IBSF world snooker championship is underway at the Mazara complex in Damascus, Syria. More than two hundred players are participating in the tournament. The championship is regarded as the most prestigious amateur snooker tournament in the world.
Winning this tournament is a dream-come-true for any amateur snooker player. The tournament started on 4 December, and will conclude on 15 December 2010. It is a long-winded tournament with several rounds and hundreds of matches played between people from
all sorts of ethnicities and backgrounds.
There are total of eleven groups (Men’s), with seven or eight players in each group.
The tournament is through to the “round robin”, and has reached the knock-out stage. Following are the statistics of top-three players in each group after the round robin phase.
Group A: Noppadol Sangnil (Thailand) is on the top of the group by winning all of the six matches he has played in the tournament. Muhammad Sajjad (Pakistan) sits on the second spot by winning five out of six matches. The New Zealander Gary
Gillard is on number three by just winning two matches.
Group B: Leo Fernandez of England is ranked number one in the group B as he has won all of the five matches. Fern Loyer (Canada) won 4 out of 5 games, and is ranked number two. Takao Kurimoto (Japan) is at number three, he also has won four-out-of-five
games.
Group C: The Irish cue-man Martin McCrudden is leading the group by winning 4 of 5 matches, Muhammad Joker of UAE won three games whereas Chan Ka Kin of Hong Kong is at number three by winning three games out of five.
Group D: In group D Rodney Goggins of Ireland is at the top with six wins, Thor Chuan Leong (Malaysia) is second in the group with 5 out of 6 wins and at number three is Habib Subah Habib of Bahrain by winning 4 out of 6 matches.
Group E: Pankaj Advani (India) is on the top spot by winning all six matches, Haitham Khalil (Syria) is placed second with four wins. Ahmad Saif (Qatar) has also won four matches and sits at the third spot of group E.
Group F: Moh Keen Hoo of Malaysia is dominating the group with six wins from six games. Gareth Allen (Wales) is at the second spot by winning five while Nader Khan Sultani of Afghanistan is at number three with four wins.
Group G: Daniel Wells (Wales) sits at the top spot with six wins, Dechawat Poomjaeng (Thailand) won five matches and is second in the group rankings. Iranian Hossein Vafaei Ayouri is at number three in group G after claiming victory in four
matches.
Group H: Alex Borg (Malta) is the top seed in the group, winning 5 out of 6 matches in round robin phase of the tournament. Sohail Shahzad (Pakistan) sits at number two after his five wins. Roy Stolk of the Netherlands is enjoying third
position after winning four games.
Group J: Eissa Sayed of UAE is number one in the group rankings after winning 5 matches. Mario Van Herk (Belgium) is on the second spot with four wins. Ayub Hasan Nisuif (Syria) is third in the rankings with four victories.
Group K: Mohammad Rais Sen Zahi (Afghanistan) is leading the group with five wins, Duncan Bezzina (Malta) won five and is placed second. Australian Steve Mifsud comes at the third spot with four wins.
Group L: Bobby Cruickshanks has won 5 out of 6 matches and leads the group, whereas Imran Shahzad (Pakistan) is placed number two with his five wins while Soheil Vahedi of Iran is at number three with four wins out of five matches.
After the round robin, the tournament is on halt for a day. The tournament has now entered into the knock-out round. There are two phases in the round, last-64 (best-of-seven frames), and last-32. Subsequently the quarter-finals and semi-finals will follow.
The final of the tournament is scheduled for 15 December.
The IBSF world snooker championship plays a pivotal role in bringing the Ronnie O’Sullivans, John Higgins, Steve Davis, and Stephen Hendry’s of future into the spotlight. Snooker fans all over the world are eager to see a new amateur snooker star earning
a professional status and joining the lot.
The tournament encourages snooker players from all corners of the world to participate, learn and interact with cueists of different ethnicities and styles.
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