Team USA’s Jeremy Jones and Team Europe’s Alex Lely are both revelling in the pressure ahead of the much-awaited 2022 Mosconi Cup at Bally’s Las Vegas from November 30 to December 3 live on Sky Sports in the UK, DAZN in the USA as well as other broadcasters worldwide.
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Looking ahead to action getting underway in pool’s biggest event Jones acknowledges his side cannot get ahead of itself with the home crowd baying for the Europeans to slip up: “I want to keep it simple. I don’t want anyone over-excited. We will have our chance to win the cup. It will take a lot. Europe has a great team. It’s about who gets settled the most first. I know our team can win on any scoreline. I think whoever gets comfortable first will strike while the iron is hot. Winning on US soil would be something special.”
“Winning is incredible wherever but there’s something special when in the USA. It’s special in this team. It breathes USA all around. I expect to see a lot of resolve. You can almost get too giddy. This team has a collective goal in mind. You can expect a lot of great things.”
It’s hard to describe playing the Mosconi Cup, especially in Las Vegas. It’s like you’ve got back up out there for sure. The energy is crazy.
Jeremy Jones｜©JP Parmentier/Matchroom Multi Sport (file)
Lely meanwhile is looking to lead a victory on American soil since 2017 and he’s acutely aware of the challenge that faces him. The Dutch native is no stranger to winning with back-to-back triumphs for Europe in the UK losing only nine points in the process with an 11-3 win in 2020 and 11-6 last year at Alexandra Palace but this year promises to be a whole new challenge if Lely is to guide his side to a three-peat: “We are looking forward to playing in Las Vegas in front of the US fans. They deserve their up-close-and-personal experience with the biggest event of the year and it’s something they’ve unfortunately been starved of recently. I am sure they will give us a warm welcome…”
The training program under Lely is rigorous and to the point with members of Team Europe aware of exactly where they should be at certain times as they look to mastermind another win: “We get together well before the event starts and we will get some practice in but more so, I want the team to fortify our bonds and become as tightly knit as possible and as a unit. We go into battle as a team and stay together and focus right until the last ball.”
Last year didn’t start well for Europe losing the team match for the third straight year in a row before being 5-4 down going into the third day after a remarkable middle order from the USA. Lely admitted at the time it kept him up all night and called a team meeting at his room for early morning ahead of day three: “This is my 3rd consecutive year and this time we want to get out of the gates strong. All guns blazing, you could say. The start is important, and I want my team to show heart and wear it on their sleeves as they go out for each match. We know it will be a tough week and starting out well is the only way to tame the onslaught that will come our way.”
Hear more from Jones and Lely at the 2022 Mosconi Cup press conference on Tuesday, 29 November at 3 pm local time. Get your tickets to be there here.
莫斯考尼盃歐洲隊期待強勢開局 美國隊目標本土奪魁
2022年莫斯考尼盃將於11月30日至12月3日在美國的拉斯維加斯舉辦，屆時通過英國的天空體育、美國的DAZN以及其他廣播公司，可以在世界各地都收看到本屆賽事的轉播。美國隊隊長 Jeremy Jones 和歐洲隊隊長 Alex Lely 分別接受了記者的採訪。
本年度最為重磅的9號球賽事即將開賽，本土觀眾對東道主美國隊有著很大的期待的同時也在祈求著強勁的歐洲隊犯錯。隊長 Jeremy Jones 表示: “我想保持簡單一些。我不希望任何人過於興奮。我們將有機會憑藉隊伍的能力贏得冠軍，這將需要付出很多。歐洲隊的組合非常優秀。誰想要奪冠都會竭盡全力拿到每一分。我知道我的隊伍有搶分取勝的能力。我認為誰最先打出狀態，誰就會趁熱打鐵、一鼓作氣。能夠作為東道主在美國本土獲勝將是一件十分特別的時刻。”
“無論在哪裡贏球都值得慶祝，但在美國本土奪冠會有一些特別的意義在。對這支隊伍而言，在自家實現奪冠肯定意義重大。我期望看到這支隊伍的決心。你不能樂觀的過了頭。這支隊伍有著清晰而宏大的集體目標，你可以對他們有所期待。”
很難描述莫斯考尼盃究竟是一項什麼樣的比賽，尤其當這項比賽來到了輝煌的欲望之城拉斯維加斯。你會迎來最堅實的後援團，現場的氣氛絕對夠勁爆。
Alex Lely｜©JP Parmentier/Matchroom Multi Sport (file)
與此同時，Lely 則希望自己帶領的歐洲隊能夠取得自2017年以來在美國本土的首場勝利。儘管對贏得莫斯考尼盃並不陌生，但 Lely 還是敏銳地意識到他所面臨的挑戰。他曾以11-3和11-6在過去兩年間為歐洲隊實現莫斯考尼盃的兩連冠。面對能否實現三連冠的挑戰，Lely 說: “我們期待著在拉斯維加斯的美國球迷們面前比賽。近距離接觸年度最大賽事，絕對是一種不可或缺的經歷。我相信他們會熱烈的歡迎我們…”
針對本次莫斯考尼盃，Lely 制定了嚴格又富有針對性的訓練計畫，渴望勝利的歐洲隊隊員清楚地知道他們在某些時候應該在做什麼。Lely 說: “我們會在賽事開始前集結完畢並開始練習。更重要的是，我希望隊伍內部能加強聯繫，盡可能地緊密團結在一起，成為一個整體。我們需要作為一個團隊投入戰鬥，並保持團結和專注，直到最後一顆球。”
在去年的莫斯考尼盃中，歐洲隊的開局並不好，以4-5的落後比分進入到第三天的比賽。Lely 承認這個比分讓他徹夜難眠，他在第三天開賽前的早晨在他的房間召開了一次團隊會議。Lely 說: ”這是我連續第三年參加比賽，這一次我們想強勢出擊。你可以說，所有的隊員們都在躍躍欲試。比賽開局很重要，我希望我的隊員們在每場比賽中都能用心，並表現在球桌上。我們知道這幾天的比賽沒那麼容易，而良好的開局則是緩解我們即將面臨的衝擊的唯一途徑。”