Nguyen lost in the semi-final to Jeremy Bury from France, ranked 20th in the UMB. 

Nguyen started the semi-final smoothly and led 15/7, then 16/11, but failed to capitalise.

Many fans hoped he would beat Bury so for the first time in history Vietnam had a player in the final of the tournament. Last year, Ma Minh Cam also finished third.

Coach Nguyen Viet Hoa said many Vietnamese players had a good start but lost eventually as “losing nerve and confidence after once and twice broken turns and then lost focus”.

Meanwhile, Bury took an upturn at 33/16, scoring 22 points. Nguyen’s later efforts only got him four more points before accepting the loss.

Previously, Bury also beat another top Vietnamese player Tran Quyet Chien in the quarter-final.

However, after the tournament, Chien and Nguyen still entered the top 10 of the World UMB list, with Chien ranking eighth and Nguyen ninth.-VNA