The Karnataka State Billiards Association (KSBA) holds a special place in Pankaj Advani’s heart. The cue sport exponent sharpened his skills here as a youngster, and continues to use the facility as his home base.
Advani is obviously thrilled to compete in the IBSF World billiards championship, which commences at the KSBA on Monday. “I’m very excited. KSBA is like my second home — I have spent so much time here,” he told The Hindu here on Saturday.
A few days ago, the Bengalurean took the bronze medal at the IBSF World snooker championship in Doha. Advani last played in an international billiards event in March (Asian championship), but as a multiple world champion in this discipline, he enters the tournament as the favourite.
“It is never easy to switch between snooker and billiards. The technique and mental approach needed is quite different. Not many people will truly understand how tough it is to juggle between the two formats. Ideally, I would have liked a few more days to prepare, but the snooker circuit kept me busy. I think my billiards flow will come back a couple of days into the event,” he said.
Advani said he enjoys the challenge of switching formats. “Once you get into a rhythm, playing billiards feels fantastic. Yes, I have not played billiards in a few months, but this challenge excites me,” he said.
The 31-year-old also dwelt on the subtle changes needed while tackling the different formats “In snooker, we usually hit the cue ball in the centre, or at the bottom. In billiards, we use a lot of top-ball. The bridge, therefore, is higher in billiards,” he said.
Strong field
About the field for the World championship, Advani said: “Peter Gilchrist and I have had many long and close matches. Rob Hall is also a very good player, and has improved a lot recently. Of course, we have many fine Indian players in the fray as well. The field may not be big, but it is strong,” he said.
