World Cup of Pool 2015 Results: Wednesday Scores, Updated Schedule and More
Qatar caused the shock of the 2015 World Cup of Pool when they eliminated the USA from the competition.
The 2008 world champions were beaten by the impressive Qatari pair. The sixth seeds exited the tournament, losing 7-5 in the evening session.
In the other evening session matches, the Philippines and the Netherlands were too good for their opposition, beating India and Russia, respectively. The high seeds won 7-3 and 7-4, respectively, to progress forward.
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Poland put in one of the most impressive performances of the day when they opened Wednesday's action with a 7-3 win over New Zealand. The European side's chemistry was impressive in the opening racks, as it slipped past its Southern Hemisphere opposition at London's York Hall.
Chinese Taipei matched Poland's efforts in their tie, comfortably beating a solid Estonian team by 7-5. The Taiwanese are seeded fourth in the competition and displayed excellent control throughout the first round.
There was also a 7-3 win for Japan over Italy in the final match of the afternoon session, with the Italians doing their best to hold back the 14th seeds. However, the Japanese prevailed, forcing their way over the finish line.
Here's a look at Wednesday's results, as well as the upcoming schedule:
| September 22 | Afternoon Session | Korea (16) | 7-6 | Malaysia |
| September 22 | Afternoon Session | China (8) | 4-7 | Romania |
| September 22 | Afternoon Session | Canada (12) | 6-7 | France |
| September 22 | Evening Session | Germany (9) | 3-7 | Indonesia |
| September 22 | Evening Session | England A (1) | 7-5 | Australia |
| September 22 | Evening Session | Austria (5) | 7-5 | Peru |
| September 23 | Afternoon Session | Poland (13) | 7-3 | New Zealand |
| September 23 | Afternoon Session | Chinese Taipei (4) | 7-5 | Estonia |
| September 23 | Afternoon Session | Japan (14) | 7-3 | Italy |
| September 23 | Evening Session | USA (6) | 5-7 | Qatar |
| September 23 | Evening Session | Holland (3) | 7-3 | India |
| September 23 | Evening Session | Philippines (2) | 7-4 | Russia |
| September 24 | Afternoon Session | Spain (11) | TBD | Czech Republic |
| September 24 | Afternoon Session | Finland (10) | TBD | Belgium |
| September 24 | Afternoon Session | Greece (7) | TBD | Singapore |
| September 24 | Evening Session | England B (15) | TBD | Sweden |
Wednesday Recap
The weight of the world always lies heavy on the shoulders of the USA when it comes to nine-ball pool, and they are always expected to win any match in a race to seven against the non-seeded teams.
However, Qatar were outstanding on Wednesday evening, smashing the sixth seeds with ruthless aggression and skill.
The Qatari side won the first two legs, as the USA struggled to find their form, but the Americans chipped away to find their way back into the tie.
But Qatar kept their noses in front, attaining a 5-3 lead to make the USA worry about the final result. The Americans briefly achieved parity, bringing the match back to 5-5, but an outstanding last two legs gave their opponents the match.
Bashar Hussain nailed an amazing two-ball plant to claim the 11th leg, and a cool shot on the eight ball gave Qatar the position to close out the match.
Two-time World Cup runners-up Netherlands made easy work of India, who brought a rapturous support with them to London.
However, the noisy crowd couldn't influence the result, with the Dutch finishing strongly to win 7-3—after a brief Indian fightback.
The Philippines followed the Dutch lead in their game against Russia; the third seeds looked in tremendous form as they disposed of the Europeans, 7-4.
All eyes were on Poland on Wednesday when they took on a useful New Zealand side in London. The Poles have been the subject of much interest in the buildup to the tournament, and the pair was in top form against its opposition.
Poland's Mateusz Sniegocki and Wojciech Szewczyk opened the day's play in fine fettle, and never looked to be losing to Matt Edwards and Nick Pera.
Poland hit a 3-0 lead early on, and it was apparent why they are one of the more interesting teams in the competition.
Szewczyk commented on the 7-3 victory, via Matchroom Pool, “We played very well, I would say we played our A-game, but we had to get familiar with the conditions, so there were a few positional shots which were not perfect, but I am sure we will get that right in the next match."
Phenomenal Chinese Taipei pair Ko Pin Yi and Chang Yu Lung are one of the hotly tipped teams for the title, and despite a fighting performance from Estonia pair Dennis Grabe and Erki Erm, the favourites progressed, 7-5.
Estonia won the first rack and spurned a good chance to take the second, leading to a Taiwanese rush of four straight leg wins.
In the afternoon session's other game, Japan veterans Naoyuki Oi and Toru Kuribayashi cruised past Italians Daniele Corrieri and Antonio Benvenuto to win, 7-3. The Japanese remained in control as the Italy team showed nerves, leading to a simple win.
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