Pakistan is a sports passionate country. When we talk about cricket, we feel proud as a nation that we won the world cup. We are all aware about the rules and regulations governing the game of Cricket. We are update about the statistics related to our team and about individual players performances, deliberating for hours on their heroics or otherwise as the case may be. We know about the legends in Cricket, Squash, Hockey and now athletics, thanks to our recent Paris Olympics gold medal in javelin throw.

There is another sport though in which Pakistan has been making waves in international tournaments, and that is Snooker.

In the latest on-going IBSF (International Billiards and Snooker Federation) World Cup event, for instance Asad Iqbal of Pakistan has done the country proud by reaching the semifinals of this prestigious World Cup event being held in Muscat, Oman from November 15-23, 2025. But before we discuss more on the Pakistani exploits internationally in snooker, let us dwell a bit on the game itself. Notwithstanding the outstanding performances of Pakistan in snooker, we tend to be quite ignorant about the sport and about our legends in snooker who make the country proud.

So let s delve a little about the sports set-up and the international bodies that govern it.

Just like cricket which has ICC (international Cricket Council) as its governing body, the game of snooker also has its own controlling set-up. There are two governing bodies depending on which category of snooker one is talking about. One it the game’s Professional category and the other is it’s Amateur one. The two governing bodies for Professional and Amateur Snooker (and Billiards) are:

1.World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA). This is the “Professional” Governing Body for Snooker and Billiards

2.International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF). This is the “Amateur” Governing Body for Snooker and Billiards.

Both the Professional and Amateur Snooker Championships have further sub-categories which can be used as stepping stones to enable players to move to higher level of proficiency and ranking.

The Professional Snooker Structure: This includes three Sub-categories. (i) Main Tour: This represents the highest level in Snooker. It includes the World Championship and associated prestigious annual tournaments, highest World Ranking events and corresponding points and highest prize money. It also includes the Masters tournament.

(ii) Challenge Tour: Secondary Professional Tour for developing players and an opportunity for players to qualify for the Main Tour and

(iii) Q-School: This is a Qualification Pathway to Professional Snooker. It provides an opportunity for new players to join the Main Tour, which in turn is the highest level of professional recognition.

Amateur Snooker Structure: This also includes three sub-categories. (i) IBSF World Snooker Championship: This is a top Amateur Championship which is held on annual basis. (ii) Continental Championship: This covers Regional Championships like. For instance, Asian Championship or the European Championship events and (iii) National Championships: These are country specific tournaments such as the Pakistan Amateur Championships.

For Amateur Snooker, he ultimate level attainable is the IBSF World Amateur Championship.

The Continental championships (such as the European or the Asian) are often the best way for a player to get a direct two year entry into the ultimate spot which is the IBSF World Championship.

For the novice it is suffice to know that there are two main championship categories in Snooker; the Professional level Championships and the Amateur championships. If a player consistently performs well at the Amateur level and accumulates enough points, he or she can strive towards attaining the more prestigious Professional status.

The legends in Snooker: We are all aware about the great legends in Cricket, Squash and Hockey, and of course not forgetting our current hero from the 2024 Paris Olympics.

But few of us in Pakistan are aware about the legends in Snooker. Before delving deeper into the Pakistan scenario, it is a good idea to know a bit about the big international names in Snooker.

Like Mohammad Ali is to boxing, so is Steve Davies to Snooker. He was,for six years, the Professional World Champion (WPBSA) during the period 1981 to 1989. Another legend was Alex Higgins, also known as the Hurricane).

Other outstanding legends include Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan, who were, for six years, the Professional World Champions (WPBSA), the latter being a dominant force in Snooker during the more recent era of 2002-2022.

High Achievers in Snooker from Pakistan:

IBSF Snooker World Cup 2025

Pakistan has been producing talented Snooker players who have been making a name for themselves on the international scene. The two most recent Pakistani players who showcased their snooker talent are Asjad Iqbal and Mohammad Asif. Asjad Iqbal beat his Indian rival Pankaj Advani 4-0 to reach the semi-finals of the prestigious IBSF Snooker World Cup 2025 Championships. However, the latest news from Oman is that Asjad Iqbal unfortunately lost to his opponent Nicolas Mortreux of France in the semi-finals held on 19 November 2025. However, he still ended up winning the Bronze Medal in this global tournament, which in itself is indeed a very commendable achievement for the player and for the nation.

Another Pakistani sensation, Mohammad Asif, who was the reigning World Champion, could not repeat his last year’s superb performance and was knocked out in the pre-quarterfinal stages by Nicholas Mortreux, the same player who beat Asjad Iqbal in the semis. In any case Mohammad Asif still finished amongst the top 16 amateur players.

All time great performances by Pak legends in Snooker. Pakistani snooker players have been showcasing high level of skill and talent when it comes to playing at the highest level of amateur snooker championships. Following are some of the Pakistani players who have excelled at the highest level of amateur world snooker which is the coveted IBSF World Snooker Championship (the individual event).

Mohammad Asif: He’s done exceedingly well by winning the individual IBSF snooker world title a record three times. He becomes only the second player in history to achieve this world record, the other one being Pankaj Advani from India. Mohammad Asif won his three titles in the years 2012, 2019 and 2024.

Ahsan Ramzan: He won the IBSF snooker world championship once in 2021. However, he has the distinction of being the youngest ever player, at the age of 17, to win the title. His historic achievement showcases the prowess and the talent which our younger generation possess.

Mohammad Yousuf: In a way he is a pioneer for snooker in Pakistan, being the first Pakistani to bring home the individual IBSF World Snooker Championship title for the first time to his country in the year 1991.

As such, a total of 5 numbers of ISBF World Snooker Championship titles have been won by Pakistani players.

There are numerous other major IBSF world titles which our young snooker players have won and did our country proud. These titles include: The team event IBSF World Championships,World Masters, World U-17 Championships and so on.

Pakistan has done extremely well in the IBSF tournaments by winning the main IBSF Amateur World Snooker Championships five times. Players such as Mohammad Asif have proven their mettle as amongst the best in the world. However, the downside is that, while performing exceptionally well at the amateur level, they have never gone on to win the coveted WPBSA Professional level snooker championships.

The only Pakistani snooker player who did qualify to play for the Professional WPBSA World Snooker Championship was Hamza Akbar.

Consequent to his winning the Asian Snooker Championship in 2015, he was awarded a two year ‘tour card’ which allowed him to contest at WPBSA Professional Snooker Championship. Unfortunately for him and for Pakistan, he could not avail this golden opportunity due to visa related issues, because of which he could not proceed to participate in the Professional level tournaments.

In conclusion, Pakistan has demonstrated to the world that their players are amongst the best in cue sports. They have proven their incredible prowess, talent, resilience and consistency in winning World Championships at amateur level multiple times. We have a World Champion with a three wins al time record, which is an exceptional feat by itself. However, these world champions often get ignored or do not get the acknowledgement and support that they so richly deserve. Their world class achievements often get overshadowed or overlooked on account of prominence and coverage given to other sports like Cricket. It is about time that we prioritise snooker, give it the due recognition that it deserves and take measures to bring it into the mainstream of Pakistani sports.

Pakistan has been languishing at the amateur level for much too long now. We have the talent and the ability to move forward to the Professional level in snooker.

There is an urgent need to take steps to bring Snooker into the mainstream, increase the investment, upgrade the infrastructure and promote snooker and presenting it as an attractive and alternative career path for young athletes beyond traditional sports. Our core challenge is to ensure the transition from amateur world champion status to the highly esteemed professional world champions.

The onus is upon the decision makers and all other stakeholders to take the necessary steps to achieve this objective.

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