KARACHI: Thrilling contests marked the opening of the NBP 50th National Snooker Championship 2026, which got underway at the NBP Sports Club, Clifton, Karachi. The tournament has entered the round-robin group stage, with players competing for places in the knockout round.
Several top cueists impressed with outstanding breaks. Asjad Iqbal produced two superb century breaks of 127 and 103, while Muhammad Asif also registered two centuries of 134 and 112. A. Sattar compiled a fine 112, and Shahid Aftab added a solid 108 to underline the high standard of play.
Asjad Iqbal (NBP) also recorded a clean sweep, beating Barjeesh Khan (Islamabad) 4-0 with frame scores of 127(127)-0, 79(72)-10, 65-16, 115(103)-09.
Match Results:
Ian Mark John (Sindh) defeated Asif Toba (Punjab) 4-2 with frame scores of 59-21, 53-06, 29-74, 98(69)-14, 02-83(50), 64-44.
Amir Sohail (KP) beat Nadir Shah (Sindh) 4-2, the frame scores being 63-51, 89-18, 0-88(80), 76-43, 11-52, 63-19.
A. Sattar (Sindh) blanked Saif Ali Khan (Balochistan) 4-0 with frame scores of 112(112)-10, 63-32, 78(78)-15, 58-54.
Ahmar Tariq (Punjab) overcame Muhammad Ahmad (Punjab) 4-2, with the frame scores reading 44-67, 15-109(57), 71(65)-27, 71(67)-16, 97(87)-0, 57(56)-05.
Rana Irfan (Punjab) recorded a convincing 4-0 win over Hasnain Siyab (KP), winning the frames 98(97)-03, 105(57)-15, 73(73)-13, 69(65)-0.
Sultan Muhammad (Sindh) beat Asad Kan (Balochistan) 4-1 with frame scores of 64-32, 64-33, 51-66, 61-13, 59-46. Sheikh M. Mudassir (Islamabad) edged past Ali Raza (Sindh) 4-3 in a closely fought encounter, with the frames ending 29-57, 63-59, 70-35, 0-81(81), 84-43, 05-60, 58-48.
