The only representative of Vietnam competing in the semi-finals of the Bogota 2025 Billiards World Cup is Tran Thanh Luc. Late on March 2, the 1990-born player will face the current world number 1 - Dick Jaspers (Dutch, 30-time World Cup champion). Jaspers is also the one who eliminated Vietnam's number 1 player Tran Quyet Chien in the round of 16.
Before entering the match for the 4 strongest players, Tran Thanh Luc was in good form, defeating formidable opponents such as Eddy Merckx (quarter-finals) and Roland Forthomme (round of 16). Therefore, the current world runner-up Thanh Luc was expected to defeat Dick Jaspers, and at the same time "get revenge" for his senior Tran Quyet Chien. Not disappointing the expectations of Vietnamese billiards fans, the 35-year-old player played an extremely good match to make a spectacular comeback against the Dutch legend, thereby winning a ticket to the final match.
Leading by more than 10 points
Tran Thanh Luc won the right to start, but Dick Jaspers was the one who had the upper hand in the first half of the match. The Vietnamese player had difficulty scoring in the first turns. Meanwhile, Jaspers showed composure and continuously increased the gap, leading 9-3, 11-5, 17-8... After the first 9 turns, the Dutch player had a series of 5 and 6 points, beating Thanh Luc by 12 points (leading 22-10).
It was not until the 10th turn that Tran Thanh Luc had a series of 4 points and from there gradually shortened the gap with his opponent. The Vietnamese player persistently chased, while Jaspers slowed down. The match entered the break when Jaspers finished the 13th turn, but the gap was now only 3 points (Jaspers led 25-22).
Tran Thanh Luc "exploded" into the final
The second half saw a complete reversal of the game. Tran Thanh Luc regained his scoring touch and overtook Dick Jaspers. In the 15th turn, the Vietnamese player had a series of 5 points and for the first time took the lead 29-27. At this point, the veteran Dutch player began to feel psychological pressure, so he could not play freely and had to face the difficult ball shapes that Thanh Luc set.
Tran Quyet Chien and Vietnamese players were excited when Thanh Luc raced to the finish line in the semi-finals.
By the 24th turn, the score was 40-30, with the advantage leaning towards Tran Thanh Luc. Dick Jaspers made the match more exciting, scoring a series of 6 points in the 25th turn, shortening the score to 36-41. However, Tran Thanh Luc played extremely well in the last turn (27th), calmly throwing a series of 8 points to end the match, winning the final match 50-37.
In the stands of the stadium where the Bogota 2025 Billiards World Cup is held, Tran Quyet Chien and Vietnamese players such as Tran Duc Minh, Bao Phuong Vinh, and Chiem Hong Thai were all present and very excited with Tran Thanh Luc's convincing victory over the world number 1.
Thanh Luc's joy when entering the World Cup final for the first time
Tran Thanh Luc won the runner-up position at the World Championship in 2024. But this is the first time he has participated in the final match of a 3-cushion carom billiards World Cup.
The final of the 2025 Bogota Billiards World Cup took place on the morning of March 3. Tran Thanh Luc's opponent in the championship match was the winner of the second semi-final (Tolgahan Kiraz vs. Tasdemir Tayfun).
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tran-thanh-luc-nguoc-dong-ngoan-muc-truoc-so-1-the-gioi-tran-quyet-chien-phan-khich-185250303014042894.htm
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