National Snooker Championship: Pre-Quarterfinal Lineup Finalized

The National Snooker Championship 2024/25 has reached its knockout phase, as the pre-quarterfinal lineup was completed on Tuesday following the conclusion of the league stage at the NBP Sports Complex.

With the competition intensifying, several big names, including defending champion Asjad Iqbal, have secured their spots in the last 16, setting the stage for thrilling encounters in the next round.

Reigning National Snooker Championship winner Asjad Iqbal had a point to prove after suffering a surprise loss to Ian Mark John on Sunday. However, the 31-year-old displayed his champion mentality, defeating Faisal Daniyal 4-2 in a hard-fought contest (73-07, 78-19, 47-60, 63-36, 57-65, 94(71)-16).

Asjad started strong, winning the first two frames, but Faisal fought back to reduce the deficit. After a back-and-forth battle, Asjad sealed the victory with a superb break of 71 in the final frame, ensuring his passage into the pre-quarterfinals.

In one of the standout performances of the day, Sharjeel Mehmood of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa delivered a stunning upset, eliminating sixth seed Shan Namat of Islamabad with a 4-2 victory (69-43, 67-53, 62-38, 57-70, 33-62, 72-12).

Sharjeel dominated the early exchanges, racing to a 3-0 lead, leaving his opponent with little room for error. Shan showed resilience, winning two consecutive frames, but Sharjeel held his nerve to close out the match in the sixth frame and advance to the last 16.

Both Zulfiqar A. Qadir and Mubashir Raza progressed to the pre-quarterfinals despite losing their final group-stage matches.

• Zulfiqar fell to Shahid Aftab 4-2 (12-86(81), 78-36, 40-54, 55-50, 59-4, 12-66, 98(98)-36), with Shahid already having secured his place in the knockouts.
• Mubashir was edged out in a thrilling 4-3 contest by Ahsan Ramzan (80(52)-16, 90(90)-0, 9-61, 128(113)-0, 32-75, 57-70, 130(130)-0).

Ahsan, the 2021 World Amateur Champion, produced some breathtaking snooker, registering two-century breaks (113 and 130), but despite his late resurgence, he was already out of the tournament.

National Snooker Championship 2024: Pre-Quarterfinal Fixtures

With several top contenders still in the hunt, the road to the championship promises high-stakes battles and breathtaking snooker action. Who will advance to the next stage and inch closer to the title?