Advani, Merchant uncertain for May 8-15 event due to political unrest in Thailand.
The 2010 Asian Snooker Championship in Thailand is still a few days away with the event to be held from May 8-15 but the ongoing political unrest in the far east-Asian country has cast doubts over the event.
With emerging reports of violence from the streets of Bangkok, both the players and the federation are keeping a close watch on the situation.
World champion Pankaj Advani, Yasin Merchant and coach Sanjay Sawant are slated to leave for Chonburi, Thailand, early on May 7. However, with safety being a concern, the players are monitoring the situation.
Advani is not ruling out his participation yet but has started giving it a second thought.
“As of now I am going for the championships but we will be watching the situation in Thailand closely.”
Meanwhile, Yasin Merchant, for whom the tournament has always been a happy hunting ground, added: “It’s 50-50 so far. We are going to get our visas on Friday and we will take a call within the next two days on whether we are going or not. If the situation worsens, we won’t participate.”
BSFI vice president Balasubramanium, however, has said that there are no changes in plans yet.
“As of now, things seem alright. The tournament is in Chonburi and the major problem is in Bangkok. The players have booked their tickets and are going to compete, in case there is any problem or if the situation escalates we will advise them to skip it.”
Yasin, a two-time Asian Championship winner, felt that competition would be tougher this time.
“There are six Thai players including three or four Asian champions so it will be a tough field. Home support will definitely work to the advantage of the Thai players. “
The two top cueists will be in the city to compete in the MIG All India Invitational Snooker Championship that kicks off from May 1.
India’s top 16 players will compete at the tournament and the event will also serve as a good warm-up event for both Pankaj and Yasin who will get some practice.
Other top cueists competing include Geet Sethi and Devendra Joshi.
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