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  • Ssb - advantage advani

    Today the young, exciting star of his sport takes centre stage in the quarter-finals of the BetVictor Welsh Open.


    That player is Pankaj Advani, the world billiards champion, who faces Judd Trump.


    The 22-ball game has always played second fiddle for Advani but he was world amateur snooker champion a decade ago and has beaten three world champions in succession – Peter Ebdon, Shaun Murphy and Graeme Dott – to become the first Indian to appear in a world ranking tournament quarter-final.


    Advani may in the future have to decide where his loyalties lie. Professional billiards currently has just one tournament, the World Championship, but there’s a good chance there will be more of a circuit next season and in the years ahead.


    As for today he can look forward to a meeting with Trump, who played well yesterday without being put under much pressure by a below par Andrew Higginson.

    Stuart Bingham made a great clearance to win the deciding frame against Neil Robertson. He’ll play Ken Doherty, who won the first of his two Welsh Open titles 20 years ago.



    In that final, Doherty defeated Alan McManus, who rallied from 3-0 down to beat Joe Perry 4-3 last night.


    McManus has always been dedicated to snooker. I commentated with him for Eurosport on last season’s World Championship. His stint was up at the end of the two-table phase and he went back to Scotland the next day and into the club to practice.


    It’s not much fun for a former world no.6 to be stuck in qualifiers but it helps if you like the game and also show it respect, which McManus always has done.


    He now faces Stephen Maguire, a fellow Scot who played really well from 2—1 down to beat the last remaining Welshman, Matthew Stevens, 4-2.


    Ding Junhui, the defending champion, maintained his progress with a 4-2 victory over Mark Allen. There was a big moment in the third frame when, trailing 2-0 but poised to clear up, Allen suffered a thunderous kick. He recovered well to just a frame behind but Ding has looked cool all week and duly finished off nicely.


    His quarter-final opponent is Robert Milkins, much improved in recent times having been 55th in the world rankings four years ago.


    He is now in the 20s and playing with evident confidence, as he displayed in dispatching Sam Baird 4-2 last night with a couple of really good clearances.


    More...

  • #2
    I am delighted to see Pankaj Advani demonstrating his huge ability in cuesport and also emphasis in only his first season as a pro. His underastanding of the strokes of the game is enhanced by his billiard knowledge and the way he kept out Murphy in the final frame demonstrated this fully. He is a professional credit to his country and the game in general and a thoughly nice young man as well.
    By the way no English billiards player is now classified as professional.

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