World no.1 Dennis Orcollo and former world champion Alex Pagulayan will try to arrange another finals showdown when they face separate opponents in the final leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour in Guangzhou, China.
The semifinal matches will be played Sunday with Orcollo and Pagulayan facing Chinese-Taipei’s Yang Chin Shun and Wang Hung Hsiang.
Orcollo coasted to a 9-1 win over Singapore’s Toh Lian Han in Saturday’s quarterfinal at the Garden Hotel while Pagulayan, the Singapore leg champion, scored a 9-3 triumph against Satoshi Kawabata of Japan in the other quarterfinal match.
“I was very confident and well-conditioned heading into this match. My break was very good this time around and my shots were very precise," said Orcollo after the 50-minute match.
There is now possible rematch between the Filipinos, who competed for the Singapore leg title won by Pagulayan.
“I kind of feel sorry for him (Kawabata) since he’s my friend and he made a lot of mistakes, but when you’re playing against each other you forget about friendships and I just went for the kill," said Pagulayan after clinching his spot into the next round.
Wang pulled off an upset against compatriot and defending Grand Final champion Chang Jung Lin, 9-4, to earn the first quarterfinal match. Yang earned his right to face Orcollo by downing Ryu Seung Woo of Korea, 9-5.
The entry of Pagulayan and Orcollo into the semifinals earned them guaranteed seats to the Grand Final next month in Jakarta, Indonesia. Pagulayan and Orcollo occupies sixth and 10th places in the Order of Merit going into the Guangzhou leg.
Only the Top 10 players in the Order of Merit are heading to Indonesia.
Three other Filipinos – Joven Bustamante, Jeffrey De Luna and Elvis Calasang – were all eliminated in the group stages on Friday.
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