The tournament attracts large numbers -- about 800 entries and close to 20 buyers for the tournament carrom boards. Why tournament carrom boards ? Because it makes more sense to buy those than a brand new board.

Sanjay Gharat, the tournament organiser of Khatriya Open, says tournament boards is like buying a tested equipment. ``You know whether it has any defects. But the main advantage you have is you can get a choice of boards. There are close 20-25 boards on display and an interested buyer gets the board he wants.''

Buying a carrom board from a sports store or from the factory has its perils, according to Gharat.

``If you go to a store, you are shown five to six boards. You have to choose one by looking at it. How can you buy one by simply looking at the board?'' he says. ``In the store, you are not allowed to playshots on the board or even touch it. You will never realise whether you are buying a good board or a defective one,'' he explained.

Ashok Bhave, the secretary of the state carrom association, also feels it is better to buy a tournament board.

``Playing on a board for a couple of days removes the varnish from the top layer, making the coins move better,'' he explains. ``Also, there is a choice of close to 25 boards on display from which you can buy yours,'' he says.