Snooker: Top-seeds shine on opening day

Asif, Sajjad record wins in national snooker event.

KARACHI:

Pakistan’s top players gave a taste of things to come at the NBP National Ranking Snooker Championship, brushing off their opponents in convincing fashion at the DHA Creek Club.

Mohammad Asif defeated Yasir Nadeem 4-0, while Mohammad Sajjad got the better of Yasir Shehzad 4-2. Asif, who is placed in Group A, won with frame scores of 79-10, 99-12, 66-41, 65-7. Sajjad overcame a slow start, hitting a break of 85 in the second frame and maintained his supremacy to beat the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cueist. Meanwhile, Naveen Perwani defeated Balochistan’s Naeem Jaffar 4-1 in the Group D match.

Imran suffers defeat

However, former Pakistan number one Imran Shehzad faced a stunning 4-3 defeat against Mohammad Ishtiaq. Khurram Agha defeated Farrukh Usman Brohi 4-0, while Mohammad Bilal outplayed Abu Saim 4-3.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2012.