Steve Davis: The Snooker Inspiration
Snooker is known as the world’s most stylish game that has come out of the billiards, which is also known as the “Royal Game”. Many players at different times and ages have played snooker professionally but till Steve Davis there was no one who got this
much popularity and pride.
Steve Davis was born on 22nd August 1957 in Plumstead, London and joined snooker professionally in 1978. He had an immense natural talent which he brought with him in front of the world as he set up a new benchmark for the other players to follow. He became
the first man who ever made a legitimate televised maximum break of 147 in the snooker history in 1982.
He won more professional titles in the history of the sport than any other player. His achievements include six World Championships during the 1980s when he was the world number one for seven years consecutively and reached eight world finals, becoming the
sport’s first millionaire.
Although, Steve Davis has not won a major tournament since 1997, he continues to play at the highest level with a lot of passion for the game. He is still ranked in the world’s top 16 at the age of 53 and is ranked 23 for 2009/10 season.
One of his most memorable matches was the black ball final against Dennis Taylor in the 1985 world championship; he ended up on the losing side. Davis seemed set for his third consecutive win, with an opening session of near fault-less snooker giving him
a 7-0 lead which he extended to 8-0 in the evening session, before Taylor bounced back to trail only 7-9. From 11-11, the pair traded frames before Davis forged ahead to lead 17-15. However, Taylor clawed his way back to 17-17 and the match went into a deciding
frame.
With the score close, Taylor potted the final colours to leave the black as the winner-takes-all ball. After a series of some safety shots, Davis over cut the black ball leaving Taylor a simple straight pot to take away the victory. The "nail biting" finale
drew 18.5 million viewers, a record post-midnight audience on British television and a record audience for BBC Two. The black-ball finish was voted the ninth greatest sporting moment of all time in a 2002 Channel 4 poll.
Best part that everyone likes about him is that he has calm nerves and a smooth way of playing the game. He has always made it look so easy that one just keeps on wondering as if there was any pressure on him. He earned himself nicknames like The Nugget,
Interesting, Ginger Magician and Romford Slim. It’s famous about him that when he used to practice he didn’t eat till he finished up the whole table in a go.
Steve took part in pool and trick short competitions as well but now at 53, he combines his playing career with his role as an established television analyst and occasional commentator for BBC’s snooker coverage.
Tags: