By Syed Khalid MahmoodTop seeded Imran Shahzad lived up to the billing and came up with sensational performance to edge out unseeded Asif Toba in an epic final to win the Jubilee General Insurance 3rd Ranking Snooker Championship 2011 at the Karachi Gymkhana on October 29.
Recovering from an attack of dengue, Imran staged a magnificent comeback after being 3-6 down to win it 8-7 with the frame scores of 1-70, 78-21,119-0, 47-60, 40-88, 13-85, 25-58, 68-14, 25-96, 89-19, 87-18, 29-72, 92-0, 65-13, 115-25.
The prize distribution ceremony was held soon after the conclusion of the final which lasted five and a half hours. Tahir Ahmed, Managing Director, Jubilee Insurance Company, was the chief guest of the evening as a total of Rs 150,000 was disbursed among the outstanding performers.
Speaking on the occasion, Tahir Ahmed expressed his delight at the growth of snooker activities in the country, hoping that Pakistan would be producing world champions in the future as well.
Alamgir Anwar Shaikh, President, Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA), confirmed that Imran Shahzad, by retaining his number one position in the national rankings, became the automatic qualifier for the upcoming World Snooker Championship.
Talking to the media, after claiming the trophy, the Lahore-based Imran observed that he had been laid low by the dengue virus and was advised bed rest by the doctors for this particular period.
“I played the tournament primarily because I didn’t wish to miss the chance of playing in the World Championship. Thankfully I managed to win the title which has allowed me to retain my top ranking and accomplish my goal,” he remarked.
Asif, a promising youngster from Toba Tek Singh, admitted that he was overawed by the occasion and he committed unforced errors in the decisive frame only because he was feeling the heat of the moment.
“Yes I as tense and nervous in the last frame which made the difference between winning and losing. In normal circumstances I would have definitely potted those easy red balls which missed target in the 15th frame,” he said.
Asif had his moments in the final which he could have won comfortably, had he not got carried away in the last half an hour or so.
He had entered the game in a positive frame of winning as he registered a break of 51 to draw first blood. Imran hit back by taking the second frame and then moved ahead with the help of a break of 119 in the third frame.
Asif then stepped up and took the next four frames on a trot to go into 5-2 lead. Imran narrowed the deficit by taking the eighth frame but Asif regained three-frame lead quickly. Imran won the next two frames but Asif became the favourite again when he ran into 7-5 lead.
Imran had to bring all his expertise into play to stay in the game. He drew level by winning the 14th frame and there was everything to play for in the 15th frame which produced lot of drama and excitement.
Imran was guilty of committing as many as four fouls before opening his account which meant 16 bonus points for his opponent. Asif was found wanting in potting easy red balls more than once which allowed Imran to do the business. He recorded breaks of 60 and 39 in successive visits to the table to settle the issue.
Recovering from an attack of dengue, Imran staged a magnificent comeback after being 3-6 down to win it 8-7 with the frame scores of 1-70, 78-21,119-0, 47-60, 40-88, 13-85, 25-58, 68-14, 25-96, 89-19, 87-18, 29-72, 92-0, 65-13, 115-25.
Talking to the media, after claiming the trophy, the Lahore-based Imran observed that he had been laid low by the dengue virus and was advised bed rest by the doctors for this particular period.
Asif had his moments in the final which he could have won comfortably, had he not got carried away in the last half an hour or so.
He was the deserved winner of the Man of the Series award which was presented to him by Jagmohan Dalmiya, a former President of the International Cricket Council (ICC), who also headed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and still leads the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).
India didn’t look back after hammering England in the series opener. They chased down substantial totals successfully in the next three games with only the one at Mohali giving them a run for their money.
Dhoni’s acts showed that he was focused on winning each and every match of the series. There was not a single unnecessary change in the team on one pretext or the other. He had a definite plan in his mind and he executed it to perfection.
Tahir Ahmed, Managing Director, Jubilee General Insurance, made the announcement during the media launch of the Jubilee General Insurance 3rd Ranking Snooker Championship 2011 at the Banquet Hall of Karachi Gymkhana on October 20. The tournament will be played at the Gymkhana’s Billiards Hall from October 23 to 29.
He urged the officials of the PBSA to turn their attention to the development of Under-15 snooker circuit in order to find talent from the grassroots level.
The league matches of the Jubilee General Insurance 3rd Ranking Snooker Championship 2011, to start from October 23, will continue for three days before the commencement of the knockout games, starting from the pre-quarter-finals, from October 26.
Recently, on September 28, she broke 5 minutes for 1,500 meters by running 4:56.4. This historic feat, recorded on video, should provide her more encouragement. She trains two times a day and runs about 65 kilometers every week.
Myra is looking forward to compete in the upcoming National Athletics Championship due to be held in her hometown, Karachi, next month. She then plans to travel to Scotland with the aim of breaking the all time indoor national record for 3000 meters for Pakistani women.
“We are confident that Myra will bring glories for the province in the very near future and if she continues working hard there’s no reason why she should not earn laurels for the country in future,” Zahid Rizvi hoped.
He will surely miss South Africa's upcoming T20 and ODI series against Australia. He was due to make his captaincy debut for the country in the T20 encounter but his dreams were shattered after breaking the third finger on his left hand during fielding practice with the Royal Challengers Bangalore on September 28.
“The Champions League hasn't been kind to us. Last year we lost Dale Steyn, Jacques Kallis and Albie Morkel and we can only hope we don't suffer more. What we are realising is that T20 is hard on players, it's intense. We're going to have accept that we will get injuries,” he added.
The South African cricket authorities have a responsibility to answer whether it was proper to let their players take part in the IPL or the CL instead of concentrating on national duties. Their reaction on the absence of de Villiers for the Australian series would be interesting to note.