Filipino pool legends Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante got off to a great start in the PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool with an 8-3 victory over the QatarI tandem of Bashar Hussain and Mohammed Ali Bin Ali at the SM North Mall in North EDSA Tuesday.
The hometown heroes who won the inaugural staging of the prestigious event in 2006 in Newport, Wales were featured in the final match on opening day and didn’t disappoint a big crowd that cheered them on.
With the comfortable win Reyes and Bustamante advanced to the round of 16. Worshipped by a pool-loving nation, the dynamic duo may not be the youngest kids on the block in these parts but they still possess all the skill as well as plenty of experience to make them great contenders for this title.
The Qataris by contrast were a little overawed in front of a big crowd and live on TV, and they gifted their opponents plenty of chances. Trailing 7-1 after having won the opener, Bashar Hussain and Mohammed Ali Bin Ali, showed some good play at the close of the match as they won two racks to gain some respectability.
In a post match interview Bustamante praised his bosom buddy Reyes saying “My partner played great he knows exactly what to do in every situation. At the beginning we were a bit scared but that’s what you have to do and we went out and did it.”
Defending champions Rodney “The Rocket” Morris and “The South Dakota Kid” Shane Van Boening scraped through into the last 16 with a heart-stopping victory over Malta.
It was a repeat of the 2007 clash in which the Americans squeezed through by a single rack as the Maltese pairing of Tony Drago and Alex Borg fought them every step of the way and even found themselves breaking for the match.
However, a crucial dry break by Borg in the deciding rack enabled Morris and Van Boening to clinch a pulsating win as they ran out the rack in style.
There was nothing to separate them at 4-4 as the experienced pool player Drago coached his less seasoned team mate through some trickier moments. A break and run in the next followed by a fluked carom on the 9 saw the USA move into a 6-4 lead and when a missed bank shot in the next by Drago left the table on for the Americans, they moved comfortably to the hill.
Some sloppy play from the USA though gave chances to Malta and they steamed through the next two to go 6-7 and when they took the next there was excitement in the arena as a massive upset looked on the cards.
It wasn’t to be though as a dry break sealed Maltese fate in a thrilling encounter. America now face Indonesia in the last 16.
A relieved Morris said after the match “We’re just pleased to have won. I was in the team two years ago so I know what Tony and Alex can do. Hopefully things can get easier for us.”
In other action 2007 the Chinese duo of Fu Jianbo and Li Hewen who won the title in 2007 are over the first hurdle as they beat the all-girl Team Korea 8-5 to advance to the second round.
The Koreans, made up of the elegantly glamorous pair of Ga Young Kim and Yun Mi Lim, gave the Chinese a good game , much to the enjoyment of a sizeable crowd that gathered to watch the match at the SM North Mall Annex in Manila.
The first all-female side in the four year history of the competition, Korea went into an early 2-0 lead as they looked composed against the Chinese pair. They had a great chance to move 3-0 ahead but Yun missed the 8 ball and the Chinese were back in the match.
That was the first of six consecutive racks for China, and at 6-2 down, the Korean girls had a lot to do. They took the next and an excellent shot down the rail on the following rack made it 4-6 but Ga’s next break saw the cue ball hit the carpet to derail their hopes.
There were some tense exchanges in the closing stages but China held on to run out winners and take their place in round two.
TEAM FRANCE, consisting of Stephan Cohen and Vincent Facquet, recorded the first win as they brushed aside the challenge of Canada for a comfortable 8-1 victory.
A combination of solid play from the French and some mistakes from the Canadian duo of Tyler Edey and Jason Klatt saw France open up a 6-0 lead in the race to 8, winner breaks match.
A dry break in the seventh game gave Canada the opportunity to stop a whitewash and Edey duly dropped the 9 ball to save face but that was it as France took the required two racks to run out easy winners.
“We had a bit of luck but we also played well and had some good shots. When you’re down 6-1, as Canada were, it is very difficult and the pressure can get to you, that’s what happened when they missed the 9-ball but that’s the way it goes,” said Vincent Facquet after the match.
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