Dhruv Sitwala wins his third Asian Billiards Title at Riyadh
Person in News
5 min read
Dhruv Sitwala defeated Pankaj Advani to win the 2024 Asian Billiards Championship in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Asian Championship was organised by the Asian Confederation of Billiard Sports (ACBS) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 27th June to 5th July 2024.
The Asian Championship included the Men’s Snooker Team Championship, Men’s Billiards Championship and Women’s Asian Snooker Championship events.
Third Asian Billiards Title for Dhruv Sitwala
The victory in Riyadh was the third Asian billiards title for Dhruv Sitwala. Dhruv Sitwala had earlier won the Asian billiards title in 2015 and 2016.
The defeat at Riyadh also dashed Pankaj Advani's hope of winning his third Asian men’s Billiards title. Earlier, Pankaj Advani consecutively won the 2022 and 2023 billiards titles.
The Bronze medal was won by another Indian cueist, Dhvaj Haria, who lost the semi-final match against the eventual champion, Dhruv Sitwala.
Anupama Ramachandran wins women’s Asian Snooker title
Another Indian, Anupama Ramachandran, won her first international title by defeating Panchaya Channoi of Thailand 3-1 in the final of the Asian Women Snooker category.
Thailand Wins Men’s Asian Team Snooker Championship
Thailand's men’s Snooker team comprising Dechawat Poomjaeng, Kritsanut Lertsattayathorn and Yuttapop Pakpoj defeated Pakistan in the final to win the Asian Team Snooker championship. Thailand’s team defeated Pakistan in straight frames 3-0.
Pankaj Advani Inducted into the Billiards Hall of Fame
Indian cueist Pankaj Advani has also been inducted into the Hall of Fame at the World Billiards Museum in Shangrao City in China.
The 38-year-old Pankaj Advani also holds the distinction of being the only player in the world to win world titles in all the formats of Billiards and Snooker.
Pankaj Advani has won world Billiards and Snooker titles 27 times. He has also won Asian titles 10 times, 7 in billiards and three in snooker.
Pankaj Advani won the gold medal in the billiards in the 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games.
Awards and Honours for Advani
Sports Award
Pankaj Advani was awarded India’s highest sporting award, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2006. Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna was renamed the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award by the central government in 2021.
In 2005, Pankaj Advani was honoured with the Arjuna Awards.
Civilian Award
He was conferred with India's third-highest civil award, the Padma Bhushan 2018.
Pankaj Advani was honoured with India’s fourth-highest Padma Shri in 2009.
What is Cue Sports?
Cue sports refer to sports played with a cue stick to hit a ball on a table covered with cloth or a baise with pockets in the table's four corners. Cue sports include billiards, snooker, and pool.
The billiard balls come in various forms depending on the specific cue sports that will be played. They differ in colour, type, number, pattern, diameter, hardness, resilience, and friction coefficient.
