Time to say good-bye

Confirming the decision, BSFI vice-president Ravi K Tandon told Sportline that the national federation was left with no choice but to introduce the change after pressure from all quarters. “We also had to think of our medal prospects in the Asian Games in Guangzhou (China) in 2010,” said Tandon.

The new format would mean the game will be played in 150-frame up, with best of five to start with up to the quarter-finals. The semi-finals will be played as best of seven frames while the final will be of best of 11 frames.

The BSFI has also introduced qualifiers to help those who do not get entries directly from the state units make the grade. “This will help players get entry into the main round. The qualifiers, up to the group matches, will be played in 100-up frames with best of five games,” Tandon said.

He admitted there were pressures from players as well as sponsors to do away with the much-longer time format but added that since the Asian body has adopted this format, it was the logical step to introduce it at the national championships to give “our players sufficient practice.”

Tandon also said that Indians had an advantage at major events in the new format since they are used to big breaks, citing the recent World Championships in Bangalore as an example. “We had all the semi-finalists from India. That’s an indication of how well our players have adapted themselves to the format,” he said.

However, on the flip side, there will hardly be any time for the players to relax because a good player with great concentration can finish the frame on a single visit. “So no player can relax and expect his opponent to commit mistakes. He may not get his chance at all.”

Besides, the longer version of billiards was not viewer-friendly and had failed to attract sponsors as well. “Despite having 14 world champions in the game, we were struggling to get sponsors. We had to do a lot of convincing before somebody reluctantly agreed. But there are several takers for the new version,” he said.