For someone as naturally talented and accomplished as Joshua Filler, it seems almost inconceivable that he’s only reached one World Pool Championship final and none in the World Nineball Tour era. However, that’s the unforgiving nature of professional pool and something that the German sensation can embellish in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Only five players have landed a brace of titles at the crown jewel of nineball pool – the legendary Earl Strickland, Chao Fong-Pang, Johnny Archer, Thorsten Hohmann and Albin Ouschan – and it’s an exclusive group that Filler could add his name to. His second world title could arrive six years after he overcame the then formidable Carlo Biado in the Middle East.
“I had no expectations,” Filler told Matchroom Pool, recollecting his 2018 World Championship triumph. “I mean, during the year, I played in many finals and semi-finals on the Euro Tour. I had played many great players and world champions and beaten them. I knew I had a big chance to go far in the event. I always had that kind of mindset that I can beat everyone.
“I think besides the US Open, I’ve won a couple of months after the World Championship. It was probably the best performance ever in my whole career. It was just unbelievable, to be honest. I told everyone I’m going to win the World Championship after the first match – I was so confident and I showed it in every match I had.
“I shouldn’t have won in the semi-finals because Alex Kazakis was actually about to beat me and then he made a big, big mistake towards the end. But I came up with a crazy good shot and played a tremendous safety on hill-hill.
“I think after that I felt alive. I had nothing to lose now. I think I’ve seen a statistic that I had like 90 percent break and runs during the whole World Championship. I said to Pia, ‘how can someone be back-to-back in a World Championship final?’ – it’s just amazing, you know, what Carlo Biado did. I still felt I’m not the underdog – I’m the one who’s going to win.
“The biggest point was when he had ball-in-hand at 12-10 to make it 12-11 and he scratched with ball-in-hand. I got lucky there. I was just over the moon to be in my first World Championship final and beat Carlo Biado. It just was like a dream come true for me for sure.”
It was two years beforehand that Filler earned his first taste of the sport’s showpiece staging, and the beginning of his glittering career was a memorable one. Aged 18 and recognised as one of the most prodigious talents in Europe, Filler received a tricky opener against a Chinese player now known as the Spanish Open champion.
“I can still remember the first ever match I had in the World Pool Championship – it was against Dang Jinhu,” Filler reminisced. “I got told before that he plays like me, the same speed and pocketing the balls very quickly. I lost 9-8 in a match where I maybe missed one or two balls. People came to me and were like, ‘wow, you played the best match ever in the World Championship’, but I had lost.
“I won the next match like 9-1 or something, but then lost to Kevin Cheng, who won the US Open before. So, I had a tough, tough group actually. I think the experience I had there made my game much, much better because I knew I have a big opportunity to be the world champion one day.”
Having hoisted the World Pool Championship, the US Open Championship and the famous Mosconi Cup before his 22nd birthday, the German phenom had evolved into the considerable force that many aficionados knew he would become. Nowadays, Filler is ranked seventh on the world nineball rankings, but does he believe that he’s currently the best player on the planet?
“I would say shotmaking-wise, I’m not as good as I used to be,” candidly admitted Filler. “But of course the bigger part in the game is the safety play now. Since we changed the breaking rules, I worked a lot in kicking and all the safety games. So, this is what stands out the most right now.
“I’m missing probably more than I used to. But when it comes to tricky plays and being hooked, which happens so often now, I’m coming with a better edge out of it. I think on average my game all in all is probably the best because I’m complete. I’m just looking forward to playing against other players and see what I can still improve and this is really important.”
Filler received $40,000 and $50,000 when winning the 2018 World Championship and the 2019 US Open, although the German now sets his sights on the metamorphic quarter-of-a-million dollars top prize on offer this year in Saudi Arabia. It’s an invigorating $250,000 jackpot that will be prove life-changing for whoever becomes world champion.
“Well, of course, to have it in your mind how big the prize money actually is, it can change your whole life,” Filler smiled. “It’s a lot of money, but we’re playing for a World Championship title which I think is even bigger than any prize money in the world. I don’t think about the money. Of course it helps but it doesn’t change anything for me – it’s just having the titles under my belt.
“You know what it takes to win these titles – it’s just incredible what has to happen. You could see in the past; Francisco came up with crazy shots, which are probably one-in-a-million; Shane was 10-3 down against Mika Immonen. I know how fast the dreams can be over. I hope that luck is on my side because that’s what you need to be a world champion.”
Players will not only require fortune to be in their favour, they will also need to handle the intensified pressure that comes alongside the World Championship and this year’s surge in prize money. Filler will be the overwhelming favourite to reign supreme, but which players in particular are his nearest rivals in the Middle East?
“Well, in my opinion and when I talk to other players about who are the top three players in the world – they are Fedor [Gorst], me and [Eklent] Kaci,” Filler revealed. “I like the way Fedor plays, his jumping abilities are crazy. Kaci, his breaking skills, his pocketing skills, and also kicking and safety makes him a complete player. I think these two opponents are going to be tough.”
Nonetheless, Filler feels a Mohammad Soufi-esque fairytale could unfold, adding: “You can name probably 16 players who can win. But sometimes, out of nowhere, there’s a different player who probably has the luck on his side, playing the best tournament in his life, and can be in the final or probably can win. It’s super tough to name one, two, three players who will win.”
Becoming champion of the world is the feat that players daydream about, the distraction when they are going about their everyday lives, but something that remains a pipe dream for the lion’s share. Filler has realised that dream but envisaging becoming a two-time world champion creates a sense of intense excitement.
“Just by thinking about it, I get goosebumps. Of course I’m going to dream,” Filler said. “But, in the end, if you think about it and get distracted by that, it can affect your game. I would say I’m probably going to cry or whatever, because when I won the World Nineball or US Open, I had tears in my eyes.
“It’s the biggest thing. This is what you work for, like the practice and going into the gym and whatever it takes, you have to take so many sacrifices in your life to win these events. It takes so much time to be so prepared and play so well. If it all pays off on June 8, it’s probably going to be the biggest day in my life.”
