Shane Van Boening (Taka G Wu/Matchroom Multi Sport)
Jayson Shaw survived a hill-hill scare in his opening match of the World Pool Championship 2023 in Kielce, Poland as defending champion Shane Van Boening cruised through to Winners Round 1 unscathed live on Sky Sports, Viaplay, DAZN, Matchroom.Live and networks worldwide.
Van Boening stepped out at Targi Kielce looking to do what only Earl Strickland has ever achieved in defending a world title with Masato Yoshioka offering the first test. The South Dakota Kid was barely troubled by his opponent in a strong showing that saw Yoshioka restricted to few opportunities as Van Boening rattled in a 9-2 opening win. Mats Schjetne awaits tomorrow afternoon for Van Boening in Winners’ Qualification.
Shaw meanwhile had a far from the ideal start being pushed to the final four ball against Italy’s Francesco Candela. Two-time Mosconi Cup MVP Shaw, got off to a comfortable start to lead 5-3 but Candela hit back forcing it all the way to the hill. It was the case of Shaw making plenty of balls off the break but misfortune awaiting at his feet with several in-offs to claw Candela back into the contest. Candela forced a hill-hill finish and looked to have an out after a nervy safety exchange only for the four to be left hanging to allow Shaw in to complete a 9-8 win.
“I played well throughout the match. It was a weird one. Funny little things happened, I am exhausted and can barely keep my eyes open with a lot of pool being played in the last week. I need a good sleep and I will be back tomorrow. I got here at 5 pm yesterday and woke up at 5 pm today! 24 hours, I didn’t know where I was! Hopefully, tomorrow I can be back to where I need to be. I am playing well, there are a lot of good players out here. Hopefully, luck is on your side and you play well. It’s one match at a time for me. Everyone is here to win, we will see what happens.” – Jayson Shaw after beating Francesco Candela 9-5.
Wojciech Szewczyk (Taka G Wu/Matchroom Multi Sport)
13 Polish players started their journey on home soil with Wojciech Szewczyk getting the honours of playing the first match on Table 1 with the Warsaw native up against Bashar Hussain Abdul Majeed in front of a packed home crowd.
Nineball World No. 1 Francisco Sanchez Ruiz beat So Shaw in a whitewash before coming from 5-2 down to defeat Wu Kun Lin and book a spot in the Last 64 and a day off tomorrow. Joining Sanchez Ruiz in the Last 64 is two-time winner Albin Ouschan who got the better of SVB Junior Open winner Khalid Alghamdi in Winners’ Qualification whilst Niels Feijen, Ko Ping Chung and Max Lechner also made it through early doors. It was also a delight for Nick Van Den Berg on a triumphant return to the Nineball Arena with back-to-back wins.
Action returns from midday local time tomorrow on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland, Viaplay in Poland, Scandinavia, the Baltics, and the Netherlands, DAZN in the USA and Italy as well as on Matchroom.Live and broadcasters worldwide. Table 2 and Table 3 are on the Matchroom Pool and Multi Sport YouTube Channels respectively and Viaplay in above listed territories. See where to watch here.
Shane Van Boening (Taka G Wu/Matchroom Multi Sport)
Shane Van Boening will begin the defense of his World Pool Championship title against Japan’s Masato Yoshioka in Kielce, Poland from February 1-5 live on Sky Sports in the UK, Viaplay in Poland, Scandinavia and the Baltics, DAZN in the USA as well as Matchroom.Live and networks worldwide.
The American will look to become only the second player in history to defend the title following in the footsteps of Earl Strickland in a packed arena at Targi Kielce. 46 countries will be represented in the 128-player field as it is whittled down to the Last 64 over the first two days of action before it’s straight knockout to the end where one will claim the $60,000 first-place prize and the world crown.
The draw was completed with the top 64 players from the Nineball World Rankings against an unseeded player from the other 64 in the hat. Standout first-round ties include 2015 world champion Ko Pin Yi facing James Aranas of the Philippines whilst 2022 semi-finalist Abdullah Alyousef faces the tricky prospect of Johann Chua. 2004 world champion Alex Pagulayan was unseeded and will meet Michael Schneider.
World Cup of Pool winner David Alcaide takes on Billy Thorpe and Shane Wolford‘s mission for a spot on Team USA at the 2023 Mosconi Cup takes on Pia Filler. Francisco Sanchez Ruiz had a year to remember last year and will begin his Nineball campaign against So Shaw of Iran.
Double elimination matches are all race to 9, with all matches from the Last 64 a race to 11 except the final, which is a race to 13.
Table 1 will be live on broadcasters worldwide including Sky Sports in the UK, Viaplay in Poland, Scandinavia, Baltics, and the Netherlands, DAZN in the USA, Canada, and Italy, as well as on Matchroom.Live and networks worldwide. See where to watch here.
Table 2 will be live on Viaplay in selected territories as well as on Matchroom.Live and the Matchroom Pool YouTube channel.
Table 3 will be live on Viaplay in selected territories as well as on Matchroom.Live and the Matchroom Multi Sport YouTube channel.
Finland’s Casper Matikainen takes down the defending champion in wild day in Doha as 32 players set for a sprint to the World 9-ball crown.
Casper Matikainen
Finland’s Casper Matikainen came into his round of 64 match at the World 9-ball Championship today versus the defending champion and world number 1 Joshua Filler feeling relaxed and ready for battle. He figured the German great would bring his usual fire, but he also knew that Filler might also take his eye off the proverbial ball. After all, the 23 year old Finn wasn’t exactly the most feared name in a field of absolute monsters.
So even when the self-described “King” of pool jumped out to a 4-1 lead, Matikainen never lost hope, as Filler had gotten a few lucky rolls and wasn’t playing all that great, while the Finn had a few rolls go against him.
The mental strategy soon started to bear fruit for the cool-headed blonde. Slowly, and increasingly surely, Matikainen crawled even, and then took the lead while at the same time Filler started to get sloppy, lose focus and even showed some signs of panic. From 4-1 down Matikainen calmly won 9 out of the next ten frames. After a brief hiccup on the hill that allowed Filler to claim two quick racks, the steady Finn held his nerve and closed out the biggest shock of the tournament so far, an 11-7 upset of the defending champion.
“He’s the world champion and he’s playing and I’m not there in the big tournaments and maybe he’s thinking it’s an easy win,” the 22 year old Matikainen said afterward. “I felt that Joshua had the pressure because he’s the world champion and I was really relaxed at the table and that helped me and I just got it done.”
Matikainen’s massive win was but one huge result on a dramatic day in Doha that saw some of pool’s biggest names dumped out, while others were taken to the absolute limits. With the field now down to the final 32, the next two days promises to be one of the most exciting and fascinating Battle Royale’s of 9-ball we’ve seen in years.
America’s Shane Van Boening had come to Doha a heavy favorite this year and for good reason. His last three starts here ended with two runner ups and a spot in the semis last year. But several early mistakes against Taiwan’s Liu Ri Teng was all it took for the Taiwanese to grab a commanding lead at 10-4. The American mounted a valiant fight back, but the alternate break format meant the hole was too deep. Liu sent Van Boening packing in the round of 64 with a humbling 11-8 defeat.
After his runner up finish at the US Open in Las Vegas last April, former champion Wu Jiaqing figured to go far here in Doha. But Wu came up against fellow compatriot Xu Xiaocong, who is one of a slew of quality young talents coming out of China. Xu has impressed all week here and against Wu he turned his game up several notches, crushing the former Boy Wonder 11-5.
The Taiwanese are almost sure to have one, possibly two players in the semis after tomorrow as Team Taipei looked absolutely marvelous today. It isn’t easy picking a favorite out of these world beaters but World 10-ball Champion Ko Ping Chung would probably be at the top of most punters betting sheets. The slightly built and painfully shy 22 year old is clearly at the top of his game but he even he barely escaped in a harrowing match against Hungary’s talented Oliver Szolnoki.
Szolnoki, another bright European prospect, played the match of his young career and had “Little” Ko on the ropes, shooting out to a 7-3, then 8-5 lead. The fresh-faced Hungarian reached the hill first, but Ko then displayed the courage and guts that only champions can pull off. In a nervy and tense sudden death rack, the Taiwanese made a series of surreal pressure shots to eek out the victory.
Little Ko’s older brother and two-time former world champion Pin Yi also won today, easily defeating Japan’s Yukio Akagariyama, 11-5. Fellow Taiwanese Chang Jung Lin, Chang Yu Lung, Lin Wu Kun and Kevin Chang all won their round of 64 matches today. In all seven Taiwanese made it through to the round of 32.
2016 World 9-ball champion Albin Ouschan of Austria looks to be in very fine form this year, as he easily defeated Taiwan’s Lin Ta Li 11-5. Fellow Austrian Max Lechner continued his rise this year with an 11-4 win over Lithuania’s Pijus Labutis.
The Russian contingent also put in solid performances today. Veteran Ruslan Chinakhov took down American Corey Duel 11-3, while youngster Fedor Gorst stayed alive with an 11-8 win over Slovakia’s Jakub Koniar.
2012 World 9-ball Champion Darren Appleton has been quietly playing himself back into game shape over the last few months and his solid victory today over Albanian star and European Mosconi team member Eklent Kaci could be a portent for the rest of the field. The Englishman battled back from a 4-0 deficit, and then turned the screws on the Albanian for a quality 11-6 win. In his remarkable heyday from 2008 to 2015, Appleton famously grinded out championships by the truckload and that bulldog mentality definitely was on display this afternoon.
The Philippines had only three players in the final 64 but all three made it through today. 2017 World 9-ball champion Carlo Biado got taken to the limit by Qatari veteran Bashar Hussein, before breaking and running the last rack for an 11-10 win. Also winning today for the Team Pinoy were Johann Chua and Jeffrey Ignacio.
The Polish contingent has been getting stronger by the year and they showed their quality today with three of their stars pushing through to the final 32. Mieszko Fortunski, Wojciech Szewczyk, and Mateusz Sniegocki all won handily.
Also advancing today were the USA’s Billy Thorpe, Singapore’s Aloysius Yapp, China’s Liu Haitao, Greece’s Alexander Kazakis, Spain’s Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, Estonia’s Dennis Grabe, England’s Chris Melling, Canada’s Alex Pagulayan, Qatar’s Waleed Majid, Vietnam’s Do The Kien, and Hong Kong’s young upstart Yip Kin Ling.
The penultimate day of the World 9-ball championship will be extremely busy as the field will be whittled down to the final four at the end of the days’ action.
Play on day 3, Monday, Dec. 16th will begin at 10am Doha time(GMT +3). All matches will be single elimination knockout race to 11, alternate break.
The winner of the 2019 World 9-ball Championship will receive $30,000. The total prize fund is $150,00.
*The 2019 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation in Doha, Qatar from December 10-17, 2019. The event is hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by the World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
Fans around the world will be able to view live scoring, results, brackets and live streaming of many of the matches via the QBSF’s free live streaming platform at esnooker.pl. Multiple tables will be available to view online at no charge to the public.
Results Final 64
Casper Matikainen(FIN) 11 – 7 Joshua Filler(GER)
Yip Kin Ling(HKG) 11 – 5 John Morra(CAN)
If the first day’s play of the 2019 World 9-ball Championship is any indication–and by all measures it certainly is just that–then fans around the world better be prepared for a wild roller coaster ride over the next three days. Drama, upsets, nerves, revelations, suprises, excitement and downright brilliant 9-ball at the highest levels were all on display as play commenced in the 28th running of pool’s premier crown. And with a loaded field just getting warmed up, it’s only going to get better leading to the final on Tuesday.
With 64 matches played on 16 tables at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation in Doha, Day 1 saw 32 players book their spots in the final 64 knockout stage which begins Sunday. None of the 96 players have yet to see the exits, but there were plenty of upsets, near upsets, and upstarts making their mark on pool’s biggest stage.
The top 32 seeds were given a bye in the first round of their groups, so these players only had to win one match to reach the single elimination knockout rounds. Defending champion Joshua Filler of Germany did just that, but not before a shaky start which saw him tied at 4-4 in the race to 9 alternate break match against Qatari veteran Bashar Hussain. The World number one was never in trouble, though, and cruised to a 9-5 win.
2017 champion and runner up last year Carlo Biado of the Philippines didn’t fair as well as he got dumped over to the one loss side of his group with a shocking 9-3 loss to Chile’s Enrique Rojas. It was Rojas’ second straight victory of the day, the first coming over Kuwait’s Abdullah Alyusef. Rojas now books his well deserved spot in the Final 64 tomorrow.
The USA’s Shane Van Boening is one of the favorites here this week, but he looked a bit cold early on in his match with young talented Chinese player Xu Xiaocong. Xu is part of a large crop coming from China’s youth movement and he had the American down three quarters of the way through their match. But SVB pulled it together at the last minute and squeaked by the Chinese, 9-8. Xu will get one more chance on Sunday.
Fellow American and Mosconi teammate Billy Thorpe also booked his spot in the final 64 with a 9-5 win over Canada’s Stephen Holem.
It was a solid day for team Taiwan. World 10-ball Champion Ko Ping Chung went up against Myamar’s rising star Phone Myint Kyaw, who also goes by the moniker, Muang Muang. Kyaw is a player that pool fans will want to pay attention to. He’s a former snooker player who has been winning regularly on the brutally tough Chinese 8-ball circuit, and he just grabbed two gold medals in the Southeast Asian games in Manila. His stroke is one of the most solid in the game and anyone who watches him play instantly can see the potential in this young man.
But of course, Ko is a young prodigy who has already proven his metal in American pool with his recent win at the World 10-ball in July in Vegas. Little Ko didn’t have much trouble with Muang Muang, winning handily, 9-4.
Little Ko will join his older brother Pin Yi in the final 64, who defeated the always stingy Jalal Al Sarisi of Venezuela, 9-4. Other Taiwanese cruising into the final 64 include Chang Jung Lin, Chang Yu Lung, and Kevin Cheng.
The Philippines is surprisingly unrepresented in Doha this year with only four players in the field. With Biado losing early it was up to Johann Chua and Jeffrey Ingacio to save the day for the Pinoys. Both looked the goods and nabbed spots in the final 64.
It was a mixed bag for the European Mosconio Cup team. Greece’s Alexander Kazakis is one of Europe’s top bets here this week and he qualified for the knockout round with an easy 9-5 win over Qatar’s Waleed Majid. But Albania’s Eklent Kaci and former World 9-ball Champion Niels Feijen of the Netherlands weren’t so fortunate. Kaci lost big to the Netherlands’ Ivar Saris, who had earlier looked solid in a 9-6 win over Poland’s Karol Skowerski. Feijen went down to upstart Hong Konger Yip Kin Ling, 9-7, who took his spot in the Final 64 with his second win of the day.
The surprises kept coming throughout the day. Lithuania’s Pijus Labutis first squeaked by Peru’s Gerson Martinez, 9-8. Then he took on former World 9-ball Champion Wu Jiaqing, and shocked the Chinese great with a 9-7 upset, and a spot in the knockout rounds.
Also booking a spot in the final 64 was Canada’s John Morra, who continued his return to fine form with a 9-8 win over Poland’s Mateusz Sniegocki. Singapore’s Aloysius Yapp showed that he’s clearly a dark horse to watch here in Doha with a 9-4 drubbing of China’s talented Dang Jinhu. England’s Chris Melling came back from 6-2 down to defeat Vietnam’s Do The Kien, 9-7. Also advancing today were Japan’s Naoyuki Oi, Austria’s Max Lechner, China’s Lui Haitao, Estonia’s Dennis Grabe, Finland’s Petri Makkonen, Germany’s Ralf Souquet, and Spaniards David Alcaide and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz.
Play on day 2 on Sunday, Dec. 14th will begin at 10am Doha time(GMT +3). The field will be whittled down to 64 players playing single elimination knockout race to 11. The round of 64 will be completed in the first two session, and by the end of the day, the field will be down to the final 32.
The winner of the 2019 World 9-ball Championship will receive $30,000. The total prize fund is $150,00.
*The 2019 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation in Doha, Qatar from December 10-17, 2019. The event is hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by the World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
Fans around the world will be able to view live scoring, results, brackets and live streaming of many of the matches via the QBSF’s free live streaming platform at esnooker.pl. Multiple tables will be available to view online at no charge to the public.
The first ever WPA Players Championship got underway at Griffs Billiards in Las Vegas on Tuesday, and the quality of the match ups on offer out of the box certainly didn’t disappoint. That’s because the 64 player field is one of the highest quality gatherings of pool’s current and rising stars.
The format of the event is designed to offer plenty of excitement as well. Matches through the quarterfinals are all race to 7, alternate break. In addition, the tournament is single elimination. Thus, every shot matters and one mistake early one can spell curtains even for pool’s biggest names.
This is exactly what befell world number two Alexander Kazakis in his opening round match against Japan’s Toru Kuribayashi. The Japanese veteran took advantage of several early errors by the Greek star and led throughout, eventually winning 7-2.
Two time world champion and two time US Open 9-ball champion Darren Appleton opened up proceedings with a tasty showdown against three time world champion Thorsten Hohmann. Appleton, who’s had to take significant time away from the game in the last two years because of several family issues, looked like a renewed man today, and took down the German great, 7-5.
Defending US Open champion Jayson Shaw came to Vegas looking fit and ready to defend his title next week across town at the Mandalay Bay. Shaw cruised to an opening round win over Gerson Martinez, 7-3.
It was a good day from the Ko family from Taiwan. Two time world champion Ko Pin Yi and his younger brother Ko Ping Chung both won their matches. Compatriot Chang Jung Lin had high hopes coming into this event, but fell to Russia’s Maksim Dudanets of Russia, 7-3. Veterans Yang Ching Shun and Chang Yu Leung both notched victories today.
USA great Shane Van Boening led the American contingent and advanced with a 7-5 win over Kai Lun Hsu of Taiwan. Skylar Woodward advanced with a handy 7-2 win over Qatar’s Bashar Hussain. Shawn Wilkie had to bear down against fellow American Billy Thorpe, and hung on to win 7-5. Corey Duel faced off with Mosconi foe Niels Feijen of the Netherlands and emerged victorious, 7-2.
It was a solid start for the always stingy team Philippines. World number 3 Carlo Biado led the charge with an easy win over Ruben Bautista Escaler, 7-3. 2017 WPA World 9-ball champion joins James Aranas, Johann Chua, Raymond Faroun and Jeffrey De Luna in the final 32. Jeffrey Ignacio proved the lone loser for the Philippines today, losing to two time world champion, Mika Immonen, 7-5.
In perhaps the most exciting match of the day, Japan’s Nayouki Oi went to the limit with young Russian Fedor Gorst. The match went into extra innings as neither player could get the two rack advantage needed to win. Oi took the sudden death rack to advance with a 10-9 win.
Play in the WPA Players Championship continues on Wednesday at 12 noon local time.
The format will be single elimination race to 7 (win by 2), with the semi-final and final being a race to 9 (win by 2).
The entire event is being streamed live by CSI media, a division of CueSports International (CSI). The production, complete with full-time commentary led by former World 8-Ball Champion, Karl Boyes, begins each day at noon pacific time. To watch live, visit www.playcsipool.com/watch-live.
The World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) is the international governing body for pocket billiards and is comprised of six member federations representing North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.
The WPA is the world-recognized body for sanctioning World Championship events. It is also one of the three member organizations of the World Confederation of Billiards Sports (WCBS), representing the billiard disciplines of pool, snooker and carom. For more information about the WPA, visit www.wpapool.com.
CueSports International (CSI) is an international pool league and event leader and is currently comprised of three divisions: CSI leagues, CSI events and CSI media. CSI leagues manages the BCA Pool Leagueand USA Pool League, CSI events produces numerous amateur and professional events around the globe and CSI media creates live streaming and digital content. Through its vision and strategic alliances, CSI is “shaping the future of pool.” For more information about CSI or any of its divisions, visit www.playcsipool.com or find CueSports International on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter.
The WPA Players Championship is made possible by the following sponsors:
Andy Billiard Cloth • Cyclop Balls • Diamond • Griff’s Billiards • HOW Tips • Predator • Master Billiard Chalk
It was an early night at the York Hall, East London as Japan, the Philippines and England B, all enjoyed comfortable wins at the 2017 12BET World Cup of Pool. Of the nine first round matches completed, the favourites have won on eight occasions with just India, who overturned England A on Tuesday the sole underdog victors.
The pairing of Daryl Peach, a finalist last year with Mark Gray, and Imran Majid, looked in top form as they hammered the Indonesian pairing of Irsal Nasution and Muhammad Simanjuntak 7-0. Arguably the best showing of the first round, the English pair put their opponents under the type of pressure that limited their visits and forced errors.
Majid said, “We came up with a good couple of breaks at the beginning to get the momentum and we smashed it – that’s what we are here for.
“We came here and we are going about our own business – it is irrelevant what any other team does, we have to concentrate on our own game.
Peach added, “We both gelled brilliantly. We have been playing a lot over the last couple of days and we knew we were on it. We are looking forward to the Scotland match, it is another tough match for us. It will be the same attitude, head on and do what we do.”
Featuring 32 two-man teams from around the globe, the 12BET World Cup of Pool is into its 11th year as reigning champions Chinese Taipei attempt to become the first team ever to successfully defend the title at the York Hall.
Earlier, Japan, led by internet sensation Naoyuki Oi, overcame a sticky start, trailing 2-0 to defeat Thailand 7-2. Japan were semi-finalists at this event in 2015 and look to have the pedigree to go deep in this tournament.
The Philippines represented by Johann Chua and Carlo Biado looked in trouble as they found themselves 2-4 down against Qatar. The pairing of Waleed Majid and Bashar Hussain have upset some top teams in previous World Cups but their opponents had other ideas as they came together in the closing stages to start playing.
They won five racks on the bounce to close out the match and set up a second-round match against Holland or Hungary.
Play continues Thursday afternoon with three more matches:
China (3) v Portugal
Holland (6) v Hungary
Austria (2) v Sweden
Broadcast for six days live on Sky Sports in the UK; the tournament is available live in over 100 countries around the world. A comprehensive list of countries and networks broadcasting the World Cup of Pool can be found here: http://www.matchroompool.com/world-cup-of-pool/#watchlive
The 12BET World Cup of Pool will carry a $250,000 prize fund including $60,000 for the champions. The event will be produced by Matchroom Sport Television and televised live on Sky Sports as well as other stations around the world.
12BET World Cup of Pool Tickets are on sale now at www.matchroompool.com priced at just £10.00 per evening session (Tuesday to Sunday) and £8.00 per weekend afternoon session. Tuesday to Friday afternoons are free. A season ticket covering all sessions is priced at £60.00.
2017 12BET World Cup of Pool is sponsored by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and the Official Balls are Super Aramith by Saluc. Predator is the Official Cue and Chalk of the event.
(Doha, Qatar)-–Omar Al Shaheen knows that success in championship pool is as much about perseverance as it is about being an amazing shot maker. Sometimes, when things aren’t going your way, you just have to be patient. When your time finally does come, you have to be ready to grab the cherry.
Today at the Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha, that cherry came in the form of a brilliantly played match against former World 9-ball Champion Darren Appleton. Today was Judgement Day at the 2016 World 9-ball Championship, the last chance to make it into the Final 64, the knockout rounds and the real road to 9-ball glory.
Of course Appleton, one of pool’s giants, was the heavy favorite. But the 23 year old Kuwaiti played flawlessly and completely carefee, while the Brit couldn’t find the measure of the break shot and looked tight. Al Shaheen won in a master class, 9-5, putting Appleton out, and himself in the money rounds of pool’s biggest event.
To understand just how Al Shaheen got to this point of being able to oust one of pool’s best players, it helps to look back over the last few days. The talented and good looking youngster didn’t even have a spot in the tournament a few days ago. He entered the brutally tough qualifiers last week, reached the finals two times, only to lose to two top players. But as he was lamenting what could have been this year, he got the call that another player had dropped out and, as the leading point holder of the qualifiers, he got the very last spot in the world championship.
Al Shaheen then lost his very first match and was forced over to the losers’ side of his group bracket. But then the Kuwaiti found his groove, handily beating Sweden’s Marcus Chamat, to set up a showdown with Appleton. He suddenly realized all the tough competition and, yes, the losing, had prepared him for this moment.
“I think it’s good that I lost many times,” an ecstatic Al Shaheen said after disposing of Appleton. “In the qualifiers I lost three times, two of them in finals to very good players. In the group stages I lost my first match. So that’s four times. So now I can accept losing. And it was good practice. Today I just play my game and I am relaxed. Darren is a very good player and I feel very good right now.”
31 one other players left the Al Arabi with similar wide grins today as they booked their spots in the Final 64 which begins Tuesdaymorning here. They join the 32 players who qualified on Sunday in what is a brutally stellar field of pool greats ready to do battle over the next three days for pool’s most prestigious prize.
Leading the way, as usual, are the Taiwanese and the Filipinos. Taiwan brings 10 heavyweights into the knockout stages, including defending champion Ko Pin Yi, Chang Yu Lung and Chang Jun Lin. Filipino fans will have nine players to get behind including Dennis Orcollo, Warren Kiamco, Lee Vann Corteza, Carlo Biado, Jeffrey De Luna and Johann Chua. Filipino Alex Pagulayan, who won the World 9-ball crown in 2004, plays out of Canada and also made it through to the knockout rounds.
It wouldn’t be surprising if China finally takes its first World 9-ball title. Former champion Wu Jiaqing(formerly Wu Chia Ching) is playing rock solid pool, while Lui Haitao has consistently been raising his game over the last few years. Six Chinese players will be featured in the Final 64.
Poland has proved this year that it could arguably be Europe’s leading pool country with four players qualifying. A slew of other Europeans make up the field as well.
Perhaps the most notable statistic this year is the rise of the Middle Eastern players. Six players from the Middle East have qualified for the knockout rounds, a first in the history of this prestigious event. Clearly having the World 9-ball Championship in Qatar for the last seven years has significantly helped the sport grow.
Judgement Day always brings with it plenty of jangling nerves and high drama as players wilt under the gravity of the circumstances. One small roll of the ball can spell the difference between a player going 2 games and out, and perhaps a run at a world title. If there was ever a sport where whole careers rest on a razor’s edge, pool is it.
The Philippines young Jeffrey Ingacio has given Pinoy fans high hopes for the young generation to make their mark, but he had to get very lucky in holding off tough Canadian Francis Crevier to advance, 9-7.
Great Britain’s Jayson Shaw has played himself into being one of the top players in the world over the last six months, but today he had to come from way behind against a stingy Justin Campbell of Australia to qualify, 9-7.
2007 World 9-ball Champion Daryl Peach had to go toe to toe with the Philippines Antonio Gabica, but the Brit prevailed 9-7 in a high quality match.
Bangladesh isn’t the first country to come to mind when one thinks of great pool players. Today, however, will stand as a monumental day in Bangladeshi cue sports history. 29 year old MD Alim became the first player from Bangladesh to make it to the knockout rounds of the World 9-ball Championship. Alim, who owns a business installing satellite TV services in Dhaka, was playing in his very first world championship this week. Today, he went to the wire with Italy’s Bruno Muratore and showed major league poise and skills in crossing the finish line to qualify.
Another player to look out for is Iran’s Ali Maghsoud. A few days ago Maghsoud took down the great Mika Immonen. Today the Iranian sucked up the massive pressure and beat Japan’s Hiroshi Takenaka, 9-7 to make his first Final 64.
Other Middle Eastern players continued to impress. Abdul Rahman Al Amar of Saudi Arabi continues to show maturity beyond expectations. Today he came from behind to win at the wire against Poland’s Konard Juszczyszym, 9-8, and move on to the money rounds.
Other notable players bouncing back from defeats and advancing today include the Netherlands’ Niels Feijen, Germany’s Ralf Souquet, the Philippines Dennis Orcollo, Japan’s Yukio Akagariyama and Taiwan’s Chang Yu Lung.
One particular match at the end of today’s play seemed to encapsulate the drama and pressure of Judgement Day to a “T.” The Philippines Carlo Biado was not playing well and found himself down to Japan’s Hayato Hijikata, 7-4 in a race to 9. Hijikata pushed the score to 8-6, but with the finish line and a qualification in sight, the Japanese began to wilt and the match went to 8- 8 and a pressure packed one rack decider, with Hijikata breaking.
The Japanese sank a ball on the break and then proceeded to make a superb full table bank on the two, with an open table to the win. But just as Biado started to slink down in defeat in his chair, Hijikata missed a wide open shot on the 4-ball. The Filipino bounced out of his chair but even then his legs looked weak from the pressure. Biado held it together and cleared the table for an unlikely spot in the knockout stages.
“When he made that 2-ball, I just knew the match was over,” a seriously relieved Biado said after the match. “But then he missed the 4-ball and I knew this was my chance. My heart was beating and it was pressure. Now that I won the match, I have a lot of confidence. I’m in the Final 64. Anything can happen, and anyone can win. May the best man win.”
Play in the first day of the group stages begins Tuesday at 10am(GMT +3). All matches now become race to 11, alternate break. The round of 64 and round of 32 will be played on Tuesday. The round of 16 and quarterfinals will be played on Wednesday. The Semi-finals and Finals will be played on Thursday. The final will be a race to 13, alternate break.
**The 2015 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from July 30-August 4, 2016. The winner of the 2015 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.
The players will be competing on Wiraka DYNASTY Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.
The 2016 World 9-ball Championship is being hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by the The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
The WPA will be on hand in Doha throughout this year’s World 9-ball Championship providing up to the minute information, live scoring, photographs and in depth articles with insights and analysis from WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner.
THERE WERE quarter-final wins for Chinese Taipei and Japan as the Dafabet World Cup of Pool continued in London on Saturday afternoon. The Taiwanese overcame a very unlucky Austrian side to book their fifth World Cup semi-final of which they’ve yet to win one. In the other match, Japan raced into a huge lead against Qatar before labouring to end it. They eventually fell over the line 9-4.
Taking place at the York Hall in London, the Dafabet World Cup of Pool features 32 two-man teams from around the globe competing for a $250,000 prize fund. Televised live in over 40 countries around the world, the event is now entering its tenth year.
In a high-quality match up, Chinese Taipei roared past the Austrian pair of Mario He and Albin Ouschan to become the first team to reach the semi-finals of the Dafabet World Cup of Pool. 9-5 was the score line as the Taiwanese started out strongly and maintained their dominance throughout.
The Austrians though enjoyed some atrocious luck as they scratched six times in total, with Mario He losing the white to the pocket three times from his break shot. However, the duo of Ko Pin Yi and Chang Yu Lung showed vision and creativity as they took on some amazing shots and were always on the offensive, looking for chances.
The Austrians had seven fouls, some of their own doing and some down to bad luck and that was a punishing statistic against the talented Taiwanese pair. One of the standouts of the match was a 2/9 combination by Ko to go 6-3 ahead as he kicked all the way up table to connect with the 2/9.
Ko was delighted with the win as he zeroed in on his third major title of the year following wins at the World 10 Ball and World 9 Ball Championships; “We are very happy to be in semi-finals again. I was a bit lucky in the World 9-ball final last week, I didn’t play great against Shane, but I played well in that tournament and have brought a lot of confidence to London.”
“As a team we are playing well together and we have some luck; we tried some shots which worked out for us. We expect to play England A in the semi-finals. They are good players who play very well together. They are defending champions and are in their home country so it will be a very difficult match,” he added.
In the second match, Japan looked like they were going to obliterate the Qatari pair of Waleed Majid and Bashar Hussain as they shot into a 7-0 lead in quick time. Qatar made plenty of errors as the free-wheeling Japanese who played without a care.
Qatar took a rack back but when Japan got to the hill at 8-1 the end seemed nigh. The match though degenerated as both teams level of play plummeted. Qatar won three long racks on the spin before Japan put the crowd out of their misery to reach the semi-finals for the second time.
It was a shame for Qatar who had set the tournament on fire with wins over the USA and Czech Republic. “We are very disappointed with our performance,” said Bashar.
“We didn’t start well and didn’t get any momentum. They had some luck where they would miss a ball and get a snooker and then they took up a big lead. That makes you become a bit nervous because the score is so big.
“We are very pleased to get to the quarter-finals and next time we want to build on that and do better. We are proud to reach this stage but we were very disappointed with that performance.”
“We are very happy with the win. We are a good team. We gave ourselves a good lead in the match and that puts pressure on Qatar. We struggled at the end to get the final rack and that gave them a chance but we are very pleased to be through.”
The Japanese were delighted with the win; “We are very happy. We didn’t play well at the end because we felt the pressure to finish the match. We had a little bit of luck but we had a strong lead. Japan can win the World Cup, “said Oi.
Kurabayashi added, “Tonight we will watch Finland and England B tonight because we play the winner. They are both good teams and this is the semi-finals, so we will expect a very tough match. But Japan will win.”
Quarter Final Line Up
Saturday 18.30 England A v Romania then Finland v England B
Results
England A (1) 7-5 Australia
Korea (16) 7-6 Malaysia
Indonesia 7-3 Germany
Romania 7-4 China
Austria (5) 7-5 Peru
France 7-6 Canada (12)
Poland (13) 7-3 New Zealand
Chinese Taipei (4) 7-5 Estonia
Holland (3) 7-3 India
Japan (14) 7-3 Italy
Czech Republic 7-3 Spain (11)
Qatar 7-5 USA (6)
Singapore 7-5 Greece (7)
Finland (10) 7-4 Belgium
England B (15) 7-4 Sweden
Philippines (2) 7-4 Russia
Round 2 Scores
England A (1) 7-0 Korea (16)
Romania 7-5 Indonesia
Austria (5) 7-2 France
Chinese Taipei (4) 7-3 Poland (13)
Japan (14) 7-6 Holland (3)
Qatar 7-3 Czech Republic
Finland (10) 7-4 Singapore v
England B (15) 7-4 Philippines (2)
The following broadcasters are screening live coverage of the Dafabet World Cup of Pool:
Sky Sports – GB and Ireland; Sky – New Zealand; CCTV – China; Nova TV – Czech Republic & Slovakia; OSN – Middle East & North Africa; ESPN 3 – USA; ESPN Latin America –Central & South America; Viasat – Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Bulgaria & the Baltic states.
For fans outside those territories, Perform Group will be streaming the event via their www.livesport.tv service. In addition the Dafabet World Cup of Pool is syndicated around the world as 31 x 1 hour programmes by Matchroom Television.
Featuring 32 two-man teams from around the world, the Dafabet World Cup of pool is celebrating its tenth year as defending champion England attempt to become the first team ever to successfully defend the title. The event runs from 22nd to 27th September.
Tickets are now on sale at www.SEETickets.com and are priced at £10.00 per evening session (Tuesday to Friday), £12.50 per evening session on the Saturday and Sunday. Weekend afternoon sessions are £7.50 while Tuesday to Friday afternoons are free!
A season ticket covering all sessions is priced at £65.00.
The World Cup of Pool will carry a $250,000 prize fund including $60,000 for the champions. The event will be produced by Matchroom Sport Television and televised live on Sky Sports and then syndicated internationally as 31 x 1 hour programmes.
Diamond Billiards are the Official Table of the 2015 World Cup of Pool; the Official Cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and the Official Balls are Super Aramith. The Official Cue, Chalk and Rest are supplied by Predator.
Friday evening was a tale of contrasting fortunes as Qatar put on a masterful performance to reach the quarter-finals for the first time in their history and the Philippines crashed out, failing to make the last eight for the first time in the tournament’s history. In the other match of the session, Finland once again won to look on track for their third semi-final in three years.
Taking place at the York Hall in London, the Dafabet World Cup of Pool features 32 two-man teams from around the globe competing for a $250,000 prize fund. Televised live in over 40 countries around the world, the event is now entering its tenth year.
Team Qatar who had looked so good in their win over the USA in the opening round, continued in the same rich vein of form as they beat the Czech Republic 7-3 to move into the World Cup of Pool quarter-finals for the first time.
Both Waleed Majid and Bashar Hussain played superbly, as they dominated the Czechs and made the most of their chances to secure a great win.
From the outset, Qatar looked a solid unit combining power with a bit of artistry as they eased into a 3-0 lead as they broke and ran from the off. Bashar missed their first ball of the match as he twitched on the 2 ball but after Czech’s Roman Hybler had missed it also, Waleed played a sensational carom off the two onto the rail and then onto the 9 for 4-0.
The Czechs got their name on the scoreboard in the next and won a drawn out sixth rack to make it 2-4 but when Hybler scratched on the 2 ball, it was a chance that Qatar grasped to move to 5-2. Waleed missed a long 2 ball in the next and the momentum went back to the Czechs who cleared for 3-5.
Hybler though missed the 2 ball in the ninth after the Czechs had pushed out and Qatar had put them back in. Majid slid it home along the rail and he and Bashar coped well with a tricky layout to reach the hill at 6-3.
The Czechs got to the table in the next but a clumsy safety from Michal Gavenciak left the 7 ball on and Bashar Hussain played a great cross bank to pot it and set up the win.
Commented Bashar, “We are delighted to reach the quarter-finals for the first time, and we know everybody watching in Qatar will be very happy. We played very well against USA and we were very happy with the performance tonight; we didn’t make too many mistakes.
“Beating USA gave us a big confidence boost. They are a big team with big players and that gave us a lot of confidence, which we have built on with the win today. Japan is a very good team but if we can keep the same rhythm and the same focus we know we can win,” he added.
Finland and Singapore shared the opening four racks as both sides looked a little nervy but it was Finland who took the lead for the first time as Petri Makkonen played an outstanding positional shot to leave the 7 ball for his partner Mika Immonen.
Chang Keng Kwan badly missed into the centre pocket for the second time in the match and that left three easy balls for Finland and instead of 3-3, the score became 4-2.
A poor shot from Chang saw him pocket the 1 ball but nudge the 2 and leave it in unpottable position. Aloysius Yapp’s safety caught the knuckle of the centre pocket and left it on and Finland ran out to increase their lead.
A dry break from Makkonen though, got the Singaporeans back to the table but they couldn’t capitalise and Finland reached the hill at 6-3 and from there they finished the last rack off for an excellent win.
“We weren’t super pleased with that performance; we had a couple of unforced errors and a couple of bad positional shots but we got away with it because Singapore weren’t in great form. But we will take it and there were some positives; our run-outs were pretty good and we played a more consistent game. We just need to get the breaks going and clear the table,” said Immonen.
England B – Daryl Peach and Mark Gray – started out as the big outsiders against Team Philippines but got off to a great start with some solid play and no mistakes as they took a 4-1 lead against the highly fancied Filipinos.
Warren Kiamco and Carlo Biado looked nervous and made some uncharacteristic errors to help the English on their way. However, a dry break from Peach gave the Philippines a chance and they ran the table out to get 1-4.
They took the next and when Gray scratched on the 2 ball following a push out, the Filipinos ran out to get within one of the English. A scratch from Peach left a tricky table but when Biado sunk the 9 ball to tie it up at 4-4, it began to look ominous.
That was as long as the comeback lasted. There was a safety battle on the 2 ball in the next but Biado left a look at it and Gray potted it down the side rail to set up the rack and restore the lead. In the next came an even bigger blow for the Filipinos. Placed in snooker by Biado, Peach outrageously fluked the 3 ball and obtained shape on the 4 and England B cleared for 6-4. They ran the next for an outstanding victory against the odds.
Gray said, “We had a great start with some good outs and we were playing well. But from 4-1 up Daryl got kicked in off on a break and we didn’t have much luck.; I played a good shot on the 2 to try and carom the 6 in and there was no gap but somehow the white scratched in off and the game turned to 4-4 and you are playing a best of five to get into the quarter-finals.
“We have a great chance of reaching the final. We haven’t had easy matches but we have beaten two good teams. We have played the Finnish lads many a time on the Euro Tour and we both have good head-to-head records against them so I am confident we can win that match.”
Peach added, “There were a few twists and turns but we were trying to win each mini interval 2-1 and we did win most of them 2-1. That gives you a short-term target. We played well and deserved the win.
“Finland is a tough match but so was that. It is a longer race so there is more time to settle down. They are a very good team as proven in the past when they have won it but my and Mark are a good team too and reached the final the only time we played the World Cup together, so we could be in for a good match.”
Quarter Final Line Up
Saturday 13.30 Austria v Chinese Taipei then Japan v Qatar
Saturday 18.30 England A v Romania then Finland v England B
Results
England A (1) 7-5 Australia
Korea (16) 7-6 Malaysia
Indonesia 7-3 Germany
Romania 7-4 China
Austria (5) 7-5 Peru
France 7-6 Canada (12)
Poland (13) 7-3 New Zealand
Chinese Taipei (4) 7-5 Estonia
Holland (3) 7-3 India
Japan (14) 7-3 Italy
Czech Republic 7-3 Spain (11)
Qatar 7-5 USA (6)
Singapore 7-5 Greece (7)
Finland (10) 7-4 Belgium
England B (15) 7-4 Sweden
Philippines (2) 7-4 Russia
Round 2 Scores
Japan (14) 7-6 Holland (3)
England A (1) 7-0 Korea (16)
Austria (5) 7-2 France
Romania 7-5 Indonesia
Chinese Taipei (4) 7-3 Poland (13)
Qatar 7-3 Czech Republic
Finland (10) 7-4 Singapore v
England B (15) 7-4 Philippines (2)
The following broadcasters are screening live coverage of the Dafabet World Cup of Pool:
Sky Sports – GB and Ireland; Sky – New Zealand; CCTV – China; Nova TV – Czech Republic & Slovakia; OSN – Middle East & North Africa; ESPN 3 – USA; ESPN Latin America –Central & South America; Viasat – Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Bulgaria & the Baltic states.
For fans outside those territories, Perform Group will be streaming the event via their www.livesport.tv service. In addition the Dafabet World Cup of Pool is syndicated around the world as 31 x 1 hour programmes by Matchroom Television.
Featuring 32 two-man teams from around the world, the Dafabet World Cup of pool is celebrating its tenth year as defending champion England attempt to become the first team ever to successfully defend the title. The event runs from 22nd to 27th September.
Tickets are now on sale at www.SEETickets.com and are priced at 10.00 per evening session (Tuesday to Friday), 12.50 per evening session on the Saturday and Sunday. Weekend afternoon sessions are 7.50 while Tuesday to Friday afternoons are free!
A season ticket covering all sessions is priced at 65.00.
The World Cup of Pool will carry a $250,000 prize fund including $60,000 for the champions. The event will be produced by Matchroom Sport Television and televised live on Sky Sports and then syndicated internationally as 31 x 1 hour programmes.
Diamond Billiards are the Official Table of the 2015 World Cup of Pool; the Official Cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and the Official Balls are Super Aramith. The Official Cue, Chalk and Rest are supplied by Predator.
THERE was another big upset as day two of the Dafabet World Cup of Pool played out at the York Hall, London on Wednesday evening. This time it was the USA who crumbled, going down to Qatar who looked the part and definitely played it. In the other matches Holland had a comfortable win against India after getting off to a great start and the Philippines steamrollered Russia after losing the early exchanges.
Taking place at the York Hall in London, the Dafabet World Cup of Pool features 32 two-man teams from around the globe competing for a $250,000 prize fund. Televised live in over 40 countries around the world, the event is now entering its tenth year.
In the opening game Team USA (Mike Dechaine and Shane Van Boening) were left shell-shocked as they fell at the first hurdle to a lively Qatari team in front of a large noisy crowd. The score was 7-5 but there was no doubting the superior team on the day.
The Qatar team of Waleed Majid and Bashar Hussain played two superb racks to take the early lead at 2-0 and settle any nerves. The USA came back into it but trailing 2-3 Dechaine scratched while potting the 7 ball. That made it 4-2 to Qatar before the USA took the next to stay on their heels.
Qatar moved that to 5-3 with a 7/9 combo, before America won the 9th and then broke and ran to level it at 5-5. They couldn’t press home the advantage though and an outstanding 3/8/9 combo from Bashar Hussain put Qatar on the hill.
The axe fell in rack 12 when Van Boening caught an attempted safety on the 1 ball too thick and scratched. Qatar nearly made a mess of it with ball in hand but Waleed saved it with a nerveless bank on the 8 ball to set up the win.
Commented jubilant Waleed; “I am very excited to have beaten America. We didn’t just play for Qatar, we played for all Arab countries. Our federation has supported Qatari players well and we hope we can repeat this performance in the next match.
“Of course, in 9-ball anything can happen. It doesn’t matter who is the best player, if you play well you can win the match. The key moment was probably when Mike scratched on the 7-ball and we went 4-2 up, when they could have been 3-3 with the break,” he added.
Two-time runners up Holland are on track to improve upon that situation as they beat a well-supported Indian team 7-3. Raj Hundal and Amar Kang were lead in by a thundering set of drummers as they looked to get off to a good start.
However, the Dutch duo of Nick Van Den Berg and Niels Feijen had different ideas as they raced into a 4-0 lead to silence the crowd as they contained India to just one shot. Feijen though scratched in the next and India got on the scoreboard. They took the next and then broke and ran the seventh to get right back in the game at 4-3.
India played safe on the two ball in the next but it was a poor leave as Holland took full advantage to take a two rack lead at 5-3. Looking comfortable now, the Dutch finished off the match to set up a second round match against Japan.
In the final match of the evening the Filipino pair of Carlo Biado and Warren Kiamco looked all business as they overcame a 2-0 deficit to best the Russian duo of Ruslan Chinakhov and Konstantin Stepanov by a 7-4 margin.
Both Philippines players were making their debut in the competition but there were enough Pinoys in the crowd to make them feel at home. After the early stutter they won six racks in a row to set up a commanding lead and although Russia rallied to win the ninth and tenth racks, the Filipinos got back in to take the match.
Commented Kiamco, “We were under pressure because this is anybody’s game so we needed to fight the pressure. Philippines has a very good history at the World Cup of Pool and for us this is our first time as a pair to be picked to play here and we are doing our best to win it again for Philippines.
“The crowd adds some more pressure but we like that and it is great to see their support. There are a lot of Filipinos here in London so it is great to see the support. The Philippines have done so well in the World Cup before so we are pleased to be through and are aiming to go all the way.”
Results
England A (1) 7-5 Australia
Korea (16) 7-6 Malaysia
Indonesia 7-3 Germany
Romania 7-4 China
Austria (5) 7-5 Peru
France 7-6 Canada (12)
Poland (13) 7-3 New Zealand
Chinese Taipei (4) 7-5 Estonia
Japan (14) 7-3 Italy
The following broadcasters are screening live coverage of the Dafabet World Cup of Pool:
Sky Sports – GB and Ireland; Sky – New Zealand; CCTV – China; Nova TV – Czech Republic & Slovakia; OSN – Middle East & North Africa; ESPN 3 – USA; ESPN Latin America –Central & South America; Viasat – Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Bulgaria & the Baltic states.
For fans outside those territories, Perform Group will be streaming the event via their www.livesport.tv service. In addition the Dafabet World Cup of Pool is syndicated around the world as 31 x 1 hour programmes by Matchroom Television.
Featuring 32 two-man teams from around the world, the Dafabet World Cup of pool is celebrating its tenth year as defending champion England attempt to become the first team ever to successfully defend the title. The event runs from 22nd to 27th September.
Tickets are now on sale at www.SEETickets.com and are priced at 10.00 per evening session (Tuesday to Friday), 12.50 per evening session on the Saturday and Sunday. Weekend afternoon sessions are 7.50 while Tuesday to Friday afternoons are free!
A season ticket covering all sessions is priced at 65.00.
The World Cup of Pool will carry a $250,000 prize fund including $60,000 for the champions. The event will be produced by Matchroom Sport Television and televised live on Sky Sports and then syndicated internationally as 31 x 1 hour programmes.
