Team Asia extended their lead with a dominant whitewash on the second day of the inaugural Reyes Cup, held at the Ninoy Aquino National Stadium in Manila, Philippines, from October 15-18, 2024.
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 2-7 Team Asia
- Match Six: Team Europe 3-5 Team Asia
- Match Seven: Francisco Sanchez Ruiz 3-5 Ko Pin Yi
- Match Eight: David Alcaide & Eklent Kaçi 2-5 Duong Quoc Hoang & Aloysius Yapp
- Match Nine: Mickey Krause 3-5 Carlo Biado
Team Asia secured their first Teams Match victory to kick off Day Two of the Reyes Cup, despite falling behind early on. A scratch from Ko Pin Yi in the opening rack handed Jayson Shaw the chance to sweep, giving Europe an early lead. Eklent Kaçi then extended the advantage with the first golden break of the evening. However, Duong Quoc Hoang responded for Team Asia, narrowing the gap in the third rack against Francisco Sanchez Ruiz with a series of well-executed safety shots, building on his strong form from Day One. In the fourth rack, Aloysius Yapp fouled on a safety battle, but David Alcaide returned the error, allowing Yapp to level the score with a precise 2-9 combination.
Carlo Biado went on to move Team Asia ahead after defeating Mickey Krause in the fifth rack, but Shaw quickly levelled things for Europe in the next. Johann Chua then regained the lead for Asia, breaking and sweeping the table against Kaçi in the seventh rack. In the final moments, Francisco Sanchez Ruiz had a chance to even the score, but a dry break gave Duong Quoc Hoang the upper hand. Hoang’s tactical safety play sealed the deal as he swept the final rack, securing Team Asia’s first Teams Match victory.
©Taka Wu/Matchroom Multi Sport
In the first singles match of the day, former World Champions Ko Pin Yi and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz squared off. Ko took control early, sweeping the first rack, though Sanchez Ruiz responded immediately with a flawless run in the second to level the score. Ko regained the advantage with a break-and-run in the third, making it 2-1, but Ruiz missed a long shot on the 3-ball in the fourth, allowing Ko to extend his lead.
Ruiz fought back, capitalising on a dry break from Ko in the fifth and following it up with a break-and-run in the sixth to level the match at 3-3. The players traded racks in the seventh, but Ko reached the hill first after successfully escaping a hook on the 7-ball. A dry break from Ruiz in the final rack proved costly, allowing Ko to sweep up and secure Team Asia’s second victory of the day.
In the doubles match, Duong Quoc Hoang and Aloysius Yapp dominated, storming to a swift 3-0 lead over David Alcaide and Eklent Kaçi. The European duo managed to claim a rack following a break-and-run in the fourth, but Team Asia immediately responded, sweeping up in the fifth to reach the hill. Alcaide’s dry break in the sixth rack nearly sealed the match for Asia, but Duong’s missed bank shot on the 5-ball allowed Europe to claim a second rack. However, their hopes of a comeback were dashed when Yapp and Duong regained control, running out the final rack to secure another point for Team Asia and extend their lead to 6-2.
In the final match of the day, European Open champion Mickey Krause faced off against Carlo Biado, hoping to prevent Team Europe from being whitewashed. The pair exchanged racks early, levelling at 1-1. Despite Biado breaking in the third rack, a failed 4-7 carom shot gave Krause the chance to take the lead. However, Krause’s failure to successfully execute a safety on the 3-ball allowed Biado to capitalise, and eventually reclaim the lead 3-2.
The pair exchanged racks but Biado reached the hill first in the seventh rack. Krause fought to level the match, but a tight safety on the 5-ball left him snookered, forcing a foul that gave Biado ball in hand. Biado made no mistakes, running out the final rack and completing Team Asia’s whitewash of Team Europe, securing a commanding 7-2 lead at the close of day two.