Cue Sports
Pankaj Advani makes a smashing debut by clinching maiden National 9-ball pool title
It turned out to be smashing debut for Pankaj Advani as the country’s most decorated cueist, added another feather to his cap by winning his maiden National 9-ball pool title at the Rotary Bhawan in Ludhiana, Punjab, on Tuesday.
For 25 long years, Advani had stayed away from the fast-paced discipline but when he chose to give it a shot, he turned the event into a memorable debut. Advani, who owns 28 World titles in billiards and snooker, proved that he possesses a high degree of skill and tactical acumen to excel in this high-speed version of cue sports.
Pankaj Advani outplayed Nitin Sharma of Chandigarh 11-6 in the race-to-11 affair in front of an appreciative crowd
Advani proved that he was cut above the rest even in this format as he was hardly tested by the others.
In the final, the PSPB cueist outplayed Nitin Sharma of Chandigarh 11-6 in the race-to-11 affair in front of an appreciative crowd. Advani, who stayed away from the fast-paced discipline for over 25 years, made it a memorable debut.
Pankaj demolishes Kushal 11-5, sets up 9-ball pool final against Chandigarh’s Nitin Sharma
“I can’t believe it, this is a very different title,” said Advani. “It means so much to me winning a sport which is outside of my comfort zone!
“To be an underdog and eventually go on to lift the trophy is something I never imagined in my wildest dreams would happen,” the Bengalurean added.
Advani begins slowly but blazes away soon
Advani may have been a trifle slow to start with on the day, allowing his rival to take a 3-1 lead. But once he caught up with Nitin at 3-3, there was no looking back. He kept his opponent quiet with some clever safety play, and when he erred, which was few and far between, Nitin failed to capitalize.
Advani had a splendid break and run (clearance) in the 13th rack and came up with a brilliant run after a difficult pot of No. 2 in the next to take a vice-like grip over the proceedings (9-5).
A short break helped Nitin return rejuvenated. He took the 15th rack and looked set to make a break and run in the next, but was unlucky to go in-off (scratch) after potting No. 9 to allow Advani inch closer to the title.
Pankaj Advani may have been a trifle slow to start with on the day, allowing his rival to take a 3-1 lead. But once he caught up with Nitin at 3-3, there was no looking back
Advani had a poor opening break in the 17th rack but was lucky to have blocked Nitin, who played off the side rails (read cushion) and left Advani with an opening. He took the offering with glee to lay his hands on the trophy.
S Shrikrishna of PSPB defeated Kushal Chandrasekhar of Karnataka 7-2 to win the third-place playoff.
Natasha meets Shruthi; Aarav takes on Laksh in junior finals
In the junior girls’ semifinals, Karnataka’s Natasha Chetan got the better of Jiya Sehgal of Punjab 6-4. Natasha will take on Tamil Nadu’s L Shruthi, who defeated Sanvi Shah of Madhya Pradesh 6-4.
In the junior boys’ category, Aarav Sancheti of Maharashtra will take on Laksh Sharma of Karnataka in the final. Aarav thrashed Gujarat’s Mayur Garg 6-1, while Laksh gave the same treatment to Delhi cueist Rehaan Misra.
Results (9-ball pool): Men (final): Pankaj Advani (PSPB) beat Nitin Sharma (Chd) 11-6. Third-place playoff: S Shrikrishna (PSPB) beat Kushal Chandrashekar (Kar) 7-2.
Junior boys (semifinals): Aarav Sancheti (Mah) beat Mayur Garg (Guj) 6-1; Laksh Sharma (Kar) beat Rehaan Misra (Del) 6-1. Quarterfinals: Sancheti beat Muawiya Thakor (Guj) 6-3; Garg beat Aabhav Goel (Pun) 6-2; Laksh beat Abdul Saif (TN) 6-5; Misra beat Karan Seshadri (Kar) 6-2.
Junior girls (semifinals): Natasha Chethan (Kar) beat Jiya Sehgal (Pun) 6-4; L Shruthi (TN) beat Sanvi Shah (MP) 6-4.