Manama: Pakistan’s veteran Snooker player Muhammad Asif went on to the final of the IBSF World Masters Snooker Championship with an impressive 4-2 win over India’s Manan Chandra in the semi-finals held on Thursday at Crowne Plaza Bahrain.
The former world’s amateur master showed great determination and jumped back after losing an early setting to take the fight 4-2. The frame scores were 118-6, 0-84, 25-76, 92-11, 87-62 and 72-41.
Asif started the match at a loud when he upper-classed Chandra 118-6 in the opening frame.
Chandra, however, answered strongly as he won the next two frameworks to take the lead, only for Asif to win three consecutive frameworks to end a thumping victory.
In the final, Muhammad Asif faces India’s Vijay Nichani or Brijesh Damani, who previously defeated him in the group stage.
A day earlier, Pakistan’s new cueist Hasnain Akhtar also qualified for the last IBSF World U17 Snooker Championship by defeating Poland’s Oliwier Nizialek 4-0.
The shaped cueist, who has so far only lost a framework in his dominant campaign, took early control over the fight by sealing three consecutive frameworks.
Nizialek, who couldn’t score in double digits in each of the first three frames, offered some fightback in the must-win competition, but his efforts were inadequate for Down Hasnain, ensuring a perfect 4-0 win with the 76-1, 69-8, 88-0 and 62-37.
Hasnain Akhtar faces Wales’ Riley Powell in the final, planning the game on Friday.
In particular, the 16-year-old booked its place in IBSF World U17 Snooker Championship semi-final with a resounding 3-1 win over Poland’s Krzysztof Czapnik.
