Raga gatecrashes semifinals of European Pool Championships

WHEN he first picked up a cue stick and won his first tournament back home in Cebu City in 2010, Anthony Raga dreamt of carving his name in the history books as one of the sport’s best and brightest.

Sixteen years later, the 26-year-old Mr. Raga is on the cusp of achieving such a feat.

Sustaining his shot-making wizardry, Mr. Raga blasted past Canada’s John Mora, 10-6, and Poland’s Wojciech Szewczyk, 10-7, Saturday to gatecrash into the semis of the European Pool Championships in Fuda, Germany.

There, Mr. Raga joined a cast consisting of world champions in German Joshua Filler (9-Ball 2018), American Van Boening (9-Ball 2022) and Spanish David Alcaide (World Pool Masters 2017).

The former University of Cebu-METC nautical student was battling Mr. Filler, who eliminated Russian Fedor Gorst in an epic 10-9 hill-hill win, at press time with hopes of catching another big fish.

Mr. Raga made it this far by riding roughshod over everyone he faced including former world 9-Ball and 10-Ball king Ko Pin-yi of Chinese Taipei via a quick, merciless 10-0 rout Thursday.

Mr. Van Boening, for his part, advanced after outlasting Austrian Mario He, 10-9, while Mr. Alcaide dispatched countryman and reigning world 9-Ball and 8-Ball titlist Francisco Sanchez Ruiz in another thrilling hill-hill showdown, 10-9.

Mr. Raga is practically in the lion’s den and he hopes to come out of it victorious. — Joey Villar