DOHA: Pakistan’s senior campaign at the Asian Snooker Championships ended in disappointment on Tuesday as both Mohammad Asif and Rana Irfan suffered prequarter-final defeats, shifting the nation’s medal hopes to the junior division.

The newly crowned national champion Asif, a pre-tournament favourite, fell 4-2 to Hong Kong’s Chau Hon Man. After losing the first three frames, Asif mounted a brief comeback before Chau closed out the match decisively.

In a tense seven-frame thriller, national runner-up Irfan was edged out 4-3 by Mohamed Shehab of the United Arab Emirates. Irfan had led 2-1 but was unable to hold off Shehab’s determined fightback in the latter stages.

Attention now turns to the junior event, where Pakistan’s Mohammad Hasnain Akhtar made a winning start in the U-21 championship.

The reigning IBSF U-17 world champion recovered from a frame down twice to defeat Iran’s Arshiya Dolatabadi 3-2, showcasing resilience with breaks of 56 and 61.

The junior championship features 29 players across eight groups, with the top two advancing to the knockout prequarter-finals.

Hasnain and fellow Pakistani Ahsan Ramzan, the 2025 Asian U-21 bronze medallist, will carry Pakistan’s remaining medal ambitions.

Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2026