Buddies Chua, Aranas top World Cup of Pool

By Randy Caluag

THE Filipino pair of Johann

Chua and James Aranas made history on Sunday (Monday morning in Manila) in Luga, Spain after beating Germany’s Joshua Filler and Moritz Neuhausen, 11-7, to make the Philippines the winningest team in the World Cup of Pool.

Chua and Aranas, who pocketed the top prize of $60,000, became the fourth Filipino tandem to rule the prestigious event.

Pool legends Efren Bata Reyes and Django Bustamante did it first for the Philippines in the inaugural event in 2006 and repeated their feat in 2006.

Chua, known in the pool circuit as “Bad Koi”, expressed his joy in winning the title with James. “I feel great. It feels amazing to win a world title. It’s such an honor to win with James. We’ve known each other since we were 13 years old. We went to school together. To win with him is amazing. This has always been our dream. It’s a special achievement to win the World Cup of Pool,” Chua told Matchroom Pool.

Aranas shared a mutual admiration for their friendship on and off the pool table. “For me, I have so many memories, it’s so exciting. This week is unforgettable, spending this moment with Johann, too.”

And he was so thankful his favorite cues arrived in time for the World Cup after losing them in transit.

“My cues arrived right on time because they didn’t arrive for the Spanish Open. I want to thank my friends and family and all the Filipinos back home. Without my family, I would not be here,” Aranas said.

Chua, meanwhile, credited his aggressiveness on the table, which was largely responsible for the early lead they enjoyed against Germany, 9-2.

“I am aggressive at the table. I cannot sleep if I do not approach it like that. It’s my first achievement at this sort of prestigious event. It’s my first world title,” said Chua.

The Germans came close at 7-9, but the

Undefeated

I CAME across a photoshopped image of Damian Lillard in a Miami Heat uniform, flanked by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.

The caption reads: Who can defeat this?

The answer, to this and to all the other teams posturing after acquiring a new “superstar” during the NBA free agency: A lot.

For the very simple reason that a superstar, even two or three of them, is never invincible. Not even an automatic championship contender. Ask Karl Malone or Steve Nash when they joined the Los Angeles Lakers, or James Harden when he joined Kyrie