Defending champions India retained their snooker crown by beating Pakistan 3-1 in the final at the Jubilee Insurance’s 2nd Asian Team Event in Karachi on Saturday.
With this result, Pakistan ended as the losing side in the two Asian events as only Hamza Akbar had earlier made an exit in the semi-finals of the 6-Red Continental Championship.
The final saw Faisal Khan dominating Pakistan’s Mohammad Asif as the Indian did not allow the former IBSF world champion even a single point. The second singles set was a similar story for Pakistan as Mohammad Sajjad took away just one point from India.
Pakistan were down 2-0, but salvaged some pride by winning the doubles’ frame that raised meagre hopes of a comeback. However, the expectations were short-lived when Faisal beat Sajjad in the fourth frame and India went on to win the final with scores of 104-0(70), 95-01(91), 26-99 and 83-43.
“We wanted to win the final for our fans so obviously this loss is a big disappointment,” Asif told The Express Tribune.
“India got off to a good start, which initially drove us on the back foot. However, the doubles’ frame win gave us a chance but we failed to capitalise.
“We’re gutted to lose the game against India because it would have been perfect to win the Asian Championship against them.”
Earlier, Pakistan had beaten Thailand 3-1 in the semi-finals by scores of 71-53, 119(85)-12, 01-76 and 62-13 while India got the better of Iran winning with a similar scoreline.
Pakistan Billiards and Snooker Association (PBSA) President Alamgir Sheikh termed the performance of Pakistan ‘depressing’.
“We were hoping that our players will win one of the two; either the Team or the 6-Red Championship, but they failed in both which is depressing,” said Sheikh.
“I’m happy that at least these championships have concluded safely and all the foreign players enjoyed their time in Pakistan.”
Published in The Express Tribune, August 24th, 2014.
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Well done and congratulations ......India We r feeling so proud...