Ahsan wins, Babar goes down in Dhaka

KARACHI: Pakistan met with mixed fortunes in the opening round of the 2nd Sheikh Kamal SAARC Snooker Championship 2022 being staged in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

According to the information shared by the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA) here on Sunday, Ahsan Ramzan began his campaign on a winning note while Babar Masih succumbed to defeat in his first match of SAARC Snooker Championship 2022 at the Dhaka Club.

Pakistan’s premier cueist Ahsan trounced Ankit Man Shresth of Nepal 4-1 with the scores of 79-0, 0-74, 78-11, 68-12, 66-2, firing breaks of 79 and 71 in the first and third frames, respectively, while his opponent registered a break of 74 in the second frame.

Babar, however, was edged out by Brijesh Damani of India who won the seven-frame thriller 4-3 with the scores of 70-8, 97-0, 84-35, 36-81, 0-97, 15-79, 122-0.

Damani got off to a sensational start by constructing breaks of 64 and 97 in successive frames to go 3-0 up in quick time. The under-pressure Babar came into his element to claim the next three frames with swift breaks of 97 and 66.

There was everything to play for both the combatants as they reached the table for the decisive seventh frame.

The Indian cueist closed the deal with a superlative break of 118.

On Monday (today), Babar will take on Muhammad Alamin of Bangladesh while Ahsan will be pitted against another local competitor, Nizamuddin Rossi.