Vietnamese cueist thrashes world champion at int’l tournament

By Xuan Binh   February 4, 2023 | 02:09 am PT
Vietnamese cueist thrashes world champion at int’l tournament
Duong Quoc Hoang during a match at the World Pool Championship on February 3, 2023. Photo by Matchroom
Duong Quoc Hoang scored the biggest win of his career at the 2023 World Pool Championship when he dominated world champion Wojciech Szewczyk in round 32 on Friday night.

Hoang got to go first and he won the first two rounds without giving Szewczyk a turn. The 36-year-old didn’t make any mistakes in the next five rounds, using every single chance he had to clear the table and lead 7-0. Szewczyk only got one round back before losing another four. Overall, Hoang won 11-1, his biggest win so far in the tournament. This is the first time he has advanced to round 16 of the tournament.

"It’s such an excellent performance," a Matchroom commentator said. "I hope he can speak English to comment on the game. What a masterful 9-ball performance."

Poland’s Szewczyk was the 10-ball world champion in 2022. He’s currently 25th on the 9-ball world ranking.

Hoang’s opponent in round 16 is the defending 9-ball world champion, Shane van Boening, the American who defeated Singapore’s Aloysius Yapp 11-9 in round 32. The match between Hoang and Boening will begin at 8 p.m. (Hanoi time) on Saturday.

Hoang is the only Vietnamese cueist left in the tournament. Luong Duc Thien was eliminated in round 48, losing 8-11 to Canada’s John Morra, while Nguyen Anh Tuan lost 5-11 to England’s Dennis Grobe in round 32.

Hoang will win at least $6,000 for advancing to round 16.

The World Pool Championship, or World 9-ball Championship, is an annual pro tournament that has been held since 1990. It’s sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association and is organized by Matchroom Sport. This year’s championship takes place from February 1 to 5 in Kielce, Poland with 128 cueists playing for a prize pool of $325,000.

Hoang is the only Vietnamese cueist in the world’s top 100. He first made headlines at the Beijing Open in 2018 when he defeated Scottish star player Jayson Shaw 9-0.

 
 
go to top