CAP FERRET - Two undisputed top guns in the world's three cushion and two relative outsiders will face each other on the final day at the Kozoom Cup on Sunday (19 September) for the 12.000 euros top prize. The tournament comes to the climax with the Belgian player Eddy Merckx and the Spaniard Ruben Legazpi, the only two players who are still invincible, and with Dick Jaspers and Dion Nelin, who came out of the loser's schedule in the 'Double Knockout'. Dion Nelin was the last of the four finalists on Saturday night after his 4-2 win over Roland Forthomme. Eddy Merckx had already secured his place in the semi-finals on Friday night after two sovereign victories.
The Belgian will play Dion Nelin in the semi-final on Sunday at 11.00, Dick Jaspers faces Ruben Legazpi at 13.30. The two winners meet in the final at 17.00 o'clock, all matches are to 4 sets wins of 10 points. The commentator on Kozoom in all these matches is the reigning world champion Torbjörn Blomdahl.
Dion Nelin, the early winner against Dick Jaspers on the opening day, today loser against Ruben Legazpi, had a flying start in his match against Roland Forthomme: 10-0 in the first set with runs of 6 and 4. The Dane kept the initiative in the match, but Forthomme managed to bring the balance back twice. The Belgian won the second set 10-7 in 4, the fourth 10-5 in 6. But in sight of the finish, Nelin took a 3-2 lead and eventually won his 4 sets in 3, 3, 3 and 2 innings, for a superb final average 2,600. Forthomme played 1,526.
The generation gap between Dick Jaspers (56) and Gwendal Maréchal (24) was expressed in a respectable difference in class on the billiards on the second last day. The Dutch world rankings number one won on Saturday afternoon the clash with the young French promise, finishing on a comfortable 4-0 after a one-man show in front of the French home crowd. The set results spoke for themselves: 10-2, 10-1, 10-0 and 10-6.
The margin between the two players after three sets was so impressive, that Jaspers had scored 30 points in the first three sets, against Maréchal 3. The home crowd was rubbing their eyes in that first and only break, because who could have expected a 30-3 (!) on the scoreboard and a quick 3-0 lead. Jaspers kept the focus, the perfect feeling and the urge to score a lot of points until the end. The Dutchman eventually used only 12 innings to score 40 points, a 3,333 average. Gwendal Maréchal, so strong at the start of the event, paled in all that violence and didn't get further than a one point average.
It was Jaspers' second victory after Friday's one over Marco Zanetti and the loss to Dion Nelin on the opening day. ''I almost made everything in my match against these young French player'', said the Dutchman, who admitted to have a great admiration for his opponent. ''He is definitely one of the huge talents in Europe'', Jaspers said respectfully. ''I knew that I had to be concentrated from the start to not give him many chances.''
39-year old Spaniard Ruben Legazpi earlier on the day won against Dion Nelin (4-2) with a brilliant final rush. Legazpi's finish was whirlwind: he played out the second last set with 7 and started the next and final set with the maximum 10, a total of 17 points without missing.
Ruben Legazpi's fiftieth place is far too low on the world rankings for his qualities. That is mainly because he does not play all World Cups and therefore misses out on important ranking points. ''I do want to play more from now on'', said the Spaniard, who was honoured as the European champion nation teams with Dani Sánchez before COVID in the tournament in Turkey. ''But I am still not a professional player: I work in computer science all days from 7 to 3 in the afternoon'', Legazpi said in the French arena.
On Saturday afternoon, it went up and down against Dion Nelin in set wins, but after 2-2 the Spaniard attacked irresistibly: he first won 10-7 in 5 after a final run of 7 and then Legazpi played out from the break in one single inning to secure his place in the semi-finals.
Dick Jaspers was in top form for his match with Gwendal Maréchal
Eddy Merckx had a day off after he played himself in the semi's by two early wins
Roland Forthomme and Dion Nelin starting the last match on Saturday night
Dion Nelin, a 4-2 win over Forthomme with a superb 2,600 on average