World snooker: Foreign players hit by 'Hyderabad belly'

By Anand Philar, Hyderabad, Nov 19 : Some of the foreign players participating in the ongoing ONGC-IBSF World snooker championship here have been struck down by "Hyderabad belly", the latest being Thailand's Santhinee Jaisuekul who was admitted to a hospital Thursday afternoon, but was said to be recovering.

Santhinee lost her match in the ladies section to Jaique Ip of Hong Kong 2-3. Midway through the encounter, Santhinee rushed out of the airconditioned hall and was seen squatting on the floor, complaining of cold and cough.

On being offered water, she declined, saying: "It is too cold inside the hall. I am feeling weak." Despite her condition, Santhinee completed the match after which she was taken to the hospital. There is no official word yet on the nature of her illness.

Meanwhile Bahrain's Nahla Sunni did not turn up for her group match against Chitra Magimairajan of India this morning and later said she was feeling the ill-effects of an upset stomach after eating a pizza Wednesday night.

Earlier in the week, Australia's Steve Mifsud, one of the pre-tournament frontrunners for the title, went down with a stomach upset and lost his opening two matches. He declined an offer to postpone one of his matches to give him time to recover, saying it would be unfair for his opponent.

President of the International Billiards and Snooker Federation Pascal Guillaume too has been feeling unwell for the past couple of days.

While the playing conditions are near-perfect, the air-conditioning inside the playing area evoked mixed reaction from the players, some saying the temperature was just right while others, especially those from the Gulf region, complaining it was far too cold for comfort.