Indian Cue Masters League: Pankaj Advani Stars In Chennai Strikers' Easy Win

Led by Pankaj Advani, Chennai Strikers overcame their opening day setback to notch a big victory on Sunday, beating Delhi Dons 4-1 in the Indian Cue Masters League at the Rajpath Club, Ahmedabad. Chennai’s icon player and India’s superstar Advani registered two wins, the first in the mixed snooker doubles in the company of Vidya Pillai and the second in the icon match, the snooker singles, against Kelly Fisher. His team-mate Dharmender Lilly too was on a roll, winning his singles pool match against Malkeet Singh and then partnering the in-form Pillai in the pool doubles.

The 16-time world champion, Advani, showed his class as he rounded up the first frame easily, running away to a 32-0 lead. Kelly launched a mini-fightback but ran out of time. She put up a better display in the second frame, taking a 26-6 lead as Advani made a couple of unforced errors. 

But with just one red and all the colours left on the table, he went on a pocketing spree to take the frame 36-26 and the crucial point.

He was ably complemented by Pillai in the mixed doubles, as they trounced the pair of Kelly Fisher and Manan Chandra 20-5, 22-18.

Delhi Don’s Manan Chandra got his team the solitary point, getting the better of Faisal Khan in the snooker singles shootout. But by then, it was too little too late to change the overall fortunes of his team.