The clash of the titans was set up on Friday evening at Hotel Clarks Shiraz,Agra as the 2009 Indian National Billiards & Snooker Championship reached half-way through with the semi-finals of the senior billiards event. Saturday evening will witness a match between two World billiards champions. One is the wonder boy of Indian billiardsPankaj Advani,the freshly crowned World Professional billiards champion and the other a five times claimant of the same coveted throne on the green baize Geet Sethi. If the Indian billiards maestro Geet is a purist,Pankaj is a rare blend of performer of the highest class even if unlike his senior,not in the classical mould. While it would be too hazardous to predict the winner of Saturday's match,the form seems to suggest that it will be tough for both Geet and Pankaj. There is a strange mysterious feeling that this time around,Geet looks no less determined,focussed and the more motivated. However,whosoever wins,it will be a feast for the enthusiastic audience who have high hopes from their respective favourites. During his semi-final match,Pankaj was on the rampage throughout in his match with Devendra Joshi. The tie between the two players from PSPB was totally lopsided even as Pankaj chalked up a break of 111 in the opening game to set the tenor of the tussle. An unrelenting barrage of 131 in the second,a 153 in the third and then again an unfinished 150 in the fourth saw him win by 152-51,151-21,157- 03 and 150-00 points to enter the final. Geet on the other hand was also in good nick,timing his strokes in his inimitable classic style to notch up a break of 83 and take the first game against Dhruv Sitwala of PSPB. The Gujarati was quite artistic in the second to launch a break of 133 in the second. Following it up with a 98 in the third,he was sitting pretty at a 3-0 lead. Sitwala made a valiant attempt in the fourth with a break of 97 but the maestro ended the proceedings with an unfinished brilliant 135 break to be the victor,entering the final with a 150-75,150-02,152-15 and 150-129 points. The Results: Semi-finals: Geet Sethi (Guj) beat Dhruv Sitwala (PSPB): 4-0 (150(83)-75,150(133)-02,152(98)-15,150(135)-129(97)); Pankaj Advani (PSPB) beat Devendra Joshi (PSPB): 4-0 (152(111)-51,151(131)-21,157(153)-03,150(150)-00); 5 & 6 position match: Ashok Shandilya (Rly) beat Alok Kumar (PSPB): 2-0 (102-02,101-00); 7 & 8 position match: Rupesh Shah (PSPB) beat B Bhaskar (Ktk) : 2-0 (100-56,100-90); 5 to 8 placing matches: Alok Kumar (PSPB) beat Rupesh Shah (PSPB): 2-1 (87-101,101-22,103-85); Ashok Shandilya (Rly) beat B Bhaskar (Ktk): 2-0 (100-30,101-10).
