Alok Kumar of Petroleum Sports Promotion Board pulled off a huge upset to be crowned national Billiards champion,defeating former World Champion Pankaj Advani by 5 frames to 4 in a marathon match lasting 5 hours to win the Dr DY Patil Vidyapeeth National Billiards Championships,which concluded at the P.Y.C. Hindu Gymkhana today. Advani started the mach off along expected lines,winning the first frame by a massive 151-3 margin. Kumar fought back with an incredible 152-point break to level the match at 1-1. Advani,with his vast storehouse of experience,coolly recovered to take the third frame 150-37. The fourth frame was quite a topsy-turvy one,with both players squandering golden chances to wrest the initiative from the other. Kumar finally emerged victorious,scoring a break of 81 to level the match yet again. After a good start,Advani fumbled on a score of 23 in the fifth frame. Kumar,who is known on the circuit for his fighting spirit,grabbed the opportunity with both hands and scored an unfinished break of 150 to take the frame and the lead. The crucial sixth frame saw both the players struggling. On one hand,Kumar want to extend his lead,whereas Advani was surprised with the unexpected fightback from his opponent who is generally more known for his snooker skills. A few unsuccessful efforts by both the players ended with a chance to Advani,and the Bangalore cueist crafted another century break to level the match at 3-3. Advani then pulled ahead yet again in the seventh frame,capitalising on a straight-pot miss by Kumar to make it 4-3 and stand on the threshold of victory. The pressure on the underdog Kumar was now mounting,and could be seen clearly when he missed a couple of easy chances. However,Advani made a few uncharacteristic errors of his own. Kumar showed great determination to pull ahead while his opponent was trying to salvage the frame,and finally won it 151-63 to make it 4-4 overall and set up a mouthwatering decider. The final frame was thus delicately poised,with Advani aiming for his fourth consecutive title,while Kumar was playing a billiards final after six long years. The initiative continued to swing from one player to the other,and Advani stood 63 points away from the title. However,he only managed to score 27 before missing a cannon. Kumar then scored 25 points of his own to pull into a 130-114 lead. Advani failed to find the pocket yet again,and the PSPB cueist then converted the remaining 20 points to win his fourth overall national billiards title.
