Vietnam makes history at world team billiards tournament

GERMANY - Tran Quyet Chien and Bao Phuong Vinh helped Vietnam beat former champion Belgium, to enter the semi-finals of the world 3-cushion carom team tournament for the first time.

After three consecutive quarter-final eliminations, Vietnam will finally stand on the world team medal podium for the first time. 29-year-old Phuong Vinh, in his first tournament appearance as the reigning world champion, shined alongside his senior Quyet Chien. Phuong Vinh's important victories in the final match of the group stage and the quarter-finals greatly contributed to helping Vietnam make history.

Bao Phuong Vinh in a match with Tolgahan Kiraz in the final group stage match between Vietnam and Turkey at the 3-cushion carom world team tournament in Viersen, Germany, March 23, 2024. Photo: Billard1

The quarter-final match between Vietnam and Belgium on the evening of March 23 was tense, when Quyet Chien met Eddy Merckx, and Phuong Vinh played against Jozef Philipoom. Quyet Chien is the world's number two player and the reigning World Cup champion. Phuong Vinh is ranked eighth and is the reigning World Championship champion.

However, Merckx is considered a billiards legend with 19 world titles of all kinds, while Philipoom has also won both the World Cup and the World Championship. Therefore, this match is considered a great battle between the old continent and the young generation.

Quyet Chien started well, leading Merckx 11-1, but after three consecutive rounds without scoring, he was tied by his opponent. The two players continued to chase the score to 31-30, when the Vietnamese representative failed to score three consecutive rounds, allowing his opponent to win 40-30.

At the next table at the same time, Phuong Vinh had to beat Philipoom, otherwise Vietnam would be eliminated. At one point, Vietnam's number two player was trailing 31-28, but he scored a series of 5 and 7 points, winning 40-34. That meant the two teams had to play a tie-break in a doubles format to 15 points, meaning all four players played on the same table and took turns.

There, the class of the reigning World Cup and World Championship champions was demonstrated, when Quyet Chien and Phuong Vinh won the right to start and scored 13 points in a row. At one point, Phuong Vinh hit the target ball with a distance of only millimeters, making him breathe a sigh of relief and then smile and signal his opponent to sympathize. In the second round, both Vietnamese players scored points to win 15-3. When they knew the ball trajectory would be the deciding point, Quyet Chien and Phuong Vinh shouted with joy.

Tran Quyet Chien in a match with Tayfun Tasdemir, in the final group stage match between Vietnam and Turkey at the world 3-cushion carom team tournament in Viersen, Germany, March 23, 2024. Photo: Billard1

The 2024 World Team Championship will still consist of 16 teams, divided into four groups of four teams each, playing a round-robin to select eight teams to enter the knockout round, from March 21 to March 24 in Viersen, Germany. Each team will have two players, competing at the same time. This is the first time Phuong Vinh has participated in the tournament, while Quyet Chien has represented Vietnam in the last five editions.

In the group stage, Vietnam drew with Spain in the opening match, with Quyet Chien beating Ruben Legazpi and Phuong Vinh losing to Sergio Jimenez. Then both Vietnamese players won against Argentina. In the final match against Turkey, Vietnam only needed a draw to advance. While Quyet Chien lost to Tayfun Tasdemir, Phuong Vinh helped the team avoid elimination by winning against Tolgahan Kiraz.

Quyet Chien, 40 years old, has been the number one player in Vietnam for the past six years and has won the World Cup three times. Phuong Vinh, 29 years old, has only competed internationally for nearly two years and surprised everyone by winning the World Championship in 2023. In addition, no Vietnamese player has ever won the world championship.

The semi-finals and finals will take place tonight, March 24, Hanoi time. Vietnam will face the US, with Hugo Patino and Raymon Groot. This is a great opportunity for Vietnam to continue writing history, because Patino and Groot are both outside the world's Top 50.

Vnexpress.net

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