Shahid Aftab Archives

Pakistan’s Shahid Aftab defeats India’s Paras Gupta in World Snooker Championship

DOHA: Pakistan cueist Shahid Aftab made a winning start to his IBSF World Snooker Championship 2025 campaign, defeating India’s Paras Gupta 4-2 in the Round of 16 here on Wednesday.

Aftab displayed fine form throughout the contest, registering a composed performance under pressure.

He took the opening frame 73-25 before Gupta levelled with a strong response in the second.

The Pakistani cueist regained control in the third frame, producing a 72-point break to reclaim the lead.

Despite Gupta’s fightback to make it 2-2, Aftab sealed the next two frames decisively, including a 62 break in the fifth, to complete a 4-2 victory with scores of 73-25, 27-94, 77(72)-36, 58-76, 122(62)-6, 60-49.

However, it was a mixed day for Pakistan overall as veteran cueist Muhammad Sajjad suffered a 4-2 defeat against Hong Kong’s Fung Kwok Wai in a tightly contested match.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Sajjad’s loss saw him move into Stage 1 (2nd Event) of the championship.

Following his Round of 16 triumph, Aftab advanced to the next stage of the tournament, keeping Pakistan’s hopes alive at the global event.

Pakistan’s five-member contingent for the IBSF World Snooker Championship 2025 was confirmed by the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA) on October 27.

The team includes three-time World Champion Muhammad Asif, Asjad Iqbal, Shahid Aftab, Muhammad Sajjad, and young prodigy Muhammad Hasnain Akhtar.

Asif, who entered the tournament as defending champion, earned a direct berth in the last 48, while Asjad Iqbal qualified on the basis of his performance in last year’s knockout stage.

Meanwhile, Hasnain Akhtar received automatic qualification as the reigning World U-17 Champion.

READ: Babar Azam, Saim Ayub make gains in ICC T20I Rankings

Pakistan’s Shahid Aftab starts strong in World 6-Red Snooker Championship

MANAMA: Pakistan’s cueist Shahid Aftab made a strong start in the opening match of the World 6-Red Snooker Championship with a victory over Kuwait’s Abdullah Alyousef here at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Bahrain.

Shahid Aftab faced a strong challenge from Abdullah of Kuwait, but eventually he secured a narrow win with a score of 4-3 (14-48, 33-21, 42-15, 28-49, 45-10, 12-36, 66(32,34)-0).

Pakistan cueists are shining in the ongoing tournaments in Bahrain with Hasnain Akhtar and Muhammad Asif currently competing in the finals of the Masters and U-17 categories.

Yesterday, Pakistan’s unbeaten young cueist Hasnain reached the final of the tournament in dominant fashion with a comprehensive victory over Poland’s Oliwier Nizialek in the semi-final here at the Crowne Plaza Bahrain.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

While seasoned snooker star Muhammad Asif has booked his place in the final of the IBSF World Masters Snooker Championship 2025 after defeating India’s Manan Chandra.

In a highly anticipated semi-final clash, Asif showcased a brilliant performance and defeated India’s Manan Chandra by 4-2 in the Masters category.

With this victory, Asif inched closer to another world title and continues to uphold Pakistan’s strong presence in international snooker.

Earlier, Muhammad Asif outplayed Bahrain’s Habib Sabah 4-0 to reach the semi-final. The seasoned cueist dominated proceedings from the outset, registering identical breaks of 68 in two of the frames and conceding just eight points in three of them.

For the unversed, the World 6-Red World Championship commenced today and has 60 players from 21 nations, divided into 15 groups after the league round. Each group has 2 players who qualify for the knockout last 60 round.

READ: WCL 2025: England Champions win toss against Pakistan Champions