International cueist Asutosh Padhy retained his senior billiards crown in the 32nd Odisha State Billiards & Snooker Championship, which is being organized by the Billiards & Snooker Association of Odisha (BSAO) at GK Snooker Club, CDA, Kataka from 29 Oct 2026. The championship is expected to conclude by 11 Nov 2026.

Dominating the final from the word go, former sub-junior and junior National champion Padhy defeated his main opponent and former coach-cum-mentor Subrat Das 4-0 (150-126, 152-94, 150-47, 150-99) to claim the State senior billiards title for the seventh time.

The title triumph assumed greater significance as Padhy registered a century break (107) in the third frame. Barring the third frame, Das put up a fighting performance in the summit clash, but could not stop Padhy from winning the title.

Earlier in the semifinals, Das vanquished Vishesh Singhal 3-0, while Padhi made short work of Chiranjeev Singh 3-0. Padhy and Das pocketed Rs 20,000 and Rs 10,000 as champion and runner-up respectively.

The State championship, featuring billiards and snooker events for senior men, women and junior boys, was inaugurated by BSAO secretary Sameer Ali, in the presence of tournament director Govind Sharma and GK Snooker Club owner Gyana Ranjan Behera.

A total of 13 players participated in the senior billiards competition. The senior snooker event, involving a record number of 68 entries, including five-time champion Padhy, commenced today. The State championship is being staged in the twin cities, Kataka and Bhubaneswar for the first time.

The second part of the championship, featuring junior boys and women billiards and snooker events, will be conducted at the 6Pocket Udaan Academy in Patia, Bhubaneswar. The championship is slated to conclude on November 11.

All the title winners, runners -up and some of the top-ranking finishers will be eligible to represent Odisha in the upcoming National Billiards & Snooker Championship, which is expected to be held in Bengaluru from 2027 January onwards.
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PHOTO: Asutosh Padhy poses after winning the senior billiards final at the 32nd Odisha State Billiards & Snooker Championship in Kataka on 31 October 2026.