Eddy Merckx shows his mental strenght

The title holder was at his best, but he needed a big jump to the finish. Eddy Merckx has reached the semi finals at the Belgian championship three cushion. He won 3-2 in his match with a great Francis Forton, the little fighter from Brussels with the typical forehand, who shined as usual with a few high runs.

Merckx said: ,,Francis was very good and very tough. I played two average, but couldn't make the gap. It doesn't happen very often, that two players throughout the whole game play on such a high level. The only thing I could do was remaining quiet. And at the end I made the breakaway just on time.''
Merckx started well by winning the first set (15-12 in ten), was defeated in the second set 15-12, when Forton made a run of ten, then Merckx won the third set again, but he saw Forton come back into the match with a run of eleven and a 15-4 win in three innings.

In the deciding set Merckx showed his class and his mental strenght. He captured the win after a quick start (9-3) and a comfortable sprint at the end. He congratulated his opponent and is now preparing for the match against Peter de Backer.