To be the best in the business is Advani's target

Champion cueist back home after winning 15th world title

Having conquered some of the greats who have wielded the cue stick en route to winning an eye-popping 14 world titles, one wouldn’t expect to Pankaj Advani to feel the nerves.

But the 30-year-old nearly succumbed to it in a pulsating IBSF World Snooker Championship final against Zhao Xintong on Saturday before drawing upon his huge experience to craft a hard-fought 8-6 victory and walk away with his 15th world title at Hurghada, Egypt.

“It’s an absolute treat to watch him play,” Advani told Deccan Herald after arriving in Bengaluru in the wee hours of Monday. “He’s lethal and has got all the ingredients to become a world champion. Even in the last frame, he was in a position but played a careless shot and gave me a break. I knew that was my chance to seal the deal.

“I took it ball by ball. In fact, the entire break I was shivering. I was so rattled by the barrage of breaks that he had made. I just told myself to go ball by ball and play positive. I cleared the table (with a 106-point break) and couldn’t have ended the final in a better way. I started the final with a century break (106) and ended it with a century. It was an absolute top quality final and I’m happy to come out on top.”

Advani has been enjoying a superb second wind in his career. Showing an incredible appetite for success despite having won almost everything that the sport has to offer, he has racked up seven world titles over the last two years with three coming this season.

“This has been one of those rare years where I’ve won more tournaments in snooker than billiards. That for me is more fulfilling. Of course, life has come a full circle now. I’ve won all the world titles at least twice. No one can tell me that particular world title was a flash in the pan. I’m a much more mature player now. I wouldn’t say cautious but very much aware of what I can do and what I can’t do.

“That makes me even more confident of what I am doing on the table. I need not have to play like Xintong, go all out and attack. I can mix it up, use my experience, play safety and go for it when I feel good.”

Advani said his goal will always remain to be the best in the business. “I’m just 30 now and right in the middle of my career. I’m just enjoying the purple patch I’m going through. The best thing is that the pressure of winning is off. I don’t have to prove anything. I think I just have to prove to myself that I can play snooker at a very high level. I can play billiards at a much higher level. There is never an end to learning. I’m just trying to be the best player that I possibly can be.”