16-man field for Asian billiards

Sixteen cueists, including five from India, will vie for honours in the Om Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance-sponsored second Asian billiards championship, in Bangalore, from March 18 to 24.

The Indian challenge, led by seasoned campaigner Geet Sethi, also includes Devendra Joshi, Ashok Shandilya, Alok Kumar and wild card Pankaj Advani, the upcoming youngster from Karnataka.

Many cueists have pulled out of the prestigious tournament citing security concerns.

The event would be held on the 100-point format, with the league matches to be decided over best-of-five frames, the quarter-finals and semi-finals best-of-seven, and the final, best-of-nine frames.

India coach Michael Ferreira and Karnataka State Billiards Association president S Balasubramaniam told newsmen that the 16 players have been split into two groups. The top four from each group will qualify for the quarter-final knock-out, to be played on March 23. The semi-finals would also be played on the same day while the final is slated for March 24.

Other prominent players from the continent who will be seen in action are Udon Khaimukh and K Mongkhon from Thailand; Ronnie Chua Poh Teck, Theik Chong Alan Puan and Glen Yeo Teck Shin from Singapore, and Suresh Hashim, Weerasinghee and Boteju from Sri Lanka.

The first Asian championship was held way back in 1986 in Mumbai, where Geet Sethi emerged triumphant, and Subhash Aggarwal finished runner-up.

Following are the groupings:

Group A: Geet Sethi (India), Devendra Joshi (India), Mongkhon K (Thailand), Boteju (Sri Lanka), Ronnie Chua Poh Tech (Singapore), Muslim (Indonesia), Ukyaw Oo (Myanmar) and Suresh Hashim (Sri Lanka).

Group B: Udon Khaimukh (Thailand), Ashok Shandilya (India), Alok Kumar (India), Weerasinghe (Sri Lanka), Theik Chong Aian Puan (Singapore), Glen Yeo Teck Shin (Singapore), Uwin Myint (Myanmar) and Pankaj Advani (India).