The 2024 World Championship of 3-cushion billiards (World Championship) just ended in Binh Thuan and witnessed the success of many Vietnamese players. 7 Vietnamese players competed in the group stage, 6 of whom entered the knockout round. In the round of 16, Vietnam had 5 representatives and 2 players entered the quarterfinals. Tran Thanh Luc, who participated in the tournament for the first time, won a silver medal.
MIXED HAPPINESS AND SADNESS
The biggest regret at this tournament is that the two most anticipated players could not advance further: Tran Quyet Chien stopped at the round of 16, and Bao Phuong Vinh was eliminated from the round of 32. This means that both of them could not defend the points they achieved at the World Championship 2023, the tournament in which Phuong Vinh won the championship and Quyet Chien finished second.
Tran Quyet Chien still has a chance to rise higher on the rankings in 2024.
PHOTO: VIETNAM SPORT PHOTO
The latest rankings of the World Carom Billiards Federation (UMB) have just been updated after the tournament in Binh Thuan ended, with Tran Quyet Chien losing his world number 2 position. The number 1 player in Vietnam dropped to number 3 with 318 points. Meanwhile, Bao Phuong Vinh was heavily deducted points and dropped out of the top 10 on the UMB rankings. From number 8, the player from Binh Duong dropped to number 16 with 180 points.
However, the good news is that other Vietnamese players are making a breakthrough. Chiem Hong Thai and Tran Thanh Luc, with their impressive performances at the 2024 World Championship, have "overtaken" Bao Phuong Vinh and many other famous players in the world to enter the top 15. Tran Thanh Luc is currently ranked 14th with 182 points, while Chiem Hong Thai is ranked 15th with 181 points. In the current world top 20, Vietnam and the 3-cushion billiards powerhouse Korea are contributing the most names, with 4 players each. In addition, the 2024 Ho Chi Minh City World Cup champion Tran Duc Minh has also advanced to the top 20, currently ranked 25th with 103 points.
MUST GET BACK IN FORM SOON
Positive achievements at the 2024 World Championship will be a big boost for Vietnamese players to continue to conquer upcoming international tournaments and improve their position on the rankings. Promising names of Vietnamese 3-cushion carom billiards such as Tran Thanh Luc (ranked 14th), Chiem Hong Thai (ranked 15th) and Bao Phuong Vinh (ranked 16th) will aim to "attack" the top 10. Meanwhile, fans still expect Vietnam's top player Tran Quyet Chien to return to the position he once had, which is the top 2, and even the top of the world rankings.
Audience hopes Quyet Chien and Bao Phuong Vinh will return soon.
Tran Quyet Chien had maintained the No. 2 position for a long time, before creating a historical milestone for Vietnamese billiards by becoming the No. 1 player in the world in June 2024. The player born in 1984 still has the opportunity to repeat these achievements in 2024. From now until the end of the year, Tran Quyet Chien will compete in 3 stages of the 3-cushion carom billiards World Cup, respectively in Veghel (Netherlands, October), Seoul (Korea, November) and Sharm El Sheikh (Egypt, December).
Currently, Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) is still leading the rankings with 410 points, Cho Myung-woo is ranked 2nd with 350 points. The possibility of Tran Quyet Chien regaining the No. 2 position in the near future is very high, because Cho Myung-woo has to defend a fairly high score at the Veghel World Cup and the Seoul World Cup. Meanwhile, it will be very difficult to usurp Dick Jaspers' top position, but not impossible. Most importantly, the No. 1 player in Vietnam needs to regain his best form and reach his peak when the tournaments start.
Tran Duc Minh attends World Cup abroad for the first time
Billiard player Tran Duc Minh left a strong impression after winning the Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2024 in May 2024. At the 2024 World Championship, he also had a convincing performance to reach the round of 16 (losing to Chiem Hong Thai). In the near future, Duc Minh will go abroad for the first time to participate in a UMB tournament, the Veghel World Cup (taking place from October 20 to 26 in the Netherlands). Talking to Thanh Nien, Tran Duc Minh said that he aims to go as far as possible, aiming to enter the top players with a wild card to attend the World Cup from the round of 32.
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