KoreanPlayer Bao Phuong Vinh defeated two Korean representatives in the knock-out round, to enter the Asian 3-band carom semi-finals for the second consecutive time.
In the round of 1/8 match, Phuong Vinh beat world number 24 player Cha Myeonjong 50-38 after 29 shots. At one point, the opponent led 21-17, but Vietnam's number two player scored two series of 11 and 7 points to lead 35-21. The huge gap helped him finish the match, achieving a performance of 1,724 points per turn.
Bao Phuong Vinh in the Asian 3-band carom group stage match in Gangwon, South Korea on March 30, 3. Image: KBF
In the quarterfinals, Phuong Vinh continued to beat world number 42 player Yeong Ye-sung by a margin of 50-26 after 20 shots, with a high efficiency of 2,500 points per shot. Right in the third round, the 29-year-old player took a series of 10 points to lead 13-7. He also scored another series of 11 points to lead 33-19. Since then, Yeong has never scored more than two points in one turn, accepting defeat by a margin.
Phuong Vinh's opponent in the semi-finals taking place this afternoon, March 31, is former world number one Kim Haeng-jik. The 3-year-old player eliminated world number one Cho Myung-woo in the quarterfinals with a 32-50 victory after 38 shots. Kim is ranked 29th in the world, a three-time World Cup champion like Tran Quyet Chien. Kim is also the only Asian player to ever win a World Cup season, in 12.
Phuong Vinh, 29 years old, is the reigning individual and team world 3-band carom champion. He is in the best form of the Asian tournament, with a performance of 1,760 points per match. Meanwhile, Kim's performance from the beginning of the tournament was only 1,448 points. Phuong Vinh is also the only Vietnamese player left in the semi-finals, besides three Korean players.
Last year, Phuong Vinh also reached the semi-finals but lost 45-50 to compatriot Tran Thanh Luc and was eliminated. Thanh Luc then reached the final but fell to Cho. This year, Thanh Luc beat Lee Beom-yeol 50-41 in the eighth round, but lost to Kang Ja-in 1-8 in the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu beat compatriot Duong Thanh Tam 26-50 in the eighth round, but lost 50-36 to Kim Jun-tae in the quarterfinals. Therefore, Kang Ja-in and Kim Jun-tae meet in the remaining semi-finals.
The Asian Carom Tournament takes place annually, within the system of the World Billiards Federation (UMB). Points are counted for seeding for continental and national tournaments, but from this year, points are not counted for the World Cup. and World Championship. This year's Asian Championship takes place in Gangwon, South Korea from March 28 to March 3.
Xuan Binh
