As a snooker blogger, I tend to investigate stuff, controversies, and scores about professional. What about the amateur game? Well, this is not my topic but am aware that apparently grass roots in the UK is declining according to Snookerbacker as well as other players such as Neil Robertson and Joe Perry. On the other hand, grass roots in China has never been better. So how on each do they get into the professional circuit?
One of the major portals to the professional world is the IBSF Amateur Snooker Championship in the wonderful and especially ethically controversial land of Qatar, where budding cueists compete from 18th-29th November this year. This year, 129 players from 55 countries are competing in the lovely land of Doha, with players as young as 15 years-old (Keishin Kamihashi of Japan) to 54 years-old (Jyri Virtanen of Finland), ranging from ex-pros, hot prospects and a 10-time World Billiards Champion. As you do.You even know snooker has become a global sport when there is a group featuring players from UAE, Poland, Mozambique, Qatar and Sri Lanka!
This tournament is first formatted into groups of five players (except one group) and 96 players qualifying to the next round and followers a linear draw. Now, before I even before suggesting Sepp Blatter had even remotely been involved in having a snooker tournament in such harsh conditions just like in football (teehee, don’t be ridiculous, there is too little money for his and his cronies massive pockets, even with Barry Hearn!), let’s sort this out:
The Defending Champion
The man with the 2015 IBSF World Snooker Title, Pankaj Adavani won the title for the second time (first in 2003) by beating current pro Zhao Xintong 8-6 to clinch the title, going further than in 2010, when he lost to part-time snooker player and full-time comedic genius Dechawat Poomjaeng.
So why did he waive his invitation to the professional game of snooker? Well, he had been pro for 3 years and got into the Top64 first time of asking, and created history by beig the first Indian quarter-finalist at the 2013 Welsh Open and the 2013 Indian Open, when he was beaten by fellow Indian Aditya Mehta. He resigned from the tour while admitting “billiards is my life…snooker is my mistress.”
And he has a fair record in cue sports as a whole, winning 15 world titles, including in snooker, billiards (winning 11 awards in total) and two in the Six-Red Snooker format AND two gold medals in the Asian games. So fairly decorated then, but can he make a Chicken Dijonnese? I think not. 😉
The Experienced Guns
There are many old heads in this tournament, especially many Europeans who were on the professional circuit. Those include Michael Judge (who reached as high as No.24 in the world rankings and the last16 in the World Champions against Ken Doherty) and Andrew Pagett (who qualified for the World Championships in 2011, semi-finalist in the 2012 Belgian Open and now full-time Matt Selt-berater). Then there is Mohamed Khairy, who won only two matches in two years as a pro. Well done him.
There are a number of snooker players who have had a very prestigious career in snooker. Pakistani Muhammad Asif won this tournament in 2012 beating Gary Wilson 10-8, Issara Kachaiwong who won the first General Cup by beating Mark Allen and Dominic Dale, Belgian Kevin Van Hove, Australian Peter McCullagh and English Amateur Snooker Champion Finalist Wayne Townsend, who lost 10-9 to Jamie Bodle.
The Hot Prospects
Now to those people who have been knocking the door down harder than Hillary Clinton trying to enter the White House. First Swiss player Alexander Ursenbacher and Thai Thanawat Thirapongpiraboon (thank you, got that right in one) are the younger, former pros among them, and Ursenbacher will be hoping to be second time lucky after a torrid spell on tour and losing the decider of the World U-21 boys title to Xu Si this year.
Meanwhile, there are many familiar names in the anateur games, many of whom who have featured a lot in the ex-PTC events, Q-School, 2016 Six-red World Championship and IBSF events. We have Maltese Brian Cini, Englishman Oliver Brown who whitewashed Ding Junhui a few years ago, German hot prospect Lukas Kleckers, 17 year-old Ivan Kakovsky and lastly U18 Champ Ka Wai Cheung.
Probably the favourites of the lot are the ‘Welsh Whirlwind’ Jamie Clarke and (yet another) Chinese sensation, Yuan Sijun. Jamie has been the unluckiest of the lot, having suffered fifth defeat in the final round of a world tour qualifying tournament in 12 months,including two deciders against Boonyarit Keattkun and Jak Jones but is still very highly rated, as he did beat Jamie Burnett in last year’s qualifying round 10-9. However, right now Sijun is potentially the biggest problems, being the wildcard no one wants to be against in Chinese tournaments (especially Martin Gould) and at only 16 years-old!
So who will win? My money would be on Clarke, followed by Advani and Yuan, since the latter hasn’t had great success in these sorts of tournaments, especially after the group stage. Pagett will be an interesting one to watchThis is my insight into this and I hope I cover it well, but The Cue View has more knowledge and insight into this than I do, especially in this department.
This is my insight into this and I hope I cover it well, but The Cue View has more knowledge and insight into this than I do, especially in this department.
For the link to the draw, please click here: ibsf.info/…2016/ms/en/msm_2016_groups.php
For the details of the tournament: ibsf.info/…rnieje/2016/ms/en/msm_2016.php
For the IBSF homepage, please click here: ibsf.info
For the history of the tournament, and who is competing by The Cue View, please follow this link:: thecueview.com/2016-ibsf-world-amateur-snooker-championship—deadline-closed
