Vietnam won the world team billiards championship for the first time.

Duc Tran Quyet Chien and Bao Phuong Vinh helped Vietnam win the world 3-cushion carom team championship, after narrowly beating Spain 15-14 in the final tie-break.

The final match could hardly have been more dramatic, as the two teams tied in the two official games, and had to decide the winner in a tie-break. There, the score was also brought up to 14-14, meaning each team only needed to score one more point to win the championship. Right after Spain missed the opportunity, Phuong Vinh shone to score the decisive point, bringing a thrilling victory to Vietnam.

Tran Quyet Chien (left) and Bao Phuong Vinh on the podium to present the cup and medal at the world 3-cushion carom team championship in Viersen, Germany on March 24, 2024. Photo: screenshot

When the cue ball had just touched the second cushion from Phuong Vinh's last shot, Quyet Chien shouted with joy, while his juniors ran closer to the target ball to take a closer look. Only when the cue ball was about to touch the target ball did Phuong Vinh shout and share the joy with Quyet Chien.

Billiards has become one of the few sports in which Vietnam has won the world team championship, along with sepak takraw, sepak takraw and aerobics. Vietnam’s dominance in 3-cushion carom is demonstrated when the team is the reigning champion of all three world tournaments, including the World Cup (Quyet Chien), World Championship (Phuong Vinh) and the recently concluded world team tournament.

The final match between Vietnam and Spain early in the morning of March 25, Hanoi time, took place between two teams that had never won the title before. Spain had reached the final twice but failed, and this time Ruben Legazpi and Sergio Jimenez continued to fall at the threshold of heaven.

Tran Quyet Chien (right) and Bao Phuong Vinh in the semi-final match against the US on March 24, 2024. Photo: Billard1

Phuong Vinh showed his superiority over Jimenez, when he took the lead right from the start of the regular round. When the score was 18-11 for the 29-year-old, he scored a series of 11 points to lead 29-11. This gap was so big, allowing the number two player in Vietnam to play comfortably and win 40-22 after 18 turns. The quick victory allowed Phuong Vinh to sit and cheer on his senior Quyet Chien at the next table.

The number one player had more difficulties against Legazpi - the world runner-up in 2022. Quyet Chien scored 11 points in the first round, but missed all nine rounds. At one point, the Spanish player led by 11 points, but was reduced by the Vietnamese representative. When Quyet Chien tied the score at 36-36, Phuong Vinh jumped up, clapped his hands and exclaimed with admiration for his seven-cushion cue. However, the 40-year-old player still lost 38-40 after 27 rounds, forcing the final match to go into a tie-break.

The tie-break was played in a doubles format, where players took turns hitting at the same table, up to 15 points without equal cues. When leading 14-11 and only one point away from the championship, Phuong Vinh missed his shot by just a millimeter, making him sigh with regret. When the score was 14-13, it was Quyet Chien's turn to miss a golden opportunity with a shot that missed by just a few millimeters. Spain took advantage of the opportunity to tie the score at 14-14, but failed to capitalize on the decisive shot and was punished by Phuong Vinh.

Bao Phuong Vinh in the semi-final match against the US. Photo: Billard1

The World 3-Cushion Team Carom Championship has been held in Viersen, Germany annually since 1991, with 16 teams invited according to the slots of each continental federation. Each team has two players, in which Vietnam is considered the number one seed when Quyet Chien and Phuong Vinh are ranked second and eighth in the world respectively. But before this tournament, Vietnam had never passed the quarter-finals.

Vietnam caused a surprise when they, along with Spain, eliminated defending champions Turkey in the group stage. In all three knockout matches against Belgium, the US and Spain, Vietnam won in tie-breaks.

3-cushion is the most popular form of carom billiards, originating from France, and is now found mainly in Europe, East Asia and some South American countries, but is less common in English-speaking countries. Therefore, the prize money for world champions in carom is lower than other forms of billiards such as snooker or pool - which are popular in the UK or the US.

Quyet Chien is 40 years old, the world's number two player, and has won the World Cup three times. Phuong Vinh is 29 years old, and won the World Championship last year, in his first time participating in the tournament.

The world team championship of these two players also helped Vietnam to win the entire world title. Previously, only seven countries had done the same, namely Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Turkey, Japan and South Korea.

Xuan Binh

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