3-Cushion
HURGHADA - The world record over 40 points (six innings, made by Caudron twice and by Zanetti once) had gone through his mind, Torbjörn Blomdahl admitted. He looked to be well on his way, when he was playing Vietnamese Vinh Ly The with 14 after three innings (run of seven), 27 after four innings (run of 13) and then got over the 30-point mark in the fifth inning.
He missed after five points, and it took him to 32 in 5. ,,I could still equal the record'', he said later. But after a miss in the sixth inning (34 in 6), he no longer had the burning ambition to score. Two open innings, the rhythm gone, but he still finished his 40 in 13 (15 pts for the Vietnamese). It was the best match of the day, and it did give him a boost of confidence.
,,I no longer have that desire to finish in 10 or 11 innings, it means less. I guess that's what comes with age. After a start like that, you want to make every point, but when you can't, a few weaker moments will come and you use up a few innings.''
The three other matches in the arena, where the day started with a Turkish festival, were barely halfway when Blomdahl was already giving his interview in the hallways. He looked back on the world championship: ,,I was not 100 % satisfied, but still happy with second place.''
Marco Zanetti had just entered the home straight against Kostas Papakonstantinou, Roland Forthomme ran away from Savas Bulut and Tayfun Tasdemir was winning the Turkish encounter with Ahmet Alp. The Itlian passed the finish at 40-33 in 21, Roland Forthomme won 40-22 in 24 and Tayfun Tasdemir finished 40-29 in 27.
Dani Sánchez provided one of the highlights of the round with a run of 16, a match in 17 innings where he beat Korean Choong Bok Lee: 40-17. Eddy Merckx and Jérémy Bury were neck and neck for a long time, the Frenchman had repaired a deficit with a run of 11 before the break, but the Belgian was the better player in the second half.
The diminutive Korean Hyung Bum Hwang played a quality match wherein he pushed Filipos Kasidokostas even further down on the world ranking. His 40-31 in 15 win shows that he must be viewed as a dangerous outsider. Kyung-Roul Kim was the stronger of the two Koreans who faced off in this round: he beat qualifier Jin Pyo Hong 40-31 in 30.
That was hours after Emrullah Basegmez yelled out after his last point and was heard even over the thunderous applause that came from the stands. The tall and skinny player, an unknown until recently, edged Korean top player Jae Ho Cho in the early rounds of the day, in an exciting match, making a winning run of two that will stay in his memory for a long time.
The Korean had missed match point, and the likeable Emrullah had the chance to record the best win of his career. After the second and final point, he raised his cue in the air and let out his joy. The many Turks in the stands had already celebrated twice that session. Adnan Yüksel eliminated another big name, Dick Jaspers, from the tournament (40-27 in 21) and Murat Naci Coklu showed no mercy in his encounter with Korean nr. 1 Jung Han Heo (40-29 in 25).
Emrullah Basegmez was the biggest surprise though. The Turkish school teacher - who teaches billiards as well, and travelled with the Turkish delegation to the WC for juniors recently - had a quick start against Cho, and built up a lead of 26-15. The Korean warrior levelled at 37-37, but failed to profit from two good positions. It cost him the match, and important points for the world ranking.
With their fine play, the Turks responded to the recurring stories about their advantage in the Turkish and Egyptian tournaments, because of the Platin tables. The Hurghada World Cup is now played on Gabriels tables, and the Turks prove they can do very well on those too.
Dong Koong Kang was the only Korean who did survive the round, with a win over Anh Vu Duong, 40-23 in 20. It made him the best winner in the first two sessions. Sung-Won Choi started his tournament with a 40-34 in 24 win over Sameh Sidhom, and Fredéric Caudron needed one inning more against Hugo Patino.
The Belgian was dissatisfied with his own play, he said after the match. ,,I am too erratic, I have trouble keeping up my concentration. It makes me vulnerable to little setbacks, unlucky shots, a little bit of good fortune for my opponent. I am not too worried though, it can only get better.''
Javier Palazón played a thriller against Jae Guen Kim (40-39) and Eddy Leppens had little or no trouble besting Egyptian Mohsen Fouda, who came in with a wildcard (40-20 in 31).
The matches for tomorrow:
Caudron-Palazón
Leppens-Choi
Basegmez-Kang
Coklu-Yüksel
Merckx-Sánchez
Hwang-Kim
Zanetti-Forthomme
Tasdemir-Blomdahl.