Player Phuong Vinh: 'I'm happy to make history'

Phuong Vinh was extremely happy after defeating "Korean prodigy" Cho Myung-woo 50-48 in the semi-finals on the afternoon of September 10. When he defeated Tran Quyet Chien 50-34 in the final the same evening, the 28-year-old player did not look so happy. Explaining this, Phuong Vinh added to MetaSports after being crowned: "Winning Cho means that I helped bring history to Vietnam, because the final match against Mr. Quyet Chien. The result of the final match is not It's too important. If I lose the final, I don't think it's okay, of course if I win I'll be happier."

Phuong Vinh was born in 1995 in Binh Duong and started playing professionally more than a year ago. This was his first time participating in the World Championship, but he was immediately crowned with a winning record. In the group stage, he defeated Radovan Hajek 40-32, and Nikos Polychronopoulos 40-28 to reach the knockout round. After that, Phuong Vinh won against Ahn Ji Hun 50-31, Gwendal Marechal 50-45, Pedro Piedrabuena 50-49, then defeated Cho and Quyet Chien in the last two matches.

The new world champion said that the most difficult match for him was probably in the quarterfinals, when Uruguayan-American player Piedrabuena led most of the time. The opponent had a chance to end the match when leading 49-48, but could not take advantage. "I was lucky when my opponent's decisive blow didn't have enough power, so when the opportunity came I couldn't miss it," he added.

In the semi-finals, the situation was reversed when Phuong Vinh led Cho for most of the time, but allowed the opponent to equalize 48-48. At that time, the Korean prodigy missed the opportunity and Phuong Vinh once again did not give the opponent a chance to correct his mistake. "At that time it was Cho's turn to fight, I could only hope for luck," he added. "Cho is very good, winning many times against Vietnamese players, so this victory is very meaningful."

Phuong Vinh and Quyet Chien are the two Vietnamese representatives participating in the tournament, also the two top players in the country according to the current World Billiards Federation (UMB) rankings. The final between the two players was not as dramatic as the two semi-finals. Quyet Chien appeared to decline at the end of the match, when he only scored four points in the last 12 baselines. Phuong Vinh believes that the senior's problem in this match is not psychological, but rather having to fall into a difficult shot or miss by a small distance. "Actually, every player will have psychological problems at certain times," the 48-year-old player added. "In top 3-band carom, luck affects about 20% of the match results."

Phuong Vinh also defeated Quyet Chien at the National Sports Festival in Hanoi in December 2022, but this win is more meaningful. The World Championship takes place every year, starting in 1928. The World Cup has many rounds a year, held since 1986. If Quyet Chien had made Vietnamese history by winning the throne twice in World Cup, Phuong Vinh is the first player from the country to win the world championship.