Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi
Encyclopedia
Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi (born March 17, 1980, in Lahore
, Pakistan
) is a professional tennis player from Pakistan. He is currently Pakistan's top player. A top 10 doubles player, his highest Singles Race ranking is 103rd and is the former Asia
n No. 3. He is the only Pakistani tennis player to reach the final of a Grand Slam, which he did in 2010 competing in both mixed doubles (partnering with Květa Peschke
) and men's doubles (partnering with Rohan Bopanna
) at the US Open
.
Qureshi teamed with Israel
i player Amir Hadad
during Wimbledon
and the US Open tournaments in 2002. The duo won the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year award for playing together despite pressure from their communities.
As Pakistani No. 1, Qureshi has traditionally led Pakistan's Davis Cup
campaigns. After shocking New Zealand
in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I second round play-off in 2004 to survive relegation, he took them to the World Group Play-Offs for the first time in 2005, before they were beaten by Chile
. He has won the most Davis Cup matches for Pakistan, being the most successful singles and doubles player ever. He is also half of the most successful doubles pairing for Pakistan (with Aqeel Khan
) in the country's sporting history.
Qureshi is now a member of the "Champions for Peace" club, a group of 54 athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport, created by Peace and Sport
, a Monaco
-based international organization.
Aisam and his partner Rohan Bopanna have created a campaign, Stop War Start Tennis, with their goal to play a match on the border joining India and Pakistan.
His maternal grandfather, Adil Mansoor Tipu, was the All-India champion before Pakistan split from India in 1947. At age 16, the ITF
sponsored him for two years. He won the Pakistan International Junior Championships and went on to win more, such as the Casablanca Cup in Mexico and the LTA International Junior Championships in Roehampton where he beat Olivier Rochus
, Andy Ram
and Taylor Dent
. In the World Super Junior Championships, he beat Andy Roddick
. By 18, he was a Top 20 junior player, and decided to turn pro.
for sponsorship of coach for one year. He became the first sportsman who wasn't a cricketer to star in a Pepsi advert and become one of their brand ambassadors.
goodwill ambassador.
Aisam was awarded the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year for 2010 along with his doubles tennis partner Rohan Bopanna
of India
, he had previously won the award in 2002 with Amir Hadad
of Israel
.
Along with Rohan Bopanna, Aisam received the 2010 "Peace and Sport Image of the Year" award, in recognition of their dedicated efforts to spread the message of peace through sport.
He was also given the Pakistan President’s Award for Performance in 2002, the Salam Pakistan Youth Award by the President of Pakistan in 2007 and was runner-up for the 2003 Anne Frank Award For Moral Courage by the Anne Frank Trust, UK.
, finishing No. 7 in the world in 1998, which made him Pakistan's highest-ranked player ever on the international youth tennis arena. Qureshi turned pro in 1998.
, winning 6–3 6–3 6–3. Paired with Mohamed-Khaliq Siddiq, he won the doubles match 6–4 6–3 6–1. They helped Pakistan beat Thailand 3–2 for the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II Final and gained promotion to Group I.
On September 28 he played his first pro match, and got into the finals of the doubles future tournament in Japan
. His singles career also started well, getting into two future level quarter finals in Pakistan and Japan, and ended the year ranked 779th.
4–6 3–6. At the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I quarter-final match against Uzbekistan, Pakistan lost 4–1 with Aisam winning the only rubber. Paired with Dmitri Tomashevich
, he won two doubles futures titles in Turkey
.
In the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania I Relegation Play-off Final, China defeated Pakistan 3–0, which saw them relegated back to Group II. In October went on to win his first futures singles tournament on the hard courts of Indonesia
, beating Danai Udomchoke
5–7 7–5 6–3. In Vietnam, Aisam won a doubles futures title with Mark Nielsen. This was followed up by another singles futures win in Bangladesh
on clay, winning in straight sets. Aisam ended the year ranked 365th in singles, and 355th in doubles.
, he reached the semis of the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
, Uzbekistan
. At The LTA Manchester Challenger, in Manchester
, UK, Aisam made it to the semi-finals with partner Jamie Delgado
.
In July, he took part at the Ted Open, at Istanbul, Turkey, where he made it to the quarter-finals, but was beaten by Oleg Ogorodov
4–6 7–5 6–3. Returning to the UK, he played at the LTA Men's Challenger in Wrexham
, where he, along with Italian Daniele Bracciali
, won in the final 6–4 6–2. With that Aisam also won his first Challenger doubles title.
He won a futures doubles title in France with Israeli Noam Behr
. Together, they participated at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
, Uzbekistan
, where they reached the final. Aisam won a futures single title in Vietnam
, beating Jaroslav Levinský
3–6 6–2 6–3, and at the same tournament won a doubles title with Ashley Fisher. Aisam ended the year winning at the Neride Prague Indoor in Prague, Czech Republic where he partnered Kristian Pless
.
He finished 2000 ranked 261st in singles and 211th in doubles.
, in Chennai
India, with his partner Vadim Kutsenko of Uzbekistan. They won against Czech pair Peter Kovacka and Pavel Kudrnac 6–1 6–7(3) 6–4. However they were knocked out by Zimbabweans Byron Black
and Wayne Black
2–6 0–6. At the Davis Cup he was unable to help Pakistan as they lost to Chinese Taipei at the Asia/Oceania Group II quarter-final 3–2. He went to Mumbai
, India to play in the MTNL ATP Challenger where he reached the doubles semi-final with Dennis van Scheppingen. At the Heineken Challenger in Ho Chi Minh City
, Vietnam
, he again made it to the doubles semis, this time paired with Denis Golovanov.
In April at the Davis Cup Relegation Play-off semi-final, he helped Pakistan defeat Syria 5–0. The Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
, Uzbekistan
, still with Golovanov, they made it to the semi-finals but failed again to progress further. In the UK, he played at The Wrexham Challenger in Wrexham; he progressed to the singles semi-final but was knocked out by Ladislav Švarc 2–6 6–2 6–3. Although he did reach his first Challenger level doubles final of the year, now with new partner Luke Bourgeois they fell at the final hurdle.
Asiam returned to Uzbekistan
to take part in the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
, where he made it to the quarter-finals in the singles, and with partner Kirill Ivanov-Smolensky, the doubles semi-final. He stayed in Uzbekistan to play at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
and with his Dutch partner Rogier Wassen, they won the final 6–2 6–4.
He won a single futures title in Thailand
, beating Yeu-Tzuoo Wang 6–4 4–6 7–5. This followed a second in Vietnam against Yen-Hsun Lu. He rounded off the year with a doubles challenger title with Jaroslav Levinský
at the 69th King's Cup in Bangkok
, Thailand. Aisam ended the year ranked 251st in singles and 170th in doubles.
with Tuomas Ketola
. At the Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
, Uzbekistan
, he and Ketola were unable win in the doubles final.
Asiam qualified for his first Grand Slam at Wimbledon
with doubles partner Amir Hadad
. This pairing cause much controversy. In the first round they beat Martín Rodríguez
and Tom Vanhoudt
7–5 7–6(5) 7–6(2). In the second round, the Pakistani-Israeli pairing caused an upset when they knocked out 11th seeds Ellis Ferreira
and Rick Leach
6–4 6–4 6–4 to make it to the third round. They were finally beaten by 7th seed Czechs Martin Damm
and Cyril Suk
. Aisam was threatened with expulsion from the Davis Cup by the Pakistan Tennis Federation. Although Aisam did have support from Pakistan's Davis Cup captain. Aisam said, "I don't like religion or politics to interfere with sport. We're not here to change anything - politics and governments do that. We're just here to play the game and enjoy it." The ITF eventually intervened, forcing the PTF to rescind their threat.
At the West of England Tennis tournament in Bristol
, UK, he won his first Challenger doubles title of the season with Dejan Petrovic. Next, at The Manchester Trophy in Manchester, UK, he won the doubles title with Karol Beck
, although he was beaten by Beck in the singles semi-final. Asiam took his third doubles challenger title in a row when with Stefano Pescosolido
he took the Hilversum Open title in Hilversum
, Netherlands. In July at Wrexham
, UK in the Wrexham Challenger, his doubles winning streak was broken when he lost the final with Daniele Bracciali
. He also reached the single quarter-finals.
He partnered Hadad again at the US Open, where they defeated Mariano Hood
and Sebastián Prieto
6–4 6–2 in the first round. In the second round they faced fifth seeds Wayne Black and Kevin Ullyett
losing 4–6 6–4 2–6. In September, Aisam returned to Davis Cup action when Pakistan overcame China 3–2 to be promoted to Asia/Oceania Group I. However, he picked up an injury and missed the rest of the season. Despite this, Aisam ended the season ranked 265th in singles and 102nd in doubles.
picked up the ATP's Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Award. ATP Chief Executive Mark Miles said, "During a summer when fear and hatred garnered much of the headlines, Amir and Aisam-ul-Haq provided much needed relief with their simple message about tolerance through tennis." Aisam, partnering Hadad, participated at the Milan Open in Milan
, Italy, where they were knocked out of the first round by third seeds Tomáš Cibulec
and Pavel Vízner
, 6–7(8) 1–6. At the Asia/Oceania Group I quarter-final, Pakistan were beaten 5–0 by New Zealand. Aisam went to Germany to play at the Warsteiner Challenger in Wolfsburg, where he reached the final with Austrian Alexander Peya.
He went to play at his second ATP tournament of the year, partnered with Hadad, at the Copenhagen Open
. They lost to George Bastl
and David Prinosil
5–7 3–6. In May, Aisam won a doubles futures title in Uzbekistan
with partner Justin Bower. They stayed together in the country to play at the Fergana Challenger in Fergana
where they won the doubles title. This victory saw Aisam reach 89th in the world for doubles rankings.
At the French Open, he played with Daniel Vacek
, but they exited at the first round at the hands of Rick Leach
and Brian MacPhie
3–6 3–6. At Wimbledon
he and Hadad were beaten in the first round to Jiří Novák
and Radek Štěpánek
6–7(5) 5–7 5–7.
Asiam Partnered Rohan Bopanna
at the Manchester Trophy in Manchester
, UK, where they reached the semi-finals. They went all the way to the final and won the Colorado Classic in Denver, USA.Returning to Davis Cup action in September, he helped save Pakistan from relegation as they beat South Korea 3–2. With his singles ranking sliding, Aisam concentrated on playing singles matches, winning three futures titles, one in Thailand
and two in India. He also won two doubles futures titles in India to round of the year, the first with Harsh Mankad and the second with Mustafa Ghouse.
Aisam ended the year ranked 493rd in singles and 187th in doubles.
Challenger doubles semi-finals with Vladimir Voltchkov. Aisam went on to win the IX Challenger Internacional de Salinas in Salinas, Ecuador
with doubles partner Federico Browne. Next, at the USTA Challenger of Calabasas in Calabasas, USA with partner Cecil Mamiit, he reached the semis. At the Fergana Challenger in Fergana
, Uzbekistan
, he paired up with Harsh Mankad to reach the final. In Saudi Arabia
, he won another singles futures title.
In June, Aisam played his first singles ATP tournament at The Nottingham Open
in Nottingham
and was beaten in the first round by Jonas Björkman
in straight sets. He then paired up with Luxembourg's Gilles Müller
and won at the XI Open International D'Andorra in Andorra
. Aisam then took part in the Open de Montauban in Montauban
, France, where he and Mankad reached the semi-finals. At The LTA Nottingham Challenger in Nottingham
, UK, they both again reached the semis. Next, at The Manchester Trophy in Manchester
, UK he partnered Lovro Zovko to the final.
Aisam reached the singles challenger semi-finals at the Arroyo de la Encomienda in Valladolid
, Spain. In the same tournament he reached the doubles final with Michael Ryderstedt. After missing the previous tie, Aisam took part in the Davis cup relegation play-off final against favourites New Zealand. He assisted Pakistan in causing a huge upset when they won 3–2 to stay in Asia/Oceania Group I. He travelled to Nigeria
and won another singles futures title. In his final event of the season, Aisam partnered Jason Marshall to the Audi Challenger semi-final held in Groningen, Netherlands. Aisam finished the season ranked 199th in singles and 136th in doubles.
, Germany, Aisam played at the Volkswagen Challenger, where partnered by Lovro Zovko
, he reached the final. At the Davis Cup Pakistan defeated Thailand, with Aisam beating Paradorn Srichaphan
7–5 2–6 6–4 6–4. Going to the Heineken Challenger at Ho Chi Minh City
, Vietnam
, he reached his second final, this time with Orest Tereshchuk, but they failed to win the final. Aisam went to Mecca
, Saudi Arabia
to represent Pakistan at the Islamic Solidarity Games where he won 3 Golds in the singles, doubles and team events. At the Davis Cup he won all his rubbers as Pakistan beat Chinese Taipei to reach the World Group play-offs for the first time.
He returned to action in the Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
, Uzbekistan
, with Tereshchuk where they reached the semis. He travelled to Surbiton
, UK to play at the first grass court event of the season at The Surbiton Trophy, where with Stephen Huss he made it to the semi-final. Aisam stayed in Europe to play at the Arpa Ceramic Cup in Reggio Emilia
, Italy, and reached another doubles semi-final, with Mustafa Ghouse. Returning to the UK, he played at The LTA Summer Challenger, in Nottingham
, UK for his third doubles final, paired with Jean-Michel Pequery
, but Aisam still failed to win a final.
There was more struggling for Aisam at the III Challenger Diursa in Valladolid
, Spain, where with Igor Zelenay, he could only get to the doubles semi-final. However, Aisam stayed in Spain to take part at the Open de Tenis Amaya in Pamplona
, where with Zovko, they won the final and gave Aisam his first doubles Challenger title of the year. He continued his partnership with Zovko as they went to Uzbekistan
to play at the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
, but fell at the semi-final.
Pakistan faced Chile at the World Group play-offs. Aisam lost to Nicolás Massú
2–6 6–7(4) 1–6, and then with Aqeel Khan
in the doubles, they were beaten by Massu and Fernando González
1–6 3–6 0–6 as Pakistan fell to a 5–0 loss. In December, Asiam won a singles futures title in India. He ended the year ranked 450th in singles and 168th in doubles.
At the Davis Cup, Pakistan were beaten by India, despite Aisam winning both his matches. The season continued to be a struggle, however, in June he made it to only his second ever ATP tournament at the Ordina Open
in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, losing out to third seed Mario Ančić
, 6–7(3) 7–6 5–7, in a closely fought match.
He finally reached his first Challenger final of the year at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
, Uzbekistan
, reaching the doubles final with Indian Rohan Bopanna
, but lost in straight sets. Aisam returned to Davis Cup action, but Pakistan fell to their third loss of the year, losing to China. This saw them relegated back to Asia/Oceania Group II.
Going to India, he took part at the ATP tournament there, at the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open
in Mumbai
, and paired up with Leander Paes
. They beat Paraguay's Ramón Delgado
and Greek Konstantinos Economidis
6–4 6–4. But they lost the quarter-final to third seeds and eventual champions Mario Ančić
and Indian Mahesh Bhupathi
6–1 7–5. In the first Indo-Pak tennis series, he and Aqeel Khan were beaten in the 5 rubber tournament 3–2. He stayed in India to play on the futures circuit, where he won a single futures title. At the 2006 Asian Games
in Doha
, Qatar
, Aisam reached the singles third round. In the doubles, he and Aqeel Khan progressed to the quarter-finals where they were beaten by first seeds and eventual champions Mahesh Bhupathi
and Leander Paes 2–6 4–6. In the team event they were knocked out in the first round. In December, Aisam was declared ITF player of the month. Aisam ended the year ranked 417th in singles and 365th in doubles.
, Aisam won another single and doubles title this time with Purav Raja. He qualified at the ATP tournament in Halle
, Germany, for the Gerry Weber Open
where he beat World number 11, and Wimbledon Semi-finalist Richard Gasquet
, 7–6(10) 6–4, which had been the biggest victory of his career to date. Aisam was knocked out in the second round by Philipp Kohlschreiber
4–6 3–6.
He went on to achieve a landmark in his professional career by qualifying for the first time for the main rounds of Wimbledon 2007 Men's Singles
competition. Aisam became the first Pakistani in over 31 years to play at a Grand Slam tournament and the second Pakistani to reach the second round of Wimbledon. He won his first Grand Slam match at Wimbledon against Lee Childs, 6–3 6–4 7–6, making him the second Pakistani player (the first being Haroon Rahim
in 1976) to reach the second round of Wimbledon, before losing to Marat Safin
2–6, 4–6 and 6–7(4–7).
At the Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships
at Newport
, he continued his good form as he defeated first seed Mardy Fish
6–3 6–4. In the second round he beat Nathan Healey
7–6(2) 5–7 6–4, to reach the last 8 of an ATP tournament for the first time. However, at the quarter-final Asiam was beaten by Dick Norman
, 4–6 6–3 4–6. In the doubles, Asiam and Prakash Amritraj
were knocked out of the first round by Wesley Moodie
and Fabrice Santoro
0–6 4–6.
Aisam followed up Newport with Challenger Series tournament in the UK at the LTA Manchester Trophy in Manchester
and then The LTA Nottingham Challenger in Nottingham
. Aisam secured the doubles title with Rohan Bopanna
at Manchester. His red hot streak continued as he powered into the singles final at Nottingham, only to be bested by Australian Alun Jones 3–6 6–4 4–6. Aisam did however win back-to-back doubles titles by succeeding in the doubles final at Nottingham with Bopanna.
At the Castilla and León Open Challenger Series tournament in Segovia
, Spain, his failure at singles did not seem to trouble Aisam, as he went on to lift his third consecutive doubles Challenger victory with partner Rohan Bopanna. The duo became known as the "Indo-Pak Express". Aisam returned home and picked up the "Salaam Pakistan Awards" alongside footballer Muhammad Essa
and squash player Maria Toor Pakay
.
Aisam then travelled to the US to take part in the GHI Bronx Tennis Classic Challenger Series in Bronx to play in the doubles competition. Aisam and Bopanna continued their dominance in the doubles game, as they prepared for the US Open, by winning the hard court challenger, and in the process, forming a 16-match winning streak that spanned four tournaments. In doing so, Aisam won his 50th title including both singles and doubles at all levels.
In order to fulfill his dream of playing at the US Open
, Aisam needed to win three qualifying matches. He started out strongly, advancing to the third qualifying round where he met Scoville Jenkins
of the USA. Aisam pulled out before the third set due to a bout of tendinitis.
Although not fully fit, Aisam returned in time to play at the Kingfisher Airlines Open
in Mumbai
, his fourth ATP tournament of the year. It was also the first time Aisam was in the first round draw without needing to qualify or receiving a wildcard. Despite being the highest ranking Asian in the tournament, he was defeated in the first round by Serbian Viktor Troicki
6–2 6–4. Aisam also resumed his partnership with Bopanna and easily won their first round encounter, beating Indian duo Stephen Amritraj
and Somdev Devvarman
6–3 6–2. In the quarters, they faced Iván Navarro Pastor and Sergio Roitman
, who pulled out, allowing Aisam to reach his first ATP semi-final. The Qureshi-Bopanna partnership beat Lars Burgsmüller
and Olivier Rochus
, 6–2 6–3. In Aisam's first career ATP tournament final, the duo faced third seeds Robert Lindstedt
and Jarkko Nieminen
, but lost, 6–7 (3) 6–7 (5), the end of their 19-match win streak.
At the Tarka Challenger in Barnstaple
, UK, Aisam teamed up with Frederik Nielsen and won the tournament. As his singles ranks rose into the top 150, making him the third-best Asian player, he took part in the second Indo-Pak tennis series. He and Aqeel Khan were beaten in the 3 rubber first leg 2–1 but won the second leg 2–1 to tie the series. Returning to the Challenger circuit at the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur
, Malaysia, he was runner up with Bopanna in the doubles. Aisam went to New Delhi
, India to play in the second to last Challenger event of the year, though he lost the doubles final with Boanna, he won his first Challenger singles title with a victory against surprise finalist Jae Sung An 7–5 6–4 and with that reaching the top 130. Asiam spent the rest of December in India to prepare for the following season, with Sania Mirza
, Mahesh Bhupathi
and Rohan Bopanna
. Aisam ended the year ranked 125th in singles and 90th in doubles.
, India. He missed the singles qualifiers due to unrest in Pakistan, but made it in time to play doubles alongside Croat Marin Čilić
. They defeated first round opponents Mustafa Ghouse and Karan Rastogi
both from India, 6–4 7–6(1). In the quarter-finals they faced second seeds Jaroslav Levinský
and Michal Mertiňák
, who they over came 6–1 7–5. In the semis they were beaten by eventual title winners Sanchai Ratiwatana
, and Sonchat Ratiwatana
from Thailand 6–2 2–6 4-10. His doubles ranking rose to a new high of 82nd. Coincidentally, the Qureshi-Cilic partnership entered the 2008 doubles race ranked at 9th. Qureshi entered the qualification draw for men's singles at the 2008 Australian Open. He was seeded 16 but lost in the first round in a tight three set match. Back on the Challenger circuit, Aisam teamed up with Igor Kunitsyn
and reached the Heilbronn Open final in Heilbronn
, Germany.
Aisam went to the USA to play at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships
. With Bobby Reynolds
they beat Amer Delic
and Rajeev Ram
6–1 6–7(3) 10-5. In the quarter-finals they lost to first seeds and world number ones Bob Bryan
and Mike Bryan
4–6 4–6. He then paired up with long time doubles partner Bopanna at the SAP Open
in San Jose
, and were knocked out of the first round by third seeds Max Mirnyi
and Jamie Murray
4–6 4–6.
Aisam and Bopanna were given wildcards for the Dubai Tennis Championships
and defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu
and Igor Andreev
7–5 6–4 in the first Round. In the quarter-finals, they squandered a one set advantage against first seeds Daniel Nestor
and Nenad Zimonjić
, losing 2–6, 7–6(5), 10-6. Aisam was called up the Pakistan Davis Cup squad and prepared for the hectic Asia/Oceania Group III schedule. During the Davis Cup, he was inspired form, as Pakistan won each tie 3-0 to gain promotion back to Asia/Oceania Group II. He went to Lanzarote
, Spain and reached the doubles final of the VII Open Isla de Lanzarote with Gilles Müller
, but were beaten 2–6 6–7, however this saw his doubles ranking rise to 67th.
Then in New Delhi
, India, Aisam took part in the New Delhi Challenger, and was knocked out in the quarter-finals to World No. 78 Yen-Hsun Lu 7-6 3-6 5-7. He teamed up with Bopanna for the French Open
where in a tough first round draw they took on first seeds Bob Bryan
and Mike Bryan
for the second time in a year, but lost 1-6 4-6. They both moved on to Wimbledon
and knocked out Polish 10th seeds Mariusz Fyrstenberg
and Marcin Matkowski
6-3 7-5 6-4. In the second round they lost to Marcel Granollers-Pujol and Santiago Ventura Bertomeu
2-6 4-6 2-6.
He went to play a Challenger in Dublin, Ireland and with Prakash Amritraj
they beat Jonathan Marray
and Frederik Nielsen
it the doubles final 6-3 7-6. Aisam returned to the USA to play at the Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships
where took on Benjamin Becker
in the singles first round and won 7-5 7-6. In the second round he was defeated by second seed and defending champion Fabrice Santoro
6-7 2-6. In the doubles
, he and Bopanna were seeded 4th, the first time both have been seeded in an ATP event. In the first round they beat Tripp Phillips
and Jim Thomas
4-6 6-3 10-2. They won their quarter-final 7-6 3-6 10-7 Kevin Anderson
and James Cerretani
and followed that up by defeating Rik de Voest
and Ashley Fisher
in the semis 5-7 6-4 11-9. In the second ATP doubles final of his career, they faced Mardy Fish
and John Isner
, but despite being favourates, they lost 4-6 6-7.
They then went to Indianapolis
where Aisam lost his first round Singles
match to Wayne Odesnik
4-6 5-7. In the doubles
, he and Bopanna defeated 4th seeds Igor Kunitsyn
and Dmitry Tursunov
2-6 7-5 10-6. In the second round Bopanna picked up an injury and retired at 2-6 0-1 against eventual champions Ashley Fisher
and Tripp Phillips
. Aisam went back to playing challengers to Belo Horizonte
, Brazil
to play at the lBH Tenis Open International Cup 2008 where he reached the singles quarter-finals and in the doubles, he and Mexican Santiago González won the title. In Campos do Jordao
, at the Credicard Citi Mastercard Tennis Cup, Aisam was defeated at the semi-finals in both singles and doubles. He and Bopanna played at the 2008 Legg Mason Tennis Classic
they were defeated in the first round by third seeds Rik de Voest
and Ashley Fisher
4-6 4-6.
Aisam took part in the US Open
. In the Singles he faced former World No 1 and French Open champion Carlos Moyà
in the first round but lost 4-6 7-6 6-7 2-6. In the Doubles he and Bopanna openeed against Marc Gicquel
and Sébastien Grosjean
, losing 5-7 3-6. He then appeared in the Thailand Open
, losing in the first round to Swedish 6th seed Robin Söderling
2-6 4-6. In the doubles
, he and Bopanna lost 6-7 6-4 7-10 to first seeds Lukáš Dlouhý
and Leander Paes
. Then in the Stockholm Open, Aisam teamed up with Mario Ančić
, however they were unable to get past the first round, losing to first seeds Jonas Björkman
and Kevin Ullyett
5-7 4-6.
He travelled to Kolding
, Denmark to play in the Kobstaedernes ATP Challenger, reaching the doubles semi-finals before going on to Russia to take part in St. Petersburg Open
where he partnered Rogier Wassen
and in the first round they exited against Igor Kunitsyn
and Marat Safin
3-6 6-2 9-11.
Aisam then went to play in Challenger in Yokohama
, Japan at the Keio Challenger International Tennis Tournament where he reach the singles quarterfinals, losing to former Asian number 1 and World No. 36 Hyung-Taik Lee 6-4 4-6 4-6. The Pakistani rounded off the year with a win in the Dunlop Challenger in Toyota, Japan alongside Frederik Nielsen
.
Aisam lost to Matthias Bachinger in the 1st round of qualifying in the Heilbronn Challenger in Germany 7-6(4) 2-6 3-6, and also lost in the first round of doubles with James Auckland. Next week, Aisam went to the Wrocław Challenger but lost in the 2nd round of qualifying. Teaming up with Auckland again, he lost in the second round in the doubles.
Aisam went to the qualifying rounds in the Belgrade Challenger but lost in the 1st round to Julian Reister 7-5 5-7 4-6, Aisam was a break up in the 2nd set and he also missed a match point in the 10th game of the 2nd set as Reister was serving to stay in the match. Aisam teamed up with Lovro Zovko in the Doubles they lost in the final 6-3 2-6 8-10. Aisam teamed up with Prakash Amritraj in the Dubai Championship but lost in the 1st round.
Aisam played in Pakistan's win over Oman in the Davis Cup which they won 4-1. Aisam won his 1st rubber and he won the Doubles match with Aqeel Khan, but did not play in the dead rubbers.
Back on the Challenger Circuit, Aisam traveled to Kyoto, Japan where he beat Chris Guccione in the 1st round 7-6(3) 6-4. He played I.Dodig in the 2nd round, Aisam lost 5-7 1-6, hurting his ankle during the match, but recovered to play in his Doubles Match. Aisam claimed the Doubles Title in Kyoto with partner M. Slanar. Aisam partnered R. Bopanna in the Bangkok Challenger they reached the semi finals but lost in two close Tie-Breakers 6-7(4) 6-7(5) to Elgin & Kudryavtsev.
Qureshi went to the Korat Challenger he teamed up with Rohan Bopanna, where they reached the semi-finals. They defeated Levy and Okun 7-6(5) 3-6 10-6 to reach the final, in which they beat Sanchai
and Sonchat Ratiwatana
6-3 6-7(5) 10-5. Qureshi & Bopanna had to play their semi-final and final matches on the same day. This meant Qureshi claimed his 2nd title in 3 weeks, Aisam also was a semi-finalist in Bangkok.
Aisam went to the Johannesburg Challenger where he lost in the 1st round.
Aisam travelled to Busan, Korea to take part in the Challenger event. Aisam won his 1st round match against M. Semjan 6-3 6-4, in the 2nd round Aisam won 7-6 6-4 against T. Iwami to reach the Quarter Finals. Qureshi travelled to Fergana where he lost in the 2nd round in the Singles and lost in the Final in the Doubles.
He qualified into the main round of 2009 Wimbledon doubles, paired with Prakash Amritraj. After upsetting the 16th seeds Huss and Hutchins, they next defeated Junaid and Marx in the second round. They faced 4th seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles in the 3rd Round and lost 4-6 7-5 6-7 0-6.
Qureshi lost in the 2nd Round in the Qualifying Rounds in Newport and lost in the 1st Round in the Main Draw in the Doubles.
Qureshi then went to Båstad for the Doubles event but lost in the 1st Round.
Qureshi has gone to Indianapolis to take part in the Singles Qualifiers and the Main Draw in the Doubles where he will be partenerd by Sam Querrey. Qureshi won his 1st Round Qualifier against Joe Bates 6-3 1-6 6-3. Qureshi then faced L.Gregorc in the 2nd Round and won 6-3 7-6 (7-4). Qureshi lost to Alex Bogomolov Jr in the Final Round 5-7 4-6. In the Doubles Qureshi and Querrey made it to the Semi-Finals before losing to E.Gulbis & D.Tursunov 6-1 2-6 8-10.
Qureshi played in the US Open 2009 main draw partnering Jarkko Nieminen. They won the 1st round match defeating A Golubev & D Istomin 4-6 7-6(11) 6-4. They lost in the 2nd round to second seeds Nestor & Zimonjic 7-6(5), 6-3.
On 3 November 2009, Qureshi with his partner James Cerretani defeated Roger Federer
and Marco Chiudinelli in straight sets at the Basel Open Doubles. The final score was 6-4, 6-3. Qureshi said this was the greatest achievement of his career. Qureshi and Bopanna teamed up for both Challengers in Aachen & Helsinki and they won both Titles which marked a good end to the year for Qureshi. Qureeshi ended the year Number 59 in the Doubles Ranking.
in Johannesburg
, South Africa
, with his partner Rohan Bopanna
. They defeated Karol Beck
and Harel Levy
, 2-6, 6-3, [10-5], in the final.
Qureshi and Bopanna then made their second ATP final of the year at the 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II
in Casablanca
, Morocco
, but were defeated by Robert Lindstedt
and Horia Tecău
, 2-6, 6-3, [7-10].
In May, Qureshi and Bopanna were runners-up in the 2010 Open de Nice Côte d'Azur in Nice, France, falling 6-1 3-6 5-10 to Marcelo Melo
and Bruno Soares
in the final. Qureshi and Bopanna made the second round in the French Open
, but lost to Michaël Llodra
and Julien Benneteau
.
Qureshi and Bopanna reached their first ever Grand Slam quarterfinals in the 2010 Wimbledon Championships
. In the interim period between Wimbledon and the 2010 US Open
, the South Asia
n duo made an appearance in the semifinals at the 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic
, where they lost to eventual champions Mardy Fish
and Mark Knowles
after a dramatic straight-sets upset of second seeds Bob and Mike Bryan
in the quarterfinal round. The duo had a disappointing second-round exit against Mariusz Fyrstenberg
and Marcin Matkowski
, the eighth seeds, at the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters shortly before their return to New York
. In New Haven, Connecticut
, at the last tournament before the US Open
, Qureshi and Bopanna reached the final, where they again lost to Lindstedt and Tecău.
In men's doubles at the US Open
, a 16th-seeded Qureshi and Bopanna again upset the second-seeded team, taking out Daniel Nestor
and Nenad Zimonjić
to advance to the quarterfinals, their second straight quarterfinal showing at a major tournament. They advanced to the semifinals with a straight-sets upset of Wesley Moodie
and Dick Norman
, the 10th-seeded pairing. In the semifinal, they ousted Eduardo Schwank
and Horacio Zeballos, Jr., to advance to a meeting with Bob and Mike Bryan of United States
in the final. Qureshi and Bopanna gave the Bryan twins quite a run for the title but eventually lost to them in straight sets, 7-6, 7-6.
Qureshi also partnered with Květa Peschke
in mixed doubles
and beat the eighth-seeded team of Vania King
and Horia Tecău in the first round, eventually advancing to the quarterfinals (with a win over Yaroslava Shvedova
and Julian Knowle
), the semifinals (beating Gisela Dulko
and Pablo Cuevas
), and the final (beating Anna-Lena Grönefeld
and Mark Knowles
). In the final, Peschke and Qureshi put up a great fight but eventually lost to Bob Bryan
and Liezel Huber
in a straight 6-4, 6-4.
Both US Open showings are Qureshi's best yet at any major tournament in any draw, and his partnership with Peschke marks his first outing in the mixed doubles competition of a hard-court major.
. he reached the semifinals, where they lost to eventual champions Lukáš Dlouhý
and Paul Hanley
7 -5, 4-6, 10-8. Then Qureshi went to the Australian Open
,where he and Bopanna reached the third round, before losing to Michaël Llodra
and Nenad Zimonjić
, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
Bopanna and Qureshi's run at the Monte Carlo Masters ended on Saturday, when they were beaten in the semifinals to unseeded South Americans Juan Ignacio Chela
and Bruno Soares
, 6-2, 6-7(4), 10-7, in 95 minutes.
They advanced to the quarterfinals of Roland Garros, but lost to the Bryan Brothers, 6-7, 6-3, 6-7.
They were top seeds at Gerry Weber Open, which they won by defeating Milos Raonic
and Robin Haase
, 7-6, 3-6,11-9.
He achieved the ranking of world no. 8 on 6 June 2011.
He reached the semifinals of the US open doubles with Bopanna. Next, he won the Thailand Open doubles with Oliver Marach
. This pair defeated Michael Kohlmann
and Alexander Waske
, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in the final.
Aisam and Bopanna won the Stockholm Open, defeating Marcelo Melo
and Bruno Soares
of Brazil, 6-4, 6-3.
Aisam was also nominated for the Stephen Edberg sportsmanship award along with stars like Novak Djokovic
, Rafael Nadal
, and Roger Federer
.
Bopanna and Qureshi compiled a consistent season, reaching the semifinals or better at seven tournaments in total, including at the US Open, where they were runners-up a year earlier. They also reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, losing to the Bryans.
The greatest achievement of the Indo-Pak express in 2011 was winning the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris. They defeated the pair of Julien Benneteau
and Nicolas Mahut
in the final, 6-2, 6-4. They reached the finals by defeating the third seeds Max Mirnyi
and Daniel Nestor
, 6-3, 7-6, in the semifinals and the second seeds Michael Llodra
and Nenad Zimonjic
, 3-6, 6-4, 10-6, in the quarterfinals.
They became the seventh doubles team to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals on 6 November. In their first round-robin match, they lost to Max Mirnyi
and Daniel Nestor
by 7-6, 4-6, 11-9. In their second round-robin match they were defeated by Michael Llodra
and Nenad Zimonjic
by 7-6, 6-3. In their third match, the Polish pair of Mariusz Fyrstenberg
and Marcin Matkowski
by 6-2, 6-1. Aisam and Rohan lost all the three of their matches in the 2011 ATP World Tour
and did not qualify for semi-final.
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
) is a professional tennis player from Pakistan. He is currently Pakistan's top player. A top 10 doubles player, his highest Singles Race ranking is 103rd and is the former Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n No. 3. He is the only Pakistani tennis player to reach the final of a Grand Slam, which he did in 2010 competing in both mixed doubles (partnering with Květa Peschke
Kveta Peschke
Květoslava Peschke, also known as Květa Peschkeová is a professional female tennis player from the Czech Republic. She plays mostly on the baseline, with her best shot being the forehand. Her favourite surfaces are hard court and carpet...
) and men's doubles (partnering with Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
) at the US Open
2010 US Open (tennis)
The 2010 US Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts, held from August 30 to September 13, 2010 in the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York City, United States....
.
Qureshi teamed with Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i player Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad is a professional tennis player.His highest singles ATP ranking was # 180, in 2003. His highest doubles ranking was # 87, also in 2003.-Tennis career:He turned pro in 1995....
during Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
and the US Open tournaments in 2002. The duo won the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year award for playing together despite pressure from their communities.
As Pakistani No. 1, Qureshi has traditionally led Pakistan's Davis Cup
Pakistan Davis Cup team
The Pakistan Davis Cup team represents Pakistan in Davis Cup tennis competition and are governed by the Pakistan Tennis Federation.Pakistan currently compete in the Asia/Oceania Zone of Group II...
campaigns. After shocking New Zealand
New Zealand Davis Cup team
The New Zealand Davis Cup team represents New Zealand in Davis Cup tennis competition and are governed by Tennis New Zealand.New Zealand currently compete in the Asia/Oceania Zone of Group II. They have played in the World Group on 8 occasions, the most recent of which was in 1991. They reached...
in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I second round play-off in 2004 to survive relegation, he took them to the World Group Play-Offs for the first time in 2005, before they were beaten by Chile
Chile Davis Cup team
The Chile Davis Cup Team represents Chile in Davis Cup tennis tournament and is governed by Chile Tennis Federation. The team is currently captained by former Chilean tennis player Hans Gildemeister.-History:...
. He has won the most Davis Cup matches for Pakistan, being the most successful singles and doubles player ever. He is also half of the most successful doubles pairing for Pakistan (with Aqeel Khan
Aqeel Khan
Aqeel Khan is the current Pakistani number two and National Champion in tennis. His favourite surface is Grass. He is coached by Pakistani tennis coach Jamil Khan, who is his father...
) in the country's sporting history.
Qureshi is now a member of the "Champions for Peace" club, a group of 54 athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport, created by Peace and Sport
Peace and Sport
Peace and Sport, "L’Organisation pour la Paix par le Sport” is a neutral and apolitical international initiative based in the Principality of Monaco and placed under the High Patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco....
, a Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
-based international organization.
Aisam and his partner Rohan Bopanna have created a campaign, Stop War Start Tennis, with their goal to play a match on the border joining India and Pakistan.
Early life
Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi grew up in Lahore, Pakistan, swimming and playing cricket and football. He started playing tennis late at age of 14 when his mother and first coach, Nausheen Ihtisham, a former 10-time national champion, took him to a tennis club.His maternal grandfather, Adil Mansoor Tipu, was the All-India champion before Pakistan split from India in 1947. At age 16, the ITF
International Tennis Federation
The International Tennis Federation is the governing body of world tennis, made up of 205 national tennis associations.It was established as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by 12 national associations meeting at a conference in Paris, France on 1 March 1913...
sponsored him for two years. He won the Pakistan International Junior Championships and went on to win more, such as the Casablanca Cup in Mexico and the LTA International Junior Championships in Roehampton where he beat Olivier Rochus
Olivier Rochus
Olivier Rochus is a Belgian tennis player. He was born in Namur, Belgium, and currently resides in Auvelais, Belgium.-Career:...
, Andy Ram
Andy Ram
Andy Ram is a professional tennis player from Israel, and the first Israeli tennis player to win a seniors Grand Slam event . He plays more doubles than singles as he prefers doubles more and wins more matches...
and Taylor Dent
Taylor Dent
Taylor Phillip Dent is a retired professional tennis player from the United States.-Early career and back injury:He won 4 ATP singles titles during his career: Newport , Bangkok , Memphis , and Moscow , and reached the finals of three other events on tour...
. In the World Super Junior Championships, he beat Andy Roddick
Andy Roddick
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick is an American professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. He is currently the second highest-ranked American player, behind Mardy Fish....
. By 18, he was a Top 20 junior player, and decided to turn pro.
Coaches
As a junior, he was coached by LTA. Aisam has been coached by American Robert Davis since 1998. Robert Davis has served as national coach for Peru, Panama, Thailand, and Indonesia. As a writer, he contributes to the ATP's DEUCE Magazine, TENNIS MAGAZINE USA, TENNIS.COM, TENNIS MAGAZINE AUSTRALIA, and ITF publications as well as non sporting publications and newspapers.Playing style
Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi prefers the quickers grass courts and has had seen his greatest success on grass and hard courts. His playing style is serve-and-volley, relying on his serve to win him points by putting pressure in his opponents.Sponsorship
Qureshi's clothing and shoes sponsor is Lotto. On March 29, 2008, Aisam signed an agreement with PepsiPepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
for sponsorship of coach for one year. He became the first sportsman who wasn't a cricketer to star in a Pepsi advert and become one of their brand ambassadors.
Awards and Accolades
In November 2010 Aisam was appointed The United Nations Development Program (UNDP)United Nations Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP operates in 177 countries, working with nations on their own solutions to...
goodwill ambassador.
Aisam was awarded the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year for 2010 along with his doubles tennis partner Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, he had previously won the award in 2002 with Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad is a professional tennis player.His highest singles ATP ranking was # 180, in 2003. His highest doubles ranking was # 87, also in 2003.-Tennis career:He turned pro in 1995....
of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
Along with Rohan Bopanna, Aisam received the 2010 "Peace and Sport Image of the Year" award, in recognition of their dedicated efforts to spread the message of peace through sport.
He was also given the Pakistan President’s Award for Performance in 2002, the Salam Pakistan Youth Award by the President of Pakistan in 2007 and was runner-up for the 2003 Anne Frank Award For Moral Courage by the Anne Frank Trust, UK.
Juniors
Qureshi had a successful career in junior tennisJunior tennis
Junior Tennis refers to tennis games where the participants are aged 18 and under. Eligibility to compete is not based on age, but year of birth: as a result, some players must move out of juniors soon after their 18th birthday, while others can play juniors until they are nearly 19...
, finishing No. 7 in the world in 1998, which made him Pakistan's highest-ranked player ever on the international youth tennis arena. Qureshi turned pro in 1998.
1998
On September 25, he played his first Davis Cup match against Danai UdomchokeDanai Udomchoke
Danai Udomchoke is a professional tennis player from Thailand. He was born in Bangkok, where he still resides.Udomchoke turned professional in 1997, and is coached by Jan Stoce. He is sponsored by Dunlop Sport for his racquets and apparel. His career-best ranking is World No...
, winning 6–3 6–3 6–3. Paired with Mohamed-Khaliq Siddiq, he won the doubles match 6–4 6–3 6–1. They helped Pakistan beat Thailand 3–2 for the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II Final and gained promotion to Group I.
On September 28 he played his first pro match, and got into the finals of the doubles future tournament in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. His singles career also started well, getting into two future level quarter finals in Pakistan and Japan, and ended the year ranked 779th.
1999
Aisam made it into the quarter finals of his first challenger level tournament in Calcutta, but lost to Indian Leander PaesLeander Paes
Leander Adrian Paes, pronounced pās, is an Indian professional tennis player who currently features in the doubles events in the ATP tour and the Davis Cup tournament...
4–6 3–6. At the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I quarter-final match against Uzbekistan, Pakistan lost 4–1 with Aisam winning the only rubber. Paired with Dmitri Tomashevich
Dmitri Tomashevich
Dmitri Tomashevich is a former tennis player from Uzbekistan, who represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was defeated in the first round by Slovakia's Karol Kučera...
, he won two doubles futures titles in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
In the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania I Relegation Play-off Final, China defeated Pakistan 3–0, which saw them relegated back to Group II. In October went on to win his first futures singles tournament on the hard courts of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, beating Danai Udomchoke
Danai Udomchoke
Danai Udomchoke is a professional tennis player from Thailand. He was born in Bangkok, where he still resides.Udomchoke turned professional in 1997, and is coached by Jan Stoce. He is sponsored by Dunlop Sport for his racquets and apparel. His career-best ranking is World No...
5–7 7–5 6–3. In Vietnam, Aisam won a doubles futures title with Mark Nielsen. This was followed up by another singles futures win in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
on clay, winning in straight sets. Aisam ended the year ranked 365th in singles, and 355th in doubles.
2000
In January, he took Pakistan to a 3–2 victory against Hong Kong Asia/Oceania Group II quarter-final. Aisam then began to compete in more on the Challenger circuit, reaching the semi-finals at the Indian Oil Servo Cup in Calcutta in February, defeated by Tuomas Ketola. At the Davis Cup Group II semi-final Pakistan were beaten by Chinese Taipei 3–2, with Aisam winning two of his three rubbers. In May, paired with Dmitri TomashevichDmitri Tomashevich
Dmitri Tomashevich is a former tennis player from Uzbekistan, who represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was defeated in the first round by Slovakia's Karol Kučera...
, he reached the semis of the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
. At The LTA Manchester Challenger, in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, UK, Aisam made it to the semi-finals with partner Jamie Delgado
Jamie Delgado
Jamie Delgado is a professional male tennis player from Great Britain. Delgado has represented the UK in the Davis Cup, most recently in 2006. His best performance at Wimbledon was reaching the second round on three occasions, most notably in 2001 where he played against former champion Andre...
.
In July, he took part at the Ted Open, at Istanbul, Turkey, where he made it to the quarter-finals, but was beaten by Oleg Ogorodov
Oleg Ogorodov
Oleg Ogorodov is a former tennis player, who turned professional in 1995. He represented Uzbekistan at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. His career high singles rank came on May 13, 1996 when he was ranked 101st in men's singles tennis rankings...
4–6 7–5 6–3. Returning to the UK, he played at the LTA Men's Challenger in Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
, where he, along with Italian Daniele Bracciali
Daniele Bracciali
Daniele Bracciali is an Italian tennis player. His career-high ranking in singles is World No. 49, achieved on May 8, 2006.-Career:Bracciali won his only ATP singles title so far in April 2006, at Casablanca, on clay...
, won in the final 6–4 6–2. With that Aisam also won his first Challenger doubles title.
He won a futures doubles title in France with Israeli Noam Behr
Noam Behr
Noam Behr is an Israeli professional tennis player who turned pro in 1994.His career-high singles ranking was # 127 , and his career-high doubles ranking was # 109 .-Tennis career:...
. Together, they participated at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, where they reached the final. Aisam won a futures single title in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, beating Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský is a professional doubles tennis player from the Czech Republic.-Mixed doubles: 1 :-Doubles: 5 :-External links:...
3–6 6–2 6–3, and at the same tournament won a doubles title with Ashley Fisher. Aisam ended the year winning at the Neride Prague Indoor in Prague, Czech Republic where he partnered Kristian Pless
Kristian Pless
Kristian Peter Pless is a professional male tennis player from Denmark.In 1999, he won the Australian Open for juniors , and reached the junior finals at Wimbledon , and the US Open . He finished 1999 as the no...
.
He finished 2000 ranked 261st in singles and 211th in doubles.
2001
Aisam participated in his first ATP tournament at the Chennai OpenChennai Open
The Chennai Open is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the Association of Tennis Professionals World Tour...
, in Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
India, with his partner Vadim Kutsenko of Uzbekistan. They won against Czech pair Peter Kovacka and Pavel Kudrnac 6–1 6–7(3) 6–4. However they were knocked out by Zimbabweans Byron Black
Byron Black
Byron Black is a former touring professional tennis and Davis Cup player for Zimbabwe.- Biography :He is the brother of Cara and Wayne Black, both professional tennis players...
and Wayne Black
Wayne Black
Wayne Hamilton Black is a former professional male tennis player from Zimbabwe.Black is the son of Don and Velia Black and the brother of Cara Black and Byron Black, also professional tennis players. He attended the University of Southern California and was an All-American in singles and doubles...
2–6 0–6. At the Davis Cup he was unable to help Pakistan as they lost to Chinese Taipei at the Asia/Oceania Group II quarter-final 3–2. He went to Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India to play in the MTNL ATP Challenger where he reached the doubles semi-final with Dennis van Scheppingen. At the Heineken Challenger in Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, he again made it to the doubles semis, this time paired with Denis Golovanov.
In April at the Davis Cup Relegation Play-off semi-final, he helped Pakistan defeat Syria 5–0. The Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, still with Golovanov, they made it to the semi-finals but failed again to progress further. In the UK, he played at The Wrexham Challenger in Wrexham; he progressed to the singles semi-final but was knocked out by Ladislav Švarc 2–6 6–2 6–3. Although he did reach his first Challenger level doubles final of the year, now with new partner Luke Bourgeois they fell at the final hurdle.
Asiam returned to Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
to take part in the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, where he made it to the quarter-finals in the singles, and with partner Kirill Ivanov-Smolensky, the doubles semi-final. He stayed in Uzbekistan to play at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
and with his Dutch partner Rogier Wassen, they won the final 6–2 6–4.
He won a single futures title in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, beating Yeu-Tzuoo Wang 6–4 4–6 7–5. This followed a second in Vietnam against Yen-Hsun Lu. He rounded off the year with a doubles challenger title with Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský is a professional doubles tennis player from the Czech Republic.-Mixed doubles: 1 :-Doubles: 5 :-External links:...
at the 69th King's Cup in Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
, Thailand. Aisam ended the year ranked 251st in singles and 170th in doubles.
2002
In February at the Davis Cup, he won both matches, as Pakistan beat Malaysia 4–1. In the next Davis Cup tie against Chinese Taipei, he won all three rubbers as Pakistan qualified for the Asia/Oceania Group II final. Aisam won a doubles futures title in KuwaitKuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
with Tuomas Ketola
Tuomas Ketola
Tuomas Ketola is a Finnish former professional tennis player on the ATP Tour.Ketola was the number two tennis player in Finland behind Jarkko Nieminen and as of April 14, 2006 is the 716th ranked player in the world. In 2004, he reached the first round of Wimbledon in singles by defeating three...
. At the Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, he and Ketola were unable win in the doubles final.
Asiam qualified for his first Grand Slam at Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
with doubles partner Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad
Amir Hadad is a professional tennis player.His highest singles ATP ranking was # 180, in 2003. His highest doubles ranking was # 87, also in 2003.-Tennis career:He turned pro in 1995....
. This pairing cause much controversy. In the first round they beat Martín Rodríguez
Martín Rodríguez (tennis)
Martín Rodríguez is a former professional tennis player from Argentina.Rodríguez turned professional in 1991. He reached his career-high singles ranking when he became World Number 71 on June 14, 1999...
and Tom Vanhoudt
Tom Vanhoudt
Tom Vanhoudt , is a former professional tennis player from Belgium.Vanhoudt achieved a career-high doubles ranking of World No. 36 in 2001. He participated in 9 Davis Cup ties for Belgium from 1991 to 2002, posting a 4–5 record in doubles.-Doubles titles :-External links:***...
7–5 7–6(5) 7–6(2). In the second round, the Pakistani-Israeli pairing caused an upset when they knocked out 11th seeds Ellis Ferreira
Ellis Ferreira
Ellis Ferreira is a former professional male tennis player from South Africa. He played collegiately at the University of Alabama, earning all-SEC and all-American honors. He won 2 Grand Slam doubles titles, the Men's title at the 2000 Australian Open with Rick Leach and the mixed doubles at the...
and Rick Leach
Rick Leach
----Rick Leach is a former professional tennis player and a coach from the United States. A doubles specialist, he won 5 Grand Slam men's doubles titles , and 4 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles . Leach reached the World No...
6–4 6–4 6–4 to make it to the third round. They were finally beaten by 7th seed Czechs Martin Damm
Martin Damm
Martin Damm was a professional tennis player from Czechia. He is 6'2" 195 lb and is best known as a doubles player . ,his highest singles ranking 42 as of August 1997...
and Cyril Suk
Cyril Suk
Cyril Suk III is a former professional tennis player. A doubles specialist, Suk has won one Grand Slam men's doubles title and four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles during his career....
. Aisam was threatened with expulsion from the Davis Cup by the Pakistan Tennis Federation. Although Aisam did have support from Pakistan's Davis Cup captain. Aisam said, "I don't like religion or politics to interfere with sport. We're not here to change anything - politics and governments do that. We're just here to play the game and enjoy it." The ITF eventually intervened, forcing the PTF to rescind their threat.
At the West of England Tennis tournament in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, UK, he won his first Challenger doubles title of the season with Dejan Petrovic. Next, at The Manchester Trophy in Manchester, UK, he won the doubles title with Karol Beck
Karol Beck
Karol Beck is a male tennis player from Slovakia, who turned professional in 2001. He has been ranked as high as 36th in the world .- Career :On October 25, 2004, Beck lost in the final of the St...
, although he was beaten by Beck in the singles semi-final. Asiam took his third doubles challenger title in a row when with Stefano Pescosolido
Stefano Pescosolido
Stefano Pescosolido is a former tennis player from Italy, who turned professional in 1989.Pescosolido was born in Sora. He represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was defeated in the first round by Brazil's Fernando Meligeni...
he took the Hilversum Open title in Hilversum
Hilversum
is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Located in the region called "'t Gooi", it is the largest town in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller villages...
, Netherlands. In July at Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
, UK in the Wrexham Challenger, his doubles winning streak was broken when he lost the final with Daniele Bracciali
Daniele Bracciali
Daniele Bracciali is an Italian tennis player. His career-high ranking in singles is World No. 49, achieved on May 8, 2006.-Career:Bracciali won his only ATP singles title so far in April 2006, at Casablanca, on clay...
. He also reached the single quarter-finals.
He partnered Hadad again at the US Open, where they defeated Mariano Hood
Mariano Hood
Mariano Hood is a retire left-handed professional Argentine tennis player who specialized in doubles.In his career, Hood won 13 out of the 26 top level doubles finals he was in. He turned professional in 1993, and currently resides in his city of birth, Buenos Aires. He won $US806,888 in earnings...
and Sebastián Prieto
Sebastián Prieto
Sebastián Prieto is a professional tennis player from Argentina.Primarily a doubles specialist, Prieto has won 9 doubles titles in his career. He began playing for the Argentina Davis Cup team in 1999....
6–4 6–2 in the first round. In the second round they faced fifth seeds Wayne Black and Kevin Ullyett
Kevin Ullyett
Kevin Ullyett is a former professional tennis player from Zimbabwe. His primary success on the tour has been in men's doubles. He has won 24 doubles titles, including the 2001 US Open and the 2005 Australian Open, both with Wayne Black...
losing 4–6 6–4 2–6. In September, Aisam returned to Davis Cup action when Pakistan overcame China 3–2 to be promoted to Asia/Oceania Group I. However, he picked up an injury and missed the rest of the season. Despite this, Aisam ended the season ranked 265th in singles and 102nd in doubles.
2003
Aisam and Amir HadadAmir Hadad
Amir Hadad is a professional tennis player.His highest singles ATP ranking was # 180, in 2003. His highest doubles ranking was # 87, also in 2003.-Tennis career:He turned pro in 1995....
picked up the ATP's Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Award. ATP Chief Executive Mark Miles said, "During a summer when fear and hatred garnered much of the headlines, Amir and Aisam-ul-Haq provided much needed relief with their simple message about tolerance through tennis." Aisam, partnering Hadad, participated at the Milan Open in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy, where they were knocked out of the first round by third seeds Tomáš Cibulec
Tomáš Cibulec
Tomáš Cibulec is a quad-lingual professional Czech tennis player who turned professional in 1996. Cibulec reached his highest singles ranking on August 3, 1998, becoming world number 646. His highest doubles ranking is world number 21, which he reached on March 17, 2003...
and Pavel Vízner
Pavel Vízner
Pavel Vízner is a professional male tennis player from the Czech Republic. Vízner has reached the French Open final twice, having had turned professional in 1990 and achieved a career high doubles ranking of World Number 5 on September 10, 2007.- Career :While Vízner had played tournaments in 1988...
, 6–7(8) 1–6. At the Asia/Oceania Group I quarter-final, Pakistan were beaten 5–0 by New Zealand. Aisam went to Germany to play at the Warsteiner Challenger in Wolfsburg, where he reached the final with Austrian Alexander Peya.
He went to play at his second ATP tournament of the year, partnered with Hadad, at the Copenhagen Open
Copenhagen Open
The Copenhagen Open was a tournament on the ATP Tour, first held in 1973. It was competed again in 1976, before being discontinued. It was re-introduced in 1991 and was halted again in 2003. The only man to win it more than once was Magnus Gustafsson...
. They lost to George Bastl
George Bastl
George Edward Bastl is a professional tennis player from Switzerland. He is ranked at World No. 845 as of August 22, 2011.He has reached one singles final in his career – at Tashkent in 1999.-Tennis career:...
and David Prinosil
David Prinosil
David Prinosil is a former tennis player from Germany, who turned professional in 1991. He represented his country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was defeated in the first round by Daniel Vacek of the Czech Republic...
5–7 3–6. In May, Aisam won a doubles futures title in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
with partner Justin Bower. They stayed together in the country to play at the Fergana Challenger in Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
where they won the doubles title. This victory saw Aisam reach 89th in the world for doubles rankings.
At the French Open, he played with Daniel Vacek
Daniel Vacek
Daniel Vacek is a former tennis player from Czechoslovakia and the Czechia who turned professional in 1990.Vacek represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was defeated in the second round...
, but they exited at the first round at the hands of Rick Leach
Rick Leach
----Rick Leach is a former professional tennis player and a coach from the United States. A doubles specialist, he won 5 Grand Slam men's doubles titles , and 4 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles . Leach reached the World No...
and Brian MacPhie
Brian MacPhie
Brian MacPhie , is a former professional tennis player from the United States.MacPhie enjoyed most of his tennis success while playing doubles. During his career he won 7 doubles titles. He achieved a career-high doubles ranking of World No. 22 in 2002.-Doubles titles :-Runner-ups :-External links:...
3–6 3–6. At Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
he and Hadad were beaten in the first round to Jiří Novák
Jirí Novák
Jiří Novák is a former Czech tennis player, who was born in Zlín, Czechoslovakia but resides nowadays in Monte Carlo, Monaco.-Career:Novák turned professional in 1993 and won 7 singles and 18 doubles titles during his career, winning $7,614,063 in prize money. For six years, he was the...
and Radek Štěpánek
Radek Štepánek
Radek Štěpánek is a professional tennis player from the Czech Republic.-Career:Štěpánek turned professional in 1997. He started on tour as a doubles specialist, winning 12 ATP titles. Since 2002, Štěpánek has focused on being a better singles player while still playing top-level doubles...
6–7(5) 5–7 5–7.
Asiam Partnered Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
at the Manchester Trophy in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, UK, where they reached the semi-finals. They went all the way to the final and won the Colorado Classic in Denver, USA.Returning to Davis Cup action in September, he helped save Pakistan from relegation as they beat South Korea 3–2. With his singles ranking sliding, Aisam concentrated on playing singles matches, winning three futures titles, one in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and two in India. He also won two doubles futures titles in India to round of the year, the first with Harsh Mankad and the second with Mustafa Ghouse.
Aisam ended the year ranked 493rd in singles and 187th in doubles.
2004
Aisam won a single futures title in India on February. He then reached The WrexhamWrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
Challenger doubles semi-finals with Vladimir Voltchkov. Aisam went on to win the IX Challenger Internacional de Salinas in Salinas, Ecuador
Salinas, Ecuador
Salinas is a coastal city located in the Province of Santa Elena, Ecuador. It is the seat of the canton that bears its name. The westernmost city on mainland Ecuador, Salinas is an important tourist center. Recently, Salinas was the center of controversy during the contentious "more fun, less sun,"...
with doubles partner Federico Browne. Next, at the USTA Challenger of Calabasas in Calabasas, USA with partner Cecil Mamiit, he reached the semis. At the Fergana Challenger in Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, he paired up with Harsh Mankad to reach the final. In Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, he won another singles futures title.
In June, Aisam played his first singles ATP tournament at The Nottingham Open
Nottingham Open
The Slazenger Nottingham Open was a tennis tournament on the ATP Tour that was held in Nottingham, Great Britain...
in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
and was beaten in the first round by Jonas Björkman
Jonas Björkman
Jonas Lars Björkman is a former World Number 4 Swedish professional tennis player. He is also a former World No. 1 in doubles. Björkman retired from professional tennis after competing at the 2008 Tennis Masters Cup Doubles championships....
in straight sets. He then paired up with Luxembourg's Gilles Müller
Gilles Müller
Gilles Müller is a Luxembourgish professional tennis player. He was a US Open junior champion and is the most successful male tennis player in the history of his country...
and won at the XI Open International D'Andorra in Andorra
Andorra
Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, , is a small landlocked country in southwestern Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. It is the sixth smallest nation in Europe having an area of...
. Aisam then took part in the Open de Montauban in Montauban
Montauban
Montauban is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse....
, France, where he and Mankad reached the semi-finals. At The LTA Nottingham Challenger in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, UK, they both again reached the semis. Next, at The Manchester Trophy in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, UK he partnered Lovro Zovko to the final.
Aisam reached the singles challenger semi-finals at the Arroyo de la Encomienda in Valladolid
Valladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
, Spain. In the same tournament he reached the doubles final with Michael Ryderstedt. After missing the previous tie, Aisam took part in the Davis cup relegation play-off final against favourites New Zealand. He assisted Pakistan in causing a huge upset when they won 3–2 to stay in Asia/Oceania Group I. He travelled to Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
and won another singles futures title. In his final event of the season, Aisam partnered Jason Marshall to the Audi Challenger semi-final held in Groningen, Netherlands. Aisam finished the season ranked 199th in singles and 136th in doubles.
2005
In WolfsburgWolfsburg
Wolfsburg is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the River Aller northeast of Braunschweig , and is mainly notable as the headquarters of Volkswagen AG...
, Germany, Aisam played at the Volkswagen Challenger, where partnered by Lovro Zovko
Lovro Zovko
Lovro Zovko is a professional Croatian tennis player.-Tennis career:Early on in 2000 and 2001, Zovko reached the Umag final both years with Ivan Ljubičić....
, he reached the final. At the Davis Cup Pakistan defeated Thailand, with Aisam beating Paradorn Srichaphan
Paradorn Srichaphan
Paradorn Srichaphan is a retired professional tennis player from Thailand. He is the highest ranked men's singles player from Thailand and Asia in history, reaching a career high World No. 9. His nickname is "Ball".-Career:...
7–5 2–6 6–4 6–4. Going to the Heineken Challenger at Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, he reached his second final, this time with Orest Tereshchuk, but they failed to win the final. Aisam went to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
to represent Pakistan at the Islamic Solidarity Games where he won 3 Golds in the singles, doubles and team events. At the Davis Cup he won all his rubbers as Pakistan beat Chinese Taipei to reach the World Group play-offs for the first time.
He returned to action in the Fergana Challenger, in Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, with Tereshchuk where they reached the semis. He travelled to Surbiton
Surbiton
Surbiton, a suburban area of London in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, is situated next to the River Thames, with a mixture of Art-Deco courts, more recent residential blocks and grand, spacious 19th century townhouses blending into a sea of semi-detached 20th century housing estates...
, UK to play at the first grass court event of the season at The Surbiton Trophy, where with Stephen Huss he made it to the semi-final. Aisam stayed in Europe to play at the Arpa Ceramic Cup in Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
, Italy, and reached another doubles semi-final, with Mustafa Ghouse. Returning to the UK, he played at The LTA Summer Challenger, in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, UK for his third doubles final, paired with Jean-Michel Pequery
Jean-Michel Pequery
Jean-Michel Pequery is a retired French professional tennis player. During his career, he competed exclusively in Challengers and Futures tournaments, except for two showings in the doubles main draw of ATP Tour-level tournaments...
, but Aisam still failed to win a final.
There was more struggling for Aisam at the III Challenger Diursa in Valladolid
Valladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
, Spain, where with Igor Zelenay, he could only get to the doubles semi-final. However, Aisam stayed in Spain to take part at the Open de Tenis Amaya in Pamplona
Pamplona
Pamplona is the historial capital city of Navarre, in Spain, and of the former kingdom of Navarre.The city is famous worldwide for the San Fermín festival, from July 6 to 14, in which the running of the bulls is one of the main attractions...
, where with Zovko, they won the final and gave Aisam his first doubles Challenger title of the year. He continued his partnership with Zovko as they went to Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
to play at the Samarkand Challenger in Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, but fell at the semi-final.
Pakistan faced Chile at the World Group play-offs. Aisam lost to Nicolás Massú
Nicolás Massú
Nicolás Alejandro Massú Fried , nicknamed Vampiro , is a Chilean tennis player, a former world number nine in singles, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist...
2–6 6–7(4) 1–6, and then with Aqeel Khan
Aqeel Khan
Aqeel Khan is the current Pakistani number two and National Champion in tennis. His favourite surface is Grass. He is coached by Pakistani tennis coach Jamil Khan, who is his father...
in the doubles, they were beaten by Massu and Fernando González
Fernando González
----Fernando Francisco González Ciuffardi is a professional tennis player from Chile. He is known for having one of the hardest forehands on the circuit. In Spanish he is called El Bombardero de La Reina and Mano de Piedra...
1–6 3–6 0–6 as Pakistan fell to a 5–0 loss. In December, Asiam won a singles futures title in India. He ended the year ranked 450th in singles and 168th in doubles.
2006
Aisam played at the Davis Cup where he wasn’t able to help Pakistan, as they lost to Chinese Taipei 3–2. He travelled to the UK where he won a doubles futures title with Jean-François Bachelot.At the Davis Cup, Pakistan were beaten by India, despite Aisam winning both his matches. The season continued to be a struggle, however, in June he made it to only his second ever ATP tournament at the Ordina Open
Ordina Open
The Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, now sponsored by UNICEF and called the UNICEF Open, is a tennis tournament on the ATP Tour and WTA Tour held in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.-Singles:-Doubles:-Singles:-Doubles:-External links:*...
in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, losing out to third seed Mario Ančić
Mario Ancic
Mario Ančić is a retired Croatian professional tennis player. He won three singles titles and five doubles titles. His highest international ranking came during the 2006 ATP Tour, when he reached no. 7 in singles...
, 6–7(3) 7–6 5–7, in a closely fought match.
He finally reached his first Challenger final of the year at the Bukhara Challenger, in Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, reaching the doubles final with Indian Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
, but lost in straight sets. Aisam returned to Davis Cup action, but Pakistan fell to their third loss of the year, losing to China. This saw them relegated back to Asia/Oceania Group II.
Going to India, he took part at the ATP tournament there, at the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open
Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open
The Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was part of the International Series of the ATP Tour...
in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, and paired up with Leander Paes
Leander Paes
Leander Adrian Paes, pronounced pās, is an Indian professional tennis player who currently features in the doubles events in the ATP tour and the Davis Cup tournament...
. They beat Paraguay's Ramón Delgado
Ramon Delgado
Ramón Delgado is a tennis player from Paraguay, who turned professional in 1995. At the 1998 French Open, he defeated Pete Sampras in the second round. He has not won a single title during his career so far...
and Greek Konstantinos Economidis
Konstantinos Economidis
Konstantinos Economidis is a professional Greek tennis player. In 2007, he qualified for the French Open and defeated Australian Chris Guccione in the first round before losing to Tommy Robredo in the second round. He suffered injury in 2008 and in January 2010 was ranked 653 in the world. He...
6–4 6–4. But they lost the quarter-final to third seeds and eventual champions Mario Ančić
Mario Ancic
Mario Ančić is a retired Croatian professional tennis player. He won three singles titles and five doubles titles. His highest international ranking came during the 2006 ATP Tour, when he reached no. 7 in singles...
and Indian Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Shrinivas Bhupathi is an Indian professional tennis player widely regarded as among the best doubles players in the world with 11 Grand Slam titles to his credit. In 1997, he became the first Indian to win a Grand Slam tournament...
6–1 7–5. In the first Indo-Pak tennis series, he and Aqeel Khan were beaten in the 5 rubber tournament 3–2. He stayed in India to play on the futures circuit, where he won a single futures title. At the 2006 Asian Games
Tennis at the 2006 Asian Games
Tennis were contested at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar from December 2 to December 14, 2006. Tennis had team, doubles, and singles events for men and women, as well as a mixed doubles competition. The tennis competition was held at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex.-Medal summary:Also...
in Doha
Doha
Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
, Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
, Aisam reached the singles third round. In the doubles, he and Aqeel Khan progressed to the quarter-finals where they were beaten by first seeds and eventual champions Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Shrinivas Bhupathi is an Indian professional tennis player widely regarded as among the best doubles players in the world with 11 Grand Slam titles to his credit. In 1997, he became the first Indian to win a Grand Slam tournament...
and Leander Paes 2–6 4–6. In the team event they were knocked out in the first round. In December, Aisam was declared ITF player of the month. Aisam ended the year ranked 417th in singles and 365th in doubles.
2007
Aisam started out in 2007 playing a number of Futures tournaments, he won two doubles titles in the UK, one with Stéphane Robert and the second with Purav Raja. Aisam won two more doubles titles with Jamie Baker. He went to the UAE where he won a single futures title and two doubles titles with partner Rameez Junaid. In KuwaitKuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, Aisam won another single and doubles title this time with Purav Raja. He qualified at the ATP tournament in Halle
Halle, North Rhine-Westphalia
Halle is a town in the German Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia and belongs to the district of Gütersloh....
, Germany, for the Gerry Weber Open
2007 Gerry Weber Open - Singles
Roger Federer was the defending champion, but withdrew due to fatigue.Tomáš Berdych won in the final 7–5, 6–4, against Marcos Baghdatis.-Seeds:# Roger Federer # Nikolay Davydenko # James Blake ...
where he beat World number 11, and Wimbledon Semi-finalist Richard Gasquet
Richard Gasquet
Richard Gasquet is a French professional tennis player. He won the mixed doubles Grand Slam title at the 2004 French Open, partnering Tatiana Golovin. His highest ranking in singles is #7. His best achievements in tennis are reaching the semi-finals of Wimbledon in 2007 and later that year...
, 7–6(10) 6–4, which had been the biggest victory of his career to date. Aisam was knocked out in the second round by Philipp Kohlschreiber
Philipp Kohlschreiber
Philipp Kohlschreiber is a tennis player from Germany, who turned professional in 2001. The right-hander has won six doubles and three singles titles. He reached his highest singles ATP-ranking on 28 September 2009, when he achieved a ranking of World No. 22...
4–6 3–6.
He went on to achieve a landmark in his professional career by qualifying for the first time for the main rounds of Wimbledon 2007 Men's Singles
2007 Wimbledon Championships - Men's Singles
Roger Federer won his fifth consecutive Wimbledon to equal the record of Björn Borg, defeating Rafael Nadal in five sets in the final.-Seeds:# Roger Federer # Rafael Nadal # Andy Roddick # Novak Djoković ...
competition. Aisam became the first Pakistani in over 31 years to play at a Grand Slam tournament and the second Pakistani to reach the second round of Wimbledon. He won his first Grand Slam match at Wimbledon against Lee Childs, 6–3 6–4 7–6, making him the second Pakistani player (the first being Haroon Rahim
Haroon Rahim
Haroon Rahim, is a Pakistani former tennis player. The former Pakistan and Asian number one, Rahim was the youngest tennis player ever to play for Pakistan in the Davis Cup at 15 years of age. He was also the highest ranking Pakistani tennis player ever...
in 1976) to reach the second round of Wimbledon, before losing to Marat Safin
Marat Safin
Marat Mikhailovich Safin is a retired Russian tennis player of Tatar descent. Safin won two grand slams and reached the world number 1 ranking during his career. He was also famous for his emotional outbursts and sometimes fiery temper on court. Safin also holds the record for most broken...
2–6, 4–6 and 6–7(4–7).
At the Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships
2007 Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships Singles
Mark Philippoussis was the defending champion but did not compete that year.Fabrice Santoro won in the final 6–4, 6–4 against Nicolas Mahut...
at Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, he continued his good form as he defeated first seed Mardy Fish
Mardy Fish
Mardy Simpson Fish is an American professional tennis player, and Olympic silver medalist. He is a hardcourt specialist...
6–3 6–4. In the second round he beat Nathan Healey
Nathan Healey
Nathan Healey is an Australian tennis player.Turning professional in 1998, Healey has won 3 doubles titles....
7–6(2) 5–7 6–4, to reach the last 8 of an ATP tournament for the first time. However, at the quarter-final Asiam was beaten by Dick Norman
Dick Norman
Dick Norman is a professional tennis player. He has achieved a degree of folk popularity among tennis fans due to his height , his left-handed power game and, in the last few years, his age .Turning professional in 1991, Norman notched up only his 14th Grand Slam...
, 4–6 6–3 4–6. In the doubles, Asiam and Prakash Amritraj
Prakash Amritraj
Prakash Amritraj is a now inactive tour professional tennis player.-Background:Amritaj is the son of Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj, who played at Wimbledon for 17 years and in the Davis Cup for 20 years. He is also the cousin of fellow tour pro Stephen Amritraj, whose father Anand was also a...
were knocked out of the first round by Wesley Moodie
Wesley Moodie
Wesley Moodie is a former professional tennis player from South Africa. Wesley is now retired.-Early life and college career:...
and Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Vetea Santoro is a retired French professional male tennis player from Tahiti. Though not counted among the top ranked players, he had an unusually long professional career – with many of his accomplishments coming toward the end of his career – and he is popular among spectators and other...
0–6 4–6.
Aisam followed up Newport with Challenger Series tournament in the UK at the LTA Manchester Trophy in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and then The LTA Nottingham Challenger in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
. Aisam secured the doubles title with Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
at Manchester. His red hot streak continued as he powered into the singles final at Nottingham, only to be bested by Australian Alun Jones 3–6 6–4 4–6. Aisam did however win back-to-back doubles titles by succeeding in the doubles final at Nottingham with Bopanna.
At the Castilla and León Open Challenger Series tournament in Segovia
Segovia
Segovia is a city in Spain, the capital of Segovia Province in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is situated north of Madrid, 30 minutes by high speed train. The municipality counts some 55,500 inhabitants.-Etymology:...
, Spain, his failure at singles did not seem to trouble Aisam, as he went on to lift his third consecutive doubles Challenger victory with partner Rohan Bopanna. The duo became known as the "Indo-Pak Express". Aisam returned home and picked up the "Salaam Pakistan Awards" alongside footballer Muhammad Essa
Muhammad Essa
Muhammad Essa Khan is a Pakistani footballer playing currently for KRL FC. The striker is also the captain of Pakistan national football team and is one of the most talented football players Pakistan has seen in recent times...
and squash player Maria Toor Pakay
Maria Toor Pakay
Maria Toor Pakay is a Pakistani professional squash player.She is currently ranked 72nd, and is Pakistan No 1.Maria turned pro in 2006....
.
Aisam then travelled to the US to take part in the GHI Bronx Tennis Classic Challenger Series in Bronx to play in the doubles competition. Aisam and Bopanna continued their dominance in the doubles game, as they prepared for the US Open, by winning the hard court challenger, and in the process, forming a 16-match winning streak that spanned four tournaments. In doing so, Aisam won his 50th title including both singles and doubles at all levels.
In order to fulfill his dream of playing at the US Open
U.S. Open (tennis)
The US Open, formally the United States Open Tennis Championships, is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which for men's singles was first contested in 1881...
, Aisam needed to win three qualifying matches. He started out strongly, advancing to the third qualifying round where he met Scoville Jenkins
Scoville Jenkins
Scoville Jenkins is a former professional tennis player on the ATP Tour . He is sometimes referred to by his nickname "Sco"...
of the USA. Aisam pulled out before the third set due to a bout of tendinitis.
Although not fully fit, Aisam returned in time to play at the Kingfisher Airlines Open
2007 Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open
The 2007 Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 11th edition of the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open, and was part of the International Series of the 2007 ATP Tour. It took place at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai, India, from September...
in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, his fourth ATP tournament of the year. It was also the first time Aisam was in the first round draw without needing to qualify or receiving a wildcard. Despite being the highest ranking Asian in the tournament, he was defeated in the first round by Serbian Viktor Troicki
Viktor Troicki
Viktor Troicki is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has Serb and Russian ethnic roots. His paternal grandparents emigrated from Tver and Rostov-on-Don to Serbia in 1917. His career-high ranking is no. 12, achieved on 6 June 2011. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup,...
6–2 6–4. Aisam also resumed his partnership with Bopanna and easily won their first round encounter, beating Indian duo Stephen Amritraj
Stephen Amritraj
Stephen Amritraj is a now inactive professional tennis player who represented India.Amritraj is the son of former world tour player Anand Amritraj and cousin of fellow former pro Prakash Amritraj, both of whom also represented India...
and Somdev Devvarman
Somdev Devvarman
Somdev Devvarman , is a professional Indian tennis player. Three of Devvarman's college conquests, John Isner, Kevin Anderson, and Jesse Levine have successful pro careers. He hit the headlines for being the only collegiate player to have made three consecutive finals at the NCAA, winning...
6–3 6–2. In the quarters, they faced Iván Navarro Pastor and Sergio Roitman
Sergio Roitman
Sergio Andres Roitman in Buenos Aires, Argentina, nicknamed Escopeta is a retired professional tennis player from Argentina....
, who pulled out, allowing Aisam to reach his first ATP semi-final. The Qureshi-Bopanna partnership beat Lars Burgsmüller
Lars Burgsmuller
Lars Burgsmüller , is a male German tennis player.-Singles :-Doubles:-External link, references:* *...
and Olivier Rochus
Olivier Rochus
Olivier Rochus is a Belgian tennis player. He was born in Namur, Belgium, and currently resides in Auvelais, Belgium.-Career:...
, 6–2 6–3. In Aisam's first career ATP tournament final, the duo faced third seeds Robert Lindstedt
Robert Lindstedt
Robert Lindstedt is a Swedish professional tennis player, who turned pro in 1998, and is a doubles specialist...
and Jarkko Nieminen
Jarkko Nieminen
Jarkko Kalervo Nieminen is a professional tennis player from Finland.His highest ranking is 13th, which was achieved on July 10, 2006. He has won one ATP singles title and two doubles titles in his career so far. His best performances in Grand Slam tournaments have been reaching the quarter-finals...
, but lost, 6–7 (3) 6–7 (5), the end of their 19-match win streak.
At the Tarka Challenger in Barnstaple
Barnstaple
Barnstaple is a town and civil parish in the local government district of North Devon in the county of Devon, England, UK. It lies west southwest of Bristol, north of Plymouth and northwest of the county town of Exeter. The old spelling Barnstable is now obsolete.It is the main town of the...
, UK, Aisam teamed up with Frederik Nielsen and won the tournament. As his singles ranks rose into the top 150, making him the third-best Asian player, he took part in the second Indo-Pak tennis series. He and Aqeel Khan were beaten in the 3 rubber first leg 2–1 but won the second leg 2–1 to tie the series. Returning to the Challenger circuit at the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
, Malaysia, he was runner up with Bopanna in the doubles. Aisam went to New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, India to play in the second to last Challenger event of the year, though he lost the doubles final with Boanna, he won his first Challenger singles title with a victory against surprise finalist Jae Sung An 7–5 6–4 and with that reaching the top 130. Asiam spent the rest of December in India to prepare for the following season, with Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza is a professional Indian tennis player. She began her tennis career in 2003 and is well known for her powerful forehand ground strokes. She is the first ever Indian to break into the top 30 WTA rankings...
, Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Bhupathi
Mahesh Shrinivas Bhupathi is an Indian professional tennis player widely regarded as among the best doubles players in the world with 11 Grand Slam titles to his credit. In 1997, he became the first Indian to win a Grand Slam tournament...
and Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
. Aisam ended the year ranked 125th in singles and 90th in doubles.
2008
Aisam began the season at the Chennai Open in ChennaiChennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, India. He missed the singles qualifiers due to unrest in Pakistan, but made it in time to play doubles alongside Croat Marin Čilić
Marin Cilic
Marin Čilić , is a Croatian professional tennis player. His career high ATP ranking is no. 9, achieved on 22 February 2010, following his best-ever performance at a Grand Slam, reaching the semi-finals in the 2010 Australian Open...
. They defeated first round opponents Mustafa Ghouse and Karan Rastogi
Karan Rastogi
Karan Rastogi is an Indian tennis player. He started playing tennis at the age of 3. In 2003, he turned professional. He reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open Junior Championship in 2004...
both from India, 6–4 7–6(1). In the quarter-finals they faced second seeds Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský
Jaroslav Levinský is a professional doubles tennis player from the Czech Republic.-Mixed doubles: 1 :-Doubles: 5 :-External links:...
and Michal Mertiňák
Michal Mertinák
Michal Mertiňák is a professional tennis player from Slovakia. He turned professional in 1999, and has won six doubles titles in his career on the ATP Tour. He reached his career high doubles ranking of No. 35 on June 12, 2006. Mertiňák played in the 2005 Davis Cup for Slovakia, who finished...
, who they over came 6–1 7–5. In the semis they were beaten by eventual title winners Sanchai Ratiwatana
Sanchai Ratiwatana
Sanchai Ratiwatana is a professional tennis player from Thailand. He turned professional in 2004....
, and Sonchat Ratiwatana
Sonchat Ratiwatana
Sonchat Ratiwatana is a professional tennis player from Thailand. In 2007, Sonchat and his twin brother Sanchai Ratiwatana won their first ATP doubles title in Bangkok in their home country...
from Thailand 6–2 2–6 4-10. His doubles ranking rose to a new high of 82nd. Coincidentally, the Qureshi-Cilic partnership entered the 2008 doubles race ranked at 9th. Qureshi entered the qualification draw for men's singles at the 2008 Australian Open. He was seeded 16 but lost in the first round in a tight three set match. Back on the Challenger circuit, Aisam teamed up with Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn is a professional male tennis player from Russia. He made it into the top 100 for the first time in 2006, and reached a career-high singles ranking of 35 on July 6, 2009.-Early life:...
and reached the Heilbronn Open final in Heilbronn
Heilbronn
Heilbronn is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is completely surrounded by Heilbronn County and with approximately 123.000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state....
, Germany.
Aisam went to the USA to play at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships
2008 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships - Doubles
Hugo Armando and Xavier Malisse were the defending champions, but lost in the first round to Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan.Max Mirnyi and Jamie Murray won in the final 6–4, 3–6, 10–6, against Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan.-Seeds:...
. With Bobby Reynolds
Bobby Reynolds
----Robert "Bobby" Thomas Reynolds in Cape Cod, Massachusetts) is an American professional tennis player who resides in Acworth, Georgia.-Professional career:...
they beat Amer Delic
Amer Delic
Amer Delić is a Bosnian tennis player. Representing the United States as a tour player until 2009, he now represents the country of his birth, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is a member of its Davis Cup team....
and Rajeev Ram
Rajeev Ram
Rajeev Ram is an American professional tennis player on the ATP Tour. Rajeev is a tall, lanky player with a serve-and-volley style who is known best as a doubles specialist. He has advanced as far as the quarter-finals in doubles at three Grand Slams, most recently with Scott Lipsky at the 2011...
6–1 6–7(3) 10-5. In the quarter-finals they lost to first seeds and world number ones Bob Bryan
Bob Bryan
Robert Charles "Bob" Bryan is an American male professional tennis player. With his twin brother Mike, he has spent over 200 weeks as a World No. 1 doubles player. He has won eighteen Grand Slam titles, 11 in men's doubles and seven in mixed doubles. He turned professional in 1998...
and Mike Bryan
Mike Bryan
Michael Carl "Mike" Bryan is an American professional tennis player. He stands tall, weighs 192 lbs and plays right-handed. He turned professional in 1998. With his twin brother Bob, he has been World No...
4–6 4–6. He then paired up with long time doubles partner Bopanna at the SAP Open
2008 SAP Open - Doubles
Eric Butorac and Jamie Murray were the defending champions. They were both present but did not compete together.Butorac partnered with Todd Perry, but lost in the first round to Sanchai Ratiwatana and Sonchat Ratiwatana....
in San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, and were knocked out of the first round by third seeds Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi is a professional tennis player from Belarus.Today Mirnyi is a doubles specialist, but he also enjoyed a good singles career, finishing in the top 50 in the world for seven straight years, as well as representing Belarus in Davis Cup competition since April 1994, where he holds a...
and Jamie Murray
Jamie Murray
Jamie Robert Murray is a British tennis player from Scotland who specialises in doubles and is Britain's number 1 doubles player. He is the older brother of Andy Murray. He won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title in 2007 with Jelena Janković. Murray had an early career partnership with Eric Butorac,...
4–6 4–6.
Aisam and Bopanna were given wildcards for the Dubai Tennis Championships
2008 Dubai Tennis Championships - Men's Doubles
Fabrice Santoro and Nenad Zimonjić were the defending champions. They were both present but did not compete together.Santoro partnered with Richard Gasquet, but lost in the quarterfinals to Simon Aspelin and Julian Knowle....
and defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu
Paul-Henri Mathieu
Paul-Henri Mathieu is a French tennis player.-Tennis career:Mathieu was born in Strasbourg, France. He first began playing tennis at age 3, with his older brother Pierre-Yves. Between 1997 and 2000 he trained at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida...
and Igor Andreev
Igor Andreev
Igor Valerievich Andreev is a Russian professional tennis player, born in Moscow.-2003:Andreev made his ATP debut in September 2003 at Bucharest, Romania as a qualifier and defeated top seed Nikolay Davydenko 7–5, 6–7, 6–0 in the first round, before losing in the next round to José Acasuso.At the...
7–5 6–4 in the first Round. In the quarter-finals, they squandered a one set advantage against first seeds Daniel Nestor
Daniel Nestor
Daniel Mark Nestor, CM , born Danijel Nestorović September 4, 1972, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, is a Serbian-born Canadian professional tennis player from Toronto, Ontario, Canada....
and Nenad Zimonjić
Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjić is a professional Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 3 in men's doubles. He is the second tennis doubles player from Serbia to hold the World No.1, after Slobodan Živojinović.-Career:...
, losing 2–6, 7–6(5), 10-6. Aisam was called up the Pakistan Davis Cup squad and prepared for the hectic Asia/Oceania Group III schedule. During the Davis Cup, he was inspired form, as Pakistan won each tie 3-0 to gain promotion back to Asia/Oceania Group II. He went to Lanzarote
Lanzarote
Lanzarote , a Spanish island, is the easternmost of the autonomous Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 km off the coast of Africa and 1,000 km from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering 845.9 km2, it stands as the fourth largest of the islands...
, Spain and reached the doubles final of the VII Open Isla de Lanzarote with Gilles Müller
Gilles Müller
Gilles Müller is a Luxembourgish professional tennis player. He was a US Open junior champion and is the most successful male tennis player in the history of his country...
, but were beaten 2–6 6–7, however this saw his doubles ranking rise to 67th.
Then in New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, India, Aisam took part in the New Delhi Challenger, and was knocked out in the quarter-finals to World No. 78 Yen-Hsun Lu 7-6 3-6 5-7. He teamed up with Bopanna for the French Open
2008 French Open - Men's Doubles
Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor were the defending champions. They were both present but did not compete together.Knowles partnered with Mahesh Bhupathi, but lost in the first round to Stephen Huss and Ross Hutchins....
where in a tough first round draw they took on first seeds Bob Bryan
Bob Bryan
Robert Charles "Bob" Bryan is an American male professional tennis player. With his twin brother Mike, he has spent over 200 weeks as a World No. 1 doubles player. He has won eighteen Grand Slam titles, 11 in men's doubles and seven in mixed doubles. He turned professional in 1998...
and Mike Bryan
Mike Bryan
Michael Carl "Mike" Bryan is an American professional tennis player. He stands tall, weighs 192 lbs and plays right-handed. He turned professional in 1998. With his twin brother Bob, he has been World No...
for the second time in a year, but lost 1-6 4-6. They both moved on to Wimbledon
2008 Wimbledon Championships - Men's Doubles
Arnaud Clément and Michaël Llodra were the defending champions, but were forced to withdraw due to a left arm injury for Llodra.Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić won in the final 7–6, 6–7, 6–3, 6–3, against Jonas Björkman and Kevin Ullyett.-Seeds:...
and knocked out Polish 10th seeds Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg is a left-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Marcin Matkowski; they have been playing together since 2003....
and Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski is a right-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Mariusz Fyrstenberg; they have been playing together since 2003, he occasionally plays mixed doubles with Caroline Wozniacki.Matkowski and Fyrstenberg qualified as the eighth...
6-3 7-5 6-4. In the second round they lost to Marcel Granollers-Pujol and Santiago Ventura Bertomeu
Santiago Ventura Bertomeu
Santiago Ventura is a retired tennis player from Spain. He was born in Castellón, Spain and lives in Burriana, Spain. He is a clay court specialist and is known for the considerable use of drop-shots during his matches.-Singles :...
2-6 4-6 2-6.
He went to play a Challenger in Dublin, Ireland and with Prakash Amritraj
Prakash Amritraj
Prakash Amritraj is a now inactive tour professional tennis player.-Background:Amritaj is the son of Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj, who played at Wimbledon for 17 years and in the Davis Cup for 20 years. He is also the cousin of fellow tour pro Stephen Amritraj, whose father Anand was also a...
they beat Jonathan Marray
Jonathan Marray
Jonny Marray is a British tennis player who represents Yorkshire. As of June 2009 he is the 9th highest ranked player in Britain....
and Frederik Nielsen
Frederik Nielsen
Frederik Løchte Nielsen is a professional male tennis player. Nielsen competes mainly on the ATP Challenger Tour, in both singles and doubles....
it the doubles final 6-3 7-6. Aisam returned to the USA to play at the Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships
2008 Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships - Singles
Fabrice Santoro was the defending champion, and won in the final 6–3, 7–5, against Prakash Amritraj.-Seeds:The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.# Mardy Fish # Fabrice Santoro ...
where took on Benjamin Becker
Benjamin Becker
Benjamin Becker is a German professional tennis player. Becker's primary weapon is a very big serve that he can hit at up to 220km/h, along with powerful groundstrokes....
in the singles first round and won 7-5 7-6. In the second round he was defeated by second seed and defending champion Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Vetea Santoro is a retired French professional male tennis player from Tahiti. Though not counted among the top ranked players, he had an unusually long professional career – with many of his accomplishments coming toward the end of his career – and he is popular among spectators and other...
6-7 2-6. In the doubles
2008 Campbell's Hall of Fame Championships - Doubles
Jordan Kerr and Jim Thomas were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.Mardy Fish and John Isner won in the final 6–4, 7–6, against Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi-Seeds:# Nicolas Mahut / Fabrice Santoro ...
, he and Bopanna were seeded 4th, the first time both have been seeded in an ATP event. In the first round they beat Tripp Phillips
Tripp Phillips
Owen Thomas Phillips III is an American professional tennis player. Phillips mainly plays doubles.-Early life:...
and Jim Thomas
Jim Thomas (tennis)
Jim Thomas is a professional American tennis player. His highest ATP singles ranking was World No. 288, which he reached on November 2, 1998. His career high in doubles was at 29 set at August 21, 2006....
4-6 6-3 10-2. They won their quarter-final 7-6 3-6 10-7 Kevin Anderson
Kevin Anderson (tennis)
Kevin Anderson is a male South African tennis player.He became the top-ranked South African player on 10 March 2008 after making the final at the 2008 Tennis Channel Open in Las Vegas...
and James Cerretani
James Cerretani
James Cerretani is an American professional tennis player. A doubles specialist, he has won three ATP World Tour titles in his career. He reached his career-high doubles ranking of World No...
and followed that up by defeating Rik de Voest
Rik de Voest
Rik de Voest is a professional South African tennis player. As of September 6, 2007, de Voest's career-high ranking was World Number 110, which he achieved on August 21, 2006....
and Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable doubles titles on tour. The doubles specialist reached his highest doubles ranking...
in the semis 5-7 6-4 11-9. In the second ATP doubles final of his career, they faced Mardy Fish
Mardy Fish
Mardy Simpson Fish is an American professional tennis player, and Olympic silver medalist. He is a hardcourt specialist...
and John Isner
John Isner
John Robert Isner is an American professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high rank of no. 18 on July 5, 2010, and has been as high as the second-ranked American tennis player behind Andy Roddick...
, but despite being favourates, they lost 4-6 6-7.
They then went to Indianapolis
2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships
The 2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 21st edition of the Indianapolis Tennis Championships, and was part of the International Series of the 2008 ATP Tour. It took place at the Indianapolis Tennis Center in Indianapolis,...
where Aisam lost his first round Singles
2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships - Singles
Dmitry Tursunov was the defending champion, but Gilles Simon defeated him 6–4, 6–4, in the final.-Seeds:# James Blake # Gilles Simon # Dmitry Tursunov # Sam Querrey Tommy Haas ...
match to Wayne Odesnik
Wayne Odesnik
Wayne Odesnik is a professional left-handed American tennis player, with a two-handed backhand.His career-high in singles was # 77, as of April 13, 2009...
4-6 5-7. In the doubles
2008 Indianapolis Tennis Championships - Doubles
Juan Martín del Potro and Travis Parrott were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.Ashley Fisher and Tripp Phillips won in the final 3–6, 6–3, 10–5, against Scott Lipsky and David Martin.-Seeds:...
, he and Bopanna defeated 4th seeds Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn is a professional male tennis player from Russia. He made it into the top 100 for the first time in 2006, and reached a career-high singles ranking of 35 on July 6, 2009.-Early life:...
and Dmitry Tursunov
Dmitry Tursunov
Dmitry Igorevich Tursunov is a Russian professional male tennis player. He was 12 years old when he came to the United States to train and further his prospects of becoming a professional player....
2-6 7-5 10-6. In the second round Bopanna picked up an injury and retired at 2-6 0-1 against eventual champions Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable doubles titles on tour. The doubles specialist reached his highest doubles ranking...
and Tripp Phillips
Tripp Phillips
Owen Thomas Phillips III is an American professional tennis player. Phillips mainly plays doubles.-Early life:...
. Aisam went back to playing challengers to Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
to play at the lBH Tenis Open International Cup 2008 where he reached the singles quarter-finals and in the doubles, he and Mexican Santiago González won the title. In Campos do Jordao
Campos do Jordão
Campos do Jordão is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population in 2003 was 47,903 and the area is 290.27 km². The elevation is 1,628 m....
, at the Credicard Citi Mastercard Tennis Cup, Aisam was defeated at the semi-finals in both singles and doubles. He and Bopanna played at the 2008 Legg Mason Tennis Classic
2008 Legg Mason Tennis Classic - Doubles
Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.Marc Gicquel and Robert Lindstedt won in the final 7–6, 6–3, against Bruno Soares and Kevin Ullyett.-Seeds:# Bruno Soares / Kevin Ullyett ...
they were defeated in the first round by third seeds Rik de Voest
Rik de Voest
Rik de Voest is a professional South African tennis player. As of September 6, 2007, de Voest's career-high ranking was World Number 110, which he achieved on August 21, 2006....
and Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher
Ashley Fisher is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable doubles titles on tour. The doubles specialist reached his highest doubles ranking...
4-6 4-6.
Aisam took part in the US Open
2008 U.S. Open (tennis)
The 2008 US Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 128th edition of the US Open, and the fourth and final Grand Slam event of the year...
. In the Singles he faced former World No 1 and French Open champion Carlos Moyà
Carlos Moyá
Carlos Moya Llompart is a retired former world no. 1 tennis player from Spain. He was the French Open singles champion in 1998 and was the singles runner-up at the 1997 Australian Open. In 2004, he helped his country win the Davis Cup. He currently resides in Switzerland...
in the first round but lost 4-6 7-6 6-7 2-6. In the Doubles he and Bopanna openeed against Marc Gicquel
Marc Gicquel
Marc Gicquel is a professional male tennis player from France. He turned pro in 1999.-Tennis career:...
and Sébastien Grosjean
Sébastien Grosjean
Sébastien René Grosjean is a retired tennis player from France. His career-high ATP Entry ranking is No. 4 . He retired from tennis on May 27, 2010.-Career:...
, losing 5-7 3-6. He then appeared in the Thailand Open
2008 Thailand Open - Singles
Dmitry Tursunov was the defending champion, but chose not to participate that year.Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won in the final 7–6, 6–4, against Novak Djokovic.-Seeds:The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.# Novak Djokovic ...
, losing in the first round to Swedish 6th seed Robin Söderling
Robin Söderling
Robin Bo Carl Söderling is a professional tennis player from Sweden who is currently ranked number 13 in the ATP rankings. Söderling reached successive French Open finals in 2009 and 2010...
2-6 4-6. In the doubles
2008 Thailand Open - Doubles
Sanchai Ratiwatana and Sonchat Ratiwatana were the defending champions, but lost in the first round to Julien Benneteau and Nicolas Mahut.Lukáš Dlouhý and Leander Paes won in the final 6–4, 7–6, against Scott Lipsky and David Martin.-Seeds:...
, he and Bopanna lost 6-7 6-4 7-10 to first seeds Lukáš Dlouhý
Lukáš Dlouhý
Lukáš Dlouhý is a professional Czech tennis player on the ATP Tour. A doubles specialist, Dlouhý reached a career-high ranking of World Number 5 on June 22, 2009.-2006-2008:...
and Leander Paes
Leander Paes
Leander Adrian Paes, pronounced pās, is an Indian professional tennis player who currently features in the doubles events in the ATP tour and the Davis Cup tournament...
. Then in the Stockholm Open, Aisam teamed up with Mario Ančić
Mario Ancic
Mario Ančić is a retired Croatian professional tennis player. He won three singles titles and five doubles titles. His highest international ranking came during the 2006 ATP Tour, when he reached no. 7 in singles...
, however they were unable to get past the first round, losing to first seeds Jonas Björkman
Jonas Björkman
Jonas Lars Björkman is a former World Number 4 Swedish professional tennis player. He is also a former World No. 1 in doubles. Björkman retired from professional tennis after competing at the 2008 Tennis Masters Cup Doubles championships....
and Kevin Ullyett
Kevin Ullyett
Kevin Ullyett is a former professional tennis player from Zimbabwe. His primary success on the tour has been in men's doubles. He has won 24 doubles titles, including the 2001 US Open and the 2005 Australian Open, both with Wayne Black...
5-7 4-6.
He travelled to Kolding
Kolding
Kolding is a Danish seaport located at the head of Kolding Fjord in Region of Southern Denmark . It is the site of the council Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre, and has numerous industrial companies, principally geared towards shipbuilding...
, Denmark to play in the Kobstaedernes ATP Challenger, reaching the doubles semi-finals before going on to Russia to take part in St. Petersburg Open
2008 St. Petersburg Open - Doubles
Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.Travis Parrott and Filip Polášek won in the final 3–6, 7–6, 10–8, against Rohan Bopanna and Max Mirnyi-Seeds:...
where he partnered Rogier Wassen
Rogier Wassen
Rogier Wassen is a Dutch tennis player who competes regularly on the ATP Tour as a doubles player.Wassen reached his highest doubles ranking on the ATP Tour on 10 September 2007 when he became world no. 24. The right-hander has won three ATP doubles titles...
and in the first round they exited against Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn
Igor Kunitsyn is a professional male tennis player from Russia. He made it into the top 100 for the first time in 2006, and reached a career-high singles ranking of 35 on July 6, 2009.-Early life:...
and Marat Safin
Marat Safin
Marat Mikhailovich Safin is a retired Russian tennis player of Tatar descent. Safin won two grand slams and reached the world number 1 ranking during his career. He was also famous for his emotional outbursts and sometimes fiery temper on court. Safin also holds the record for most broken...
3-6 6-2 9-11.
Aisam then went to play in Challenger in Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan at the Keio Challenger International Tennis Tournament where he reach the singles quarterfinals, losing to former Asian number 1 and World No. 36 Hyung-Taik Lee 6-4 4-6 4-6. The Pakistani rounded off the year with a win in the Dunlop Challenger in Toyota, Japan alongside Frederik Nielsen
Frederik Nielsen
Frederik Løchte Nielsen is a professional male tennis player. Nielsen competes mainly on the ATP Challenger Tour, in both singles and doubles....
.
2009
Aisam played in a future event in Sheffield, England, as the 2 seed. Aisam beat British Timothy Bradshaw in the 1st round 6-4 6-0 but lost 6-4 6-2 to Matthew Illingworth in the second.Aisam lost to Matthias Bachinger in the 1st round of qualifying in the Heilbronn Challenger in Germany 7-6(4) 2-6 3-6, and also lost in the first round of doubles with James Auckland. Next week, Aisam went to the Wrocław Challenger but lost in the 2nd round of qualifying. Teaming up with Auckland again, he lost in the second round in the doubles.
Aisam went to the qualifying rounds in the Belgrade Challenger but lost in the 1st round to Julian Reister 7-5 5-7 4-6, Aisam was a break up in the 2nd set and he also missed a match point in the 10th game of the 2nd set as Reister was serving to stay in the match. Aisam teamed up with Lovro Zovko in the Doubles they lost in the final 6-3 2-6 8-10. Aisam teamed up with Prakash Amritraj in the Dubai Championship but lost in the 1st round.
Aisam played in Pakistan's win over Oman in the Davis Cup which they won 4-1. Aisam won his 1st rubber and he won the Doubles match with Aqeel Khan, but did not play in the dead rubbers.
Back on the Challenger Circuit, Aisam traveled to Kyoto, Japan where he beat Chris Guccione in the 1st round 7-6(3) 6-4. He played I.Dodig in the 2nd round, Aisam lost 5-7 1-6, hurting his ankle during the match, but recovered to play in his Doubles Match. Aisam claimed the Doubles Title in Kyoto with partner M. Slanar. Aisam partnered R. Bopanna in the Bangkok Challenger they reached the semi finals but lost in two close Tie-Breakers 6-7(4) 6-7(5) to Elgin & Kudryavtsev.
Qureshi went to the Korat Challenger he teamed up with Rohan Bopanna, where they reached the semi-finals. They defeated Levy and Okun 7-6(5) 3-6 10-6 to reach the final, in which they beat Sanchai
Sanchai Ratiwatana
Sanchai Ratiwatana is a professional tennis player from Thailand. He turned professional in 2004....
and Sonchat Ratiwatana
Sonchat Ratiwatana
Sonchat Ratiwatana is a professional tennis player from Thailand. In 2007, Sonchat and his twin brother Sanchai Ratiwatana won their first ATP doubles title in Bangkok in their home country...
6-3 6-7(5) 10-5. Qureshi & Bopanna had to play their semi-final and final matches on the same day. This meant Qureshi claimed his 2nd title in 3 weeks, Aisam also was a semi-finalist in Bangkok.
Aisam went to the Johannesburg Challenger where he lost in the 1st round.
Aisam travelled to Busan, Korea to take part in the Challenger event. Aisam won his 1st round match against M. Semjan 6-3 6-4, in the 2nd round Aisam won 7-6 6-4 against T. Iwami to reach the Quarter Finals. Qureshi travelled to Fergana where he lost in the 2nd round in the Singles and lost in the Final in the Doubles.
He qualified into the main round of 2009 Wimbledon doubles, paired with Prakash Amritraj. After upsetting the 16th seeds Huss and Hutchins, they next defeated Junaid and Marx in the second round. They faced 4th seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles in the 3rd Round and lost 4-6 7-5 6-7 0-6.
Qureshi lost in the 2nd Round in the Qualifying Rounds in Newport and lost in the 1st Round in the Main Draw in the Doubles.
Qureshi then went to Båstad for the Doubles event but lost in the 1st Round.
Qureshi has gone to Indianapolis to take part in the Singles Qualifiers and the Main Draw in the Doubles where he will be partenerd by Sam Querrey. Qureshi won his 1st Round Qualifier against Joe Bates 6-3 1-6 6-3. Qureshi then faced L.Gregorc in the 2nd Round and won 6-3 7-6 (7-4). Qureshi lost to Alex Bogomolov Jr in the Final Round 5-7 4-6. In the Doubles Qureshi and Querrey made it to the Semi-Finals before losing to E.Gulbis & D.Tursunov 6-1 2-6 8-10.
Qureshi played in the US Open 2009 main draw partnering Jarkko Nieminen. They won the 1st round match defeating A Golubev & D Istomin 4-6 7-6(11) 6-4. They lost in the 2nd round to second seeds Nestor & Zimonjic 7-6(5), 6-3.
On 3 November 2009, Qureshi with his partner James Cerretani defeated Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
and Marco Chiudinelli in straight sets at the Basel Open Doubles. The final score was 6-4, 6-3. Qureshi said this was the greatest achievement of his career. Qureshi and Bopanna teamed up for both Challengers in Aachen & Helsinki and they won both Titles which marked a good end to the year for Qureshi. Qureeshi ended the year Number 59 in the Doubles Ranking.
2010
Qureshi won his first ATP title ever at the 2010 SA Tennis Open2010 SA Tennis Open
The 2010 SA Tennis Open was a tennis tournament played on hard courts indoors. It was the 19th edition of the SA Tennis Open and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2010 ATP World Tour...
in Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, with his partner Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
. They defeated Karol Beck
Karol Beck
Karol Beck is a male tennis player from Slovakia, who turned professional in 2001. He has been ranked as high as 36th in the world .- Career :On October 25, 2004, Beck lost in the final of the St...
and Harel Levy
Harel Levy
Har'el Levy is an Israeli professional male tennis player. Levy's best singles ranking was # 30 in the world in 2001, and his best doubles ranking was # 76 in 2007....
, 2-6, 6-3, [10-5], in the final.
Qureshi and Bopanna then made their second ATP final of the year at the 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II
2010 Grand Prix Hassan II
The 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 26th edition of the Grand Prix Hassan II, and an ATP Tour World 250 event on the 2010 ATP World Tour...
in Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, but were defeated by Robert Lindstedt
Robert Lindstedt
Robert Lindstedt is a Swedish professional tennis player, who turned pro in 1998, and is a doubles specialist...
and Horia Tecău
Horia Tecau
Horia Tecău is a Romanian tennis player who turned pro in 2003, and is a doubles specialist. Tecău is currently ranked 9th in ATP's doubles ranking, being also his highest doubles ranking achieved on August 8, 2011....
, 2-6, 6-3, [7-10].
In May, Qureshi and Bopanna were runners-up in the 2010 Open de Nice Côte d'Azur in Nice, France, falling 6-1 3-6 5-10 to Marcelo Melo
Marcelo Melo
Marcelo Melo is a Brazilian tennis player, currently ranked 22nd in the world in doubles. Alongside regular teammate André Sá, he has reached the Mens Doubles semifinal at the 2007 Wimbledon Championships and the quarterfinal at the 2007 US Open...
and Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares is a professional tennis player from Brazil.Soares's highest singles ranking on the ATP Tour is World No. 221, which he reached in March 2004. Primarily a doubles specialist, his career-high doubles ranking is World No. 14, reached on May 4, 2009...
in the final. Qureshi and Bopanna made the second round in the French Open
2010 French Open
The 2010 French Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 109th edition of the French Open, and the second Grand Slam event of the year...
, but lost to Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra is a French professional tennis player. He is a prolific doubles player with three Grand Slam championships, and has also had success in singles.-Life and career:...
and Julien Benneteau
Julien Benneteau
Julien Benneteau is a professional male tennis player from France. His career-best singles ranking is ATP world no. 32, which he reached in July 2010. He formerly resided in Boulogne Billancourt and now lives in Geneva...
.
Qureshi and Bopanna reached their first ever Grand Slam quarterfinals in the 2010 Wimbledon Championships
2010 Wimbledon Championships
The 2010 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament ran from Monday 21 June until Sunday 4 July 2010. It was the 124th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand...
. In the interim period between Wimbledon and the 2010 US Open
2010 US Open (tennis)
The 2010 US Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts, held from August 30 to September 13, 2010 in the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York City, United States....
, the South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
n duo made an appearance in the semifinals at the 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic
2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic
The 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic was a tennis tournament to played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 42nd edition of this event and was part of the ATP World Tour 500 series of the 2010 ATP World Tour. It took place at the William H.G...
, where they lost to eventual champions Mardy Fish
Mardy Fish
Mardy Simpson Fish is an American professional tennis player, and Olympic silver medalist. He is a hardcourt specialist...
and Mark Knowles
Mark Knowles
Mark Knowles is a former World number 1 doubles professional male tennis player from the Bahamas, who will go down as one of the greatest athletes of his country for his longevity within his sport and charitable contributions off the court.After being awarded a scholarship to the Nick...
after a dramatic straight-sets upset of second seeds Bob and Mike Bryan
Bob and Mike Bryan
Twin brothers Robert Charles Bryan and Michael Carl Bryan are American professional tennis double players. They have been the World No. 1 doubles player for over 270 weeks and have finished the ATP year-end number 1 doubles team a record 7 times...
in the quarterfinal round. The duo had a disappointing second-round exit against Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg is a left-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Marcin Matkowski; they have been playing together since 2003....
and Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski is a right-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Mariusz Fyrstenberg; they have been playing together since 2003, he occasionally plays mixed doubles with Caroline Wozniacki.Matkowski and Fyrstenberg qualified as the eighth...
, the eighth seeds, at the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters shortly before their return to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. In New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, at the last tournament before the US Open
2010 Pilot Pen Tennis
The 2010 Pilot Pen Tennis was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 42nd edition of the Pilot Pen Tennis, and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 Series of the 2010 ATP World Tour, and of the Premier Series of the 2010 WTA Tour. It took place at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis...
, Qureshi and Bopanna reached the final, where they again lost to Lindstedt and Tecău.
In men's doubles at the US Open
2010 US Open – Men's Doubles
Lukáš Dlouhý and Leander Paes were the defending champions, but lost in the first round to Martin Damm and Filip Polášek 6–7, 6–3, 6–4.Bob and Mike Bryan won in the final 7–6, 7–6, against Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi.- Seeds :...
, a 16th-seeded Qureshi and Bopanna again upset the second-seeded team, taking out Daniel Nestor
Daniel Nestor
Daniel Mark Nestor, CM , born Danijel Nestorović September 4, 1972, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, is a Serbian-born Canadian professional tennis player from Toronto, Ontario, Canada....
and Nenad Zimonjić
Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjić is a professional Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 3 in men's doubles. He is the second tennis doubles player from Serbia to hold the World No.1, after Slobodan Živojinović.-Career:...
to advance to the quarterfinals, their second straight quarterfinal showing at a major tournament. They advanced to the semifinals with a straight-sets upset of Wesley Moodie
Wesley Moodie
Wesley Moodie is a former professional tennis player from South Africa. Wesley is now retired.-Early life and college career:...
and Dick Norman
Dick Norman
Dick Norman is a professional tennis player. He has achieved a degree of folk popularity among tennis fans due to his height , his left-handed power game and, in the last few years, his age .Turning professional in 1991, Norman notched up only his 14th Grand Slam...
, the 10th-seeded pairing. In the semifinal, they ousted Eduardo Schwank
Eduardo Schwank
Eduardo Jonatan Schwank is a professional tennis player from Argentina on the ATP Tour. He is currently coached by Javier Nalbandian, the brother of David Nalbandian....
and Horacio Zeballos, Jr., to advance to a meeting with Bob and Mike Bryan of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the final. Qureshi and Bopanna gave the Bryan twins quite a run for the title but eventually lost to them in straight sets, 7-6, 7-6.
Qureshi also partnered with Květa Peschke
Kveta Peschke
Květoslava Peschke, also known as Květa Peschkeová is a professional female tennis player from the Czech Republic. She plays mostly on the baseline, with her best shot being the forehand. Her favourite surfaces are hard court and carpet...
in mixed doubles
2010 US Open – Mixed Doubles
Carly Gullickson and Travis Parrott were the defending champions, but lost in the first round to Gisela Dulko and Pablo Cuevas 2–6, 4–6.Liezel Huber and Bob Bryan won in the final 6–4, 6–4, against Květa Peschke and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi.- Seeds :...
and beat the eighth-seeded team of Vania King
Vania King
Vania King is a Taiwanese American female tennis player. King won both the 2010 Wimbledon Women's Doubles and 2010 US Open Women's Doubles titles with Kazakh partner Yaroslava Shvedova....
and Horia Tecău in the first round, eventually advancing to the quarterfinals (with a win over Yaroslava Shvedova
Yaroslava Shvedova
Yaroslava Vyacheslavovna Shvedova is a Kazakhstani professional tennis player of Russian descent. She has achieved a career high ranking of No. 29 as of 21 June 2010. She has won 1 WTA singles title, 3 ITF Women's Circuit singles titles and 3 doubles titles, including the 2010 Wimbledon and US...
and Julian Knowle
Julian Knowle
----Julian Knowle is an Austrian male professional tennis player. Being a born left-hander Knowle is one of now only few on the ATP Tour who plays his forehand, backhand and even volleys double-handed. He is Austria's most successful doubles player in history by reaching no...
), the semifinals (beating Gisela Dulko
Gisela Dulko
Gisela Dulko is an Argentine female tennis player, who will, as of 4 July 2011, be ranked World No. 51 in singles and No. 4 in doubles. Although she enjoyed a modest success in singles, reaching No. 26 on November 21, 2005, and winning four WTA Tour titles, her speciality has been doubles, where...
and Pablo Cuevas
Pablo Cuevas
Pablo Gabriel Cuevas Urroz is a Uruguayan professional tennis player. Cuevas won the 2008 French Open Men's Doubles title with Luis Horna....
), and the final (beating Anna-Lena Grönefeld
Anna-Lena Grönefeld
Anna-Lena Grönefeld is a professional tennis player from Germany. She turned professional in April 2003.As of September 2011, Grönefeld is the No. 12 tennis player from Germany. She was coached and trained by Rafael Font de Mora in Scottsdale, Arizona until 2006...
and Mark Knowles
Mark Knowles
Mark Knowles is a former World number 1 doubles professional male tennis player from the Bahamas, who will go down as one of the greatest athletes of his country for his longevity within his sport and charitable contributions off the court.After being awarded a scholarship to the Nick...
). In the final, Peschke and Qureshi put up a great fight but eventually lost to Bob Bryan
Bob Bryan
Robert Charles "Bob" Bryan is an American male professional tennis player. With his twin brother Mike, he has spent over 200 weeks as a World No. 1 doubles player. He has won eighteen Grand Slam titles, 11 in men's doubles and seven in mixed doubles. He turned professional in 1998...
and Liezel Huber
Liezel Huber
Liezel Huber is a professional tennis player who competes for, resides in, and is a naturalized citizen of the United States. Huber has won four Grand Slam titles in women's doubles with partner Cara Black, one with Lisa Raymond, and two mixed doubles titles with Bob Bryan. On November 12, 2007,...
in a straight 6-4, 6-4.
Both US Open showings are Qureshi's best yet at any major tournament in any draw, and his partnership with Peschke marks his first outing in the mixed doubles competition of a hard-court major.
2011
Aisam started 2011 by taking part in India Open in doubles, where he reached the quarterfinals. Then he went to the Sydney Open. Partnered with Rohan BopannaRohan Bopanna
Rohan Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player. His singles career high ranking was 213th in 2007. Recently, most of his appearances in professional tournaments has been in doubles matches. He is a member of the Indian Davis Cup team since 2002...
. he reached the semifinals, where they lost to eventual champions Lukáš Dlouhý
Lukáš Dlouhý
Lukáš Dlouhý is a professional Czech tennis player on the ATP Tour. A doubles specialist, Dlouhý reached a career-high ranking of World Number 5 on June 22, 2009.-2006-2008:...
and Paul Hanley
Paul Hanley (tennis)
Paul Jason Hanley is a professional male tennis player from Australia, specialising in doubles. His parents, Jay and Judy, co-own a tennis centre, one of the main reasons Hanley pursued a career in the sport.He lost the 2005 Wimbledon finals in mixed doubles, playing with Tatiana Perebiynis...
7 -5, 4-6, 10-8. Then Qureshi went to the Australian Open
Australian Open
The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court...
,where he and Bopanna reached the third round, before losing to Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra is a French professional tennis player. He is a prolific doubles player with three Grand Slam championships, and has also had success in singles.-Life and career:...
and Nenad Zimonjić
Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjić is a professional Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 3 in men's doubles. He is the second tennis doubles player from Serbia to hold the World No.1, after Slobodan Živojinović.-Career:...
, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
Bopanna and Qureshi's run at the Monte Carlo Masters ended on Saturday, when they were beaten in the semifinals to unseeded South Americans Juan Ignacio Chela
Juan Ignacio Chela
Juan Ignacio Chela is a professional male tennis player from Argentina. Like most Argentine players he is comfortable on Clay courts and owns all six of his career titles on the surface...
and Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares is a professional tennis player from Brazil.Soares's highest singles ranking on the ATP Tour is World No. 221, which he reached in March 2004. Primarily a doubles specialist, his career-high doubles ranking is World No. 14, reached on May 4, 2009...
, 6-2, 6-7(4), 10-7, in 95 minutes.
They advanced to the quarterfinals of Roland Garros, but lost to the Bryan Brothers, 6-7, 6-3, 6-7.
They were top seeds at Gerry Weber Open, which they won by defeating Milos Raonic
Milos Raonic
Milos Raonic is a Canadian professional tennis player from Thornhill, Ontario, Canada.Born in what is now Podgorica, Montenegro, Raonic moved to Canada with his family at the age of 3. Raonic is Canada's highest ATP ranked male singles player and the country's highest ever ranked player since...
and Robin Haase
Robin Haase
Robin Haase is a Dutch tennis player. Haase is currently the highest-ranked Dutch player, with his career high of No. 41 coming on 29 August 2011. He is endorsed by Head and SNS Reaal.-Career:...
, 7-6, 3-6,11-9.
He achieved the ranking of world no. 8 on 6 June 2011.
He reached the semifinals of the US open doubles with Bopanna. Next, he won the Thailand Open doubles with Oliver Marach
Oliver Marach
Oliver Marach is a professional Austrian tennis player. His highest ATP singles ranking is 82nd, which he reached on August 7, 2005. His career high in doubles is 8th, set at October 18, 2010.-Doubles: 14 :...
. This pair defeated Michael Kohlmann
Michael Kohlmann
Michael Kohlmann is a professional tennis player from Germany. Primarily a doubles specialist, he has won five ATP Tour doubles titles in his career. On 5 March 2007, he reached his highest doubles ranking of No...
and Alexander Waske
Alexander Waske
Alexander Waske is a professional male tennis player from Germany. He turned pro in 2000.On June 12, 2006, Waske achieved his career-high singles ranking: World No. 89.-Doubles: 7 :-External links:...
, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in the final.
Aisam and Bopanna won the Stockholm Open, defeating Marcelo Melo
Marcelo Melo
Marcelo Melo is a Brazilian tennis player, currently ranked 22nd in the world in doubles. Alongside regular teammate André Sá, he has reached the Mens Doubles semifinal at the 2007 Wimbledon Championships and the quarterfinal at the 2007 US Open...
and Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares
Bruno Soares is a professional tennis player from Brazil.Soares's highest singles ranking on the ATP Tour is World No. 221, which he reached in March 2004. Primarily a doubles specialist, his career-high doubles ranking is World No. 14, reached on May 4, 2009...
of Brazil, 6-4, 6-3.
Aisam was also nominated for the Stephen Edberg sportsmanship award along with stars like Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked world no. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals since 4 July 2011. He has won four Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open...
, Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
, and Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
.
Bopanna and Qureshi compiled a consistent season, reaching the semifinals or better at seven tournaments in total, including at the US Open, where they were runners-up a year earlier. They also reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, losing to the Bryans.
The greatest achievement of the Indo-Pak express in 2011 was winning the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris. They defeated the pair of Julien Benneteau
Julien Benneteau
Julien Benneteau is a professional male tennis player from France. His career-best singles ranking is ATP world no. 32, which he reached in July 2010. He formerly resided in Boulogne Billancourt and now lives in Geneva...
and Nicolas Mahut
Nicolas Mahut
Nicolas Pierre Armand Mahut is a French tennis player. Mahut is right-handed and has previously won the Orange Bowl in 1999, becoming professional in 2000. He is a good serve and volleyer and a doubles expert, having won many tournaments with his doubles partner Julien Benneteau. His career high...
in the final, 6-2, 6-4. They reached the finals by defeating the third seeds Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi is a professional tennis player from Belarus.Today Mirnyi is a doubles specialist, but he also enjoyed a good singles career, finishing in the top 50 in the world for seven straight years, as well as representing Belarus in Davis Cup competition since April 1994, where he holds a...
and Daniel Nestor
Daniel Nestor
Daniel Mark Nestor, CM , born Danijel Nestorović September 4, 1972, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, is a Serbian-born Canadian professional tennis player from Toronto, Ontario, Canada....
, 6-3, 7-6, in the semifinals and the second seeds Michael Llodra
Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra is a French professional tennis player. He is a prolific doubles player with three Grand Slam championships, and has also had success in singles.-Life and career:...
and Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjić is a professional Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 3 in men's doubles. He is the second tennis doubles player from Serbia to hold the World No.1, after Slobodan Živojinović.-Career:...
, 3-6, 6-4, 10-6, in the quarterfinals.
They became the seventh doubles team to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals on 6 November. In their first round-robin match, they lost to Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi
Max Mirnyi is a professional tennis player from Belarus.Today Mirnyi is a doubles specialist, but he also enjoyed a good singles career, finishing in the top 50 in the world for seven straight years, as well as representing Belarus in Davis Cup competition since April 1994, where he holds a...
and Daniel Nestor
Daniel Nestor
Daniel Mark Nestor, CM , born Danijel Nestorović September 4, 1972, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, is a Serbian-born Canadian professional tennis player from Toronto, Ontario, Canada....
by 7-6, 4-6, 11-9. In their second round-robin match they were defeated by Michael Llodra
Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra is a French professional tennis player. He is a prolific doubles player with three Grand Slam championships, and has also had success in singles.-Life and career:...
and Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjic
Nenad Zimonjić is a professional Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 3 in men's doubles. He is the second tennis doubles player from Serbia to hold the World No.1, after Slobodan Živojinović.-Career:...
by 7-6, 6-3. In their third match, the Polish pair of Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Mariusz Fyrstenberg is a left-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Marcin Matkowski; they have been playing together since 2003....
and Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski
Marcin Matkowski is a right-handed Polish professional tennis player whose speciality is in doubles. His current partner is Mariusz Fyrstenberg; they have been playing together since 2003, he occasionally plays mixed doubles with Caroline Wozniacki.Matkowski and Fyrstenberg qualified as the eighth...
by 6-2, 6-1. Aisam and Rohan lost all the three of their matches in the 2011 ATP World Tour
2011 ATP World Tour
The Association of Tennis Professionals World Tour is the elite professional tennis circuit organized by the ATP. The 2011 ATP World Tour calendar comprises the Grand Slam tournaments , the ATP World Tour Masters 1000, the ATP World Tour 500 series, the ATP World Tour 250 series, the ATP World...
and did not qualify for semi-final.
Personal life
He is engaged to Faha Akmal Makhdum. It is reported that they will marry in December 2011.External links
- File interview with Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi
- Qureshi Recent Match Results
- Qureshi World Ranking History
- Aisam Qureshi, a rarity from Pakistan
- Pakistani doubles star defiant
- Pakistan Sports Board frowns on doubles pairing
- Qureshi & Hadad interview on ESPN
- Hadad-Qureshi doubles team wins Arthur Ashe Award
- Aim to break in the top 100
- Meeting with President
- Qureshi carries Pakistani hopes at Wimbledon 2006
- Qureshi becomes first Pakistani in 31 years to advance
- Profile and Views from Pakistan on Aisam Qureshi
- Tennis star Aisam donates Rs 2.5m to President's Relief Fund
- 2007 Kingfisher Open interview
- Qureshi & Bopanna on their doubles partnership
- Qureshi clinches first Challenger title
- Hard to believe players throw matches for money: Qureshi
- Qureshi hopes to improve ranking for 2008
- Aisam has potential to reach top in tennis, coach Rodrigo
- Aisam vows to put up good show in French Open
- Bopanna and Qureshi team up
- Bopanna and Qureshi spark India-Pakistan tennis diplomacy
- INTERVIEW-Tennis-Open-Friendship not politics behind pairing
- Aisam in US Open
- Indian and Pakistani fans were cheering as one, it was incredible
- Aisam-ul-Haq has made Pakistan proud: PTF
- Personal Choices for a Player During Ramadan
- Aisam beats Federer in Basel Open doubles
- AISAM-UL-HAQ QURESHI: Pakistan's peacemaker
- Friendship aces traditional rivalries
- Two men with one cause: Tennis
- ATP: Bopanna & Qureshi win first title
- ATP: Winners interview
- ATP DEUCE Magazine: Bridging A Great Divide, James Buddell (May 2010)
- Tennis players stand up for Peace and Sport at Wimbledon
- India-Pakistan tennis stars transcend national distrust
- Indian-Pakistani pair happy despite Wimbledon exit
- Aisam-ul-Haq clocked up another record in Pakistan Tennis History
- Indo-Pak Express Triumphs in Halle
- Aisam Ul Haq Engagement News
- Doubles Standouts Talk About Culture and Collaboration
- US FLIGHT SCARE FOR INDO-PAK EXPRESS
- Mixed doubles: Can guys go hard at girls?
- Friends, on and Off the Court
- MARACH-QURESHI VICTORIOUS IN BANGKOK
- BOPANNA-QURESHI BOOST FINALS CHANCES WITH STOCKHOLM TITLE