Monday, May 20, 2002
Monday, May 20, 2002 |
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Billiards & Snooker
By Geet Sethi
With the preparations for the forthcoming Asian Games to be staged in Pusan, Korea later this September in full swing I have had enough opportunities to practise and get some competitive edge back. The Asian Games instils emotion and feelings, which cannot be replicated in any other event. And I have rediscovered my own enthusiasm levels for the game as the event draws closer. This has helped me in achieving the lost fluency and solidness in competitive play. Commencing my match against Shandilya, who has been a sort of bogeyman for me, I was pleased to find the rhythm and speed coming naturally back. Averaging a creditable 45.6 in the opening two-hour session with the aid of consistency rather than big breaks, I came into the second session this morning with the comfort of a 913-267 advantage. Efforts of 51, 78, 82, 106, 85, 66, 75, 87 & 119 helped me in establishing a 650-point lead. A 650-point lead is by no means a trivial advantage midway in a four-hour match but neither is it a match winning number. Shandilya may not have the flair and discipline to compile 500+ breaks but one quality, which he possesses in large quantities, is fighting instinct. He exhibited this with a timely and ferocious fight back on resumption taking his unfinished break of 60 to 95 and then quickly followed this with a 90 in his very next visit. Both of us failed to construct any significant breaks in the next six visits. However the World No. 9 made his intentions of coming back into the match a distinct reality when he cracked in yet another 141. By now the 650 point first session lead had eroded and the Asian Games double gold medallist trailed only 350 points. It was crucial to respond if I had to sow any fresh seeds of doubt into the burly cueist. I did just that by replying the 141 with a 105 and then four visits later sealed the contest with a 295. Under the baulk line rule, this has been my highest break in the last three years, a statistic that bears testimony to my erratic performances in the pro circuit. But I was pleased with the manner in which I compiled that break. The final scores were 1475-939 in my favour. Peter Gilchrist, the defending champion and World No. 2 scored an impressive 1298-770 win over Lee Lagan with consistent scoring. Breaks of 66, 79, 58, 80, 53, 82 and 65 in the second session helped him in increasing his first session lead of 260 points. Gilchrist now meets Nalin Patel in the quarterfinals. Patel overcame a slow and irritating Ian Williamson 762-638. It was not a performance which Patel would be proud of but nonetheless it was a match-winning effort which saw him safely through to the next round. Patel, who has exhibited remarkable consistency in his professional billiards career after being banned from representing India because of a British passport, has ensured that he will retain his position in the top 8 of the world rankings for the fifth successive year. Besides Patel and yours truly, no other Indian has managed to break into the top 8. There was excitement and drama in the contest between Chris Shutt, a former World Open champion and Peter Sheehan, ranked 9. The final scores of 1163-1146 in Sheehan's favour reflect the keenness of the contest. Given Shutt's past record for big breaks - he has compiled a break of 836 three years ago in a ranking tournament - and his higher ranking, the result was a big surprise. The World No. 5, clearly disappointed, responded in monosyllables when asked what went wrong. For some time it looked as if Sheehan would cruise through the match. He led 461-155 after the first 90 minutes in the opening session. But inspired and committed break building from Shutt saw the 6'7'' cueist reduce the deficit to 634-531 in the last half hour with consecutive runs of 62, 80 and 193. Shutt continuing with his fluent scoring in the second session then went ahead 916-785 with heavy scoring in the opening half hour of the second session. Due credit must be given to Sheehan for withstanding such a determined and effective comeback. With efforts of 84, 62 & 76, Sheehan once again took the initiative to lead 1113-1016. Resorting to a tactical exchange, Sheehan then frustrated his opponent by not allowing him any easy chances. With the clock ticking away, Shutt managed to compile an unfinished 38 but that still left him adrift by 17 points. Later tonight India No.2 Devendra Joshi is scheduled to play David Causier and Dhruv Sitwala runs into World No.1 and second seed Mike Russell. The results (last 16 stage): Nalin Patel beat Ian Williamson 762-638; Peter Gilchrist beat Lee Lagan 1298 (235) - 770; Peter Sheehan beat Chris Shutt 1163 ( 84, 76) - 1146 (120, 91, 78); Geet Sethi beat Ashok Shandilya 1475 ( 78, 82, 106, 85, 75, 87, 119, 105, 295) - 939 (74, 95, 90, 141, 95, 141).
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