Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
IT WAS mission accomplished for national cueist Muhd Azim Abu Bakar at the WPA World Heyball (Chinese 8-Ball) Masters Grand Finals 2025 in Chengdu, China.
It was the first major tournament for Azim and he achieved his target of getting out of the qualifiers at the USD $1.6 million tournament.
He had a good start after beating Hong Kong's four-time Open champion Yip Kin Ling 7-2 in the first round of the qualifiers.
Azim then suffered a 7-6 setback against India's Adhijeet Ranade but ensured passage into the main event after holding on for a 6-5 victory over Kang Ting Chang of Chinese-Taipei.
Men Sophanith of Cambodia proved too much for him as he fell 11-2 to the SEA Games snooker doubles gold medallist in the first round of the main event.
He returned to winning ways after dispatching Malaysia's Branden Paul 11-7.
However, his campaign came to end in the third round after losing 11-4 to Takhti Zarekani of Sweden.
"It was a great experience competing in China as this is my first time competing in a major world tournament... to play against and alongside all the best players from around the world," said Azim in an interview with BruSports News.
"All the matches I had were tough but overall, I felt I exceeded my expectation as my target was to qualify for the main event from.
"I've learned a lot from this event and I'm proud and honoured to have brought Brunei onto the world stage. I'm thankful to everyone who supported me along the way,"he added.
The national cueist also highlighted how Heyball is different from the usual 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball contested in the Sultanate.
"I would love to have the Chinese 8-ball table here in Brunei for practise and to get use to it,” said Azim.
"It is not the same as a normal pool table as the pockets are tighter and it feels more like a snooker table.
"I'm looking forward and it would be an honour to have the chance to represent Brunei again in the future. But for now, it's time to rest, reset and come back stronger."
He also thanked the organisers JOY Heyball for the invitation and making this trip possible by providing flight and accommodation.
