Advani backs Merchant on Padma awards selection criticism
Jaipur, Feb 4: Reigning world billiards champion Pankaj Advani has supported fellow cueist Yasin Merchant's criticism of the Padma awards' selection procedure, saying that despite being by and large fair it gets influenced by political pressure and lobbying. Advani, who himself was awarded with the Padma Shri last year, sympathised with Merchant, who recently wrote a letter to AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi after being ignored for this year's Padma Shri. "I believe largely the selections are fair but sometimes the political pressure and lobbying do play a role. Some players are not awarded at the right time and they keep on waiting," Advani said. "Yasin is a very talented and experienced player. He has won Asian champion gold twice and also has a Asiad gold under his belt which is no mean achievement. He perhaps was very frustrated for being left out and thus wrote an emotional letter to Rahul Gandhi," Advani added. Advani, who is in Jaipur to participate in the PSPB Billiards and Snooker tournament, said cue sports still have some distance to go becoming a popular game in the country. For that, Advani wants the national federations to follow the BCCI formula for marketing cricket in the country. "Undoubtedly cricket is the most popular sport in our country. I watch cricket with interest and I am also a huge fan of India captain (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni. The other sports, including billiard and snooker, should also learn from cricket how the BCCI has managed to market the game," Advani said. "We can contemplate changing the dress code and also add a few other things to make an attractive discipline like the Indian Premier League," he added. (Agencies)
2010-02-04
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