Former six-red world number 3, Shivam Arora, extended his winning streak as he beat Mumbai’s Abhishek Bajaj in the best of seven frames final of the state selections 15-red Snooker and Billiards Tournament at the PYC Gymkhana on November 28.
Arora was eliminated in the group stage of the first leg in Mumbai, earlier this year. This time, the snooker veteran showed no lack of composure and breezed through the tournament till the quarterfinal stage, where he registered a comeback from 1-3 down, to win 4-3 against top-seed Hasan Badami. Earlier this month, Arora also won the sic-red title in Pune.
Frame 1
Shivam Arora started off on the front foot in the first frame. Playing simple shots and his signature thin-cuts, Arora launched himself into a small 13-point lead. Abhishek Bajaj managed to pot just a single red. Both players struggled with long-range strokes as the balls came off the pocket-cushions.
Arora earned a break of 61 points to give himself a staggering 73-point lead over Bajaj as he won the first frame of the game.
Arora 74 (61) - 01 Bajaj.
{{/usCountry}}Arora 74 (61) - 01 Bajaj.
{{/usCountry}}Frame 2
Bajaj tried to recover in the second frame, but Arora was absolutely prolific. The 33-year-old propelled himself into a stunning 50-point lead.
Arora was still facing a little trouble on the long-range strokes, but he did not falter on the stun-shot and side-spin attempts. Arora he won the second frame to establish a comfortable lead.
Arora 57 (50) - 10 Bajaj.
Frame 3
As the Pune cueist was pulling clear of him, Bajaj had to bounce back in the third frame. The Bombay Gymkhana cueist’s recovery was seen as he potted into the side-pocket off a beautiful rebound. After playing the magnificent stroke, he faltered on a simple shot, giving Arora a chance to notch a few points.
A beautiful stroke from Bajaj saw him pot the blue using a thin-cut. He went on to clear the baize with a break of 64 points and bounced back into the game.
Arora 24 - 72 (64) Bajaj.
Frame 4
After bouncing back in the third frame, Bajaj got off to a flyer in the fourth. Potting balls at will, he launched himself into a commanding 36-point lead. However, Bajaj messed up a simple stroke, yet again.
A precise thin-cut from Arora potted the blue, but the 33-year-old failed to pot a red from long-range. Arora was denied by the pocket cushions twice, as Bajaj capitalised on the opportunity and extended his advantage. As the last red was left on the table, Arora missed again, gifting Bajaj an easy stroke as the Bombay Gymkhana cueist extended the gap in the frame, and reinstated parity in the final.
Arora 21 - 66 Bajaj.
Frame 5
A nervy start from Arora saw another red coming off the pocket cushion in the fifth frame, which presented Bajaj with an opportunity to score some easy points, but the latter miscued and passed the opportunity back to Arora. The 33-year-old managed to pocket a red, but snookered himself in the process. Attempting a long range tricky stroke, Arora committed a foul. After gaining a few quick points, Bajaj was still complacent with his strokes.
Both players failed to pot a single ball in three attempts each. Bajaj attempted a couple of stun shots, but failed to pot on both occasions. This was the turning point in the frame and the entire game as Arora returned to the baize after missing three chances, and started getting his shots right again. The recovery came at the perfect time as Arora added 21 crucial points to his tally. Bajaj faltered again as he attempted a frozen cushion and then potted the cue-ball to gift Arora the winning points.
Arora 59 - 09 Bajaj
Frame 6
Both cueists struggled while playing stun shots, but in the sixth frame, Arora finally got the shot right to get off the mark. The 33-year-old then snookered Bajaj in the early stages of the frame. A very nervy Bajaj miscued and committed a foul which handed Arora a 21-point lead. The cueist from Mumbai was far from recovery as he potted the cue-ball again. Arora managed to extend his lead to 27 points.
Struggling Bajaj was evidently nervous as he failed to pot another easy ball as he still waited to get off the mark in the sixth frame. However, Arora did not present the Mumbai cueist any more opportunities as the former world number 3 got his stun shots and cuts right again. Arora failed to clear the baize but a break of 62 ensured Arora’s victory in the frame and in the game.
Arora 89 (62) - 00 Bajaj
Shivam Arora’s winning run - (from July 2019)
1. Winner: Ivory Balls All India Open Snooker, Ahmedabad
2. Winner: The Pot Black All India Open Snooker Championship, Latur
3. Winner: The Q Club Ranking Tournament, Pune
4. Winner: The Big Snooker League, Goa
5. Winner: Maharashtra State 6-Red Snooker Championship, Poona Club
6. Runner-up: All India Open Snooker Championship, Kochi
7. Semi-finalist: Three Ball Theory All India Open Snooker, Indore
8. Runner-up: All India Open Snooker Championship, Karad
9. Winner: PYC-ATC All India Team Championship, Pune
10. Winner: Maharashtra State Snooker Championship, Leg 2, Pune
Post-match comment
“The score was 4-2 and it looks like it was an easy victory, but it was not. The semifinal and final matches that I have played in this tournament have been the toughest ones I have played this year. My opponent was an opportunist, but I gave it my all. I had three breaks of 50 and I am extremely happy with my performance. Now I will represent Maharashtra at the national championships which will also be in Pune.
- Shivam Arora, winner, Pune
Regarding the growth of the sport, we had pitched a proposal to the Maharashtra Government about academies for Billiards and Snooker in Mumbai and Pune, but the government has changed now, so we have to pitch it again. However, we still plan on launching an academy in Pune soon.”
- Rajan Khinvasara, president, Billiards and Snooker Association of Maharashtra
Raghuvanshi beats Pherwani in third-place encounter
Anand Raghuvanshi from Pune edged past Mumbai’s Sparsh Pherwani 3-2 in the best of five frames match for the third place and more importantly, for a place in the squad for the National Open. Raghuvanshi’s win earned him 400 points, which placed him in eighth place, 15 points ahead of Mumbai’s Ajinkya Yelve. Raghuvanshi will be the second cueist from Pune, after Shivam Arora, to represent Maharashtra at the next National snooker tournament.
Joining Arora and Raghuvanshi in the squad for the nationals will be Hasan Badami, Cherag Ramakrishnan, Abhishek Bajaj, Vishal Vaya, Shabaz Khan, and Rayaan Razmi, all from Mumbai. Badami will be Maharashtra’s top-seed, while Arora will be fifth and Raghuvanshi will be eighth, in the upcoming National Open which is expected to start in January 2020, in Pune.
Results:
Semifinals (Best of 7 frames):
Abhishek Bajaj (Mumbai) 4 bt Anand Raghuvanshi (Pune) 1 (75-14, 62-24, 60-54, 24-52, 80(56)-39)
Shivam Arora (Pune) 4 bt Sparsh Pherwani (Mumbai) 1 (26-73, 86-05, 65-03, 64-57, 13-65, 64-15)
Third place (Best of 5 frames):
Anand Raghuvanshi (Pune) 3 bt Sparsh Pherwani 2 (60-47, 47-59, 43-68, 80-46, 72-47)
Final (Best of 7 frames):
Shivam Arora (Pune) 4 bt Abhishek Bajaj (Mumbai) 2 (74(61)-01, 57(50)-10, 24-72(64), 21-66, 59-09, 89(62)-00)