IBSF World Billiards Championship: Pankaj Advani, Peter Gilchrist turn on heat

Bengaluru: Hot favourites Pankaj Advani and Peter Gilchrist marched into the pre-quarterfinals of the points format of the ongoing IBSF World Billiards Championship at the the Karnataka State Billiards Association on Saturday.

Advani and Gilchrist sealed their last-16 berths winning all five matches of the group stage. Also topping the table with five wins was Karnataka’s B Bhaskar.
After winning both matches on the first day, Advani survived a scare from Alok Kumar edging past his compatriot 3-2. Kumar started off with a flourish taking the opening frame 150-53 scripting a solid break of 134.

Caught on the wrong foot, Advani fought hard to take the second 150-117, as he crafted a break of 92 in his seventh visit to the table to level the match and then took the third frame in convincing fashion to take the lead.

But the 48-year-old Alok gave Advani a run for his money as he bounced back taking the frame 117-152 to drag the match into the decider. With the match reaching its business end the 15-time world champion showed his class as he snatched victory with an unfinished break of 115, to take the frame 151-94.

In his second match, the 31-year-old Advani pulled off a 3-1 win over Myanmar’s Chit Ko Ko. Though the 32-year-old Ko opened with a break of 128, Advani took the frame crafting an unfinished break of 150.

The Myanmar cueist bounced back to win the next 150-65. But the home favourite pulled up his socks to win the next two frames in convincing manner.
In his final match of the day, Advani sailed past Sasan Lashkari 3-0.

Meanwhile, Gilchrist stamped his class in style. The newly crowned champion strolled past France’s Akhilesh Mohan 3-0, before taking on Siddharth Parikh.