ANDERNOS - That was really a world of difference between the Dion Nelin on the first day and the second day in the Kozoom Challenge. The Danish dynamite on the opening day made the sound of a clap gun on the second day in the French arena, where Jérôme Barbeillon and Jose Maria Mas brought the tension back into the match. Thanks to an unexpected revival and wins in the last two sets, with a touch of luck, Nelin maintained a lead over his opponents: 8 for the Dane, 5 for Barbeillon, 3 for Mas.
The interesting question is: which Dion Nelin will return tomorrow, Monday, for the final day? Because, as brilliant, fast and accurate as he was on the first play day, so vulnerable Nelin was in his next appearance. The excuses he found in the interview were rather predictable: ''I did not feel the table, I did not get the best positions.'' But wasn't it typical for Dion Nelin, those ups and downs in his game, that all-or-nothing mentality. Torbjörn Blomdahl said in his commentary for example: ''When Dion doesn't see the shot within three to five seconds, he gets nervous.'' The former wonder boy of world billiards often showed that on this day. The desperate attitude today overcame that wonderful flair on the first day.
The two years older Frenchman Jérôme Barbeillon (46) made almost optimal use of the slump in the leader's game after the first day. His start was astonishing with 10 points in one inning, then he also won the second, fourth and fifth set, came back to one set deficit (6-5), but missed two set balls in the last to further reduce the margin.
He did remain optimistic at the end of the session. ''I gave the best of myself and luckily I could come back'', Barbeillon started his reaction. ''We play a short marathon, anything is still possible on the final day. The strategy, the tactics are important, that's what I was rewarded for today.''
Dion Nelin dropped in average over two days to 1,393, Jérôme Barbeillon, the standout of the second day, rose to 1,313, Jose Maria Mas remained just over 1 average. The first part of the day was dominated by Nelin's two rivals. Barbeillon won four sets, in between Mas grabbed two set wins.
The set scores on the second day:
Set 9:
Barbeillon 10, Mas 0, Nelin 0
Set 10:
Barbeillon 10, Mas 9, Nelin 9
Set 11:
Mas 10, Barbeillon 7, Nelin 6
Set 12:
Mas 10, Barbeillon 7, Nelin 6
Set 13:
Barbeillon 10, Mas 2, Nelin 2
Set 14:
Barbeillon 10, Mas 6, Nelin 5
Set 15:
Nelin 10, Barbeillon 4, Mas 1
Set 16:
Nelin 10, Barbeillon 9, Mas 8
The ranking after two days:
1 Dion Nelin 8-117-84-1,393-10
2 Jérôme Barbeillon 5-109-83-1,313-10
3 Jose Maria Mas 3-90-82-1,098-8.
Jérôme Barbeillon started the day with a maximum 10 run
Jérôme Barbeillon miste twee belangrijke setpunten op het eind van de dag
Dion Nelin, not in the winning mood on the second day of play
Jose Maria Mas, two set wins on the second day