MCF Open Handicap Billiards Tournament 2016
Parikh sinks Sitwala in thriller ...sets up title clash with Aditya Agrawal
Aditya Agrawal of PJ Hindu Gymkhana set up a title clash with last year's runner-up Siddharth Parikh, in the state level MCF Open Billiards Tournament, at the Mandpeshwar Civic Federation, Borivali.
In the semi-finals between elite cueists, Railways' Agrawal halted V. Subramanian of Matunga Gymkhana 375-313 in a close encounter where both players had a handicap of -450, while Parikh overcame Dhruv Sitwala 375-330 in a high-quality contest where both players, playing with a handicap of -650, delighted with big breaks.
ONGC's Sitwala, who holds the competition's highest break of 323, was sitting pretty with a comfortable 600-point lead after firing the second highest break of 320 until Parikh initiated a spectacular comeback under pressure with a double century, three century and two half-century breaks in the latter half, after initially impressing with a 216, that rattled Sitwala who struggled to find his rhythm again.
Parikh, whose brilliant recovery included a 278 break with phenomenal floating white top-table play, needed just 32 points to win when Sitwala needed an unfinished 204 that would have helped him seal victory. In reply, Sitwala missed a canon that prematurely ended his break on 159 that allowed Parikh snatch a win in a dramatic finish.
Subramanian, a recent champion in the first-ever Open Disability Snooker Championship in Gloucester, fired a break of 216, two identical century breaks of 138 and a half-century in a gallant effort that had him leading by 300 points at one stage and later by 200 points, until a consistent Agrawal levelled with a 166 break on the first occasion and fired six half-century breaks later to keep pace and snatch a hard-earned win with impressive safety play.
Results: Aditya Agrawal bt V. Subramanian 375(166)-313(216,138,138); Siddharth Parikh bt Dhruv Sitwala 375(278,216,163,149,123)-330(320,159,147,142).