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Mumbai, Owing to the state elections in Maharashtra, this season’s Indian Open world ranking snooker event, slated to be held here, has been postponed from its original date of October 13-17 to March 10-14 next year.
The Billiards and Snooker Federation of India (BSFI) has advised the World Snooker to change the dates of the tournament following a clash with the state elections, which are scheduled to take place on October 15.
The qualifying round in Barnsley was due to take place from September 18 to 21 but now has been moved to February.
World Snooker Chairman Barry Hearn said, “This is an unfortunate set of circumstances but following the advice we have taken, we have no choice but to postpone the tournament. We have worked swiftly to ensure new dates have been secured.”
“Last year’s inaugural Indian Open in New Delhi was a fantastic success and we saw snooker in India as having incredible potential for growth. We look forward to next March and the chance for players to experience Mumbai for the first time – and for the fans there to witness the world’s best in action.”
Indian ace Pankaj Advani, who had decided to participate in the event despite the tournament finishing very close to the start of the World Billiards Championship in Leeds from October 20, will certainly be relieved now as he focus his energies on just one event at a time.
PTI
