Mohammed Shehab and Mohammed Al Joaker both suffered shock defeats at the seven-nation Snooker Championship in Karachi on Monday.
The Emirati duo lost to relatively less known players, with Shehab losing 4-3 to Abdul Sattar, an unseeded Pakistani cueist, before the fourth seed recovered to defeat Saeed Abooyesani, the Iranian, and keep alive his chances for a place in the quarter-finals.
Seventh seed Al Joaker, however, lost both matches he played – to Sultan Mohammad, of Pakistan, and Egypt's Mohamed Ibrahim Mohamed.
The day belonged to local hope, Sattar, who followed his opening-day win over Egypt's Yaser Ahmed Elsherbiny with the win over Shehab.
After conceding the close first frame, Shehab came back with a run of 50 points to win the second. The UAE's top-ranked player went without a point in the next frame before recovering once again to clinch the fourth frame and a break of 83 points in the fifth.
But Sattar produced a vital break of 69 in the sixth frame to earn a 3-3 and then took the deciding seventh on the black for a 4-3 victory.
It was Pakistan's day with Mohammad Asif beating Yaser Ahmed Elsherbiny, of Egypt, in straight frames and notching up a break of 126 in the final frame, which remains the highest of the championship being contested by 20 cueists from seven countries.
Sixth-seeded Habib Subah, of Bahrain, was also among those upset on Monday as he lost 4-2 to little-known Mohammad Faisal Khan, of India.
The top three seeded cueists in the championship – Hossein Vafaei Ayouri (Iran), Thepchaiya Unnooh (Thailand) and Yasin Merchant (India) – won their matches to boost their chances of advancing to the next round.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
RESULTS
5pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Purebred Arabian Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner: Hameem, Adrie de Vries (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Winked, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Cup Listed (TB) Dh 380,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Boerhan, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard
6.30pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Group 3 (PA) Dh 500,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: AF Alwajel, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Jewel Crown Group 1 (PA) Dh 5,000,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Messi, Pat Dobbs, Timo Keersmaekers
7.30pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Handicap (PA) Dh 150,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Harrab, Ryan Curatolo, Jean de Roualle
8pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AF Alareeq, Connor Beasley, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
VERSTAPPEN'S FIRSTS
Youngest F1 driver (17 years 3 days Japan 2014)
Youngest driver to start an F1 race (17 years 166 days – Australia 2015)
Youngest F1 driver to score points (17 years 180 days - Malaysia 2015)
Youngest driver to lead an F1 race (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest driver to set an F1 fastest lap (19 years 44 days – Brazil 2016)
Youngest on F1 podium finish (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest F1 winner (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest multiple F1 race winner (Mexico 2017/18)
Youngest F1 driver to win the same race (Mexico 2017/18)
Cherry
Directed by: Joe and Anthony Russo
Starring: Tom Holland, Ciara Bravo
1/5
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The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
