Aqeel, Jaleel in memorial tennis final

ISLAMABAD -Brothers Jaleel Khan and Aqeel Khan reached the final of the First Ch Rehmat Ali Memorial PTF National Ranking Tennis Championship on Friday. In the first semi-final 7th seed Jaleel beat upcoming 6th seed Ahmed Ch in a thrilling and entertaining 3 hrs 15 minutes match. Jaleel won the first set 7-6(5) on tiebreak. Jaleel build up healthy 4-1 lead in the second set and was 40-15 up but Ahmed made a great fight as he won next 5 games in a row to take the second set 6-4 by hitting number of winners down the line and cross court. The final set was marked with aces and combination of forehand and backhand drives from both the players. Jaleel again build up the 4-1 lead but Ahmed once again levelled the score at 4-4. But this time Jaleel kept his nerves and won the set 6-4 in the longest match of the event. Tournament referee Arif Qureshi fine Rs1500 to Ahmed on throwing the racket after losing the match. In the second semifinal top seed Aqeel showed his complete dominance as he eliminated 3rd seed M Abid of Lahore in straight sets 6-1 and 6-3. Aqeel Khan and Jaleel Khan will face Yasir Khan and Shahzad Khan in the men's doubles final today. Aqeel/Jaleel eliminated Ahmed Ch/Sanaullah in straight sets 6-3 and 6-3 while Yasir Khan/Shahzad Khan beat Abid/Usman Rafiq of Lahore in another easy match 6-2 and 6-0. Syed Nofil Kaleem and M Mudassar advanced into the final of the boy's U-18 singles by winning their respective semifinals.–Staff Reporter

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