Pakistan won the silver medal in the men’s squash team event at the Asian Games after finishing runners-up to Malaysia in the final at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena.
Malaysia won the tie 2-0, ending Pakistan’s campaign with a second consecutive silver medal in the event. Pakistan had also finished runners-up to India at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou.
The result also means Pakistan’s wait for another men’s team squash gold medal continues. Their last title came in 2010, when they defeated Malaysia 2-0 in Guangzhou.
Nasir Iqbal opened the final against Ameeshenraj Chandaran and made a strong start, racing into a 6-1 lead in the first game.
Chandaran fought back to reduce the gap, but Nasir held on to take the opener 11-8 in nine minutes.
The Malaysian responded strongly in the second game, winning six consecutive points after leading 4-2 before closing it out 11-3.
The third remained close until 6-6, but Chandaran then won four straight points and went on to take the game 11-6.
He completed the comeback in the fourth, pulling away from 5-3 and winning 11-4 to secure a 3-1 victory and give Malaysia a 1-0 lead in the tie.
Pakistan then turned to Noor Zaman, who needed to beat Eain Yow Ng to keep the final alive.
Ng had already defeated Noor in the individual singles semifinal earlier in the Games before going on to win the gold medal.
The world No. 18 took the opening game 11-8 after building a 9-4 lead, although Noor responded with three straight points late in the game.
Noor bounced back in the second, breaking away from 3-3 with four consecutive points before winning 11-6.
The third game was the most competitive of the tie, lasting 15 minutes and featuring several long rallies.
Neither player was able to create a clear advantage for much of the game before Noor finished strongly to win 11-7 and move 2-1 ahead.
Ng responded in dominant fashion in the fourth, racing to a 5-0 lead before taking the game 11-4 in just five minutes to force a decider.
The fifth game slipped away from Noor early as Ng took control and eventually won 11-4 in nine minutes, securing the match and the gold medal for Malaysia.
With Malaysia already leading 2-0, Pakistan’s third player, Mohammed Ashab Irfan, was not required to take the court.
Ashab, like Noor, had also won a bronze medal in the individual singles event.
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