Finals Set at First Ever World Disability Snooker Championship
The finals of the first ever World Disability Snooker Championship are now confirmed after five days of action on the baize in Nonthaburi, Thailand.
Organised by World Disability Billiards and Snooker (WDBS) and the Sports Association for the Disabled of Thailand under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King (SPADT), the landmark competition began on 25 February with a total field of 66 players from 15 nations who have been narrowed down to 14 finalists across wheelchair, ambulant, intellectual, visual and deaf classification groups.
The historic occasion was officially opened with a spectacular opening ceremony that featured a special performance of dancing and musical entertainment before speeches from WDBS Chairman Nigel Mawer QPM, Billiard Sports Association of Thailand (BSAT) President Suntorn Jarumon and other distinguished guests.
The finals will take place tomorrow (Sunday 2 March) from 10:00 local time and you can read our preview of each of the seven title matches below.
Group 1
The Group 1 wheelchair final will see Thailand’s Numpol Thongpusawan face England’s Gary Swift for the World Championship crown.
Swift is one of four reigning World Abilitysport Games gold medalists to reach the final in Thailand after he beat home nation cueist Poramet Boonphak 3-0 in Saturday’s semi-final.
Thongpusawan, who took home the bronze medal in 2023, marks his first WDBS ranking event appearance with a run to the title match after battling through a late night encounter with Hong Kong China’s Ma Wah Keung to win 3-0.
Group 2
England’s Dave Beaumont and Thailand’s Surasit Loisaratrakul will go head-to-head in the Group 2 wheelchair final.
Beaumont has already secured the world number one position for the first time in his career after overcoming Tony Southern 3-1 in the semi-final on Saturday and will now be looking to add the world title to his growing title haul.
All that now stands between him and the World Championship trophy is Loisaratrakul, the bronze medalist at the 2023 World Abilitysport Games, who defeated fellow countryman Niwat Kongta (3-1) and England’s Darren Taylor (3-1) in the knockout stages to reach the title match.
Group 3
Thailand’s Thanapol Seekao will meet India’s Shayan Shetty in an all-Asian final of Group 3.
The two players are each competing in a WDBS ranking event for the first time and met in the initial group phase with Seekao running out a 3-1 victor.
The Thai player is the reigning World Abilitysport Games gold medalist in Group 3 and heads into the title match in strong form having dropped just a single frame across four matches en route to the final.
The 38-year-old Shetty is the only player to take a frame off Seekao thus far, however, and has picked up notable victories over current world number one Kal Mattu (3-2) and reigning European champion Andy Lam (3-2) – having needed a snooker in the deciding frame of a dramatic semi-final contest against Lam.
Group 4
Group 4’s top two ranked players will meet in the World Championship final tomorrow as David Church and Carl Gibson face off for glory.
Two players with twelve WDBS titles between them will renew their rivalry in a repeat of the Group 4 final at the 2023 World Abilitysport Games in Thailand.
Gibson was the champion on that occasion but Church, who currently sits at the summit of the ranking list, will be out for revenge as he looks to win the biggest title in disability snooker.
Group 5
A second Thailand against India title match clash will see Songkiat Raebankoo take on Anant Mehta in Group 5.
A high-quality group has featured four of the top five breaks of the event so far including breaks of 86, 71 and 62 from Pakistan’s Shahzad Butt who was defeated in the last four by Raebankoo.
The reigning World Abilitysport Games gold medalist Raebankoo is aiming for further success in his home country while Mehta has proven to be a revelation on his tour debut, downing world number one Dave Bolton 3-1 in the semi-finals to deny him the title in a ranking event he has contested for the first time.
Mehta has already overcome Raebankoo (3-2) in the group stages and will now be hoping for a repeat result on Sunday afternoon.
Group 6+8
The combined Group 6+8 event sees Group 6B’s Lee Hague of England taking on Belgium’s Kristof De Bruyn from Group 8.
De Bruyn topped the initial group phase with a clean sweep of victories, including a 3-1 win over his final opponent, and has lost only three frames in five matches so far as he bids for the fourth ranking event title of his career and keeps the flag flying for his nation.
A semi-final whitewash win over Ireland’s Niall Pollitt has secured Hague his place in a ranking event final for the first time in his career – three years after making his debut at the 2022 UK Disability Championship.
Group 7
Colvin O’Brien and Dylan Rees will battle it out in an all-Irish World Championship final tomorrow in the visual classification group event.
Current world number one O’Brien has been in outstanding form, winning six consecutive matches and compiling a high break of 80 to reach his eighth WDBS event final.
There he will face 52-year-old fellow countryman Rees, who is aiming to win a first ranking event title in nearly two years after overcoming England’s Mike Gillespie 3-1 in Saturday’s semi-final.
The World Disability Snooker Championship finals will start from 10:00 local time on Sunday 2 March. You can follow the action via WPBSA SnookerScores and watch table one live on the WPBSA YouTube channel and WDBS Facebook page.
