‘Cueists blaming tables after poor show’

PBSA official dismisses claim of substandard tables.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan Billiards and Snooker Association (PBSA) has dismissed suggestions by several cueists that substandard tables affected their performance in the recently-concluded NBP Ranking Snooker Championship.

The country’s top players complained that the tables used in the national tournament were of inferior quality compared to the international ones and formed the main reason behind their poor show. Shahid Aftab, who came into the event as Pakistan’s number one, crashed out in the group stages after a winless campaign. Aftab performed well at the World Team Snooker Championship that preceded the local tournament and blamed the tables for his poor show. Karachi’s Sohail Shahzad, who suffered an 8-0 defeat in the final against Imran Shahzad, echoed Aftab’s views after his loss.

However, a senior PBSA official termed the cueists’ remarks mere excuses.

“It’s just a lame excuse for their failure,” PBSA Joint Secretary Arif Tahirbhoy told The Express Tribune. “The table is for both players, not just one. If there were issues, how can one cueist perform better?”

The official maintained the tables at the venues, where PBSA holds regular events, are of international standards.

“We have the same English tables with Italian slabs as used in the events abroad. Most local snooker clubs have tables with marble but we discourage that. Our cueists would’ve never excelled on the international stage if they had been trained on substandard tables.”

Meanwhile, Tahirbhoy said that the PBSA has ordered four tables from China in an attempt to further improve the playing conditions.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 29^th,  2011.