Asif, Sajjad in high spirits for IBSF World Championships

Pakistan cueists depart to Ireland for prestigious snooker events.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan duo of Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Sajjad is raring to do well in the IBSF 6-Red and Team World Championships that will be played from September 29-October 6 in Carlow, Ireland.

They were due to depart in the early hours today and both were confident of making Pakistan proud by winning a world championship.

Asif, who has failed to do well in the last two national ranking snooker championships, stated that his confidence was high and he was aiming for the title.

“The only thing on my mind is winning the title as I never think about just reaching the final or semi-final,” Asif told The Express Tribune.

“Whether I’m in good form or bad form, the only goal is to become the champion in any tournament I play.

"This helps in motivating me to do well even if the odds are against me. Because my aim is to go for the hardest achievement. This way even the difficult tasks often become easier for me.”

In his view, the experience gained in the Sangsom 6-Red Invitational World Championship will be invaluable as he got to play against the best professional circuit players.

“I’m the Asian 6-Red champion, while I got invaluable experience by playing Sangsom 6-Red Championship as well. I’m now more equipped to take on the best players of the world in the 6-Red format. Furthermore, I hope we do well in the team event as well. Sajjad is a dangerous player on his day.”

Sajjad keen to avoid Asif’s shadow

Sajjad is aiming to make his mark in the two competitions and is determined to make his presence felt despite Asif being the world champion.

“I’m not going to play second fiddle to Asif; that isn’t my mentality,” said Sajjad. “Hopefully this healthy competition will help Pakistan in the 6-Red tournament and one of us will become the champion.”

Over the years, it was Sajjad who was touted as the next big player from Pakistan after the likes of world champion Mohammad Yousuf and Saleh Mohammad before Asif emerged as the best in the country. Sajjad feels that he has not played to his potential over the years and is looking to rectify his shortcomings.

“I’ve been sort of inconsistent over the years, but I’m keen to overcome it and deliver a big title for Pakistan. The 6-Red Championship will be a great test for me as it’s very fast paced and you often don’t get a chance to play in a frame. Such is the nature of the game. I’ll try to make the most of my opportunities while we’ll also complement each other in the team event,” he concluded.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2013.

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