Mumbai, Oct 17 (IANS) Slipping at the final hurdle four times may leave many people totally disappointed and dejected, some of them even thinking ‘maybe it is not meant to be’, but sportspersons usually do not think in that way and try making attempts.

de of the result in the final on four occasions. Sitwala lost the title for the fourth time last Thursday, but says he still loves the process of preparing and competing and is looking forward to taking up the challenge once again in the next edition of the World Billiards Championship in Cairo in April 2026.

Having survived by just one point in the quarterfinals against Martin Goodwill and then more comfortably defeating Darren Clark by a margin of more than 1,000 points in the semifinal, India’s Dhruv Sitwala was quite confident of his chances in the final against England’s David Causier in the final of the World Billiards Championship 2025 being played at the Landywood Snooker Club, Walsall, England.

Sitwala, a former Auckland Open and New Zealand Open champion, had done his homework and came well prepared. He wanted to win the title very badly, having missed it thrice in 2007, 2010 and 2016; he knew that age was also catching up and reaching the final once again in 2025 was a big opportunity for him.

However, three-time Asian billiards champion Sitwala crashed at the last hurdle, going down rather tamely to a domineering Causier of England, the defending champion, in the final on Thursday, going down 2948-677.

“I was well prepared for the final. But after being 225-all in one hour, it was just that the match slipped away from me. Actually, it’s my fault that I felt the pressure. I got maximised or hypnotised by David Causier’s dominance.

“That actually is the time that I faltered. After being 225-all, the final score was like 700 plus 3000. I had my chance, but there was a confidence that somehow dipped. Maybe the memories were haunting me of not finishing as World No. 1 earlier. That was the thing. Because after winning the national championship last year and also in the Asian Championship last year, I was well prepared,” Sitwala said on Monday after reaching India.

But in the final, the left-handed Sitwala was clueless, unable to find his touch and failed to get into a rhythm while Causier was on a roll and had five century breaks of 167, 120, 168, 100, 114 and an equal number of double century efforts of 208, 295, 261, 241 and 288.

The Englishman, the current World Billiards Champion, having beaten Rob Hall at Landywood in 2024, seemed to have saved his best for last as he signed off with a humongous break of 699 to complete the demolition of the Indian challenger.

Sitwala, who defeated another English cueist, Darren Clark 1658-610 in the semifinal, went off the boil and was clearly not at his best as he managed just three notable breaks of 98, 92 and 115.

Sitwala was competing in his first World Championship final under the timed format since 2010 and struggled to find any scoring form – registering just a single break of over 100 in the final.

“The intention was to win the World title once in my lifetime. But since the first time, it was in 2007 when I lost to Pankaj Advani, it has not been. Then, in 2010, I lost to Mike Russell again in the final. Then in 2016, I lost to David Causier in the finals. (1:31) Now again in 2025, I lost to Causier. So in three decades, I have reached the final four times. This time, I was a bit more keen to win because, with time running out also, you want to be World No. 1,” said Sitwala.

“It was a good journey till the final. In the quarterfinals, I overcame Martin Goodwill by just one point. I was down by 200 points with only 20 minutes to go. At that time, I got a break of 225 when I missed. Then he made a break of 13 or 14. Then I just won by a point. I was caught by one point at the end of his break,” he added.

“After that, I got more confidence. I won my semifinal match by over 1000 points. I was well prepared for the final. But after being 225 all after one hour, it was just that the match slipped away from me. Actually, it’s my fault that I felt the pressure. I got maximised or hypnotised by David Causier’s dominance.

“That actually is the time that I faltered. After being 225-all, the final score was like 700 plus 3000. I had my chance, but there was a confidence that somehow dipped. Maybe the memories were haunting me of not finishing as World No. 1 earlier. That was the thing. Because after winning the national championship last year and also in the Asian Championship last year, I was well prepared,” said Sitwala.

Though he is disappointed by the result, Sitwala is looking forward to the next edition, which will be held in Cairo, Egypt ,in April 2026.

“The next edition is in Carlo in April. 2026. I have six good months to go back to the basics and work again. I enjoy this process, the grind. I love going back home and practicing after the tournament is over. The mistakes are fresh in the memory. You want to come out of it and reconcile all those things. It’s a nice grinding process. That’s why I love this journey. It’s more of an introspective and meditative approach. I love it. Let’s see how it goes,” said Sitwala.

–IANS

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