Shahid triumphs in epic comeback to win National Snooker title

KARACHI: Punjab’s Shahid Aftab played brilliantly to defeat National Bank’s Muhammad Sajjad 7-5 in an exciting final to claim the title of the NBP 49th National Snooker Championship at the NBP Sports Complex Snooker Arena on Saturday.

During the thrilling final, Mohammad Sajjad dominated against Shahid Aftab in the first five frames. At one point, Sajjad was leading 5-2 with his brilliant play. However, Shahid Aftab made one of the most remarkable comebacks of the tournament, winning back-to-back frames to put pressure on Sajjad and successfully leveling the score at 5-5.

After gaining the momentum, Shahid won the crucial frame to take the lead at 6-5 in the final.

In the deciding frame, Mohammad Sajjad was unlucky in his attempt to level the score and missed a key shot, allowing Shahid to hold his nerves and win the last frame, securing the title of the NBP 49th National Snooker Championship.

The frame scores were 69-9, 92-28, 48-70, 73-19, 49-70, 74-38, 79-24, 62-66, 22-63, 25-69, 81-36, and 71-61. During the seesaw final, Shahid Aftab made remarkable breaks of 82 in the second frame, 52 in the sixth, 79 in the seventh, and 81 in the eleventh. Meanwhile, Muhammad Sajjad also made a 52 break in the third and ninth frames.

In the semi-finals, Shahid also stunned world amateur title holder Asif 6-3 (61-68, 51-72, 23-102, 71-52, 72-51, 69-55, 76-13, 64-50, 84-57).

After the final, Shahid Aftab spoke to The News International and said, “This victory is one of the most significant of my career because I defeated snooker champion Mohammad Asif in the semifinal. At one point, I thought I had lost the final after Sajjad led by 3 frames, but I didn’t lose the momentum and won back-to-back frames to gain control.” Shahid added, “The pressure of the final game is much higher compared to other league matches, but I did a lot of training for this event, and thanks to God, I won the National Snooker title once again.”

He further mentioned, “The government should support me financially to bear my expenses for participating in international tournaments.” Shahid also urged the government to assist top cueists in Pakistan, particularly himself.

After the thrilling final of the NBP 49th National Snooker Championship, Shahid Aftab, the champion, received a cash prize of Rs. 200,000, while Muhammad Sajjad, the runner-up, was awarded Rs. 100,000. According to the tournament director, Naveed Kapadia, a special cash prize of Rs. 50,000 was presented to world snooker champion Muhammad Asif for his 147 break and performances during the championship.

The closing ceremony was attended by NBP’s Senior Vice President Mudassir Inamullah, PBSA Chairman Alamgir Shaikh, PBSA President Javed Karim, Hon. Secretary Zulfiqar Ali Ramzi, NBP Sports Head Shar Muhammad, Tournament Director Naveed Kapadia, and other distinguished guests, including Adil Murtaza and Farhan Rafique.