From green baize to red carpet

Rupesh Shah’s long-cherished dream of walking on the red carpet of Ashoka Hall at Rashtrapati Bhavan will come true on August 29. The 40-year-old finds his place among the list of Arjuna Awardees named by the sports ministry on Tuesday.

Ever since he won the world title in Singapore in 2007, the Amdavadi has been expecting it. “It is a dream come true. I have been waiting for this moment. I always felt bad when I looked up to Geet Sethi and Pankaj Advani. Like them, I was also the world champion. But my award kitty was empty. It won’t be anymore,” said an elated Shah.

The ace cueist has been phenomenal on the green baize for the past 12 months. In October 2012, he defeated Mathew Bolton 6-2 to win the 150-up point format at the World Billiards Championship in Leeds, England. There, Shah got the better of the big guns — Mike Russell, Ashok Shandilya and Peter Gilchrist — to prove his ability.

Earlier this year, Rupesh Shah was crowned Asian champion in Indore.

“The award has a lot to do with two big titles I have bagged in the last one year. But I am happy and on cloud nine,” he gushed.

The next stop for Shah would be the world championship to be held in India. “I was preparing for the Canada tournament. But it clashes with the awards ceremony. So, it will be world billiards. This award will come very handy. It will add pressure and shall boost my confidence, too, at the same time,” he said.

Besides two world titles and one Asian championship, Shah was part of the snooker team that won bronze at the Doha Asian Games in 2006. Aditya Mehta and Yasin Merchant were the other members of the team.