Advani falters at final hurdle in world meet

On Saturday,Russell controlled every thing from the beginning and demonstrated fantastic game in the first four frames,where he produced four unfinished breaks (three 150s and one 148) to almost outplay Advani.

In the fifth frame,Russell again scored a break of 114 with just one game away from lifting the title. However,in the sixth game,a small mistake on an attempt of cannon kept him on wait for some more time as the Indian bounced back with an unfinished break of 143 to narrow the deficit.

The win boosted Advanis confidence as the seven-time world champion again penalised the Englishman with 120 unfinished for his mistake on cannon. Already pocketed two games,Advani smashed an unfinished break of 143 in the next game to put Russell on the backfoot.

But with the gap narrowing,Russell charged up himself when Advani left his cueball along with red behind the balk line by mistake and Russell converted that chance into an unfinished break of 143 to seal the match 6-3 in his favour. Advani bounced back brilliantly and in such crucial situation producing three unfinished breaks were really remarkable, said Russell after the match. I played a little loose in the sixth frame,which cost me three games but I was assured of winning with my techniques and I did so, he added.

The time format will begin from Monday with 30 players vying for the title. However,most Asian countries,including India,have decided against participating this time around the reasoning being that the time format will not survive long and its better to popularise the point format instead.