European Snooker Junior Championship Jake Castaldi qualifies to last 32

The European Snooker Junior Championship kicked off on Sunday in Antalya, Turkey, with the first round of the Under-16 category. Among the 72 players registered in this category, three of Malta’s six representatives—Jake Castaldi, Caiden Casha, and Gregory Cachia—took to the tables for their opening matches.

The competitors were divided into groups of four, with the top two from each group advancing to the second phase. Each player contested three matches, and by the end of the round, 36 players had secured their place in the next stage.

Jake Castaldi Advances to the Next Round

Jake Castaldi successfully progressed to the second phase after winning two of his three matches. He secured 2-0 victories over Scott Cooke of Ireland and Rapolas Juodis of Lithuania. However, he fell to a 2-0 defeat against England’s Adam Abbas.

Strong Performances from Casha and Cachia

Despite facing tough opposition, both Caiden Casha and Gregory Cachia delivered commendable performances. Each managed to win one of their three matches, with both securing victory in their final encounter of the day.

Casha suffered 2-0 defeats against Poland’s Wojciech Sowiński and Serbia’s Tadija Matijasevic. However, he showed resilience in his last match, coming from a frame down to beat Reuben Gingell of Wales 2-1.

Twelve-year-old Gregory Cachia, the youngest Maltese participant, also faced challenging opponents. He lost 2-0 to Poland’s Witold Bystrzycki and Ukraine’s Matvei Lagodzinschii but responded with a 2-0 win over Matvei Timofeev of Latvia.

Next Phase of the Competition

Only those who qualified will continue competing in the second day of the championship. Four preliminary matches will be played to finalize the list of the last 32 players, with quarter-finals scheduled later in the day. The semi-finals and final will take place on Tuesday.

Jake Castaldi has secured direct qualification to the last 32, where he will face Poland’s Witold Bystrzycki, who topped the group that included Gregory Cachia. This next phase will be played in a best-of-five format, with Castaldi’s match set to begin at 8 AM local time.

The Maltese Herald will continue to provide exclusive coverage of this event, highlighting the achievements of Malta’s young snooker talents.