Seeds Slump In KL Championships

Half of the men's seeds failed to make the quarter-finals of the NSC Series No4 Squash Championships after being beaten by lower-ranked players in today's first round of the $10,000 PSA Tour event at the Bukit Jalil National Squash Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Shahid Zaman was the highest seed to fall. The third seed from Pakistan was beaten 11-5, 11-4, 11-4 in just 16 minutes by unseeded South African Clinton Leeuw.

But there was unexpected Pakistani success at the top of the draw where 17-year-old qualifier Waqar Mehboob recovered from a game behind to upset fifth-seeded Frenchman Mathieu Castagnet 8-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-9. The Peshawar teenager will now face favourite Renan Lavigne, the world No32 from France who despatched local player Elvinn Keo, a qualifier, 11-8, 11-9, 11-4.

Second seed Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan leads local interest in the men's event. But the 22-year-old from KL needed 64 minutes to overcome 19-year-old compatriot Kamran Khan, ranked more than 70 places lower in the world, 11-13, 7-11, 13-11, 11-3, 11-3.

Former world champion Vanessa Atkinson, from the Netherlands, is favourite to win the women's $16,000 WISPA World Tour event title. The UK-based 33-year-old defeated Pontefract club-mate Lauren Siddall, a qualifier, 11-3, 11-8, 8-11, 11-6 and will now take on Australian Donna Urquhart for a place in the last four.

In contrast to the men's event, all eight seeds sauntered through to the quarter-finals - with local player Delia Arnold taking the longest route. The KL-born 23-year-old took 67 minutes to get past Australian Lisa Camilleri 15-13, 11-7, 16-18, 11-6.

The fifth seed will now face England's Tania Bailey for a place in the semi-finals.

Men's 1st round:
[1] Renan Lavigne (FRA) bt [Q] Elvinn Keo (MAS) 11-8, 11-9, 11-4 (27m)
[Q] Waqar Mehboob (PAK) bt [5] Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) 8-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-9 (49m)
Clinton Leeuw (RSA) bt [3] Shahid Zaman (PAK) 11-5, 11-4, 11-4 (16m)
[7] Shamsul Islam Khan (PAK) bt Nafzahizam Adnan (MAS) 11-9, 11-8, 3-11, 11-9 (25m)
[Q] Ivan Yuen (MAS) bt [8] Matthew Karwalski (AUS) 6-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-6 (39m)
[4] Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) bt [Q] Aqib Hanif (PAK) 15-13, 11-6, 11-8 (39m)
Zac Alexander (AUS) bt [6] Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS) 13-11, 15-13, 9-11, 11-6 (58m)
[2] Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) bt Kamran Khan (MAS) 11-13, 7-11, 13-11, 11-3, 11-3 (64m)

Women's 1st round:
[1] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) bt [Q] Lauren Siddall (ENG) 11-3, 11-8, 8-11, 11-6 (45m)
[7] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt Alana Miller (CAN) 6-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-5 (56m)
[3] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt Low Wee Wern (MAS) 11-5, 11-1, 11-9 (25m)
[5] Delia Arnold (MAS) bt Lisa Camilleri (AUS) 15-13, 11-7, 16-18, 11-6 (67m)
[6] Sarah Kippax (ENG) bt Siti Munirah Jusoh (MAS) 10-12, 11-2, 11-4, 11-6 (39m)
[4] Dominique Lloyd-Walter (ENG) bt [Q] Lim Yoke Wah (MAS) 11-5, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7 (47m)
[8] Aisling Blake (IRL) bt [Q] Joey Chan (HKG) 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 (26m)
[2] Shelley Kitchen (NZL) bt [Q] Joelle King (NZL) 11-4, 11-6, 11-7 (28m)