Tran Quyet Chien faces a big challenge

Exactly one year after winning the Veghel Billiards World Cup, Tran Quyet Chien is still searching for his next title. The Antwerp Billiards World Cup 2025 in Belgium could be the time for him to return to the top, but the road ahead is also full of challenges.

Why is Tran Quyet Chien given special privileges?

In the Netherlands in October 2024, Tran Quyet Chien made the world billiards community admire when he defeated a series of formidable opponents, most memorably the victory over "genius" Frederic Caudron to win the 4th World Cup championship in his career. But since then, his journey seems to have slowed down. Six World Cup billiards stages have passed, the Ha Tinh native has not yet stepped onto the highest podium, although at many times he showed stable performance and advanced to the semi-finals and finals.

Tran Quyet Chien is looking for his first World Cup billiards title in 2025.

PHOTO: THU BON

Coming to the Antwerp Billiards World Cup - Belgium 2025 from October 6 to 12, fans are waiting for Tran Quyet Chien to find the taste of victory again. However, the challenge for the Vietnamese player in Antwerp is not small. Quyet Chien is in Group C with two veteran players of the European 3-cushion carom village: Martin Horn (Germany) and Roland Forthomme (Belgium), both of whom have won the Billiards World Cup twice. Horn is famous for his scientific playing style, and Forthomme is especially formidable when playing at home. In addition, the group also has a player who has passed the qualifying round, usually someone who is in good form at the moment.

Tran Quyet Chien has a high ranking on the world rankings, so he is given a special place in the main round (32 players), competing from October 10. In the main round, 32 players are divided equally into 8 groups, competing in a round robin to calculate points. Only the top two players in each group will advance to the knockout round. In a group with formidable opponents, Quyet Chien is still the most highly rated name. However, Vietnamese players need to make the most of every opportunity and every point.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tran-quyet-chien-doi-mat-thu-thach-lon-185251006214105987.htm