Tanvee Vallem, a nine-year-old Indian girl, was invited by the Billiards and Snooker Federation of India (BFSI) and the World Pool Billiard Association (WPA) to take part in the Predator Pro Billiard Series World Junior 9 Ball Championship. She faced challenges in her debut match.
Tanvee, who was the youngest competitor in her maiden year in the competitive pool of the world pool championships, got a difficult draw when she was paired against Hyerim Kim of Korea in the opening round. Tanvee got out to a jittery start, but Kim produced her finest defensive effort, leaving Tanvee stuck multiple times. Tanvee lost to Kim 0-7, where she was fouled out in two racks.
The 9-year-old faced the challenging task of competing against Xin Yu Hong, a seasoned junior player from Chinese Taipei, in Loser Round 1. Tanvee and Xin competed in a race to 7 racks in which Tanvee lost 2-7. Tanvee showed excellent sportsmanship by calling her own fouls that neither the player nor the referee noticed.
Tanvee's opponent and the referee were both taken aback and quickly praised her for her sportsmanship. Ironically, Xin and Kim, Tanvee's opponents, were also World Junior Championships finalists this year. Xin won the competition with a 9-4 triumph over the 17-year-old Korean finalist who was hoping to improve this year.
The Indian gained attention last month when she competed in her first-ever international tournament, the SVB Junior Open for players under the age of 17, which was held at the Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA. She trains in asynchronous online training led by her coach Roy Pastor, whom she met in person during the Puerto Rico tournament.
