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Express Tribune
21-07-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Pakistani cueists continue to shine at IBSF 6 Reds
Pakistan's Hasnain Akhtar concentrates on his game during the IBSF World Masters, U17, U21 & Men 6Red Snooker Championships 2025 in Manama, Bahrain. PHOTO COURTESY: PBSA Pakistani cueists continued to shine at the IBSF World Masters, U17, U21 & Men 6Red Snooker Championships 2025 as the newly crowned IBSF U17 champion Hasnain Akhtar defeated Egypt's Mohamed Abdelkader 4-0 (70(70)-0, 45-11, 57(35)-7, 48-2). Meanwhile, the 2022 IBSF World Champion Ahsan Ramzan outplayed Oman's Sami Al Hamrashadi 4-0 (60(30)-1, 39-16, 48-9, 50(50)-11) in one-sided matches of the 6Reds championship in Manama, Bahrain on Sunday. The 2025 IBSF Masters Champion Muhammad Asif also outclassed Ireland's Jay Chopra 4-0 (66(66)-0, 75(75)-0, 54(33)-8, 48(32)-12) in his 6 Red match. In other matches of the day, Ahsan also defeated Bahrain's Abdullah Mohammed 4-0 (39-14, 41(41)-0, 42-31, 38-4), whereas, Hasnain faced a lose against Hong Kong's Chau Hon Man 4-2 (41-9, 38-16, 0-69(69), 39-33, 0-67(67), 30-29). The teenager has been impressive in his play and has won the IBSF U17 championship title in a stellar manner; throughout the entire tournament, he dropped only one frame. Earlier, Ahsan also registered a victory in the U21 Championship against Mahmood Ahmed of Bahrain 3-0 (59-2, 82(31)-6, 74(57)-6). Pakistan Billiard and Snooker Association (PBSA) are fielding four players in the championships in Manama. The squad includes Asif, Shahid Aftab, Hasnain, and Ahsan. They are accompanied by the team manager and international referee Naveed Kapadia. Kapadia described the Pakistani campaign at the championships to be phenomenal so far; they have managed to create history by bagging the U17 title and the Masters titles. Hasnain's achievement was the first for Pakistan, and Asif ended the 19-year drought to win the Masters title, which was last won by Muhammad Yousuf. Kapadia also explained that the conditions and the environment in Manama are great for the players, and particularly, they are enjoying the world-class facilities, including the tables from the best brand in the world. "We are very happy with the arrangements as the championship is taking place at a 5-star hotel. In previous years, we would always get the accommodations in the best hotels, but the competition would take place in an academy. This time we have a more relaxed and conducive environment to play well. The tables provided to us are also of top quality," he concluded.
Express Tribune
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Hasnain and Asif create history for Pakistan
Pakistan's Hasnain Akhtar (first from left) and Muhammad Asif (third from left) hold their U17 and Masters trophies with the IBSF officials in Manama. PHOTO COURTESY: PBSA Pakistan's Hasnain Akhtar and the three-time IBSF men's world champion Muhammad Asif pushed the envelope for the country at the IBSF World Masters, U17, U21 & Men 6Red Snooker Championships 2025 when they both won the world titles in the U17 and Masters event on Friday night in Manama, Bahrain. The teenager from Karachi, Hasnain, delivered a stellar performance at his debut in the tournament throughout and won the U17 title in style as he defeated Welsh player Riley Powell 4-0 (86(44)-7, 73-35, 50-31, 98(67)-4) in a one-sided final. He had won the Asian U21 title in Riyadh last year, and according to the Pakistan Billiards and Snooker Association Secretary and international referee Naveed Kapadia, Hasanain has won the title that no other Pakistani has won in the past, and he created history by not just winning it but also dropping only one frame throughout the championship. "First of all, I would like to thank Allah that I got the opportunity to compete in this tournament," the newly crowned IBSF U17 champion said in a video message to the media. "This was my debut in the world championship, and my thoughts were that I would compete here and play my game the best I could because you never know with the results, anything can happen, but I just played my game the best I could, and Allah granted me this win. "I want to thank the PBSA who helped me and supported me to come here." Kapadia, who has been not only the secretary for the PBSA, but also an international referee at the Asian and IBSF events and the man who looks after the cueists in both international and national events, deemed the performances on Friday night as extraordinary, as he understands how the competition in every edition of the IBSF World Championships is improving. "The championship results have given us the two titles that we have never won before. "We never won any title at the U17 at IBSF World Championships, so that is a first, and then when it comes to Asif, he has just won us the IBSF masters title after 19 years. Before him, only Muhammad Yousaf won it. "Asif ended that 19-year drought." Kapadia praised Hasnain for the campaign in which we remained dominant throughout the championship. "If you look at Hasnain's results, they are phenomenal from start to finish. He was confident, and we didn't see him lose focus or go down in any of his matches." "Similarly, Asif defeated UAE's top player, Mohamed Shehab 4-2 in the pre-quarterfinal, then he defeated the team champion here, Bahrain's Habib Sabah (Bahrain) 4-0 in the quarterfinal, and later the consecutive masters semifinalist here, Manan Chandra (India) 4-2 in the semifinal. Asif managed to win the championship final against a very good men's player, India's Brijesh Damani, 4-3, after bouncing back from being 3-2 down. He changed his style of play when he saw that the previous strategy wasn't working." Kapadia added that the players are now busy with the U21 and 6Reds championships, as both Hasnain and the 2022 IBSF World Championship winner Ahsan Ramzan, won their opening matches. "I feel that this achievement by Hasnain will encourage other youngsters as well, that they too can win laurels for Pakistan in snooker. I feel this has been a great motivator and achievement for us," explained Kapadia. He shed some light on the level of competition in Manama and his own experience as the referee as well. "The competition is getting tougher with each passing year. For example, in the masters event that Asif won, more and more top men's players are coming to play it because they are getting older; similarly, the age group events are tougher too.
Express Tribune
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Pak cueists shine at IBSF World Snooker
Pakistan's snooker stars made a powerful start at the IBSF World Masters, U-17, U-21 and Men's 6-Red Snooker Championship 2025, currently underway in Manama, Bahrain, since July 13. The championship features thrilling matches across multiple categories, with Pakistani players quickly making their mark. In the Masters Category (Last 24 Round), Pakistan's snooker ace Muhammad Asif delivered a clinical performance against Tony Morgan of Wales, securing a one-sided 3-0 victory. Asif displayed his trademark break-building brilliance with breaks of 55, 90, and 61. The frame scores were: 74(55)-10, 106(90)-104, 89(61)-11. Asif will now face UAE's seasoned cueist Muhammad Shehab in the last 16 round, scheduled for 7pm tomorrow. However, in another Last 16 match, Shahid Aftab of Pakistan faced a tough contest against Qatar's Bashar Abdul Majeed, ultimately losing 2-4. The match saw a fluctuating scoreline: 76-59, 6-77(65), 18-74, 74-29, 64-50, 60-47 Meanwhile, the U-17 World Snooker Championship also kicked off on Tuesday, featuring 32 players from 15 countries, divided into 8 groups. The top two players from each group will advance to the pre-quarterfinals. On the opening day, Pakistan's young talent Hasnain Akhtar made an emphatic debut by defeating Abdullah Al-Musleh of Qatar in straight frames (3-0). The scores reflected his dominance: 72(35)-2, 65(40)-981(31)-14.
