Pankaj Advani Wins His 25th World Billiards Championships Title

Pankaj Advani, the Indian cueist won a record 25th IBSF World Billiards Championships Title and a Gold Medal in Kuala, Malaysia.

Pankaj Advani of India managed to secure his World Billiards Championships (150-up) title for the fifth time by defeating fellow countryman Sourav Kothari in the best-of-seven-frames final at the High End Snooker Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

This title gave Advani a record-breaking 25th victory at the international level. Pankaj won the IBSF Six-Red Snooker World Cup in Qatar more than a year ago, giving him his most recent world championship.

What Is The World Billiards Championship?

World Billiards, a division of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, organizes the World Billiards Championship, an international competition in the English billiards discipline (WPBSA). 

The title, which has been competed for (though sporadic) since 1870, has taken many different formats and is typically held as a single competition.

There were separate timed and points divisions from 2012 to 2014, and the competition was run in conjunction with the International Billiards and Snooker Federation. There was no distinct IBSF World Billiards Championship during those years.

How Did Pankaj Advani Win The Final Match?

Pankaj Advani made it apparent from the very first frame that he intended to claim ownership of the championship. 

Immediately after the match began, he won the opening frame with a 149 break while his opponent, who was still vying for his first IBSF World title, was yet to register a point in the 150-up format. 

Pankaj battled valiantly in the best-of-seven summit match to achieve the billiards National-Asian-World golden trifecta in the same calendar year for a record 5th time. 

When Kothari failed to take advantage of the few opportunities that his deserving opponent gave him, Advani won the second frame. 

Pankaj had a 2-0 lead and was halfway home after a 77 break. From that point on, he turned up the heat while playing some superb pool in front of the Malaysian fans. 

His skillfulness allowed him to break 153 in the third frame, which was the highest break in the competition and put him one frame away from his previous success.