Vidya Pillai extends reign as national snooker champion

The contest was rather one-sided despite Sanchis winning the second frame. The 33-year old Pillay, in winning the title for the sixth time, was rarely in any sort of bother and took the match at 53-34, 43-53, 92-15, 54-15.

Pillai the 2010 Australian Open champion struck a purple patch in the third frame that she won on a break of 44 and went on to close the match by winning the fourth. She was strong on potting and her vast experience was also a decisive factor.

Sanchis, the 21-year old former junior champion, had a few openings in the three frames that she lost, but her inability to build a break of any consequence contributed to her disappointing performance. However, she did impress with her single-ball potting, though she has a long way to go in safety play.

Incidentally, Chitra Magimairaj posted the tournament’s highest break of 74 and frame score of 109 while winning her minor placings match against Keerath Bhandaal of Delhi earlier in the day.

Other results:
For 3-4 positions: Neena Praveen (TN) bt Suniti Damani (WB) 2-0 (55-31, 26-17).
Top five rankings: Vidya Pillai (TN) 1, Arantxa Sanchis (Mah) 2, Neena Praveen (TN) 3, Suniti Damani (WB) 4, Chitra Magimairaj (Kar) 5, Uma Devi Nagaraj (Kar).