Centeno keen to reclaim Amway eSpring 9-Ball crown

TWO-TIME Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Chezka Centeno aims to reclaim the crown in the Amway eSpring International Women 9-Ball Championship beginning today at the Taipei Stadium in Taipei, Taiwan.

Centeno, currently seventh in the world ranking, dominated the 2016 edition of the tournament after stunning former world champion Kelly Fisher of Great Britain in the championship round, 11-8.

But the Filipina cue master failed to defend her crown last year after faltering in the knockout stage.

This year, Centeno will be up against the world’s best female players including Fisher and former world champions Jasmin Ouschan of Austria and Kim Ga Young of South Korea.

by reigning World 9-Ball Championship titlist Chen Siming, 2016 winner Han Yu, two-time world champion Liu Shasha, and veteran international campaigners Fu Xiaofang and Bi Zhu Qing.

Centeno hopes to regain her winning ways following her so-so- showing in the 2017 season.

prestigious World Games in Wroclaw, Poland but lost to Chen.

In the 2017 Women’s 9- Ball World Championship held at the County Gymnasium in China, Centeno reached the Last 16 before earning a close 8-9 decision to another Chinese bet, Zhang Xiaotong.

Her only bright spot was her gold-medal toppling compatriot Rubilen Amit in an all

Meanwhile, Carlo Biado will be defending his crown in the World 9-Ball Championship at the same venue following the agreement between the World Pool Billiard Association (WPA) and the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation (QBSF).

WPA President Ian Anderson and QBSF Secretary General Mohamed Salem AlNuaimi signed a new four-year deal for Qatar to host the world meet.

The 2018 edition will be held in December.