European Snooker Championship – Antalya 2025

The third day of the European Snooker Championship in Antalya, Turkey, saw the conclusion of the group stage matches. Malta participated in six matches, securing two more victories as the tournament moved into the knockout phase.

Six out of the seven Maltese players had already secured their spots in the next round before the final group matches. However, these games were crucial in determining the group winners.

• Chris Peplow confirmed his dominance in Group I, securing first place with a 3-0 win over Croatia’s Filip Bermanec.
• Aaron Busuttil, despite a 3-2 defeat against Poland’s Paweł Rogoza, still topped Group N and advanced directly to the last 64 stage, where matches will now be played in a best-of-seven frames format.

The only other victory for Malta came from Philip Ciantar, who defeated Hungary’s Noel Németh-Nagy 3-1. However, Ciantar had already been eliminated after his losses on the previous days.

The remaining Maltese players all suffered defeats:

• Joseph Casha lost in a decisive frame 3-2 to Belgium’s Sybren Sokolowski.
• Arthur Cachia fell 3-1 against Estonia’s Andres Petrov.
• Alex Borg was defeated 3-0 by Steven Hallworth of England, one of the few players yet to drop a frame in the competition.

At the end of the group stage, Malta had competed in 21 matches, securing 13 wins.

Knockout Stage Draw Announced

Following the conclusion of the group matches, the European Billiards & Snooker Association announced the knockout phase draw. The 86 players who advanced were divided into two groups:

• The top 42 players progressed directly to the last 64 round.
• The remaining 44 players must compete in a preliminary round, with 22 winners joining the last 64.

Upcoming Matches for Maltese Players (Thursday, March 20)

Preliminary Round

08:00 – Arthur Cachia vs. John Sutton (Ireland)
08:00 – Alex Borg vs. Alain Vergère (Switzerland)
08:00 – Brian Cini vs. Sam Thomas (Wales)
10:00 – Joseph Casha vs. Mihai Vladu (Romania)

Last 64 Stage

10:00 – Aaron Busuttil vs. Umut Dikme (Germany)
14:00 – Chris Peplow vs. Winner of Michael Collumb (Scotland) vs. Dennis Van Der Zee (Netherlands)

The fourth day of the tournament will feature both the preliminary round and the last 32 stage, ensuring that by the end of the day, the final 16 players will be known.

(Note: All match times are according to Maltese local time.)

Gerald Fenech

Sports Editor
Veteran Journalist