Sohail thrashes Sattar in snooker semi
Fourth-seed Sohail Shahzad survived an early setback to seal his berth in the final of the NBP Ranking Snooker Championship as he outclassed Abdul Sattar 6-3 in the first semi-final held at the Karachi Club.
Shahzad failed to start brightly, allowing Sattar to take control of the first frame, which the unseeded cueist won 76-1. However, Shahzad hit back strongly in the second frame with both cueists employing a defensive strategy as they fought hard for points. The fourth seed managed to sneak out a two-point win and levelled the semi-final 1-1.
Following that, Shahzad gained confidence and stormed to a 3-1 lead by winning the next two frames 62-24 and 66-25. Sattar was then able to reduce the deficit courtesy a 50-35 win but Shahzad won the next two frames 106-62 and 68-65 to take the driver’s seat once again.
Trailing 5-2, Sattar managed to win the eighth frame 72-42 but Shahzad sealed an ultimately comfortable win in the best-of-11-frame contest by winning the ninth frame 68-30. Later, Shahzad admitted that the battle between the two cueists was not an easy one.
“It was a tough match,” Sohail told The Express Tribune. “I started badly and my opponent took full advantage of it. I’m happy with my comeback in the match after losing the first frame.”
Sohail will meet the winner of the second semi-final that will be played between Imran Shahzad and Mohammad Asif today.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 26th, 2011.
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