The Filipino charge remains strong as Team Philippines secures two spots in the final four of the World Nine-ball Championship on July 25 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Carlo “The Black Tiger” Biado, the 2017 World Nine-ball Champion and current World No. 18, is back in the semi-finals for the third time. He opened his run with a win over World No. 16 Wiktor Zielinski in the Round of 32. In the next round, Biado defeated fellow Filipino Jeffrey Ignacio in a tight 11–9 contest. Ignacio had previously stunned World No. 2 and Singaporean champion Aloysius Yapp. Biado then sealed his Final Four spot with a convincing 11–7 victory against World No. 7 and Taiwanese superstar Ko Ping Chung.
All-Filipino Semifinal Showdown: Biado vs. Rising Star Regalario
Biado is now just one win away from a return to the finals, but standing in his way is rising star and fellow Filipino Bernie Regalario, who recorded the biggest win of his young career with a stunning 11–4 upset over former World Champion and current World No. 3 Francisco Sánchez Ruiz of Spain. The 20-year-old cueist has reached the semi-finals of a world championship for the first time. The winner of this all-Filipino showdown will mark the country’s first appearance in the World Pool Championship finals in seven years.
On the other side of the bracket, two-time world champion and defending titleholder Fedor Gorst is set to clash with Albania’s sensation Kledio Kaçi in a high-stakes semifinal.
Gorst, the Russian prodigy now representing the United States, is coming off a dominant 11–4 win over Filipino standout Jefrey Roda, showcasing the precision and poise that made him a global force. Kaçi, meanwhile, continued his breakout run with a hard-fought 11–9 triumph over Ameer Ali, earning a step closer to the title.
