Jayson Shaw booked his place in the Hanoi Open Pool Championship final – live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom & Ireland and exclusively across Asia through Vietcontent, after controversially overcoming Fedor Gorst in-front of a packed-out Hanoi Indoor Games Gymnasium.
Having overcoming World Pool Master Ko Pin Yi in the first last 16 tie, fans across the world were licking their lips in anticipation of Team USA’s most recent Mosconi Cup addition Fedor Gorst taking on Eagle Eye Jayson Shaw, following a string of social media confrontations between the pair.
Tied up halfway between the affair at five-each, the crowd roared both players on as Shaw took control and dictated the affair to take a four-rack lead onto the hill. Gorst however, one of the most in-form players on the planet after victory at the Peri Open, would respond with a string of break and runs to move to 9-8.
At the table, with a chance of levelling up at hill-hill, the ‘Ghost’ missed the seven ball and conceded the match, sparking elation from Shaw – reaching his first Matchroom major semi-final since his run to winning the 2017 US Open Pool Championship.
Sanjin Pehlivanovic awaits the Scotsman in the semi-finals, after a dominant victories over Peri Open runner-up Michael Feliciano and WNT #1 and World Champion Francisco Sanchez Ruiz.
Mathematically, Shaw’s win against Gorst means the Bosnian cannot automatically qualify for the Mosconi Cup, but a maiden Matchroom major title win under the watchful eye of Team Europe’s captain Ralph Eckert would put the 22-year-old firmly in wildcard contention.
Albin Ouschan however can sensationally still qualify for the trans-Atlantic feature, having overturned a run of poor form throughout 2023 with a comfortable 10-3 victory over David Alcaide to reach the final four for the first time this year. Having landed at least one Major title in every season since 2015, Ouschan’s clinical edge and experience at the very top of the game will hope to help him through to the final.
Standing in the Austrian’s way is US Open Pool Championship Ko Ping Chung, arguably the most in-form player on the planet after his remarkable run in Atlantic City has continued in Hanoi. The Chinese Taipei star however relied on good fortune to overcome 20-year-old Filipino sensation Kyle Amoroto – who enjoyed a fairytale campaign in reaching his furthest-stage at a Matchroom multi-table event.
The pinoy prodigy had built up an 8-3 lead and confidence was building as he continued to find his break. In fighting back, a dry break from Ko had Amoroto at the table for a routine clean up – but a shock miss on the 9-ball let the US Open champion take the next seven racks and seal a spot in the semi-finals.
Action begins at 12pm from the Hanoi Indoor Games Gymnasium for the semi-finals stages for the Hanoi Open Pool Championship, alongside a hotly anticipated Hanoi Junior Open final between Chinese Taipei’s Liao Hung-Yen and Filipino.
Hanoi Open Quarter-Finals
Jayson Shaw v Sanjin Pehlivanovic
Ko Ping Chung v Albin Ouschan