Pankaj Advani wins his 15th World title
Indian snooker ace Pankaj Advani defeated Zhao Zintong of China 8-6 in the final of the IBSF World Snooker Championship at Hurghade, Egypt, on Saturday. This is the second time Advani has lifted this title, following his first win in the event back in 2003.
The 30-year-old raced to a 5-2 lead at the end of the first session, but Zintong fought back in the second session and made it 7-6 by the 13th frame. Advani, however, held on and scored his fourth century break of the match in the 14th frame and won the match 8-6.
Earlier in the group stage, the 30-year-old had topped Group L after winning all of his five matches. Advani produced a string of dominating performances, losing just four frames in the five matches.
After storming through the initial knock-out rounds, Advani defeated German youngster Lukas Kleckers 7-5 in the semis to book his place in the final.
For the uninitiated, each match in the group stage, till the round of 64, is decided based on 'best of seven' frames. Round of 32 and the round of 16 are decided on 'best of nine', while the semi-final has best of 13. The final was played in 'best of 15' format, divided into two sessions.
