Pankaj Advani wins Asian Snooker Championship for the third time

Indian cueist Pankaj Advani clinched the Asian Snooker Championship for the third time in his career on Wednesday in Qatar.

Facing Iran's Amir Sarkhosh in the final, Pankaj won convincingly, the scoreline reading 4-1.

After winning the National Snooker title last week against Brijesh Damani, he booked his spot for the Asian Snookers, where he eventually triumphed.

In the round of 16, he faced Brijesh Damani, and in a rematch of the national finals, Pankaj once again got the better of his fellow countryman, defeating him 4-3.

Siyavosh Mozayani was up next in the quarter-finals, and Pankaj was able to get past him with relative ease, once again winning by 4-1, and entering the final four.

In the semifinals, Hong Kong's Chang Yu Kiu stood in his face, and after a 4-2 win, he entered the finals, where he took home the title.

This is his fourteenth Asian title across all billiards sports disciplines, an impressive achievement by the 39-year-old cueist.

The latest triumph is another feather in what has been a remarkable career for the Indian, who is a 28-time International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF) world champion.

He has also won a total of 18 billiards world titles, including the IBSF World Billiards Championship an impressive 17 times and the World Team Billiards Championship once.

In recognition of his achievements, the Government of India has bestowed various awards such as the Arjuna Award in 2004, Khel Ratna in 2006, Padma Shri in 2009, and Padma Bhushan in 2018.