Mumbai: When the Indian government is huffing and puffing over finalising a cricket series against Pakistan at a neutral venue, Pankaj Advani – the poster boy of Indian cue sports – won a tournament held in Karachi which gradually took his world title tally to 15.
The 30-year-old ruled on the green baize at the World 6-Red Snooker Championship (in Pakistan) for his 13th title earlier this year and eventually clinched the 15th triumph in Egypt recently.
After coming back to India, Advani in an exclusive chat with this correspondent, said that it is completely safe to play a tournament in Pakistan.
“Initially, I was apprehensive of going due to the current situation and few incidents that took place while I was about to travel. Former cricketer Wasim Akram’s car being shot was one of them. I was not keeping well but since it was a team event, I did not want to let my partner down,” said Advani, who – at a young age – received the Arjuna Award (2004), followed by Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna (2006) and Padma Shri (2009).
The blue-eyed boy of Indian billiards and snooker lauded the people of Pakistan for the love and warmth he received.
“The hospitality was second to none. It was my third time but this time, the situation is different. I knew there will not be problems but due to the tension between the two countries, it definitely felt different.
“As Indians, we travelling to Pakistan when things are not stable between the two nations makes the whole situation unpredictable but that’s the beauty of sport – to cross barriers,” added Advani, who also received support from the local people during the final against Yan Bingtao – the 15-year-old prodigy from China.
“The tournament was brilliantly organised and I found a lot of support from the people when I was playing the final against the young Chinese kid. Of course, we didn’t go out much but whenever we did, we didn’t face problems with security,” said Advani, who believes the Indo-Pak cricket series talk is being blown out of proportion.
“From my experience, it is safe to play a tournament in Pakistan but there is lot more than the India-Pakistan cricket series. I don’t think it is the biggest thing to happen if it does, it is just another tournament. If it was a World Cup match and the organisers aren’t approving, then it is a different issue. A bilateral series is not a big deal,” he asserted.
Advani’s success graph soared higher from 2014 when he won different titles across all formats of the sport. In 2015, he won both the short and long format of snooker which in itself is a record.
Cue sports is not a part of Olympics, but that doesn’t sadden Advani.
“There is no chance of it being there before 2024 Olympics. I feel that the measure of sporting excellence cannot be defined by one tournament which comes once in four years. Though Olympics is a mega event and definitely has value. I will still be happy if my sport is included in it.”
Talking about his consistency and brand image, he said: “My definition of success is not about numbers, awards or titles anymore. I believe sport is an art and I consider myself more as an artist than a sportsperson. I would like to shine as an artist.”
