<p>Competition would be tough when Pankaj Advani and Aditya Mehta head to Colombia for the World Games in the coming week but the two Indian torch-bearers on the green baize say they are up for the challenge and would settle for nothing less than a medal.<br /><br /></p>.<p>"World Games is a great event to be a part of and I look forward to it. I expect as much as I do from any other championship -- by simply giving my best and win it. It's a field of 16 players and on a given day anybody can come out in flying colours," Advani told PTI from Rotterdam, The Netherlands.<br /><br />Mehta, on his part, said, "It will be interesting to see what happens in World Games. The goal is always to win it. Looking at the draw, a medal would be a great result. The competition looks tough with around 10 pros in the 16-man draw. It's hard to pick a favourite. It's my first time in South America."<br /><br />The World Games will take place in the city of Cali, Colombia from July 25 to August 4. The international multi-sport event is meant for sports, or disciplines or events within a sport, that are not contested in the Olympic Games.<br /><br />The World Games are organised and governed by the International World Games Association (IWGA), under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).<br /><br />This year will see the participation of 31 official sports and five invitational sports.<br /><br />Both Advani and Mehta want to carry on their experience of competing on the professional circuit to the quadrennial event.<br />Talking about the second season of the demanding pro circuit, the two cueists said they face the daunting task of staying in the Top-64 to avoid getting dropped for the next season as for the first time, every player will participate in the first round including the top-64 as per the rule change by the World Snooker Association. <br /><br />Mehta is currently positioned at 74 on the circuit while Advani not too far at 75.<br /><br />"The level is rising every year making it more cut-throat and challenging. But that's exactly what I need to keep going. It (the rule change) can be looked at in two ways -- you get to play with the best early on and more frequently.<br /><br />"Otherwise you'd have to first make it through tough qualifying rounds to the main venue to meet them. On the other hand, qualifying becomes more challenging, no doubt," he added.<br /><br />Mehta conceded the rule change will test his abilities but sounded optimistic about making the cut for the next season.<br /><br />"I believe I'm good enough to make the cut and I guess time will tell. It does depend a lot on what kind of draws you get initially. And it makes that top 64 place that much more important.<br /><br />"But I feel the opportunity to play the top players so often will have it's benefit in the long run. I relish this opportunity and I had a great first match against Ding Junhui, narrowly losing out 5-4. So I know I'm capable," he said.<br /><br />India will host the 300,000 pound Indian Open World Ranking Snooker tournament in October for the first time and both the cueists seemed expectedly excited.<br /><br />"It's an exciting news for Indian snooker. We now are on the global map of pro snooker. We have dominated professional billiards for a while now and it's time snooker and its top players come here too. It's a step in the right direction for the growth of snooker," said Advani.<br /><br />Mehta said, "It's been a dream since I first turned pro. We've been trying for a few years now so it's amazing that its finally happened. Lot of credit due to the Federation for the hard work. It will be a cracker. This is a major step to producing future talent in the country."</p>
<p>Competition would be tough when Pankaj Advani and Aditya Mehta head to Colombia for the World Games in the coming week but the two Indian torch-bearers on the green baize say they are up for the challenge and would settle for nothing less than a medal.<br /><br /></p>.<p>"World Games is a great event to be a part of and I look forward to it. I expect as much as I do from any other championship -- by simply giving my best and win it. It's a field of 16 players and on a given day anybody can come out in flying colours," Advani told PTI from Rotterdam, The Netherlands.<br /><br />Mehta, on his part, said, "It will be interesting to see what happens in World Games. The goal is always to win it. Looking at the draw, a medal would be a great result. The competition looks tough with around 10 pros in the 16-man draw. It's hard to pick a favourite. It's my first time in South America."<br /><br />The World Games will take place in the city of Cali, Colombia from July 25 to August 4. The international multi-sport event is meant for sports, or disciplines or events within a sport, that are not contested in the Olympic Games.<br /><br />The World Games are organised and governed by the International World Games Association (IWGA), under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).<br /><br />This year will see the participation of 31 official sports and five invitational sports.<br /><br />Both Advani and Mehta want to carry on their experience of competing on the professional circuit to the quadrennial event.<br />Talking about the second season of the demanding pro circuit, the two cueists said they face the daunting task of staying in the Top-64 to avoid getting dropped for the next season as for the first time, every player will participate in the first round including the top-64 as per the rule change by the World Snooker Association. <br /><br />Mehta is currently positioned at 74 on the circuit while Advani not too far at 75.<br /><br />"The level is rising every year making it more cut-throat and challenging. But that's exactly what I need to keep going. It (the rule change) can be looked at in two ways -- you get to play with the best early on and more frequently.<br /><br />"Otherwise you'd have to first make it through tough qualifying rounds to the main venue to meet them. On the other hand, qualifying becomes more challenging, no doubt," he added.<br /><br />Mehta conceded the rule change will test his abilities but sounded optimistic about making the cut for the next season.<br /><br />"I believe I'm good enough to make the cut and I guess time will tell. It does depend a lot on what kind of draws you get initially. And it makes that top 64 place that much more important.<br /><br />"But I feel the opportunity to play the top players so often will have it's benefit in the long run. I relish this opportunity and I had a great first match against Ding Junhui, narrowly losing out 5-4. So I know I'm capable," he said.<br /><br />India will host the 300,000 pound Indian Open World Ranking Snooker tournament in October for the first time and both the cueists seemed expectedly excited.<br /><br />"It's an exciting news for Indian snooker. We now are on the global map of pro snooker. We have dominated professional billiards for a while now and it's time snooker and its top players come here too. It's a step in the right direction for the growth of snooker," said Advani.<br /><br />Mehta said, "It's been a dream since I first turned pro. We've been trying for a few years now so it's amazing that its finally happened. Lot of credit due to the Federation for the hard work. It will be a cracker. This is a major step to producing future talent in the country."</p>