Shyam Shroff Memorial - Khar Gymkhana Snooker Tournament

Khar Gymkhana - 15 Linking Road

Khar - Mumbai

Qualifying :: 26 February - 02 March 2008

Main Round :: 04 - 09 March 2008

Marzdi, Rishabh rally to enter main draw

Report by :: Don Monteiro

Trailing 1-2, Marzdi Kalyaniwala and Rishabh Pandya rallied to exciting 4-2 wins to book their berths in the elite main draw, in the Khar Gymkhana-Shyam Shroff Memorial Open Invitation Snooker Tournament 2008 at the Khar Gymkhana on Sunday. After surprisingly dropping the second and third frames after a good start, Bombay Gymkhana's Kalyaniwala struck form in the nick of time to effect a solid comeback against the formidable Amit Saboo who struggled against the sudden onslaught.

Kalyaniwala drew level at 2-all in the best-of-seven frames contest and clinched the issue with a 60-42, 46-76, 57-63, 49-24, 69-20, 47-16 win in the fourth and final qualifying round. Joining Kalyaniwala in similar fashion was state junior champion Rishabh Pandya who staged a late challenge to rally to a brilliant upset win over fancied Dhruv Sitwala of Petroleum Sports Promotion Board 16-97, 67-5, 35-83, 74-8, 70-6, 63-35.

The others to enter the main draw, that will be held from March 4 to 9 after a rest day on Monday, are Lucky Vatnani of Hyderabad and Neeraj Kumar of Bihar.

Wilson Jones-PJ Hindu Gymkhana title winner Vatnani ousted Arun Agrawal 91-7, 73-13, 79-32, 71-0 that was studded with significant breaks of 46 in the first, 48 in the second and 50 in the fourth frame, while Kumar ignored the loss of the second frame to beat Shakeel Ahmed of Railways 63-40, 22-45, 58-20, 67-44, 55-41.

Results (Qualifiers):

Final Qualifiers:

Marzdi Kalyaniwala bt Amit Saboo 60-42, 46-76, 57-63, 49-24, 69-20, 47-16

Lucky Vatnani (Hyderabad) bt Arun Agrawal 91(46)-7, 73(48)-13, 79-32, 71(50)-0

Neeraj Kumar (Bihar) bt Shakeel Ahmed (Rlys) 63-40, 22-45, 58-20, 67-44, 55-41

Rishabh Pandya bt Dhruv Sitwala (PSPB) 16-97, 67-5, 35-83, 74-8, 70-6, 63-35.