ISLAMABAD: Eight Pakistani officials have been appointed to key committees of the International Tennis Federation and the Asian Tennis Federation for the 2026–2027 term, marking a significant achievement for Pakistan’s tennis community.

The appointments are being viewed as a recognition of Pakistan’s growing role in the development and governance of tennis at both regional and international levels.

Representation in ITF Committees

Pakistan’s top tennis player and President of the Pakistan Tennis Federation, Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi, has been selected as a member of the ITF Athlete Commission.

Other Pakistani officials appointed to ITF committees include:

Sara Mansoor – ITF Coaches Commission

Syed Muhammad Ali Murtaza – ITF Juniors Committee

Pakistani Officials in ATF Committees

Several Pakistani representatives have also been appointed to committees of the Asian Tennis Federation:

Salim Saifullah Khan – Finance Committee, Development Advisory Group, Legal, Constitution & Ethics Committee

Ziauddin Tufail – Junior and Coaches Development Committee

Rashid Malik – Marketing and Sponsorship Committee

Shehzad Akhtar Alvi – Tournament Officiating Committee

Sara Mansoor – ATF Advantage All Committee

Muhammad Khalid Rehmani – Senior, Wheelchair and Beach Tennis Committee

Recognition for Pakistan Tennis

Speaking on the occasion, Salim Saifullah Khan said the appointments demonstrate the trust of international tennis bodies in Pakistani officials to contribute to the global development of the sport.

PTF President Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi also described the development as a proud moment for Pakistan, saying it will strengthen the country’s role in international tennis and open new opportunities for the sport’s growth in the region.

PTF Secretary General Ziauddin Tufail congratulated the appointed officials and expressed confidence that they would represent Pakistan effectively at the international level.

AHMEDABAD: New Zealand will “not mind breaking a few hearts” in the T20 World Cup final against defending champions and hosts India, captain Mitchell Santner said on Saturday.

Santner’s side will face India on Sunday in Ahmedabad with over 100,000 home fans expected to fill the Narendra Modi Stadium.

New Zealand reached the 2021 final, losing to Australia, and has never won a white-ball World Cup.

“I wouldn’t mind winning a trophy,” Santner said.

He added: “It’s going to be obviously a challenge where everyone knows we’re probably not the favourites.

“But yeah, I wouldn’t mind breaking a few hearts to lift the trophy for once.”

New Zealand have blown hot and cold.

They hammered South Africa — unbeaten until then — by nine wickets in the semi-finals after Finn Allen blasted the fastest-ever century at the tournament.

But they also lost to South Africa and England earlier in the competition.

They face an India side on a roll with three straight wins.

In 2023, Australia, led by Pat Cummins, silenced the home crowd in Ahmedabad in the final of the ODI World Cup.

“I guess that’s the goal, is to silence the crowd,” said Santner.

“T20 cricket is fickle at times. We’ve seen South Africa playing very good cricket all the way through and then had a little hiccup against us and out.

“So I think for us, it’s taking confidence from that, and if we go about our business the same way, we can upset another big team.”

Top-ranked India are attempting to become the first team to win back-to-back T20 World Cups and the first to lift the trophy on home soil.

They would also be the first to win the title three times.

But they will have to withstand the expectations of a packed house plus hundreds of millions more watching on TV.

Santner feels that the level of expectation could weigh heavily on them.

“So I think that comes with a lot of added pressure as well,” said Santner. “So if we can go out there and try and put, I guess, that added pressure on them and see what happens.”

US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as Monaco won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain on Friday, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch Champions League last-16 tie.

Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the Ligue 1 clash.

Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious win in their quest to qualify for Europe next season.

The principality side were seeking revenge after a 5-4 aggregate defeat by PSG in the Champions League knockout phase play-offs last month, when they squandered a two-goal lead before losing 3-2 in the first leg and came up short with a 2-2 draw in the return.

That result allowed Luis Enrique’s side to reach the last 16 and they will now put their title on the line against Chelsea, with the first leg in Paris on Wednesday and the return on March 17.

That will be a season-defining tie for PSG, who won the Champions League for the first time last season, before losing 3-0 to Chelsea in the Club World Cup final.

“It is not the best result going into the Champions League. We are aware of that,” said Luis Enrique.

“When you play like that against a team in a very positive dynamic like Monaco, you pay for it.”

The result is a setback for PSG in their bid to win a fifth consecutive Ligue 1 title, with closest challengers Lens now able to trim their lead at the top from four points to one by beating bottom side Metz on Sunday.

This was PSG’s fourth league loss in 25 games this season, as many defeats as in the last two seasons combined.

They have now been beaten seven times in all competitions in 2025/26, and four times this calendar year.

Luis Enrique will be concerned at how far away his team are from the remarkable form they showed in the second half of last season on their way to winning the Champions League.

“We are clearly in difficulty at the moment but we need to maintain hope that will change,” he added. “Confidence is not just something you buy at the supermarket.”

Dembele returns

One plus was the latest return from injury of last year’s Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who came off the bench in the second half.

However, he has started only 14 of PSG’s 40 games this season and it remains to be seen how long he will be able to play against Chelsea.

Monaco were worthy winners, going ahead just before the half-hour mark.

PSG’s Warren Zaire-Emery gave possession away inside his own box, and the ball ricocheted into the path of Balogun who teed up French international Akliouche to score.

The hosts were wasteful with their final ball and Golovin showed them how it should be done on 55 minutes, the Russian applying a clinical first-time finish with his first touch having come on as a substitute after Vitinha inadvertently played the ball into his path.

PSG got one back on 71 minutes when Achraf Hakimi set up Barcola to score his 10th of the season with a first-time effort that took a deflection off Jordan Teze and beat Monaco ‘keeper Philipp Koehn at his near post.

But Monaco snuffed out the PSG comeback, Balogun’s shot from outside the area going in via a touch off Nuno Mendes.

That was a 13th of the season in all competitions for the striker who is set to play a leading role for co-hosts the United States at the World Cup.

Monaco have won five and drawn two of their last seven Ligue 1 games and are now fifth in the table.

“I am proud of the team,” said Monaco coach Sebastien Pocognoli. “We feel there is a really positive momentum building.”