KARACHI, April 12: Top seeded Khurram Hussain Agha will be hoping to win his maiden title when the Rs174,000 sixth Red & White Style snooker tournament breaks off Saturday at Karachi Gymkhana with country’s top 40 cueists vying for top honours.

Khurram, 24, has made impressive runs in all the major Pakistan Billiard and Snooker Association (PBSA) organized tournaments but has faltered in the finals. This tournament will provide Khurram a perfect opportunity to remove the tag of a ‘choker’.

National champion Farhan Mirza, who defeated Khurram in the last tournament, has been seeded second and would start as firm favourites to retain the title.

Former world and Asian amateur champion Mohammad Yousuf, has slipped down the ladder to the third spot, with former junior champion Naveen Perwani from PIA seeded fourth.

Saleh Mohammad is seeded fifth whereas Punjab’s promising Imran Shehzad is seeded No.6 and Atiq Latif Bux, scion of late Latif Amir Bux, holds the seventh spot.

The players will be divided into eight groups with five players contesting for the top honours in each group. The top two players in each group will qualify for the last 16 stage.

Among the top eight, Sindh have five representatives while Punjab has two and the NWFP one. In all, Sindh has 16 cueists, Punjab 15, NWFP six and Balochistan three.

Aneel Bherwani, a losing semi-finalist at the National is the noted absentee. Aneel has proceeded aboard for higher studies.

His place in the tournament has been taken by Abu Saim who reached the last 16 in his debut appearance in the Asian Snooker Championship held here a few months ago.Abu, however, was unlucky to have been edged out in the qualifying rounds at the National Championship by a frame, after winning three of his four matches.

The winner will take home Rs55,000 while the losing final will receive a purse of Rs35,000.

The two semi-finalists will each receive Rs16,000 and the four quarter-finalists Rs8,000 apiece.