After a glittering opening ceremony on Saturday, the 19th Asian Games began in full swing today. Athletes from all over Asia were in high spirits ahead of the opening day. China opened its account by winning the first gold medal of the Asian Games in the rowing event.
The majority of Pakistan athletes had a great day, while a few had a poor outing and were knocked early from their respective competitions. In this blog, we review the performances of Pakistan athletes on Day 1 of the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Shooting
Pakistan athletes had a mixed day in the shooting competition. Mehak Fatima featured in the 10m Air Rifle Women’s category. She finished in 40th spot with a score of 619.9. This was her career-best score in the Asian games, but that was still not enough to move to the next round.
Her scores were as follows:
| Series | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | Total |
| Scores | 102.6 | 101.2 | 102.5 | 106.6 | 104.1 | 619.6 |
On the other hand, Ghulam Mustafa Bashir finished in 8th spot in the 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men’s competition. The 36-year-old finished stage 1 with a score of 292, four points behind the leader Yuehong Li from China. He would be hoping to carry the momentum into stage 2, which takes place tomorrow.
Rowing
Asad Iqbal and Muzamil Shahzad featured in the Lightweight Men’s Double Sculls event for Pakistan. They finished with a time of 6:43.84, which helped them to secure 9th position among 12 nations. China took the gold medal with a time of 6:23.16, while India and Uzbekistan won the silver and bronze medals.
Taekwondo
Aqdus Ullah Qadeer was in action for Pakistan in the Men’s Individual Poomsae Round of 16 contest. Playing in his first-ever Asian games, the 21-year-old was knocked out by Nepal’s Prem Bahadur Limbu.
Meanwhile, Naila had some joy as she defeated a Saudi Arabian athlete in the Women’s Individual Poomsae Round of 16 contest to advance into the Quarterfinals. Unfortunately, her joy did not last for long, as she was defeated by Japan’s Yuiko Niwa in the quarterfinals. Nevertheless, it was a commendable effort by the 18-year-old as she was also participating in her first-ever Asian games.
Cricket
It was a disappointing day for Pakistan cricket fans, as the Women’s team failed to reach the final of the competition as they were defeated by Sri Lanka in the semifinal. It was their first game of the competition after their quarter-final match against Indonesia had been washed out.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka had some game time under their belt ahead of the semifinal contest.
Pakistan Women could only manage 75 runs in their quota of 20 overs, courtesy of some brilliant bowling by Sri Lankan bowlers. Only 3 Pakistani batters could enter the double figures. In reply, the Sri Lankan women managed to chase down the target with ease inside 17 overs.
See Also: Pakistan Cricket Board Announces First-Ever Domestic Contracts for Women Cricketers
Swimming
The Pakistan athletes had a poor outing in the swimming competition. Muhammad Ahmed Durrani and Muhammad Amaan Siddiqui participated in the Men’s 200m Individual Medley and finished with a time of 2:15.10 and 2:18.65, respectively. Both athletes failed to qualify for the finals.
After disappointment in their opening competition, both athletes tried to make a menace in the Men’s 100m Freestyle competition. Durrani and Siddiqui finished with a time of 53.96 and 55.03, respectively. Despite their best efforts they once again fell short of their target and failed to advance to the finals.
Tennis
Pakistan athletes had a great day in the tennis competition. Although, Aqeel Khan suffered defeat in Men’s Singles Round 2 against Uzbekistan’s Khumoyun Sultanov. But the veteran managed to turn his fortunes around later in the day when he teamed up with Sarah Ibrahim Khan to defeat the Mongolian pair in the Mixed Doubles Round 1 Match 2.
Sarah then went on to defeat Qatar’s Hind Almudahka in Women’s Singles Round 1 by a score of 6-2,6-7,6-3. There was some more joy for Pakistan’s women’s tennis stars as Ushna Suhail also won her match against Tajikistan’s Sumaya Tukhtaeva to advance to the next round.
Hockey
Pakistan’s hockey team thrashed Singapore by 11 goals in their opening game of Pool A. By the end of the first quarter the men in green only had a one-goal lead but they up the ante in the remaining quarters.
Liaqat, Ammad, and Ahmad scored a brace each, while Rehman, Afraz, Hayat, and Abdul Waheed were also on the scoresheet.
Volleyball
The men in green failed to replicate their heroics from the match against South Korea, as they were defeated 3-1 by Qatar. It was a very closely contested match, but unfortunately, the Qatar side proved to be too strong for the Pakistan team.
Which Pakistan athletes will be in action on Day 2 of the Asian Games?
| Sr No. | Sport | Category |
| 1. | Cricket | Women’s Bronze Medal Match |
| 2. | Rowing | Men’s Single Sculls Final B |
| 3. | Rowing | Men’s Quadruple Sculls Final B |
| 4. | Shooting | 10m Air Rifle Men’s |
| 5. | Shooting | 10m Air Rifle Team Men Final |
| 6. | Shooting | 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men’s |
| 7. | Taekwondo | Men’s 58Kg Round of 16 |
| 8. | Tennis | Women’s Singles Round 2 Match 5 |
| 9. | Tennis | Women’s Singles Round 2 Match 16 |
| 10. | Tennis | Men’s Doubles Round 1 Match 3 |
| 11. | Tennis | Women’s Doubles Round 1 Match 3 |
| 12. | Wushu | Women’s 60Kg Quarterfinal |
| 13. | Wushu | Men’s 60Kg 1/8 Final |
| 14. | Wushu | Men’s 65Kg 1/8 Final |
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