10/03/2025
𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐄𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐍 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍 : 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐘𝐄 𝐎𝐍
The first big Matchroom event of the year is just around the corner! The European Open kicks off on March 11, and while we're all familiar with the big names, we’d like to highlight a few rising players who might be on the verge of making a big impact this year:
🔹 Mustafa Alnar – Alnar turned heads by handing Fedor Gorst his only defeat at the 2024 World Pool Championship. Not only that, but he also defeated Joshua Filler twice at the 2024 European Open. With his talent, it's only a matter of time before we see him hoist a trophy.
🔹 Szymon Kural – Kural recently claimed victory at the first Dynamic Billard Best of the East event of 2025. He was also the U19 Junior Champion in 2022. As a young Polish player, he may not receive as much attention as Poland’s more established “killers” like Wojciech Szewczyk, Mieszko Fortuński, and Wiktor Zieliński, but he’s certainly one to watch.
🔹 Riku Romppanen – In 2023, Romppanen became the youngest player ever to reach the last 16 of a Matchroom event at the UK Open. The young Finnish talent is poised for a breakthrough season, and we wouldn’t be surprised if it happens this year.
🔹 Ajdin Piknjac – While he may be less known to casual fans compared to his countryman Sanjin Pehlivanovic, Piknjac is the national champion in both 8-ball and 10-ball and the No. 1 ranked player in Bosnia & Herzegovina for the 2024 season. Playing on home turf, don’t be surprised if he makes some noise at the upcoming European Open.
🔹 Edward Koyongian – Perhaps the biggest surprise pick of the upcoming Premier League Pool, we’ve been posting about the Indonesian ever since he went on a hot streak last September—eventually catching the attention of other pool pages. Now, he’s the new face of Indonesian pool (and yes, we’re definitely taking credit for this one!). But in all seriousness, we’re expecting "Edo," as he’s more commonly known in Indonesia, to have an inspiring run at both the European Open and Premier League Pool, now that the world is starting to take notice.
