national development project is needed, but seemingly impossible to implement. Creating basic facilities and encouraging thousands of boys and girls to take up the sport is the first priority. Returning to a position of global dominance may take a little longer.

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