FROM 37 PLAYERS, the Predator Slovenian Open is now down to the final four as three further rounds were completed today (Sunday). The tournament reconvenes on Monday morning with the two semi-finals set to start at 10.00 with the final starting at 12.00 midday.
Eyllul Kibaroglu｜©EPBF
Eyllul Kibaroglu, the No.1 ranked player on tour, is still in with a shout of winning back-to-back Euro Tour titles as she leads the field going into day three. A winner last time out in Petrich, Bulgaria, where she beat Pia Filler 7-4 for the title, Kibaroglu will be up against the rising young German talent once again.
Kibaroglu, like Filler, is undefeated in the event this far and today she enjoyed wins over young Norwegian, Nina Torvund by 7-2 and then took a 7-4 victory over Hannan Memic (BIH) in the quarter-finals.
Pia Filler｜©EPBF
Filler, who is looking for her maiden Euro Tour title, beat a brace of youngsters today to cement her spot in the final four. First, she despatched Alara Ghaffari (TNC) who had grabbed a silver and a pair of bronze medals at the recent European Junior Championships. Then she beat Austria’s talented Lena Primus by 7-2 in the last eight.
The second semi-final is an all-German affair, giving that nation three of the four semi-final players. Melanie Sussenguth, currently ranked No.11, will face Ina Kaplan (No.14) for a place in the final. Kaplan, who won on the Ladies’ Euro Tour in Austria in June, went to the one-loss side earlier in the tournament following a defeat to Chantal Stadler in the winners’ qualification round.
Melanie Sussenguth｜©EPBF
She bounced back though with wins over Anna Riegler (AUT), Bojana Sarac of Serbia and then local hero Ana Gradisnik in her quarter-final match. Sussenguth, who has already made her best finish of the year here in Slovenia will be hoping to carry today’s form into tomorrow.
She beat Poland’s Monika Zabek by 7-5 and then followed that up with a 7-3 win over Kristina Zlateva of Bulgaria. Both matches are played simultaneously at 10.00 with Eyllul Kibaroglu v Pia Filler a Facebook Live presentation. Melanie Sussenguth against Ina Kaplan will be available to Kozoom subscribers.
Ina Kaplan｜©EPBF
All Predator Euro Tour Women tournaments are 9-ball and the field contest a double-elimination format, playing down to the last 16 competitors, and then single elimination until the finish. All matches are a race to 7 racks with alternate break.
All the matches can be viewed live at www.kozoom.com
Results, live scoring and draw are available at www.epbf.com