Bengaluru: Seven days ago, on the opening day of the World Boys’ (Under-17) Snooker Championship, when Poland’s Michal Szubarczyk routed India’s Bhavya Pipaliya, you knew there was something about this 13-year-old.
It’s easy to distinguish good talent from someone destined to become much, much more, but you have to direct some apprehension to that gut instinct because you never know how the chips fall.
When Szubarczyk lost in the semifinals to Thailand’s Lomnaw Issarangkun on the third day of the championship, you saw his shortcomings in the flesh and figured he had some way to go before his potential came through.
Luckily, one didn’t have to wait too long to get a sense of what Michal’s father Kamil knew all along: he was raising a champion.
With Kamil blending into the dark next to a pillar in the viewing gallery, the eccentric savant became the youngest ever to win the Men’s World (Under-21) Snooker Championship at the Karnataka State Billiards Association on Saturday.
Michal knew he had won the title before the match was officially over when he raced to a 71-0 lead in the sixth frame and shot a quick smile towards his father.
But, until Germany’s Alexander Widau accepted defeat by shaking hands with the boy wonder, the weight of a long-standing dream hovered in the air still. Then, it was realised.
“I thought we would get to this position in three years, not now,” Kamil said with a mix of joy and surprise before making his way through the crowds to reach his boy.
Michal accepted his father’s embrace with relief, and the adulation of others with an endearing awkwardness in the aftermath of his 5-1 (86-65, 57-70, 104 (70)-0, 74-63 (50), 65-55, 71-1) win on Saturday.
The final scoreline could suggest a rout, and in a sense, it was, but that hardly means this was a walk in the park for Michal for a couple of frames were down to black-ball finishes in the best-of-nine final.
From the time the game started, though, you knew that Michal was in his bag, potting the most obvious shots before resorting to complex safety sequences to have Widau thinking more than he typically has had to.
Widau walked into the tournament a favourite and looked the part until the end of the second frame in the final, one which he won 70-54. Thereafter, he sat in his chair, overlooking the birth of a star.
Michal completed a 70-point break in the third frame to take a 2-1 lead with a score of 104-0. Widau tried to make a case for his abilities in the next frame, but ended up making a mistake or two to let Michal in on some openings. Michal would proceed to pot what was easy and then resort to playing safety.
That sequence continued until Michal went up 4-1.
By the time the final frame came around, Widau was done. He had given up to a point where he even miscued a shot before letting his palms cover his eyes in a corner.
Meanwhile, Michal’s tic to blink incessantly had eased up, perhaps he does so when he’s anxious, but he had no reason to feel that unease anymore.
As Kamil pulled out his phone to capture the moment, Michal walked back to his chair and waited for his coronation while smiling ever-so cherubically in the direction of his coach, his confidant, his travel companion... his father.
Result (final): Michal Szubarczyk (Pol) bt Alexander Widau (Ger) 5-1 (86-65, 57-70, 104 (70)-0, 74-63 (50), 65-55, 71-1).