Pakistani cueist Muhammad Asif advances to IBSF World Masters final in Bahrain
The 42‑year‑old from Faisalabad — a three‑time IBSF World Amateur Champion (2012, 2019, 2024) and recipient of Pakistan's Pride of Performance Award in 2015 — took the first frame 118‑6 before conceding the next two, then reeled off three straight wins to secure his place in the final.
He will now face Brijesh Damani in the final, scheduled for Friday, 6pm Bahrain Time, 8pm PKT, the IBSF said in a post on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DMOGw_2CAWt/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
'Another Pakistan cueist Hasnain Akhtar has also reached final in the U-17 category of IBSF World Masters Final after beating Oliwier Nizialek of Poland by 4-0,' Radio Pakistan reported.
Asif qualified for the semifinals of the masters after defeating Habib Sabah (Bahrain) 4-0 (68(68)-8, 57-37, 68(68)-8, 40(40)-8) in the quarterfinal on Thursday.
In the pre-quarterfinals, Asif defeated Mohamed Shehab (UAE) 4-2 (56-68, 21-72, 57-21, 80(80)-0, 68-45(43), 68-58).
The IBSF World Snooker Championships are being held in Manama from July 13–24 and feature top amateur players in Masters and youth categories.
Pakistan has a long record of success in amateur snooker.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
12 hours ago
- Arab News
West Indies hold their nerves to beat Pakistan in T20 thriller
LAUDERHILL, Florida: Jason Holder took four wickets and then smashed a boundary off the final ball of the game to lift West Indies to a thrilling two-wicket victory over Pakistan on Saturday and level the three-match Twenty20 cricket international series. The veteran allrounder bowled an inspired spell to take 4-19 off four overs, as Pakistan struggled to 133 for nine after it won the toss and batted in Florida. The West Indies reply also stumbled as Pakistan's spinners kept scoring difficult but late cameos by Gudakesh Motie and Romario Shepherd kept West Indies just about in the contest before Holder's heroics off Pakistan talisman Shahid Shah Afridi's final delivery clinched it. It is the first T20 victory for West Indies in seven matches, a span that includes a heavy 5-0 series defeat to Australia, on top of a test series sweep last month. 'Been a tough couple of weeks for us,' captain Shai Hope said. 'We always try to get better, the guys have put in a lot of hard work. 'Hopefully today is the turnaround we are looking for.' Earlier, Hasan Nawaz's 40 from 23 balls and captain Salman Agha's 38 from 33 deliveries led Pakistan from a precarious 53-4 in the 10th over, but 133 looked a vulnerable target at the innings break. Fresh from taking three wickets in Pakistan's 14-run win in the opening game at the same venue on Thursday, Mohammad Nawaz took another three Saturday, returning 3-14 from his four overs. Like Thursday's game, West Indies found scoring more than five-an-over difficult on the spin-friendly pitch and lost regular wickets. When Roston Chase was teased into a big shot by Saim Ayub (2-20), West Indies had sunk to 70-5 in the 14th over and looking at a steep mountain to climb. West Indies rally Motie got the innings moving with his quickfire 28 from 20 balls before Shepherd chipped in with 15 from 11 balls, including taking 10 runs off Hasan Ali in the second-to-last over to give West Indies a glimpse. Needing eight runs from the final over, Afridi (1-31) removed Shepherd off the second ball, with Holder and new batter Shamar Joseph only able to score singles off the next three balls. Afridi then bowled a wide to leave West Indies needing three runs from the final ball. Holder (16 from 10 balls) then found the gap at backward square to score the boundary they needed and end their six T20 match losing streak. 'We've had a fair bit of criticism which is warranted,' player-of-the-match Holder said. 'We haven't done justice to our potential. 'We can be a lot better, consistency has definitely plagued us.' The third T20 will be held in Lauderhill on Sunday before an ODI series in the Caribbean.
Arab News
14 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan bans future participation in WCL league over ‘hypocrisy,' alleged pro-India tilt
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Sunday announced it was issuing a 'blanket ban' on future participation in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) league, accusing it of being biased in favor of India. The WCL is a T20 tournament held in England every year. It features retired and non-contracted players from cricketing giants, including England, India, Pakistan, Australia, West Indies and South Africa. It is co-owned by Bollywood superstar Ajay Devgn and Harshit Tomar. The tournament became controversial when India refused to play Pakistan in the league stage of the match, and the WCL decided both teams would share the points. India again refused to play Pakistan in the semifinal stage of the tournament, with the Green Shirts advancing on to the final on Sunday. Several Indian players announced they would not take part in matches against Pakistan after the two nations engaged in the worst fighting in decades with each other in May. The WCL had said it respected India's decision to withdraw and Pakistan's willingness to compete. 'The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announces that it is issuing a blanket ban from future participation in the World Championship of Legends (WCL),' the PCB said in a press release following its 79th meeting of the Board of Governors. The PCB said it reviewed 'with considerable disappointment' the WCL's conduct of awarding points to a willfully forfeiting team, and the content of the press releases of the WCL announcing the cancelation of the scheduled India vs. Pakistan legends matches. It said the press releases were 'tainted with hypocrisy and bias.' 'The contents of the said press releases highlight a duality where the narrative of 'peace through sport' is selectively applied and sporting events are held hostage to political expediency and narrow commercial interests,' the cricket board added. The PCB said it has always advocated for the separation of sports and politics, adding that it believes cricket, like other international sports, should solely serve as a platform for goodwill, healthy competition, and mutual respect. 'For a tournament involving legendary players to be dictated by sentiments that undermine this fundamental principle is not only regrettable but also deeply concerning for the future of independent sporting events,' it added. 'The WCL's apology for 'hurting the sentiments', whilst being farcical, inadvertently acknowledges that the cancelation was not based on cricketing merit, but rather on succumbing to a specific nationalistic narrative,' it added. 'This bias, masquerading as sensitivity, sends an unacceptable message to the international sporting community.' The PCB said it can no longer condone participation in an event where the fundamental principles of fair play and 'unbiased administration' are compromised by external pressures. 'We cannot allow our players to be part of events where the spirit of the game is overshadowed by skewed politics that undermines the very essence of sportsmanship and the gentleman's game,' it added. Pakistan were beaten by South Africa in the final of the WCL on Sunday when the Proteas trounced the South Asian giants by nine wickets to claim the tournament.
Arab News
15 hours ago
- Arab News
McIntosh eases into 400 medley final, Marchand almost misses out
Summer McIntosh is on track to finish the world championships with a fourth gold medal after being fastest in the 400 meters individual medley heats while Leon Marchand nearly missed the men's final on the eighth and final day in Singapore on Sunday. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport
