Asghar Valika expects top performance from Pakistani cueists in Asian Tour Event

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

The Chairman of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA), Ali Asghar Valika, expects Pakistan’s cueists to bring home more laurels as they prepared to leave the shores of the country to participate in the second stage of the ACBS/IBSF Asian Tour Snooker Tournament being held under the auspices of the Asian Confederation of Billiards Sports (ACBS) with the blessings of the International Billiards & Snooker Federation (IBSF). 

According to the details made available by the PBSA Secretariat, the trio of Muhammad Bilal, Babar Masih and Haris Tahir was set to fly out from Lahore to Jinan, China, on October 26.

The event is being hosted by the Chinese Billiards & Snooker Association (CBSA) from October 28 to 31. 

The total prize money the event will be U$$40,000 with the winner to receive US$12,000 and the runner-up to get US$6,000. 

The top 24 cueists which include the IBSF and regional snooker players will participate in this tour, together with the Asian champions of 2018. 

The Pakistan players have  qualified in this ACBS/IBSF Asian Tour of 2018 on the basis of their performances in the ACBS events of 2018. Muhammad Bilal was the losing semifinalists in the Asian Snooker Championship 2018 while Babar Masih was the losing semifinalist in Asian 6-Red Snooker Championship 2018 and Haris Tahir ended as the runner-up in the Asian Under-21 Snooker Championship 2018. 

The PBSA Chairman reckoned that Muhammad Bilal, one of the premier cueists of the country, has made Pakistan proud by having emerged triumphant in the opening round of the event, staged at the QBSF Snooker Academy in Doha, Qatar, from September 26 to 29, which earned a handsome purse of US$12,000 with the trophy. 

“Bilal has got off to a dream start in the Asian Tour Event and he has a golden chance of emulating his feat. He has shown that he can handle the pressure of big matches and here is another opportunity for him to collect a fabulous purse again,” Asghar Valika observed in a brief chat at the Karachi Club Annexe. 

“Bilal’s performance is a source of inspiration to the whole lot. The confidence of Babar and Haris has been boosted by the title win of Bilal in Doha and they can make it count in the Chinese city of Jinan. I wish all three the best of luck,” the PBSA Chairman concluded.