Furth (Germany): After becoming the first Indian to enter the semi-finals of an international professional snooker tournament, Pankaj Adavni lost to world No. 1, England’s Mark Selby, in a keenly-fought last-four contest of the European Tour-1 Paul Hunter Classic here.

Seven-time world champion, Advani put up a brave fight against the veteran Englishman and stretched his opponent to the limit before eventually losing 2-4.

In a clash of the best, Selby proceeded to pocket the first frame denying Advani even a single point.

Displaying excellent technique, Advani once again used a combination of defence and attack to score a break of 50 in the second frame, equalising the scores to a frame apiece.

Not to be left behind, Selby proceeded to pocket the next two frames to lead 3-1 only to have Advani fight back, narrowing the lead to 2-3.