Pakistan’s top seed Muhammad Sajjad suffered his first defeat in the 27th Asian Snooker Championship in Indore, India, going down 3-4 to Muhammad Lababi of Iran in a seven frame thriller on Tuesday.
Sajjad, who finished runner-up in the last year’s championship in Thailand, started well by winning the first two frames. Later, Lababi produced brilliant potting to record a 16-42, 41-65, 60-47, 57-42, 54-39, 33-62, 52-1 win. The match was tied three-all but Lababi produced some good snooker to outclass Sajjad.
Drawn in Group A, Sajjad will meet Muhammad Al-Joaker of United Arab Emirates on Wednesday for a place in the next round. The top two players from each pool will progress into the pre-quarterfinals stage.
