Kothari Stumbles, Still Advances to Last-16 Despite Shock Defeat to Goodwill in World Billiards

Reigning champion Sourav Kothari endured a rare off-day but still managed to secure a place in the last-16 stage of the IBSF World Billiards Championship , even as veteran English cueist Martin Goodwill produced a dramatic upset in their Group ‘A’ clash on Sunday.

In a contest that went down to the wire, the 63-year-old Goodwill edged Kothari by the slimmest of margins, 276-275 , sealing a memorable victory and finishing his group campaign unbeaten. The match turned out to be a stark contrast to Kothari’s earlier brilliance in the tournament.

The Indian star, who had earlier delivered a sensational performance with an 825-40 demolition of France’s Akhilesh Mohan , including a mammoth break of 515 , struggled to replicate that fluency. Against Goodwill, Kothari looked unsettled, made uncharacteristic errors, and failed to build momentum, allowing the Englishman to capitalise on openings.

Despite the setback, Kothari’s two wins from three matches were enough to carry him into the knockout stage, keeping his title defence alive.

Elsewhere, fellow Indian cueist Pankaj Advani continued his dominant run, topping Group ‘B’ with a flawless record of three comprehensive victories. In his final group match, Advani overwhelmed South Korea’s Baek Minhu 785-161 , highlighted by commanding breaks of 162, 88, and 389 in a 90-minute masterclass.

India’s strong presence in the knockouts was further strengthened as Dhruv Sitwala, Alok Kumar, Rupesh Shah, Shrikrishna S, Siddharth Parikh, and Rafath Habib also advanced to the last-16 stage.

Among them, Sitwala stood out with an impressive performance, defeating Ireland’s Aonghus McAnally 621-169 , anchoring his win with a fluent 203 break , followed by scores of 90 and 133 .

With multiple Indian players progressing, expectations remain high as the championship moves into its decisive knockout phase.