The Tornado, who earned his nickname from his lightning-fast reflexes at the table, attempted to rest his cue against the edge of the playing area, but he ended up slouching in his chair. When the 58-year-old was in the chair, it toppled, making a loud boom that startled the spectators and sent opponent Igor Figueiredo reeling as he got ready to clear the leftover pink and black from the table.
When snooker great Tony Drago fell out of his chair during his World Seniors Championship semi-final match, a worried silence descended around the Crucible.
To the cheers of the spectators, the Brazilian helped his downed opponent up again, and Drago held up his hand to make sure he was alright. When he gently stood back up, a shake of the head suggested more than anything that a bruised ego.
Figueiredo defeated Ken Doherty 4-1 to advance to the Sheffield final against him. The 46-year-old, who is playing against a player looking to complete a historic Grand Slam that already includes world under-21, world amateur, and world professional titles, might become the first player outside of Europe to win the seniors title.
But Drago, the Maltese star, will never forget his trip to the semi-final. In 2016, he announced his retirement from the main tour following two championships. Three years later, the Tornado had heart failure, but it has since returned to competition.
Drago achieved a particularly memorable feat on Friday when he defeated Stuart Watson 3-1 to earn a position in the semi-final. In a post-match interview with Channel 5, the veteran acknowledged: “I would have probably said to go where the sun don’t shine if you had told me before I came here that you were going to be in the semi-finals.”
“I don’t mind saying it in front of television because, you know, it’s true,” the speaker said. Neal [Foulds] and I had a conversation a few months ago. I had no desire to live. With my troubles, I wanted to end my life, thus being here was a big help.”
