BLOIS – The last match of the day was a display of incredible high class. Two absolute world stars, Tayfun Tasdemir and Frédéric Caudron, were rewarded with big applause in the French billiard arena of Blois. The Doozy Challenge is drawing to a close; this Saturday evening, three-cushion billiards was elevated to an art form. The match between Frédéric Caudron and Tayfun Tasdemir for a place in the semifinals culminated in a rarely seen highlight. Tasdemir shone brilliantly in the final runs with a run of 17 (!), bringing the score to 41-32, but Caudron showed resilience and class. The Belgian secured the match 50-44 in 15 innings, with averages 3.333 and 2.933. Quyet Chien Tran and Eddy Merckx had already qualified for the semifinals in the first session of the quarterfinals. The other Vietnamese player in this final weekend, Thanh Luc Tran, made it a little later at the other table, where the applause for Caudron and Tasdemir had only just died down. Dick Jaspers fought like a lion, but was outplayed by the 'other Tran' from the Asian billiards nation.
So, two Belgians (Merckx and Caudron) and two Asians (Tran and Tran) will be in contention tomorrow, Sunday, for a place in the final and the attractive prize of 30,000 euros (22,000 for the runner-up). Eddy Merckx plays Quyet Chien Tran first at 11.00, followed by Frédéric Caudron against Thanh Luc Tran at 13.30.
The Belgians are in excellent form and have been fighting each other in great matches since the World Championships in Antwerp. Vietnamese Quyet Chien Tran is recovering from a slight slump but is back in business. The 36-year-old Thanh Luc Tran is the most unknown, but made his definitive breakthrough last year with a World Cup victory in Bogota.
Quyet Chien Tran defeated another player in brilliant form in the quarterfinals. Sameh Sidhom, who lost the final in Sharm, was defeated 50-43 in 26/25 innings. Eddy Merckx returned to his feared final form against Haeng Jik Kim, whom he defeated by a wide margin 50-19 in 23/22.
Frédéric Caudron and Tayfun Tasdemir put on a dazzling show in the final evening round, the Belgian taking an early lead with 10, Tasdemir launching an irresistible attack with 17, but Caudron came back with 11 to tie the match at 43-43 in 13, and finally conjured up the best final sprint with his cue: 50-44 in 15.
The final cheering were for Thanh Luc Tran, the modest Vietnamese who only started playing billiards at 20 and is a fantastic dad at home now with a 10-year-old daughter, climbing the world's elite. His gracious bow to Jaspers after the 50-43 in 34/33 was friendly and sincere, and only then did he reveal his shining, winning face to the French crowd.
Knockouts with 16
Frédéric Caudron (against Hofman) and Sameh Sidhom (against Heo) narrowly led the field of eight winners. The eight matches in those first knockouts were all completed between 22 and 28 innings. Caudron stopped Hofman's race 50-37 in 22, and Sidhom defeated Heo 50-44 in 22/21. Haeng Jik Kim was the only Korean left with a win over Jose Juan Garcia (50-45 in 23). Myung Woo Cho had to leave the stage after losing a great fight to Eddy Merckx 50-46 in 28/27. Cho shone with a 15, Merckx fought back magnificently and won.
Dick Jaspers shattered Peter Ceulemans' illusions 50-35 in 28/27, Tayfun Tasdemir advanced to the next round against Legazpi 50-38 in 25. Quyet Chien Tran faced a tenacious Marco Zanetti, who only surrendered in the very last innings. Tran won 50-46 in 22/23. Finally, the other Tran defeated the last Frenchman, Mikaël Devogelaere, 50-27 in 28.
Frédéric Caudron, a Masterclass match with Tayfun Tasdemir
Eddy Merckx outplayed the world's nr. 1 Myung Woo Cho
Quyet Chien Tran, one of two Vietnamese on stage