Iran on Sunday registered back-to-back consolation victories against hosts Pakistan on the final day of their Davis Cup Group II Asia-Oceania zone match. Pakistan, hosting international tennis after a 12-year hiatus, had already won the tie by taking the first two singles and then the doubles match on Saturday.
Iran's Hamid Reza Nadaf beat Pakistan's Mohammad Abid Ali Khan Akbar by 6-7 (4-7), 6-4- 6-3 in the first match of the day and the fourth rubber in the tie. Shahin Khaledan defeated Muhammad Abid 7-6 (10-8), 6-3.
International sporting events have been rarely held in Pakistan, which has been battling a home-grown Islamist insurgency for years, with foreign teams citing security fears.
A 2009 militant attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team bus in Lahore effectively sealed Pakistan's fate. Its teams have played at neutral venues ever since, hosting "home" cricket matches in the United Arab Emirates and tennis in opponents' countries.
But security has improved in the last two years, and the visit of the Iranian Davis Cup team has signalled hopes for the slow revival of international sport on home soil.
Pakistan last hosted a Davis Cup tie in Islamabad against New Zealand in 2004.
Comments
Comments are closed.