Heyball, the tabletop sport growing in popularity

Heyball, the brand new child in cue sports activities city, has one thing for everybody.

The fast-paced recreation is performed with striped and stable balls, which appeals to pool fanatics. For cueists with a standard bent of thoughts, the desk — 9 ft by 5 ft in measurement, with tight pockets — is comparable to what’s utilized in snooker, solely smaller.

Common enchantment

After which there may be the common enchantment — large prize cash.

Heyball, also called Chinese language 8-ball, has grown in recognition lately. The arrival of Pleasure Billiards — one in every of China’s main billiard desk producers — as sponsor and event organiser has taken the game everywhere in the world.

The monetary rewards are notably profitable, with the World Heyball Masters Grand Finals held earlier this yr providing a whopping $1,700,000 prize pool. Smaller worldwide open-entry tournaments carry a complete purse starting from $50,000 to $140,000.

India, with its wealthy historical past in cue sports activities, is taking its first steps into this new world. The Billiards and Snooker Federation of India (BSFI) held the inaugural Heyball Nationwide Championships in New Delhi in August, with Delhi’s Sundeep Gulati and worldwide snooker medallist Vidya Pillai rising as the lads’s and girls’s champions respectively.

The maiden nationwide championships mirrored the rising curiosity within the sport in India.

One thing for everybody: Heyball appears to carry collectively folks from totally different walks of life, together with younger upstarts, seasoned execs and curious dabblers.
| Picture Credit score:
Ok. Murali Kumar

BSFI president S. Balasubramaniam defined that Indian gamers, typically adept at snooker and billiards, discover the transition to heyball pretty straightforward. There are plans to host a world heyball event in India quickly. “We’ve got had conferences with Pleasure Billiards. The truth is, Pleasure Billiards take a look at India as a giant market. They’re keen to pump in some huge cash in India. There are plans to carry a $50,000 event to India in December. That will likely be India’s first heyball event, which is a superb place to begin,” Balasubramaniam mentioned.

For now, state associations such because the Karnataka State Billiards Affiliation (KSBA) don’t inventory heyball tables. Plans are afoot to carry a few tables over, which is able to give gamers the prospect to practise on international-standard tables.

Within the meantime, Pranit Ramchandani’s Heyball Academy in Bengaluru acts as the game’s nerve centre. A former heyball participant, licensed coach and sport promoter, Pranit arrange India’s first heyball facility outfitted with official Pleasure Heyball tables.

Ramchandani, who counts Vidya amongst his many trainees, recalled his introduction to this new phenomenon.

“A good friend from Malaysia, a nationwide snooker champion, advised me about this new sport known as heyball. He took me to a spot known as Hustlers in Malaysia. The primary time I performed it, it was easy and enjoyable, when in comparison with snooker. I used to be extra inclined in the direction of snooker on the time,” Ramchandani mentioned.

Ramchandani understood the game’s potential when he grew to become conscious of the prize cash concerned. “Conventional cue sports activities have all the time lacked prize cash,” he mentioned. “It was all about being passionate, however how far can pure ardour take you?”

A reasonably simple profession path in heyball provides to the enchantment. Open-entry worldwide tournaments are the easiest way to begin.

“There’s potential profession progress in heyball. There are such a lot of worldwide occasions on the calendar, and all these are open championships. You don’t need to undergo qualifiers such as you do in snooker,” Ramchandani mentioned.

Enticing proposition

He added that on a current tour, the event organisers took care of the lodge keep bills. “Additionally they organized an airport pick-up and drop. For those who qualify for the principle spherical, you get about $3,000,” Ramchandani mentioned.

“When occasions occur persistently, heyball will certainly take off. There will likely be extra academies, extra coaches, extra coaching centres, and, finally, extra gamers enjoying the worldwide circuit. From the place I began, I’ve already seen so many new gamers are available in,” he mentioned.

Not surprisingly, younger upstarts have taken to the game. Teenager Karan Seshadri began enjoying snooker on the age of 10, however a gathering with Ramchandani prompted a course change.

“I initially signed up for snooker teaching. On the primary day, Pranit sir advised us about heyball. The identify caught the moment he mentioned it,” Seshadri mentioned.

Within the under-19 boys’ class of the 2025 nationwide championships, Seshadri completed as runner-up — an indication to take the game severely.

“After I performed snooker, I used to compete solely in state and nationwide tournaments, and some open tournaments. However with heyball, I may play worldwide tournaments in China, Thailand and Malaysia,” Seshadri mentioned.

“In fact, the prize cash side is big. I do know I maybe shouldn’t be enthusiastic about prize cash at this stage, however it was a purpose why my dad and mom and I made a decision that I ought to make the shift from snooker to heyball,” Seshadri mentioned.

Mohit Gupta is one other cueist who has taken the plunge. A bronze medal winner on the 2025 World Incapacity Snooker Championship, Mohit competed in heyball tournaments within the USA lately and was happy with the expertise.

“The event host in Los Angeles was very supportive. Most snooker occasions usually are not sponsored, however all heyball occasions are sponsored. Our flight tickets to the USA have been coated, and we stayed in five-star lodges. We additionally acquired $60 per day for bills,” Mohit mentioned.

Gaining momentum: Coach Pranit Ramchandani is satisfied heyball will ‘take off’. ‘Extra Indians have began to play it severely — the shift is already taking place,’ he says.
| Picture Credit score:
Ok. Murali Kumar

Mohit is hopeful that heyball will quickly characteristic within the Olympics and Paralympics. A step on this route was taken in November final yr, when Pleasure Billiards made a pitch for heyball on the twenty seventh Affiliation of Nationwide Olympic Committees (ANOC) Basic Meeting in Portugal.

“If heyball will get into the Paralympics and Olympics, then will probably be simpler to get sponsorship and spectatorship,” Mohit, a knowledge engineer, mentioned.

Ramchandani’s academy has introduced collectively folks from all walks of life — an indicator of the inclusive nature of the game. Take the case of Chirag Sodha, knowledgeable poker participant and cue sports activities fanatic. Sodha defined that he’s exploring heyball to see what alternatives it brings. “It is a nice time to provide heyball a shot,” Sodha mentioned.

‘We acquired this’

At present, gamers from China dominate the game, however Ramchandani is satisfied that Indians have the talent and drive to compete towards the most effective.

“I don’t assume Chinese language gamers are very superior. By way of method, Indians are proper up there. Extra Indians have began to play heyball severely — the shift is already taking place. Gamers are slowly forgetting about snooker now,” Ramchandani mentioned.