Mumbai: India’s Sourav Kothari overcame compatriot and defending champion Pankaj Advani 725-480 in a hard-fought final in sensational style to lift the 2025 IBSF World Billiards title (previously known as World Amateur Billiards Championship) in Carlow, Ireland on Thursday.
Kothari, thus, became only the third Indian ever to win both the IBSF and WBL World Billiards, professional titles. Rupesh Shah and Pankaj Advani are the other Indians to have achieved this feat earlier.
In a thrilling final at the Snooker and Billiards Ireland (SBI) Academy, the world of cue sports witnessed an unforgettable clash between two of India’s finest – Kothari and Advani – as they battled for the coveted 2025 IBSF World Billiards title. The championship match delivered everything fans of professional billiards and snooker hoped for – drama, precision, passion and powerful scoring.
Kothari emerged as the IBSF World Champion with an emphatic win, scoring 725 points to Advani’s 480. His brilliant break of 325 was the match’s standout moment and marked one of the finest in recent championship history. Kothari also notched up breaks of 119 and 112, showcasing exceptional composure, focus and cue control.
This victory marks a historic first in IBSF World Title (timed format) for Kothari – 35 years after his father and billiards legend Manoj Kothari lifted this title in 1990 in Bengaluru.
Kothari’s triumph is a proud continuation of his family legacy and a shining moment in his decorated career, reinforcing his reputation as a force to be reckoned with on the international cue sports circuit.
Advani displayed brilliance with impressive breaks of 129, 116 and 112. However, the massive break of 325 in the first half hour of the match by his opponent saw Advani always playing catch-up. In the final hour of the three-hour final, the drama intensified as Advani narrowed down the lead to less than 50 points.
But Kothari, displaying unmatched composure under trying circumstances, managed to hold on to his nerves and made sure to keep his score-board ticking, ultimately racing away to a 200-point lead with not enough time remaining on the clock for Advani.
One of the key highlights of Kothari’s campaign en route to the World title was his victory in the semifinal against multiple-time World Champion and one of the fiercest players in the World Billiards Circuit, known for his whirlwind style of scoring and reducing his opponents to mere spectators, David Causier of England.
His exceptional performance against a rival like Causier — amassing breaks of 299 and 263 to take a lead of almost 600 points at the mid-session interval — was hailed as one of the best performances in billiards in the international arena. Even though Causier fired in a spectacular break of 326 points, Kothari’s efforts in the first half of the 2 and a half hour match ultimately saw him prevail by 864-547 points.
The field in this years IBSF World Billiards was the strongest in many years with all top players including the likes of former World Champions Peter Gilchrist from Singapore and Rob Hall, David Causier, Peter Sheehan from England, who were joined by top-ranked players from India, Ireland, Scotland for the ultimate showdown in World Billiards.
(IANS)
