“Belgian miracle” to the top of World Cup billiards, how did Quyet Chien’s ranking change?

(Sports news, billiards news) The world 3-band carom rankings have changed after superstar Eddy Merkcx was crowned the Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2022.

Superstar Eddy Merckx defeated Marco Zanetti in the final of Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2022

Marco Zanetti (2nd place in the world) and Eddy Merkcx (8th place) are the two players entering the final of the Billiard Carom 3 Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2022 taking place on the evening of May 29 at Nguyen Du gymnasium.

Eddy Merkcx celebrates after beating Marco Zanetti in the final

In the previous semi-final, if Eddy Merkcx overwhelmed Torbjorn Blomdahl with a score of 50-17 after 19 innings, Marco Zanetti was equally excellent when he eliminated world No. 1 player Dick Jaspers with a 50-31 difference after 20 muscle turn.

Worthy of the final match of the tournament, the two world-famous superstars created a suffocating score comparison during most of the competition. Towards the end of the game, Eddy Merkcx showed more bravery in solving difficult marbles and saved the opportunity to win with a score of 50-42 after 23 innings.

Outstandingly crowned, Eddy Merkcx received the championship trophy with a bonus of 16,000 euros (396 million VND) in prize money and 80 points on the world rankings. With the runner-up, Marco Zanetti received 10,000 euros and 54 points.

4 best players in Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2022

Torbjorn Blomdahl and Daniel Sanchez tied for 3rd place with 6000 euros and 36 points. The “excellent series” award with a prize of $1500 went to player Sameh Sidhom with a 16-point base line. Meanwhile, 3 Vietnamese players, Tran Quyet Chien, Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu and Nguyen Ngoc Tri, with the achievement of reaching the top 16, received 2500 euros and 18 points on the world rankings.

Immediately after the tournament ended, the World Federation of Billiards (UMB) updated the latest rankings. Accordingly, the defending champion Eddy Merkcx has risen from 8th to 4th in the world. Living legend Torbjorn Blomdahl rose 3 places from 13th to the top 10 in the world. This caused Kim Haeng Jik to be pushed from 6th to 13th in the world.

Carom three-band world ranking after Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2022

Meanwhile, the top 3 in the world remained unchanged, respectively, belonging to Dick Jaspers (1st place in the world), Marco Zanetti (2nd place) and Tran Quyet Chien (3rd place). The number 1 player in Vietnam is currently the only Asian player in the top 10 in the world. However, the distance of Quyet Chien (355 points) is not too far from the other group, especially Eddy Merkcx (328 points).

Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu with being in the top 16 has risen from 55th to 39th in the world. Nguyen Ngoc Tri from an unranked player now holds 152nd position in the world. Notably, Nguyen Duc Anh Chien dropped 2 places from 15th to 17th in the world. Nguyen Quoc Nguyen also dropped 1 rank from 19th to 20th in the world.

The next World Cup stage will take place in Korea in August

After this tournament, the European players will prepare for the European Championship from June 14-18 in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, Tran Quyet Chien will attend the World Game tournament from July 7-17 in the US. The next World Cup stage will take place from August 22-28 in South Korea.