15 Time World Champion, Pankaj loses 5-3 in the semifinals of the tournament
With a match that was matched frame-to-frame till the sixth, Pankaj Advani lost the first frame to his Thai opponent, 46-86 but moved on to pocket the second frame, 64-21. In the third frame, Lertsattayathorn started at the table and scored a century break of 142 winning the frame, however the fourth frame belonged to Pankaj who won it 99-0 with a break of 94. Losing the fifth frame, 71-5, in the sixth frame, Pankaj scored a 90 break to win the frame 99-18. Thailand's Lertsattayathorn won the seventh and eighth frame, 77-28 and 66-31 respectively to proceed into the finals of the Asian Snooker Championships.
Commenting on his performance, Pankaj said, "The match didn't go my way but credit is due to my Thai opponent for the way he played. Looking forward to the next tournament in Abu Dhabi next month and I am glad to have started with the snooker season with a lots more in store."