Nitesh madaan

CCI Snooker Classic: Cue sports maestro and hot favourite Pankaj Advani of Bengaluru faced a stern test from Mumbai’s Nitesh Madaan but managed to come out trumps, registering a fighting 6-4 win in a best-of-11-frame quarterfinal match of the Rs 12.5 lakh prize-money CCI Snooker Classic 2024 here on Friday.

In the semifinals, defending champion Advani will meet Bombay Gymkhana’s ace cueist Laxman Rawat, the lone local challenger who fought hard to overcome a spirited Pushinder Singh 6-5 (68-66, 70-33, 28-81, 80-23, 54-82, 50-53, 40-73, 23-68, 83-39, 71-36, and 85-0) in a nerve-wracking last eight match in the event organised by the Cricket Club of India and played at the CCI’s Sir Wilson Jones billiards hall late Friday.

Advani, India’s most illustrious player with 27 World titles, came from behind to win the first frame. Madan, who also practices at the Bombay Gymkhana, rolled in a break of 50, but Advani made a strong reply compiling a 54 run to snatch the opening frame. The cue sports genius then constructed breaks of 78 and 50 to pocket the next two frames to race to a commanding 3-0 lead.