Orcullo nails cliff-hangers

TAIPEI — Dennis Orcullo turned a couple of 2-4 deficits into a pair of rousing 5-4 victories over Alok Kumar of India and German Thomas Hasch yesterday to lead four other Filipinos into the tournament proper of the World Pool Championship at Taipei World Trade Center here Tuesday.

Lee Van Corteza also advanced by scoring similar 5-1 victories over Darryl Peach of England and Gustavo Espinoza of Argentina to pace Group 4 with 10 points, so did former champion Efren "Bata" Reyes, who played well enough to defeat Tony Drago of Malta, 5-1, and notch his 10th point.

Rodolfo Luat, whose opening three-game sweep was stalled by back-to-back setbacks, regained his winning ways by swamping Indon Kamarudin Yudharman, 5-0, to likewise move into the Last 64 with eight points.

His spot in the head-to-head duel phase assured late Monday night with six straight wins, Warren Kiamco failed to complete a rare sweep of the elims as he blew a 3-1 lead and bowed to former champion Chao Fong-Pang of Taiwan, 5-3, in a duel of unbeaten players on table No. 1.

Francisco "Django " Bustamante was the first Filipino to gain a berth in the tournament proper of the top-level event, winning all his first five matches before dropping a 2-5 decision to compatriot Antonio Gabica, who stayed in the hunt with six points with two games left in the final day of elims.

Also eyeing berths in the Last 64 are Marlon Manalo and Antonio Lining, who both have six points on similar 3-2 (win-loss) records. Gandy Valle also has six points although he lost his sixth game to Neils Feijen, 1-5.

But fate frowned on former RP No. 1 and US-based Jose "Amang" Parica, who failed to advance in his first crack in this $350,000 championship, losing to Dutch Nick Van Den Verg, 2-5, in his final game. His start spoiled by two 4-5 losses, Parica wound up with six points, two short of the magic number.

He thus joined Ramil Gallego to the sidelines after the latter came up with just one victory in five games.

But the day belonged to Orcullo, the last Filipino qualifier whose solid performance in the elims, highlighted by a 5-2 victory over Reyes, netted him the top spot in Group 2 with 12 points. Drago has eight points while Hasch scored six points and beat three others for the last berth.

Orcullo was 2-4 down against Kumar but took the next three racks, the same manner he turned back Hasch, who seized a 4-2 lead only to yield the next three to the Filipino cue master.

The top 64 players after the round-robin elims fight it out in knockout duels leading to the championship where $75,000 is at stake. Matches are aired "live" on STAR Sports beginning at 5:30 p.m. with the semifinals to be telecast at 8:30 p.m. on July 17 and the finals slated July 18 starting at 9 p.m. — Dante Navarro