A TURNING POINT IN DEFEATING TRAN QUYET CHIEN
Until now, Tran Duc Minh still can't believe he could become the second Vietnamese player to win the 3-cushion carom billiards World Cup. Speaking to Thanh Nien newspaper , the 43-year-old player excitedly said: "In an athlete's career, to compete and stand on the highest podium at a world- class competition is more than enough. I don't know what the future holds, but this is a title for a lifetime."
Tran Duc Minh won the World Cup after defeating very strong opponents.
Duc Minh humbly shared that reaching the main draw (round of 32) was already a great success for him. However, the player from Hue improved with each match. Duc Minh's enthusiasm also stemmed from his fellow Hue native Tran Quyet Chien. "Through each match, I noticed that my playing feel improved, and I was in better form. The victory against Tran Quyet Chien in the round of 16 was a major turning point, boosting my morale and confidence significantly. Chien is at a world-class level. Therefore, if I have enough confidence to beat Chien, I will feel the same way when facing other opponents," the new World Cup 3-cushion carom billiards champion expressed.
C. Adapting Tactics for the Audience
Tran Duc Minh shared that, besides his training efforts and self-belief, the greatest motivation that helped him perform so well was the audience. The enthusiastic support at the Nguyen Du Gymnasium (Ho Chi Minh City) gave the 43-year-old player extra strength and confidence, creating invisible pressure on his opponents.
The audience gave their full support.
The audience was also the reason Duc Minh decided to change his playing style, from tight defense in the semi-finals to an aggressive, all-out attack in the final, and he achieved excellent results. "I executed every shot perfectly thanks to the audience's support throughout the competition against strong opponents. I told myself I couldn't let the audience down. In the semi-finals, the match wasn't good, it was... boring, and I felt very guilty. Therefore, in the final, besides the win or loss, I wanted to give the audience beautiful shots. I wanted to play to the best of my ability, showcase my skills for the audience to see, so that their trip to watch wouldn't be in vain," Duc Minh said.
He only started playing 3-cushion billiards at nearly 40 years old.
To get to where he is today, Tran Duc Minh has overcome many difficulties on his path to pursuing his passion for billiards. The player from Hue started playing professional billiards relatively late compared to his peers.
He revealed: "I learned about and liked 3-cushion carom billiards from watching competitions on TV. Since 2012, when Vietnamese players went abroad to compete and the 3-cushion billiards movement became popular, I started practicing with friends. That's when I became involved with this sport. Before pursuing billiards, I worked for a company in Bien Hoa (Dong Nai) and Binh Duong . For a while, I made a living making Vietnamese sausage to wholesale to restaurants. I did this job and played billiards semi-professionally from 2015. In 2019, after winning the runner-up position in the national championship, I received additional income from sponsors, so I stopped all other work to play billiards professionally."
Before winning the Ho Chi Minh City 3-Cushion Carom Billiards World Cup, Tran Duc Minh had already won the national championship in 2020 and the 2022 National Sports Games championship. He currently owns a billiards club in Thu Dau Mot, Binh Duong. Recently, this player opened a 3-cushion carom billiards training center where he personally instructs, hoping to pass on his experience to young people with a passion for the sport and contribute to the development of the sport in Vietnam.
REWARD OF 16,000 EURO
With his World Cup victory, Tran Duc Minh was awarded 16,000 euros (approximately 442 million VND) and became the second Vietnamese player to win a World Cup title, after Tran Quyet Chien (3-time World Cup champion). Notably, Tran Quyet Chien first won the World Cup in Ho Chi Minh City in 2018, just like Duc Minh this year.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/co-thu-tran-duc-minh-tu-lam-nghe-ban-gio-cha-den-chuc-vo-dich-world-cup-185240527234413779.htm
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