It has to be your day to win: Shyam Jagtiani

Shyam Jagtiani is getting a billiards table fitted at home in Kolkata to coach those interested in billiards and snooker.

On Sunday he lost to Devendra Joshi in the round of 32 in the billiards competition of the Manisha National billiards & snooker championship and he decided to go home without taking part in the snooker event because a technician from a Bengaluru company is travelling to Kolkata to fit the table.

The 65-year-old was the senior most player at the Nationals here. He had made his National championship debut at Madras in 1972, but the former Eastern Railway employee has skipped a few.

After watching Pankaj Advani, Sourav Kothari, Rupesh Shah, Brijesh Damani and a few more in action in the quarterfinals he said: “As long as I am fit, I hope to come back for the Nationals. I have been approached a number of times by the federation to apply for the position of coach, but I did not do it because once I become coach, I will not be allowed to play.’’

Several aspects of the sport has changed in the last 45 years and Jagtiani said: “There is a tremendous change in the standard of the game, table and ball set. There has been a number of innovations and this has resulted in improvement in all aspects of the game. Previously we used to have the thick cloth called ‘No. 10’ which would allow a roll of three or three-and-a-half lengths of the table at the most; today it’s five-and-a- half to six rolls. This means the table is fast. The balls have become more lively with new chemicals used. A total evolution has taken place; it’s like a change from village to the stadium. Ratan Bader had made the highest break of 51 in snooker and got the prize in Madras. Today if someone makes 136, he is not sure of getting the highest break prize.”

Jagtiani recalled the 5-pot rule from the spot in billiards and how the good players maximised it and also how the new format has made it tough even for the best players. “We saw players like Satish Mohan, Michael Ferreira make 500 plus breaks; even Arvind Savur made a 558 break at the Cochin nationals. The standard of billiards was on the higher side, but today it has become better.

“With the introduction of 100 up and 150 up format, it has become a dicey event for the top-ranked players. It has become anybody’s game. It has to be his day for the best player or he has to play very well to win. More than the skill and other other things, it’s got to be ‘your day’ in the 100 or 150 up format. In the 100 up format one mistake can make you lose the game, or one good roll of the ball can make you win the game. The skills aspect has declined, players are more keen to get the shot done. Very few players have the correct basics like stance, cueing etc. I don’t know if I should be saying this, but I am one of the examples for firm basics. There cannot be any jerks of the limbs. We have this “locking system” in us that restricts your movements. And because of this fact, I am still playing and performing well,” said Jagtiani.