Wilson Jones (billiards player)

2021-09-05T12:39:52Z

2402:3A80:6BC:B592:4098:A85E:AD43:DFCE: Fixed the date of birth and death anniversary, also added the place of death

{{short description|Indian billiards player}}
{{other people||Wilson Jones (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox snooker player
|name = Wilson Jones
|image =
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|birth_date = {{Birth date|1922|5|2|df=y}}
|birth_place = [[Pune]], [[Bombay Presidency]], [[British India]]
|death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2003|10|4|1922|5|2}}
|death_place = Mumbai
|Sport country = {{IND}}
|Nickname =
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|Prize money =
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'''Wilson Lionel Garton-Jones''' (2 May 1922 – 4 October 2003) was a professional player of [[English billiards]] from [[India]]. Jones, a dominant national amateur champion for more than a decade, won the amateur world championship twice, in 1958 and 1964. He was awarded the [[Arjuna Award]] in 1963, the [[Padma Shri]] Award in 1965, and the [[Dronacharya Award]] in 1996.He was the first Indian to be a World champion in any sport.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/snooker/billiards/When-Wilson-Jones-first-brought-the-world-billiards-to-India/articleshow/3440458.cms | title=When Wilson Jones first brought the world billiards to India | work=[[The Times of India]] | date=3 September 2008 | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sportskeeda.com/cue-sports/billiards-snooker-sidelined-sports-need-attention | title=Billiards and snooker - Sidelined sports that need attention | publisher=SportsKeeda | work=Tuheen Kushal | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref><ref name="Garg2010">{{cite book|author=Chitra Garg|title=Indian Champions: Profiles of Famous Indian Sportspersons|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fq1wdzqhu6kC&pg=PA85|access-date=8 May 2018|year=2010|publisher=Rajpal & Sons|isbn=978-81-7028-852-7|pages=85–}}</ref><ref name="Bhattacherje2009">{{cite book|author=S. B. Bhattacherje|title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Events & Dates|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oGVSvXuCsyUC&pg=SL1-PA227|access-date=8 May 2018|date=1 May 2009|publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd|isbn=978-81-207-4074-7|page=227}}</ref>

Jones, an [[Anglo-Indian]], was born in [[Pune]] in [[Maharashtra]], and studied at Bishop High School and [[St. Vincent's High School]], before joining the War Service in 1939.<ref name="Baskaran2018">{{cite book|author=Hari Baskaran|title=These Bloomin' Anglos: Glimpses into the Anglo-Indian heart|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xEpVDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT46|access-date=8 May 2018|date=11 April 2018|publisher=Notion Press|isbn=978-1-64249-767-0|pages=46–}}</ref> Jones appeared in the national championship for the first time in 1947.<ref name=sportsweek>PN Sundaresan, The humble champion of the green baize, Sportsweek, June 12-18, 1985, pp 38-41 </ref> In 1950, he won his first national title, defeating T. A. Selvaraj in the final. During the next sixteen years, he won the amateur National Billiards Championship of Indian twelve times. He won both the national billiards and snooker titles in 1952 and 1954.<ref name=sportsweek/>

Jones' first [[IBSF World Billiards Championship|World Billiards Championship]] was in London in 1951. In Calcutta in 1952, he won only one match, against Ameen Yunoos of [[Myanmar|Burma]]. He failed in the next Championship in Sydney in 1954 as well but it gave him a chance to spend time with [[Walter Lindrum]].<ref name=sportsweek/>

On his fourth attempt, on 11 December 1958 Jones won the [[World Amateur Billiards Championship]] held at Great Eastern Hotel in {{Sic|hide=y|reason=It was not Kolkatta then|[[Calcutta]]}}. In his final match, he defeated [[Chandra Hirjee]] of India 4655-2287 in four two-hour sessions. On the previous day, he defeated [[Leslie Driffield]] after trailing by more than 660 points with 105 minutes left. Jones took lead with fifteen minutes left and scored 123 unfinished in his last visit. Driffield finished second in the round robin. <ref name=sportsweek/> <ref>[https://www.cuesportsindia.com/myweb/pgallery/wilson/wilson.htm Cuesports India] </ref>

This was followed up by another world title in 1964 in [[New Zealand]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Geoffs-tribute-to-his-dad-Wilson-Jones/articleshow/47122261.cms | title=Geoff's tribute to his dad: Wilson Jones | work=[[The Times of India]] | date=1 May 2015 | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref>
After retirement, Jones moved on to coaching, and mentored professional champions such [[Om Agarwal]], [[Subhash Agarwal]], and [[Ashok Shandilya]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/snooker/billiards/Wilson-Jones-world-title-remembered-with-pomp/articleshow/3822745.cms | title=Wilson Jones world title remembered with pomp | work=[[The Times of India]] | date=11 December 2008 | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.aipsmedia.com/index.php?page=news&cod=2863 | title=Independent India's first world sporting champ remembered | publisher=Aipsmedia. | date=11 December 2008 | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.espn.in/espn/story/_/id/16634068/no-14-wilson-jones-billiards-world-champion | title=No. 14: Wilson Jones is billiards world champion | publisher=ESPN | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref>

In 2003, Jones died following a heart attack.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.hindu.com/2003/10/06/stories/2003100602192100.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031206201741/http://www.hindu.com/2003/10/06/stories/2003100602192100.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=6 December 2003 | title=Wilson Jones passes into history | date=6 October 2003 | work=[[The Hindu]] | access-date=8 May 2018}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
* [http://www.iloveindia.com/sports/billiards/players/jones.html Wilson Jones Profile]

{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Sports}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Wilson}}
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian players of English billiards]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Arjuna Award]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Dronacharya Award]]
[[Category:Anglo-Indian people]]
[[Category:World champions in English billiards]]
[[Category:Cue sports players from Maharashtra]]

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Wilson Jones (billiards player)