By Ubaid Awan
KARACHI, Pakistan (TheSportsNEXT) December 3, 2012: Top cueist Muhammad Asif became only the second Pakistani ever to win the IBSF World Snooker Championship title on Sunday when he edged out Gary Wilson of England by 10-8 in the title match played in Bulgarian city of Sofia.
The last time a Pakistani cueist won the IBSF World Snooker Champions title was in 1994 when Mohammad Yousuf created history and made a name for himself and his country in the global media. In 2003, another Pakistani Saleh Mohammad made it into the final of the World Snooker Champions but was outplayed by the top Indian cueist Pankaj Advani.
Muhammad Asif remained unbeaten in the tournament and looked in prime touch in the championship match Sunday as he kept the advantage during best part of the final.
The 19-frame final encounter went right to the wire as the title was decided after 18 frames where Muhammad Asif was once leading by 6-3 before Gary Wilson tying up the affair at eight games each. However, Pakistan’s number one snooker player showed great resilience and strong character by winning the next two frames to put his hands on the IBSF World Championship title.
Just like the whole nation, President Pakistan Billiards and Snooker Association (PBSA), Alamgir Sheikh was a proud man after his player did the job for Pakistan. He termed the victory in Sofia a turning point for the game of snooker in Pakistan.
He stated, “Muhammad Asif worked really hard to achieve this milestone and it is indeed a very big victory, a turning point for the sport in Pakistan. I hope the government takes notice and supports all the top cueists”.
Imitating the other fellow countrymen sportsmen and athletes, Muhammad Asif bowed to thank Almighty for such a huge achievement.
During the course of Year 2012, Muhammad Asif has shown rollicking form as he played seven tournaments where he managed to win three of them besides ending as runner-up in the other three while had to content with third position in the other tournament.
The prizes were announced by a number of people as well as politicians with Chief Minister Punjab announcing a million rupees for the country’s top cueist. President PSBA also announced 100,000 rupees for Muhammad Asif who has bagged 3,100 euros as winning prize bonus from the IBSF.
The victory for Muhammad Asif was also huge because he had no money to travel to Bulgaria to feature in the IBSF World Snooker Championship as Pakistan Sports Board refused to pay for his air fare but then PBSA booked him a ticket to Sofia on credit.
During the course of IBSF World Snooker Championship 2012, Muhammad Asif played three century breaks which are the most in this tournament jointly with Gary Wilson and Peter Gilchrist.
Talking to local media after winning the title, Muhammad Asif said thanks to all his fans and countrymen for praying and supporting him during the championship.
He said, "To participate in World Championship wasn't easy for us without any funds, PBSA managed it from their own resources. If players are given permanent jobs, then I can guarantee you that our players can win more World titles in this game”.
Muhammad Asif dedicated his title to his parents saying he would've been nothing without their prayers.
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