Azam Khan (squash player)

Azam Khan (Pashto: اعظم خان‎; 20 April 1926[1] – 28 March 2020[2]) was a Pakistani squash player who won the British Open four times between 1959 and 1962.

Azam Khan
Born(1926-04-20)20 April 1926
Nawakille, Peshawar
Died29 March 2020(2020-03-29) (aged 93)
London, England
Retired1962

Family

His brother Hashim Khan and granddaughter Carla Khan were also squash players.

Azam was the second cousin of the two other leading Pakistani players of his time Roshan Khan and Nasrullah Khan, whose sons Rehmat Khan, Torsam Khan and Jahangir Khan are also squash players. He was the uncle of Sharif Khan and Aziz.

Reception

Jonah Barrington, the six times British Open Champion, writes in his book, Murder in Squash Court that in 1967, a fortnight before the start of British Open, his coach Nasrullah Khan took him to his club and requested him for a match/practice session. Wherein, he scored only one point in three games. Totally shaken he requested him for another session but the next day too he could not improve on it and once again scored only one point against Azam. Only three weeks later, he writes that he won the first of his Six British Open titles. And mind you Azam was then 48 years old and had left professional squash in 1962.[3]

In his article for international Squash Player Magazine Ejaz Choudhry states that "he was a great player in his own right, but for two reasons, respect for his elder brother and the loss of his son coupled with the fear of injury Azam might have been the greatest squash player of all times. Perhaps he was,[4] In a recent book "Trading Secrets" he does admit that the first time he beat his brother was with his permission, in line with the respect of the family elders, ingrained in Pushtoon culture.[5]

Death

Khan died at the age of 93 whilst infected by COVID-19 in London, during the COVID-19 pandemic.[6][7]

British Open final appearances
Wins (4)
Year Opponent in final Score in final
1959Mo Khan9-5, 9-0, 9-1
1960Roshan Khan9-1, 9-0, 9-0
1961Mo Khan6-9, 9-1, 9-4, 0-9, 9-2
1962Mo Khan9-6, 7-9, 10-8, 2-9, 9-4
Runners-up (3)
Year Opponent in final Score in final
1954Hashim Khan6-9, 9-6, 9-6, 7-9, 9-5
1955Hashim Khan9-7, 7-9, 9-7, 5-9, 9-7
1958Hashim Khan9-7, 6-9, 9-6, 9-7

References
  1. Azam Khan, champion squash player and member of the sport’s greatest dynasty – obituary
  2. "Pakistan legend Azam Khan 1925-2020: An inspiration for a dynasty and generations to come after COVID-19 death". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2020-04-01.
  3. Gandapur (2018), p. 163.
  4. Gandapur (2018), pp. 166–67.
  5. Trading Secret.
  6. Hussain, Khalid. "Squash great Azam Khan dies of coronavirus aged 95". Geo News. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  7. Hussain, Khalid (28 March 2020). "Squash great Azam Khan dies of coronavirus aged 95". Geo TV. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  • Gandapur, Aminullah Khan (2018). Unsung Pushtoons Book-1. Peshawar: Nabeel Traders.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.