After four days of fierce competition in the qualifying round of over 200 players, on the morning of May 30, the final round of the International 3-Cushion Carom Billiards Tournament - SCTV Cup 2025 opened at Ho Xuan Huong Sports Stadium (HCMC). The main event of the tournament featured the participation of the 8 best players, including 6 international and domestic guests, and 2 players who passed the qualifying round, Nguyen Tran Thanh Tao and Mai Tan Huyen.
"Dark horse" Mai Tan Huyen defeated the world's number 2 player Tran Quyet Chien
The opening ceremony took place in a solemn atmosphere, with the participation of representatives of the organizing committee, sponsors and a large number of spectators who love 3-cushion carom. Immediately after the opening ceremony, the group stage matches took place simultaneously at the two main competition tables, bringing exciting competitions full of surprises.
In the first round of Group A , the second-ranked player in the qualifying round, Mai Tan Huyen, unexpectedly defeated the world's number 2 star, Tran Quyet Chien, with a score of 40-26. Tan Huyen made a 12-point series in the last round to bring home the victory, leaving even the experts stunned and ecstatic.
Heo Jung-han's performance has declined.
After defeating his compatriot Heo Jung-han 40-32 in this round, Kim Jun-tae was held to a 40-40 draw by Mai Tan Huyen in the much-anticipated encounter that followed. There was no doubt that the "dark horse" of the tournament had emerged, especially when the runner-up of the Ho Chi Minh City World Cup, Heo Jung-han, continued to lose to the home team's number 1 player, Tran Quyet Chien, with a score of 27-40 after only 16 rounds.
Tran Quyet Chien ranked first in group A, entered the semi-finals
In the final match of Group A, Tran Quyet Chien defeated Kim Jun-tae with a score of 40-32, while Mai Tan Huyen accepted a 17-40 defeat against Heo Jung-han, enough for him to follow his compatriot Tran Quyet Chien into the semi-finals. With 1 win, 1 draw and 1 loss, Mai Tan Huyen surpassed Kim Jun-tae to win the right to continue thanks to a better secondary index (1.672 compared to 1.623).
The same story happened in Group B when guest Tayfun Tasdemir also had to stop early before the semi-finals. The top candidate of this group, Bao Phuong Vinh, won all 3 matches, forcing Tayfun Tasdemir to compete for the second ticket with Tran Thanh Luc.
Former World Cup champion Tayfun Tasdemir lost 2/3 matches, saying goodbye to the tournament early
In a rematch of the World Cup final in Bogota (Colombia) in March, Tayfun Tasdemir led 21-12 after the first half and maintained a tight game in the second half. However, at the decisive moment, the Turkish player suddenly slowed down, creating an opportunity for Tran Thanh Luc to score 4 consecutive points and close the match with a thrilling score of 40-38.
Bao Phuong Vinh won all 3 matches in group B
Thus, all three international guests who had played very well at the Ho Chi Minh City World Cup suddenly "conspired" to fail. The race for the championship and the prize worth up to 500 million VND, therefore, is only an "internal" competition between the home players with very high professional quality.
Tran Thanh Luc won the last semi-final ticket
On the final day of competition (May 31), the two semi-final matches promise to be fierce, taking place between Tran Quyet Chien and Tran Thanh Luc (10am), and Bao Phuong Vinh and Mai Tan Huyen (1pm). The two semi-final winners will compete at 5pm to determine the champion of the tournament.
Source: https://nld.com.vn/co-thu-hang-sieu-sao-the-gioi-chia-tay-som-sctv-cup-2025-196250530223559026.htm
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