Pakistan’s veteran cueist Muhammad Asif kicked off his World Games 2025 snooker campaign in style, defeating China’s Xiaolong Liang in straight frames in his opening Group B match.
Asif dominated the best-of-three encounter, clinching a 2-0 win. He secured the first frame 79-50 and wrapped up the match with a commanding 77-24 score in the second.
His next challenge will be against Germany’s Alexander Widau on Monday.
This year’s men’s snooker event at the World Games features 12 participants split into four groups of three, with the top two from each group advancing to the quarter-finals.
The 2025 Games, which opened on Friday in Chengdu, have brought together over 4,000 athletes from more than 100 nations across 34 sports, including cue sports.
Snooker, introduced to the event in 2001, once again sees 12 of the world’s best amateur players competing for gold.
Asif, a former IBSF World Champion, qualified for the Games by winning the 2024 IBSF World Men’s Snooker Championship in Doha, where he overcame Iran’s Ali Gharahgozlou in a tightly contested final, edging him 4-3.
The 36-year-old also added another feather to his cap last month by lifting the IBSF World Masters Snooker Championship title in Bahrain, defeating India’s Brijesh Damani in another close-fought 4-3 final.