Pankaj Advani sets up Sourav Kothari clash

Pankaj Advani scored a comprehensive win over Kamal Chawla to book a spot in the final of the Nahar-MIG All India Invitation Snooker Championship at the MIG CC on Tuesday.

Chawla was coming into the match on an unbeaten run but Pankaj quickly changed that as he routed his opponent winning 5-0 (81-16 75-18 64-53 54-17 52-45). He will face Sourav Kothari in the title clash.

Kothari defeated Shabaz Khan in a far tighter clash, winning 5-3 (65-36, 73-50 100-26 0-89 54-62 57-59 72-63 70-46).
Kothari started strong, running away with the first three frames including a century break in the third but Shabaz showed resolve to fight back and win the next three frames to take the challenge to his opponent.
Kothari came back strong again in the seventh frame and then he made no mistake closing out the match in the eight frame.
Kothari, who is also replacing Advani in the Asian Snooker Championship that kicks off in Thailand on May 8-15, has had a near perfect tournament so far without having lost a single match. His toughest challenge will be against the world champion on Wednesday. The final will be a best-of-11-frame affair.
Results: Pankaj Advani bt Kamal Chawla 5-0 (81-16, 75-18, 64-53, 54-17, 52-45); Sourav Kothari bt Shahbaz Khan 5-3 (65-36, 73-50 100-26 0-89 54-62 57-59 72-63 70-46).