[1]Asian snooker champion Aditya Mehta toppled tournament favourite Liang Wenbo of China with a thumping 3-0 win to clinch the gold medal at the World Games in Cali, Columbia, on Tuesday. He became the first Indian to win a World Games title.
“This is my career’s best performance. I am delighted with this win. Fantastic day... A long awaited dream come true!!” tweeted an elated Mehta.
This is also India’s first medal since legendary shuttler Prakash Padukone’s bronze in the inaugural World Games in 1981 and only the second for India in the history of the Games. The Mumbai cueist, who took silver and bronze medals at the 2010 Asian Games, was in top form throughout the five-day tournament and easily defeated his opponent in the final. Mehta, world ranked 74th, managed to beat world no. 64 Dechawat Poomjaeng, and world no. 19 Joe Perry en route his title triumph.
“Mehta has now finally proven beyond doubt that he is by far the most accomplished, talented and sincere snooker player that we have seen since Yasin Merchant, who played on the pro circuit,” said Billiards and Snooker Association Maharashtra joint secretary Salil Deshpande.
Links:
[1] http://archive.asianage.com/sp2jpg-133