By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Rubilen Amit and Chezka Centeno bolstered their respective titles bids after advancing to the Round of 16 of the WPA World 10-Ball Women’s Championship in Klagenfurt, Austria.
Amit, a two-time world champion, toppled Wang Wan-Ling, 7-4, for her third straight win in the elimination stage while Centeno upstaged Hall of Famer Allison Fisher of England, 7-3, for her second win after earning an opening-game bye.
Prior to Amit’s triumph over Wang, the 42-year-old Cebuana native first clobbered South Korea’s Jin Hye Ju, 7-3, and another Taiwanese in Chou Chieh-Yu, 7-6.
Centeno, for her part, blasted China’s Pan Xiaoting, 7-4, before her rout of Fisher.
Their victories earned for themselves berths in the knockout stage, where Amit is slated to face Kristina Zlateva of Bulgaria, and Centeno taking on Germany’s Melanie Sussenguth.
Amit, a multiple Southeast Asian Games champion, is seeking her third world title after winning in the 2009 and 2013 editions.
Last year, she teamed up with Carlo Biado and Johann Chua in winning the WPA World Mixed Teams Ten-Ball Championships.
Centeno, 24, meanwhile, hopes to make an impact in the prestigious event after winning the 2019 SEA Games and the 2016 Chinook Winds Open 10-Ball Women’s Division.
