In the new episode of the WST Podcast, Andrew Pagett insists that he could have been a top 32 player if he had dedicated himself to practice during his career.
The Welshman has enjoyed notable highlights in snooker including an appearance at the Crucible in 2011, a run to the semi-finals of the 2012 Antwerp Open and victory in the 2020 European Amateur Championship, though the 40-year-old has never been ranked higher than 71st in the world or reached the last 16 of a ranking event.
Pagett has always had business interests away from snooker, including two discount shops which he runs in in South Wales. Looking back on his career on the baize he said: “Everyone around the valley will tell you I’m one of the most talented and gifted players to have picked a cue up. It’s all natural with me. If my head is clear and I’m focussed then I take some beating. It’s a million per cent that I’m a top 32 player, at least that. When I was playing good stuff, I wasn’t just beating the top boys, I was hammering them. I’ve beaten Neil Robertson and Mark Selby when they were world number one.
“But you have to dedicate yourself to it. I wouldn’t change anything, but if I had put the time in then my career would have been a hell of a lot better. I have got two daughters and I wanted to spend time with them rather than being away. I fell out of love with the game because of the travelling. You are on motorways, in airports and hotels a lot. It can be a lonely game and it get on top of you. It is just a game and there have been times where I have stepped away from snooker to make sure I am ok in my personal life.”
Pagett also recalls a brush with death in 2020 when he suffered a perforated bowel caused by diverticulitis. “I felt a sudden pain and was rushed into hospital,” he said. “The doctor said it was lucky I came in because otherwise by the morning I would have been gone. It was a day I don’t want to remember.”
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