Tempers flared and expletives were hurled across the squash court faster than the ball as Egyptian squash player Fares Dessouky got into a heated argument with the referee and abandoned the match in the fifth game, which automatically allowed Pakistan’s Noor Zaman to advance to the quarterfinal of the Karachi Open . Home favourite Noor was Pakistan’s last hope to make it to the quarterfinals after Ashab Irfan and Nasir Iqbal were eliminated from the tournament earlier in the day. Noor was two sets down as Dessouky took the first two games 11-8, 11-9. View this post on Instagram Tensions had been building throughout the match, with Dessouky in the second game questioning how the score had reached 6-4 when it should have been 5-4. Spectators and international athletes alike, as well as squash icon Jahangir Khan sitting front row to the action, murmured that the score should be 5-4. Dessouky took the second game as Noor’s coach gave him a pep talk that ostensibly helped him win the third game 11-5. Dessouky, currently world number 15 with a career-high of seven, went neck-and-neck with Noor for the fourth game, which Noor ultimately took 11-9. The Egyptian waited for Noor to exit the court before staring down the referee and asking him where he’s from, “because this is unbelievable”. Spectators had climbed onto chairs and clung to every available surface to see the match, whose fifth set would decide whether Pakistan had another shot at a championship win or if the dominant Egyptians would prevail. Noor was on his way to a potential match victory after he took the lead and ran with it. The king of comebacks had clawed his way back to the U23 world title in similar fashion last year after being two games down from his opponent. Having reached his career-best world ranking last year, and defeating France’s Melvil Scianimanico in the fifth set on Tuesday, Noor was in the zone to win today’s match. At 6-3, Dessouky slammed his racket to the ground in frustration against the referee’s stroke decision. Referee Sajjad Khan, a member of the Asian Squash Referees, gave him a conduct warning for his behaviour. No sooner had the fifth game continued that Dessouky blew a fuse and opened the door mid-game, which is not allowed and can result in a penalty depending on the referee’s decision. The referee calmly asked him to shut the door and continue with the game but Dessouky began unleashing his wrath on the referee perched high on his seat. “Close the door. Otherwise I’ll use the code of conduct. Just play on,” referee Khan said as Dessouky yelled “this is unbelievable” and a silent Noor watched on from the court. Dessouky hurled expletives at the referee and said he does not care if he receives a conduct match, which means he willingly abandoned the match, thus, allowing Noor an automatic spot in the quarterfinal. The two players shook hands and Noor clapped Dessouky on the back before bowing down in prayer. Dessouky warned Khan he would file a complaint against him with the PSA (Professional Squash Association), to which Khan replied the same. The sea of spectators parted ways in the narrow corridor to allow a fuming Dessouky to pass through, who packed up his gear and stormed outside the arena. Onlookers were shocked and amused at the drama they had witnessed. It was not the first time Dessouky had a conduct warning issued against him; a conduct game was awarded to him for his behaviour during the third game of the Egyptian Open in 2024 against compatriot Tarek Momen. ”The referee was fine in all his decisions, I don’t know what happened to [Dessouky] after 6-2; he just lost it and threw his racket and started swearing in English,” Noor said to Dawn right after the match. “I feel sorry for him in a way, but this is also his fault.” With the nation’s hopes for another championship title solely on him once again, Noor said he hopes to deliver on those expectations. Earlier in the day, Pakistan’s Ashab Irfan was denied his dream of defeating a former world champion on home soil when his fairytale ending was denied by Karim Gawad as the Egyptian staged a comeback to prove why he’s one of the world’s best squash players. Ashab gave the 34-year-old a run for his money as he sent the Egyptian into every corner of the Creek Club glass court right from the first game. The sparse audience applauded every point Ashab scored, not just because he was one of three Pakistani players today, but because he was demolishing the former world number one he once idolised as a child. Ashab took the first game 11-7 after carving out a lead for himself that Gawad could chase. The second game was closer but Ashab took it 11-9 to the delight of the home crowd. Gawad took the third set 11-5 before defeating Ashab 11-8 in the fourth game. Ashab seemed to be losing steam against the men’s top seed and current world number four. The Egyptian finished the game and match 11-5 to advance to the quarterfinal, where he takes on world number 17 Eain Yow Ng of Malaysia. Pakistan’s sole wildcard entrant, Nasir Iqbal, opened the day with a 3-1 loss to budding Egyptian teenager Muhamad Zakaria. The fifth seed, world number 11 took the first game 11-6 before Nasir found his momentum and won the second game 11-7. Zakaria then proceeded to demolish Nasir 11-7, 11-5 to win the match and cruise into the quarterfinals, where he’ll play Hong Kong’s Alex Lau. “[Zakaria] is an up-and-coming player ranked 11 in the world right now. Obviously my mindset coming into this match was to win, but I struggled to get into the momentum I wanted to,” Nasir told Dawn after the match. “Other than that in terms of speed and experience and skills, I was happy with my performance; I just couldn’t match [Zakaria’s] pace,” he admitted, adding that he had barely just recovered from dengue fever before the Karachi Open. Noor, Ashab and Nasir are likely to play in the Asian Team Championships in April, also being staged on home soil in the capital.