The Inaugural Reyes Cup – Team Asia Extends Lead Over Team Europe On Penultimate Day

Team Asia celebrates another point. (Taka Wu/Matchroom Multi Sport)

Team Asia delivered another powerful performance on the third day of the inaugural Reyes Cup, widening their lead over Team Europe in this historic competition at the Ninoy Aquino National Stadium in Manila, Philippines. With only one day remaining, Team Asia now holds a commanding 9-3 lead.

In partnership with Puyat Sports, this landmark event brings Asia’s top players head-to-head against Europe’s finest in a high-stakes competition on the World Nineball Tour. The tournament is being broadcast globally by Cignal TV in the Philippines and Sky Sports in the UK.

Overall Score after Day Two: Team Europe 3-9 Team Asia

• Match Ten: Team Europe 1-5 Team Asia
• Match Eleven: Jayson Shaw & Francisco Sanchez Ruiz 5-4 Johann Chua & Ko Pin Yi
• Match Twelve: Jayson Shaw & Eklent Kaçi 3-5 Carlo Biado & Aloysius Yapp

Team Europe won the lag in Match Ten, but Jayson Shaw was unable to complete a break-and-run, missing the 6-ball and allowing Aloysius Yapp to steal the first rack. In the second, Duong Quoc Hoang attempted a 2-9 carom but gave control of the table to Francisco Sanchez Ruiz after missing the shot. However, Ruiz’s own mistake on the 6-ball let Duong clean up and take the second rack for Asia.

Mickey Krause faltered on a critical 9-ball in the next rack, gifting Carlo Biado an opportunity to extend Team Asia’s lead to 3-0. Asia’s dominance continued, with Ko Pin Yi executing a perfect break-and-run to reach the hill. Eklent Kaçi finally put Europe on the board with a break-and-run of his own, but Aloysius Yapp sealed Asia’s victory with a final runout, ending the Teams Match 5-1.

In Match Eleven, the wildcard pairing of Jayson Shaw and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz brought Team Europe back into the contest, edging out Hanoi Open finalists Johann Chua and Ko Pin Yi in a thrilling doubles match. The Europeans set the pace early, capitalising on Ko’s miss on the 3-ball to take the first rack, followed by a break-and-run to make it 2-0. Team Asia responded with a break-and-run of their own in the third rack, but Europe maintained control with another successful break-and-run in the fourth to extend their lead to 3-1.

Europe appeared to be cruising when a dry break from Ko in the fifth rack handed them a gift, but Ruiz scratched attempting the 5-ball, allowing Asia to narrow the gap. Chua and Ko then levelled the match after another dry break from Europe, but Shaw’s impressive jump shot on the 4-ball in the seventh rack gave Europe a 4-3 lead. The European wildcard duo cleaned up the eighth rack, securing a crucial point for Team Europe with a 5-4 win.

In the second doubles match of the evening, Eklent Kaçi kicked things off with his second golden break of the tournament, giving Europe an early lead. The European pair had a chance to extend their advantage, but Kaçi’s miss on the 4-ball allowed Biado and Yapp to return to the table and level the match. The teams traded racks until they reached 3-3, with Europe still holding the advantage on the break.

However, Kaçi’s missed 2-ball in the seventh rack provided Biado and Yapp the opening they needed to get ahead and reach the hill. A dry break from Team Asia led to a safety exchange on the 1-ball, but Biado was the first to capitalise. The Filipino duo quickly ran out the final rack, redeeming Team Asia’s previous doubles loss and winning the final match of the day 5-3.

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