National champion Pankaj Advani registered a convincing 4-1 victory over Kyaw Oo of Myanmar and sailed into the final of the Idea Cellular-ONGC-BPCL-sponsored fourth Asian Billiards Championship, at the PYC Hindu Gymkhana, in Pune on Friday.
In Saturday's final, Indian ace will take on former World champion C. Praput of Thailand, who overcame former World and Asian champion Ashok Shandilya of India 4-2 in the second semi-final.
Coming into the semi-final clash after a tough last eight round against defending champion Devendra Joshi on Thursday, Advani looked in good knick. He emphasised why he is considered the future hope of cue sport in the country and played a flawless game to leave Kyaw a hapless spectator.
Advani, who had lost to Kyaw on the two earlier occasions they clashed, rifled in significant breaks and the unfinished 100 in the second game was an early warning for Kyaw. The Indian, who struck an unfinished 72 break in the following game then rested on a comfortable 3-0 cushion to immediately put his opponent under immense pressure.
But Kyaw, the runner-up in 2003, is no pushover. A fierce competitor, he made a gallant attempt to come back into the game and uncorked a magnificent 99 break in the fourth to win the game and keep his hopes alive. A century break was on the cards but he missed a top table cannon that prevented him from reaching the milestone by one point.
Enjoying a rewarding season, the 19-year-old Advani, winner of the national junior billiards and snooker titles and the national senior billiards crown, returned in the fifth game to rifle in an unfinished break of 97 to dash Kyaw's hopes and seal his place in the championship round.
"I played him in the group stages and I know what he's capable of," said a delighted Advani after the hour-and-a-half contest.
"I had to raise my game to win by a good margin. Fortunately, the balls rolled in my favour. Even after Kyaw won the fourth game I had to rely on all my resources to come back. If the verdict looks convincing, I think it is because I came through a tough quarter-final against Devendra Joshi especially after trailing 1-3. Winning yesterday's match gave me a lot of confidence."
Results (breaks in bracket):
Semi-finals (Best-of-seven frames): Pankaj Advani (India) bt Kyaw Oo (Myanmar) 4-1 [100(52, 44 unf)-71, 100(100 unf)-0, 101(72 unf)-33, 22-101(99), 101(97 unf)-0]; C. Praput (Thailand) bt Ashok Shandilya (India) 4-2 [90-101(71), 101(71)-80, 101-63, 23-100, 101-7, 100(100 unf)-22].
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