Please note that this is NOT an official website. At this point in time Ronnie O’ Sullivan does not have an official website, nor does he wish to have one.
Yesterday at Ally Pally served us two great matches, one of them was always going to produce a winner I like, the other one no so much … well, ok, I won’t go that route again.
Having cut a dejected figure at last month’s UK Championship, Kyren Wilson was back on form on and off the the table in the opening round of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters, beating Si Jiahui 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals.
The first half of this season was full of obstacles for Wilson as his wife Sophie had serious health issues, while on the baize he lost form and the cue which won him the 2024 World Championship was accidentally broken. His struggles reached a low point when he lost to Elliot Slessor in the opening round in York and he told BBC he was on the edge of a mental breakdown and that he “wanted to smash the place up” in frustration.
Thankfully Sophie’s health has improved and the couple are working on a new initiative which aims to provide a support network to the families of players. World number two Wilson found a new cue before the Scottish Open and on today’s evidence it is working just as well as the old model as he fired as he fired two centuries and two more breaks over 50 in a fine display.
With his natural enthusiasm restored, the 34-year-old can look forward to a meeting with Neil Robertson or Chris Wakelin on Friday evening. It will be his sixth Masters quarter-final and he will be determined to lift the trophy for the first time having finished runner-up in 2018 and 2025.
Wilson got the better of the opening frame, then in the second he potted ten reds with blacks and had his sights set on becoming only the sixth player to make a 147 at the Masters, but with the balls well placed he missed a tricky pot on the 11th red to a top corner.
Si pulled one back with an excellent run of 97 and he had a chance to snatch frame four from 53-0 down, but on a break of 21 he misjudged the black to a top corner, clipping a red first, and Wilson took advantage to lead 3-1 at the interval. Frame five lasted 34 minutes, the longest of the week so far, and was resolved when Si laid a tough snooker on the final yellow then took the chance that followed to halve his deficit.
But Wilson stepped up a gear and finished strongly with breaks of 59, 101 and 105 in the last three frames. Remarkably all five matches so far this week have finished with a 6-2 scoreline.
“I felt really strong out there,” said Kettering’s Wilson. “When you can go out and trust your cue and just play the game, it makes my job an awful lot easier. At 3-2 Si was looking dangerous, he has great technique, so it was important to win the next frame.
“In this era you have to play an attacking game, because grinding out frames takes too much out of you. So I have wanted to speed it up and play in a natural way. I have been playing snooker since I was six so it has always frustrated me when people say I am not a natural player compared to others. It has been nice to put that to bed and play good flowing snooker, and there is no better place to do that than Ally Pally.”
I’m happy for Kyren that the health of his wife, Sophie, is improving. He’s a family man and his wife health problems must have been constantly on his mind every time he was away from home. I’m happy for Sophie as well of course, and for their children. But for Kyren, not being able to provide as much as he certainly wanted to, at a time when the money was particularly needed, with care costs to face and maybe someone needed to help at home when he was away. Not to mention the psychological support Sophie surely needed, and that he only could fully give her by staying at her side, at home.
On his record-extending 32nd consecutive appearance at the Johnstone’s Paint Masters, John Higgins was outstanding in a 6-2 win over Barry Hawkins as he set up a huge quarter-final with Zhao Xintong at Alexandra Palace.
Higgins’ extraordinary longevity at the top of the sport is underlined by the fact that he has been ever present in this tournament since 1995, and now at the age of 50 he is still ranked as high as fifth in the world and is capable of tremendous performances as he proved tonight, making six breaks over 50 and converting almost every long pot he attempted.
It’s 20 years since Scotland’s Higgins won the second of his two Masters titles, beating Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-9 in the 2006 final with one of the all-time great deciding frame clearances. He has also been vulnerable in the first round, losing 16 times out of 31 including each of the last three years. But on this occasion he was by far the stronger player particularly after winning the vital third frame. In an intriguing clash of generations, Higgins will meet World Champion Zhao Xintong at 1pm on Thursday.
The first two frames tonight were shared, then Hawkins had a golden chance in the third but missed a short range black to a top corner on a break of 46 and his opponent punished him with a 71 clearance. Higgins extended his lead to 3-1 with a run of 53 before Hawkins took frame five with a break of 64.
Runs of 99 and 58 put Higgins 5-2 ahead, and though he broke down on 61 in the next, Hawkins’ attempted counter ended when he lost position on the last red. A thumping long pot from Higgins on the red to a top corner sealed the result – and continued the sequence of all matches so far this week finishing 6-2.
“I’m delighted, the way I hit the ball tonight,” said Higgins, who won the World Open and Tour Championship at the tail end of last season. “I was surprised at how well I played because I didn’t practise that much over Christmas then I was out in China, and after that I was stuck for a few days in Amsterdam waiting for a flight home. So it wasn’t the best preparation, but I wanted to enjoy it tonight and that’s half the battle. I have got to the stage in my life where I am just smiling more at events and staying relaxed. Before I was uptight, trying so hard to get ready for matches, but it can’t work like that any more.
“I’ll really look forward to playing Zhao, you go with him because he plays at a really good pace and he’s a great champion. It will take a bit of time for him to settle into consistently being one of the best players. He’ll be looking at guys like Judd Trump and Kyren Wilson and try to emulate them, but he’s well capable of doing that.”
John Higgins is one of the all time greats, of course he is, and his match against Zhao should be tremendous to watch. But yeah … I just hope Zhao wins it. He too made mistakes, but at least he admitted to it, and he had to re-qualify to get back on tour, after a ban that lasted more than just a few weeks, mostly during the “off season” when no event was on.
Three matches into the tournament at Alexandra Palace and three former World Champions have been knocked out, all by a 6-2 scoreline, as Williams joined Shaun Murphy and Mark Selby in suffering early exits. By winning his first ever Masters meeting with Williams, Allen goes through to the quarter-finals and will face either Judd Trump or Ding Junhui next.
World number ten Allen won this title in 2018, beating Kyren Wilson in the final, and is looking to join a group of 12 other players to have lifted the trophy on multiple occasions. For most of last week he was sick in bed but fortunately for the Pistol he was back to full fitness today as he booked an 11th Masters quarter-final.
Allen took the opening frame with a break of 67, then the second was in the balance at 47-47 when Williams stroked an excellent long yellow into a baulk corner and cleared to the blue which proved enough for 1-1. The Welshman then got the better of a scrappy third to go ahead, before Northern Ireland’s Allen took the fourth with runs of 54 and 28.
Williams had a scoring chance early in frame five, but on 13 he missed a short range red to a top corner and Allen punished him with 60 to regain the lead. Riding the wave of momentum, Allen fired a break of 125 to go 4-2 ahead then dominated frame seven with a run of 70. In a fragmented eighth, Williams trailed 40-10 when he overcut a tricky red to a top corner, and that proved his last shot as Allen added the points he needed.
“I was in a bad way last week but I was never pulling out, I would have played sick if I’d needed to,” insisted Allen, who turns 40 next month. “These are the events that your career is judged on.
“I can’t believe it’s eight years since I won it because it feels like yesterday – I can tell you every emotion I went through in those last few shots and in the celebration afterwards with my dad.
“Any win against Mark is a big one, I played some good stuff particularly after the interval and I felt 6-2 was a fair scoreline.
“Both Ding and Judd have had quiet seasons by their very high standards to they will be looking to put something right this week.”
Williams, whose highest break was just 36, said: “I was poor. That’s what I expect, it will probably happen to me more and more and I just accept it. I tried my best but my boy (son Joel) could have had bigger breaks than me. I made it easy for Mark.“
Zhao Xintong raised his hopes of becoming the first Asian player to complete snooker’s Triple Crown as he beat Gary Wilson 6-2 in the first round of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters.
Though he admits that playing as reigning World Champion adds extra pressure, Zhao swept to a comfortable victory tonight to notch a first win in this event, as his only previous appearance at Alexandra Palace ended in defeat against John Higgins in 2022. This time he will meet Higgins or Barry Hawkins in the quarter-finals on Thursday afternoon. Zhao is one of a record five Chinese players in the draw and already three of those are into the last eight, as Wu Yize and Xiao Guodong also progressed on Sunday.
UK Champion in 2021, Zhao went on to become the first Asian to conquer the Crucible last Spring, so he needs only the Masters to become the 12th player to lift all three Triple Crown trophies. The 28-year-old’s knack of making snooker look ridiculously easy was evident tonight as he rattled in five breaks over 50.
Wilson took the opening frame with a break of 76 but scored just ten points in the next four frames as Zhao surged ahead with runs of 50, 51, 54 and 72. The sixth went Wilson’s way and he had chances in the seventh, but crucially missed a tricky green with the rest to a baulk corner, then botched his next safety shot on the green, gifting his opponent the opening to go 5-2 ahead. That ended Wilson’s hopes of a fight back as Zhao wrapped it up in the next with a run of 67, ensuring that all four matches so far this week have finished 6-2.
“I really enjoyed tonight, I heard lot of Chinese fans and I got more confidence from their support,” said Zhao. “Gary is a very good player and he started well, after the first frame I made sure I concentrated and I believed I could play well.
“It’s a surprise and very good news to have five Chinese players still here. Chinese snooker is much better than before and hopefully in the future we can have even more players in the Masters because it’s an amazing event.
“I definitely have big pressure since I won the world title. I don’t think about it until I get to the venue then get close to the table, then I feel it. But I try to enjoy that pressure.”
Wilson, who has now lost his opening tie in all three Masters appearances, said: “I was very chilled out there tonight but I knew deep down I was not cueing well enough, I am cueing like a bad amateur. The better player won. You go out there wanting to put on some kind of performance and I am just nowhere near the player I should be. I used to be a far better player than this.”
Those reports are comprehensive enough and I don’t have much to add. In the evening match, Zhao played well and he’s very good to watch too when on his game. It was a one-sided match, but it was entertaining. The afternoon match was painful to watch at times, as both players struggled. All credits to Mark Allen for battling hard through illness.
About illnesses …
Ronnie has withdrawn from this event citing medical reasons. What exactly those reasons are wasn’t disclosed. Of course Ronnie has a history of mental health struggles and it was natural to assume this was (part of) the reasons for his withdrawal. However, several sources on social media and in the press have revealed that Laila Rouass, Ronnie’s wife, is ill with an incurable disease. From what transpired, it’s not life threatening but it’s something that causes her to “lose control over her body”, without more details. Of course we, the public, have NO “right to know”. However this opens the real possibility that Ronnie is actually prioritising staying with her if he feels she needs/wants his presence during this challenging period in her life over adding more titles to his impressive CV. That would definitively be the right thing to do.
The first day at the 2026 Masters didn’t go the way most expected. Two debutants, two Chinese players, were due to play against very experienced and successful English top players, both former winners of this very special event. Not many expected them to do well, never-mind to win their match, but that’s exactly what they did. Wu Yize and Xiao Guodong will meet each other in the quarter-finals at the Palace and hereafter are the reports by WST about their matches and wins.
China’s new sensation Wu Yize enjoyed an outstanding debut at the Johnstone’s Paint Masters as he ended Shaun Murphy’s hopes of back-to-back titles with a 6-2 victory on the opening day at Alexandra Palace.
Murphy, who beat Kyren Wilson in last year’s final, had hoped to become the first player to win this event in consecutive years since Ronnie O’Sullivan in 2016 and 2017. But in front of a packed crowd of 2,200 he was out-foxed by the brilliant 22-year-old Wu, who won his first ranking title at the International Championship in November, a result which boosted him into the world’s top 16 and earned him a first appearance in snooker’s biggest invitation event.
A disappointed Murphy told BBC: “I’ve looked forward to today since last year. It was the worst performance of my season, and maybe my worst ever performance at the Masters. I’m gutted, very below par. Everything I touched went wrong. None of my game performed well, but I’ve got absolutely no idea why. I’ve been working hard on my game, practising hard, playing a lot of snooker since the UK Championship, I didn’t expect to play like that. I’m as shocked as anyone.”
“Wu looked calm, he looked at ease. He’s a wonderful talent; he played really well today. He fully deserved his win, and he’ll be a handful for whoever he plays next.”
Wu dominated the opening exchanges, winning the first three frames with a top break of 137. Murphy, who also won this event in 2015, pulled one back but made a crucial error in frame five as an attempted safety on the last red left it over a baulk corner, handing Wu the chance to clear for 4-1.
Murphy dominated frame six, but Wu’s run of 56 in the seventh put him 5-2 ahead. Leading 50-23 in the eighth, Murphy ran out of position and played safe, and could only sit and watch as Wu cracked in a superb long red to set up a match-winning 44 clearance. He goes through to face Xiao Guodong or Mark Selby in the quarter-finals.
Wu said: “Coming down the stairs at the start of the match, it was exactly the stage I had dreamed of as a child. I felt proud of myself, to say the least. I was a bit lost in that moment. I don’t think Shaun played well either today. I played some good shots, but there were also some terrible mistakes. When it came down to crucial moments, I think my consistency gave me a slight edge in a few situations, and helped me to win. I just keep practising, staying in form, while waiting for my next match, and not putting too much pressure on myself.“
Mark Selby became the second multiple champion to lose to a debutant on the opening day of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters as he was beaten 6-2 by Xiao Guodong.
Following Wu Yize’s victory over Shaun Murphy earlier today, China’s Xiao followed up with an equally impressive win over an English all-time great. Having won the Wuhan Open in each of the last two seasons, Xiao has climbed into the elite top 16, and he proved his class tonight at Alexandra Palace with a century and four more breaks over 60 as he outplayed three-time Masters king Selby.
Xiao and Wu will now clash in the quarter-finals in London. It’s the first time since 2009 that two debutants have won their opening match in this event – on that occasion Mark Allen and Ricky Walden were the successful first-timers.
Selby looked the man to beat this week having won the Champion of Champions and UK Championship before Christmas, but his hopes of landing an 11th Triple Crown title were prematurely quashed.
Xiao, age 36, was near-flawless in the early stages as breaks of 95, 62, 76 and 77 put him 4-0 ahead. After the interval the momentum changed and Selby battled back to 4-2 with runs of 101 and 76. But the four-time World Champion missed a routine blue to centre early in frame seven which handed the initiative back to Xiao as a superb 118 made it 5-2.
Selby had a chance to snatch frame eight from 33-7 behind but missed a difficult final yellow along the baulk cushion, handing Xiao the opportunity to make a winning clearance which included an excellent pot on the brown to a centre pocket.
“When the draw came out I knew this would be a very tough game, especially as Mark has recently won two big tournaments,” said Xiao. “Perhaps nobody thought I could win. I just told myself to be confident and enjoy it. In the first four frames I put Mark under pressure and didn’t miss many balls. But I knew he would come back. The seventh frame was very important and when he missed the blue I made a century. At 4-3 it would have been very different.
“When Wu Yize first came to the UK for the first time we played together every day, we are good friends. One of us will go through to the semi-finals so it’s great for Chinese players.”
Selby said: “I didn’t have many chances in the first four frames, Xiao played really well. Then at 4-2 at I was trying to grip the blue to hold for the red, flicked a bit of side on it and missed it. If I had won that frame I would have fancied winning the match because I had the momentum. But Xiao did what he did all night, punished my mistakes. I am gutted because I came here feeling good and playing well. Even though I have lost I still feel good about my game.”
I like both of them. I got to meet Xiao many times and I always admired his mindset. I know that I wrote this before but, for not everyone is reading this blog every day for years, so I’ll say it again. Xiao arrived in the UK not speaking English at all. I met him at the South West Snooker Academy back then. He was a hard worker from the start, but he was also the one Chinese player who invested himself into learning the local language and socialise outside the “Chinese group”. He’s also someone who always tries to react positively to setbacks. One year, after losing at the World Qualifiers he was extremely disappointed but instead of retreating into himself, he went out and got his hair dyed in bright pink. He then came back to the venue, to watch and support the other Chinese lads who were still in the competition. I never met Wu but I like his game and his demeanour around the table. Yesterday I was disappointed though … what happened to your mullet, Wu? 💔
Jimmy White scored his first win since September as he beat Sunny Akani 4-1 to reach the final qualifying round of the BetVictor Welsh Open.J
Legend White, age 63, has been ever present on the tour since 1980 and retains his enthusiasm for competing at the top level. He fired breaks of 54, 54 and 56 today as he set up a match with David Lilley on Saturday, with the winner to go through to the final stages in Llandudno next month.
At the other end of the age scale, 14-year-old Michal Szubarczyk, the youngest ever pro player, enjoyed a 4-0 victory over Hatem Yassen with a top run of 61. The Polish teenager now meets Jamie Jones.
Marco Fu came from 2-0 down to beat Xu Yichen 4-3 with breaks of 76, 56, 100 and 95. Liam Pullen top scored with 102 in a 4-1 win over Ken Doherty while Iran’s Amir Sarkhosh edged out Welsh wild card Riley Powell 4-3.
Luca Brecel booked his place in the televised stages of the BetVictor Welsh Open with a 4-3 defeat of Farakh Ajaib in the final qualifying round.
Crucible king in 2023, Brecel has since slipped to 43rd in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings and the Belgian’s quest to battle his way back up the list will be boosted by today’s result which earned him a spot in Llandudno next month.
After winning the first two frames, Brecel then lost three in a row, but recovered to take the last two for a narrow victory.
Michal Szubarczyk, who turns 15 on Monday, continued to shine in his first pro season as he beat Jamie Jones 4-2 with top breaks of 74 and 98.
Lyu Haotian made a 139 in going 2-0 up but eventually lost 4-3 to Sam Craigie, while Hungary’s Bulcsu Revesz impressed in a 4-0 win over Noppon Saengkham. Switzerland’s Alexander Ursenbacher top scored with 91 as he beat in-form Matthew Selt 4-2.
Robbie McGuigan enjoyed a 4-1 win over Daniel Wells, while Stan Moody saw off Ian Burns by the same scoreline. Iran’s Amir Sarkhosh came from 3-1 down to beat Scott Donaldson. Matthew Stevens missed out on his home event as he lost 4-2 to Mitchell Mann, while Liam Pullen edged out 2023 winner Robert Milkins 4-3. Jimmy White’s hopes of making the final stages ended with a 4-1 defeat against David Lilley.
As so often those reports focus more on UK players than on other countries/nations.
The big positive I take from the event is how well the players from mainland Europe did, and the young ones is particular. Indeed Julien Leclercq, Ben Mertens, Antoni Kowalski, Artemijs Zizins, Michal Szubarczyk, Alexander Ursenbacher, Bulcsú Révész and Luca Brecel all made it to the main event. From the mainland Europe group of professionals, only Florian Nüßle , Mateusz Baranowski and Iulian Boiko failed to qualify. Iulian Boiko played Ben Mertens so one of them would go out, inevitably.
On the other hand, none of the women went through. Bai Yulu lost to Haris Tahir, by 4-3, despite making breaks of 57, 58 and 110 whilst Tahir didn’t score a single break over 50…
Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the Johnstone’s Paint Masters for medical reasons.
O’Sullivan was due to face Neil Robertson in the opening round on Wednesday January 14th at 7pm. He has been replaced in the draw by Chris Wakelin who was 17th seed at the cut-off point.
The tournament at Alexandra Palace in London run from January 11-18.
I’m not sure what the real issue is but this is becoming seriously worrying, especially knowing that he traveled to Ireland to prepare for this event. Whatever it is, I wish Ronnie, and those close to him, the best for the future. 😟
Two-time Machineseeker German Masters champion Ali Carter booked his return to the Tempodrom with a 5-2 victory over Ricky Walden in the final qualifying round.
Carter has enjoyed outstanding success in this event as he lifted the trophy in 2013 and 2023 as well as reaching the final in 2017. And the 46-year-old can look forward to another trip to Berlin as breaks of 104 and 71 helped him beat Walden and reach the last 32.
Luca Brecel’s hopes of climbing back up the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings suffered another blow as he lost 5-4 to David Gilbert, who took the last two frames with runs of 107 and 61. Jack Lisowski top scored with 96 in a 5-1 success against Lan Yuhao.
Stuart Bingham made a 124 as he whitewashed Ken Doherty 5-0 while Belgian Beast Julien Leclercq continued his fine recent form with a 5-3 win over Yuan Sijun.
China’s Gao Yang edged out Stephen Maguire 5-4, while Elliot Slessor built on his career-best season as he top scored with 104 in a 5-0 win over Liam Highfield.
Si Jiahui came from 2-0 down in the final to defeat Leicester’s Joe O’Connor 3-2 on his home turf and win Group 3 at the BetVictor Championship League Invitational.
The afternoon saw the round robin phase of the group conclude, with Wuhan Open champion Xiao Guodong finishing top ahead of Yuan Sijun in second, O’Connor in third and Si in fourth. Si had to beat O’Connor his last match to edge into the semis and he did just that by a 3-1 scoreline.
A break of 73 in the deciding frame from Si was enough for him to beat Xiao 3-2, while O’Connor top scored with 125 in a 3-1 defeat of Yuan.
The final saw O’Connor charge to the verge of victory, but breaks of 65 and 97 helped Si take the last three frames and earn his progression. He will return to Leicester in February for the next phase.
Xiao will join Kyren Wilson, Neil Robertson, Zhao Xintong, Gary Wilson, Ben Woollaston and Matthew Selt in a star studded group 4, which begins tomorrow.
I can’t comment on this leg of the 2025/26 CLS, my attention yesterday being mainly on the ongoing 2026 German Masters qualifiers. Maybe my memory is failing me but I can’t remember such a strong presence of the Chinese players in this event in the previous years.
Group 4 starts today with, amongst others, Kyren Wilson, Neil Robertson, Zhao Xintong in the field. It’s probably not by chance that those three enter the competition at this stage. Whatever the outcome for them tomorrow, it’s very valuable practice ahead of the 2026 Masters.
Ronnie O'Sullivan 