Pakistan’s Haris Tahir and India’s Kreishh Gurbaxani prevailed on the final day of Asia/Oceania Q School to earn two year cards for the World Snooker Tour.
Tahir was up against China’s Lan Yuhao in his final match and he showed no signs of nerves early on, firing in a break of 67 to move 1-0 ahead. Lan dug deep and crafted a run of 69 on his way to moving 2-1 ahead. However, Tahir claimed the last three on the bounce to clinch a momentous 4-2 victory.
“I am totally speechless. This means so much to me, my mother and my brother back home. The pressure was so high, but I am glad I handled it well towards the end. I will prepare myself to go to the UK, work hard and do my best.”
The second match saw Gurbaxani fall 2-0 behind to Pakistan’s Muhammad Naseem Akhtar. The third saw Akhtar require three snookers, but he got them to give himself a chance of moving to the verge of victory. However, Gurbaxani won a safety battle on the final brown to reduce his deficit to 2-1.
That proved to be pivotal, as from there he powered to a further three on the bounce to secure a 4-2 win and a place among the professional ranks.