Bhopal's Kamal Chawla shed the bridesmaid tag of Indian snooker at the HSBC Premier Shyam Shroff Memorial snooker tournament on Tuesday and how. The Western Railway player upset India's lone current professional, Aditya Mehta, 8-7, in a dream black-ball finish in the deciding frame of the best-of-15 frame final of the HSBC Premier Shyam Shroff Memorial event at the Khar Gymkhana on Tuesday. The event commemorated India's 7-time snooker champ.

Pankaj Advani had won the previous Rupees One Lakh jackpot at the CCI Platinum event. Aditya had lost to Yasin in last year's final. Aditya himself had shed the bridesmaid tag with his first major title at the MIG last year and added the PSPB later. Chawla won Rupees One Lakh. It was the second Rupees One Lakh title after Pankaj Advani claimed one in the CCI Platinum event.

It was a topsy turvy final with Chalwa being 0-3 down leveling at 3-all and then it was level at 5-all, 6-all and 7-all. Chawla deserved to win because he played some stunning long pots, gave good snookers (eight in one and four in another which would have won the approval of Shyam Shroff). He had good control over the hand-ball. In the 12th frame, leading 6-5, Chawla appeared to be diffident in going for the kill with poor shot selection. Aditya took advantage to level at 6-all and after being 6-7 down leveled 7-all with a break of 113 which could have been 139 ,one short of his best of 140 in the pro qualifiers but for missing the green.

In the decider Chawla was down 18-42 with two reds left and 39-46 when Aditya miscued and left a long blue which Chawla pocketed and went on to clear.

"I have lost in two finals to Yasin, at the Viresh Prabhu memorial at Juhu Gymkhana and again to Yasin at Islam Gymkhana. I have been No.2 in pool and India No 5 in snooker. I have finally broken the jinx," said Chawla. He added, "The stamina gained from traveling from Dahisar helped me to last this six-hour final,"

Loser Aditya said, "The start and the end was good. In between it was bad." Yasin who had been blanked 6-0 by Chawla, said, "He played the best pots of the tournament, he deserved to win."