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.
Ronnie O’Sullivan: ‘If my son wants to play Snooker 900, I’ll tell him to go for it’
O’Sullivan is a key part of Snooker 900, which is broadcast live on Pluto TV.
Ryan Smart
Ronnie O’Sullivan says he has never encouraged his son, Ronnie Jr, to take up professional snooker – but won’t stand in his way when it comes to Snooker 900.
Seven-time world championĀ O’SullivanĀ is heavily involved in the project of Snooker 900, a faster-paced format founded by promoter and agent Jason Francis which sees frames played over 15 minutes and with shot clocks in operation.
He co-launched a dedicated, 24/7 snooker channel onĀ Pluto TVĀ last year, which broadcasts up to 18 hours of live snooker every week including all Snooker 900 events.
The concept has attracted some of snooker’s big-name stars, with the likes ofĀ Neil Robertson, John Higgins, Luca Brecel andĀ Jimmy WhiteĀ competing in events.
Robertson called the rules for Snooker 900 ‘the most fun I’ve had playing snooker’ after he took part for the first time last year.
When the channel was launched in October, O’Sullivan spoke about how he felt the format was bringing back ‘grassroots snooker’ and, as well as the senior events, there are also tournaments for junior, amateur and disability snooker players.
In April,Ā ‘The Rocket’ won the inaugural Global Snooker 900 Championship, taking home the Ā£25,000 top prize and beating 2023 world champion Luca Brecel on the way.
Now, O’Sullivan has opened up on the next steps for Snooker 900 – and has reiterated his hopes of setting up a specialised tour over the coming years.
“My legacy would be, providing a tour, and a summer camp for juniors where they’re just playing 900,” O’Sullivan said in a new interview with Pluto TV, which is releasing on Monday.
“They’ve got choices now – football, tennis and golf. We need to give them the snooker option. I feel like the 15 minute frames just keeps it modern day – it’s enough, it’s perfect. Everyone gets what they need out of it.
“It’s something I would encourage juniors to play. We’ll have some academies where they can go and learn 900, and go and be an expert.
“We want to encourage everyone. It’s a level playing field, anyone can do it. Your talent can be [smaller] and you can still make it, I think.“
O’Sullivan, one of the quickest players on the professional snooker circuit, says he enjoys the 15-minute concept – because there is a set start point and end point to every match.
“The biggest thing is, it gives structure. If I play at 12, I’m done by 2:30. I can have a nice lunch and time to have a sleep,” he explains.
“I have time to come back, have a shower, get warmed up for the evening session. I’ve already planned what I’m doing tonight. I know I’m going to be back in Woodford probably around half 10.
“If I was playing in a normal tournament, I don’t know what’s going to happen. My wife knows [in a Snooker 900 tournament] I’m going to be home at half 10, and she’s like, ‘Cool’, and can get on with her day. Everyone’s happy.
“You see it at Wimbledon sometimes. The rain starts and the players are there for about six or seven hours. It must be awful for them. We do that on the main tour.“
‘You’ve got one or two hours of pain, but enjoyment‘
O’Sullivan has repeatedly stated in the past that he wouldn’t want his children to play snooker – comments that did bring with them some negative reactions from other players.
In 2022, he toldĀ EurosportĀ that he ‘just wouldn’t want my child to live that life‘, adding: “I want them to be out in the fresh air. I want them to have a good life … I kind of just think, would I want my child to grow up in that environment? Would I want my child to go through what I went through?“
But he now says that, when it comes to Snooker 900 tournaments, he would be more than willing to encourage them to play if they wanted to.
“It’s a great format. Snooker is a hard game. If you’ve played traditional snooker, it’s a tough game,” O’Sullivan stated.
“I’d never say to my son, ‘Play snooker’. I try to take him away from it. But if he says, ‘I want to play 900’, I’ll go, ‘Yeah, fine’. You’ve got one hour or two hours of pain, but enjoyment. It’s fun. It’s good. Go for it.”
There has been increasing talk over the past 12 months of what life beyond the main snooker tour holds for O’Sullivan, given he operated on a part-time schedule during the 2025/26 season.
He stated in April that he was ‘working with the sponsors and promoters on my schedule‘, but hasn’t yet announced what that schedule will entail in terms of specific events.
But ‘The Rocket’ says he is reassured by what Snooker 900 can offer as he transitions to a new stage of his career.
“I love the way that Jason has kept it as a kind of club atmosphere. Growing up as kids in the snooker clubs… I’ve always said they were probably the happiest days of my life, playing in that environment. The atmosphere, really intimate – it’s exciting.
“Someone like me, or John Higgins, we’ve always got an eye on life after the main tour. It kind of gives you that hope to keep playing against top-level players, and being able to adapt and compete and give back to the fans.”
Snooker 900 is available to watch live and exclusively on Pluto TV. The interview with Ronnie O’Sullivan will be available to watch live tonight at 11pm BST, or on demand from Tuesday 7th July.
New interview episodes drop daily throughout the week, featuring exclusive interviews with snooker greats including Cliff Thorburn. Catch them all entirely for free and on demand on Pluto TV.
It’s nice to see Ronnie being enthusiastic about something snooker, and I can’t praise Jason enough for all the creativity he has shown and the work he has put in for years now, trying to develop and promote the sport.
There is one big negative point though … going by a recent tweet, Jason seems to be convinced that Pluto TV is available worldwide. It’s not. It’s only available in the UK … unless you use a virtual private network (vpn) to cheat the system…
The Championship League Snooker Ranking Edition is the first ranking event of the season, and it has been that way for some years now. A lot of fans dislike the event, I’m not one of them. Yes, it does go on forever, and, yes, it’s not the easiest tournament to follow … but, in my opinion at least it has its merits.
For a start, it’s open to all pros, and everyone starts at the same stage. No qualifiers behind closed doors here. All matches are streamed on Youtube, absolutely all of them. This makes this event a good opportunity for fans of the sport1 to watch every player in action, notably the rookies on tour.
No matter how well, or how bad, they perform, players are guaranteed three matches as a minimum. That makes it a good opportunity for rookies to gain experience against pros of different strength, playing various “styles” of snooker.
Ian Burns won Group 2. He won all his matches. He lost just one frame all day. Mark Williams was due to play in this group but withdrew.
Dylan Emery won Group 3. Only three matches were played. This group was supposed to feature Kyren Wilson. Kyren though withdrew after learning that his house had been burgled. Here is what he shared on social media.
Iulian Boiko won Group 4. Both him and Lan Yuhao played 3 matches, finished on 7 points, won 2 matches, drew 1, won 11 frames, lost 3. Eventually, who had made the highest break was the decisive factor. That’s harsh … especially considering that this event is ranking. It may not be big money but it could still be decisive come the end of the season.
Chris Wakelin won Group 5. Both him and Luke Pinches, Barry’s son, finished on 6 points, but Chris prevailed, having won more frames than Luke. It was a bizarre group. Strangely enough, Chris lost his first match against French amateur Brian Ochoiski by 3-1 and Luke Pinches was only in the draw because Sam Craigie withdrew.
Dean Young won Group 8. Dean was the only amateur in that group, a group that featured Theppy, the 8th seed in the event. Reanne Evans featured in that group. She finished last, with two losses and a draw … against Theppy, strangely enough. Now, possibly, Theppy was only just back from Thailand and still jet-lagged …
Elliot Slessor won Group 9. Elliot was undefeated, he won two matches and drew one. Also featuring in this group was Robert Milkins, twice a ranking event winner. Rob finished last though, winning just two frames all day …
Zhang Anda won Group 10, with three wins out of three.
Ali Carter won Group 12, with two wins and a draw. Jamie Jones also featured in that group, and he also won two and drew one. Ali Carter though lost only 3 frames all day whilst Jamie lost 4 frames.
Gary Wilson won Group 14. He was the only undefeated player in that group.
Pang Junxu won Group 15 despite winning just one match. It was a very “close” group, with four of the six matches ending in a draw.
Lei Peifan won Group 16. Lei and Ishpreet Singh Chadha were the only players to win matches in that group. Both won two matches, but crucially Lei defeated Ishpreet Singh Chadha in the last match on the day in that group.
Liu Hongyu topped Group 17. He was the only undefeated player in that group. New professional, Paul Norris, who will turn 60 in about a month, had a difficult debut to say the least … he didn’t win a match and, actually, won just one frame all day.
Hossein Vafaei won Group 18, with two wins and a draw. Rookie pro, Oliver Sykes also had a difficult professional debut. He won just one frame all day, that, bizarrely, came against Hossein, the eventual Group winner.
Stephen Maguire won Group 19. Every player involved in that group lost one match, just one … each… On Yee Ng was involved in that group and she finished last. It’s a harsh outcome as she only lost one match, against Maguire the eventual group winner, she got a draw in the other two matches and she showed some good things TBF. She lacks cue powerĀ§ and she could be more aggressive maybe. Her determination can’t be questioned though.
Scott Donaldson won Group 20. Bai Yulu was playing in this group and finished last. After the worst possible start, a 3-0 defeat to Yuan Sijun, the highest ranked player in the group, in the very first match on the day, Bai managed to get two draws, one of those against the eventual group winner. Harsh.
David Gilbert won Group 21. He got 2 wins and a draw. Bizarrely the draw came against Mahmoud El Hareedy, from Egypt who got his tour card by becomingĀ “All Africa Snooker Champion” last year. Ā Last season, Mahmoud won only one match, in the first round of the 2026 German Masters qualifiers, against Amir Sarkosh…
Jak Jones won Group 22. Now this is an odd one! The only player who was undefeated in that group on the day was Alfie Burden … who finished last š³. The other three players involved in the group all had one win, one draw and one defeat. It all came to frame difference for them.
Jimmy Robertson won Group 23, with one win and two draws. The key factor was that he was the only undefeated player in that group.
If anything, Group 24 was even “closer”. All four players won one match, just one. Xu Si prevailed because he remained undefeated. Julien Leclercq and Michael Holt had one win, one draw and one defeat. Julien earned the second place on frame difference. Craig Steadman was last with two defeats.
Group 25 was really extraordinary. Every match, other than the first one finished on a draw. Jackson Page, who had beaten Ashley Hugill by 3-1 in the first match to finish on the day, won the group.
Chang Bingyu won Group 27 . He only lost one frame all day, to Jamie Clarke. Four of the six matches ended on a 3-0 score, the other two on a 3-1 score. No draw in this group…
He Guoqiang won Group 28 in similar fashion. He lost just one frame, to Liu Yang who came second in the group. Liu Yang is a new professional, 22 years old. This group originally featured Anthony Mc Gill. Anthony withdrew though and was replaced by Dylan Smith, a 18 years old amateur from England. Dylan won just one frame, the very first played on the day. He won it in style though … with a break of 78.
Group 29 proved to be even more extraordinary. In that group, three players, Noppon Saengkham, Liam Davies and Ben Woollaston, finished with two wins and one defeat, all three had played 11 frames, won 7, lost 4. The break to got Noppon the win, a 123, came in the last match on the day and that was actually the only match he lost … š³
Stan Moody won Group 30, with two wins and a draw. He made breaks of 52, 59, 68, 70, 73, 109 and 135 in the process… not too shabby!
The following announcement was shared by WST yesterday:
Shenzhen Open Added To Calendar As Xiāan Event Relocates
The Shenzhen Open world ranking event will be staged for the first time this season, replacing the Xiāan Grand Prix.
The dates will remain the same with the final stages to be played from September 28th to October 4th, 2026.
Shenzhen is located in the Guangdong Province in southern China, known for its cutting edge technology and economic growth. With a population of 17 million, it is the third largest city in China after Beijing and Shanghai. It is also the home of 2025 World Champion Zhao Xintong.
The qualifying rounds in the UK will run from July 19th to 22nd. The format has a tiered structure with three qualifying rounds, and the top 16 seeds have their round three (last 64) matches held over to the venue in Shenzhen.
Total prize money will be Ā£850,000, with the winner to receive Ā£177,000. Mark Williams will be defending champion having won the title in Xiāan last year
Simon Brownell, Chief Executive Officer of WST, said: āWe are thrilled to be bringing a huge event to the incredible city of Shenzhen for the first time. The fans there will get the opportunity to watch their heroes play live and it will be a fantastic experience for the top players to visit another new city in China, as our sport continues to grow across the region.ā
The Xiāan Grand Prix was staged in Xiāan in the Shaanxi Province in 2024 and 2025.
Nothing to add really… let’s hope that it’s a success, and that the event will be well attended. With such a huge population and being home to the first Chinese World Snooker Champion it should be. If it isn’t then something is badly wrong somewhere…
The quarter-finals for all four BetVictor Home Nations events in the 2026/27 season will change from best of nine frames to best of 11.
There is also a change in format with the Friday afternoon quarter-finals to be played concurrently on two tables from 1pm, rather than the previous roll-on roll-off format from 12pm. The evening quarter-finals on the same day will be on two tables from 7pm as usual.
This change has been made after discussions with host broadcasters TNT Sports and BBC Wales, taking into account the preference among fans and players for longer matches at the deep end of tournaments.
The four events are:
BetVictor English Open The Brentwood CentreĀ September 7-13.Ā
BetVictor Northern Ireland Open Waterfront Hall, Belfast October 18-25.
BetVictor Scottish Open The Meadowbank Centre, EdinburghĀ December 14-20.
BetVictor Welsh Open Venue Cymru, Llandudno Ā February 8-14, 2027.Ā
Overall I believe that this is a good move, but then, if fans expressed their preference for longer matches, why not make the earlier stages longer as well? Maybe, the issue with the earlier stages is the number of tables used simultaneously? Moving to best of 9 would almost certainly mean adding an interval, and with that having to cope with fans leaving and rejoining the arena while several matches are still in progress on close-by tables.
The draw and match schedule for the final stages of the China Open is now available, as the world ranking event returns to the calendar for the first time in seven years.
Neil Robertson is defending champion having beaten Jack Lisowski in the final in 2019. He will take on Chang Bingyu in his opening match on Monday August 10th. Wold Champion Wu Yize is in action on the first day, Saturday August 8th, and faces Yao Pengcheng. Two of the qualifiers, Anthony McGill and Hossein Vafaei, have been drawn at random to face local wild cards before the last 32 round.
Taiyuan, which is the capital city of the Shanxi Province in North China, will host the tournament from August 8-16.
Under a joint project between WST, the Chinese Billiard Sports Association, the Shanxi Provincial Sports Bureau, the Taiyuan Municipal Government and Huajian Sports Holding Group Co Ltd, co-organized by the Shanxi Provincial National Fitness Guidance Center, the Taiyuan Sports Bureau and Huajian Culture Media Technology (Shanxi) Co Ltd, the event will have huge prize money of Ā£1.2 million. The nine-day event will have 32 players in the final stages and matches will be best of 11 frames from the start, on two tables.
The China Open is among snookerās most historic and prestigious international events as it was first staged in 1999 in Shanghai, won by Ronnie O’Sullivan. In 2005 it was held in Beijing and won by an 18-year-old Ding Junhui, beating Stephen Hendry in the final. This was a key moment in the growth of snooker in China and the arrival of Ding as a national hero.
Liam Davies won a young-guns battle against Liam Pullen by a 5-3 scoreline to reach the second qualifying round of the Wuhan Open.
Welsh 19-year-old Davies was relegated from the tour at the end of last season but regained his card via Q School and now hopes to climb the rankings. In last week’s China Open qualifiers he suffered a surprise 6-5 defeat against Chatchapong Nasa, but he hit back today with a fine win over 20-year-old Pullen.
From 2-0 down, Davies took the next three frames with breaks of 97, 91 and 58, and despite losing the sixth he won the next two to set up a meeting with Martin O’Donnell, with the winner to go through to Wuhan in August to face Ding Junhui.
Canada’s Sahil Nayyar enjoyed a 5-1 win over Fergal Quinn while China’s promising Wang Xinbo notched the first victory of his rookie season, beating Liam Graham 5-1
Ukraine’s Michael Larkov top scored with 85 in a 5-3 defeat of Antoni Kowalski, while Gong Chenzhi came from 3-0 down to beat Liam Highfield 5-4 with top runs of 113 and 101.
Mitchell Mann came from 4-2 down to edge out Iulian Boiko 5-4, while China’s Gao Yang beat Bai Yulu 5-1 with runs of 59, 91, 100, 67 and 95.
Jiang Jun recovered a 3-2 deficit to beat Jimmy White 5-3 with a top break of 102, while Austria’s top player Florian Nuessle top scored with 96 in a 5-2 defeat of David Grace.
Steven Hallworth outplayed former World Champion Luca Brecel in a 5-1 victory to reach the final qualifying round of the Wuhan Open.
World number 92 Hallworth took the last four frames to score an emphatic win over 2023 Crucible king Brecel. On Thursday morning, Hallworth will meet Zhang Anda with the winner to go through to Wuhan in August.
China’s Yao Pengcheng, who won three matches to qualify for the China Open last week, kept up his perfect start to the season as he beat Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon 5-2 with a top break of 106. Aaron Hill is also unbeaten so far in Leicester and he saw off Luo Zetao 5-0 with top breaks of 122 and 102.
Ukraine’s Anton Kazakov battled to a 5-4 victory over Marco Fu, while tour rookie Oliver Sykes top scored with 87 in a 5-3 win over Ross Muir.
Stan Moody notched his first win of the season as he beat Mahmoud El Hareedy 5-2 to to reach the final qualifying round of the Wuhan Open.
Rising star Moody, age 19, failed to qualify for the China Open as he lost 6-3 to Fan Zhengyi last week, but he bounced back today with a comfortable victory over El Hareedy, highlighted by a break of 90 in the second frame. Moody will take on Stephen Maguire in round three on Thursday with the winner to go through to Wuhan in August.
Chang Bingyu made a 138 in a 5-2 win over Huang Jiahao, while Shoot Out champion Alfie Burden enjoyed a 5-4 success against Long Zehuang. The top 16 seeds are held over to the venue in round three (last 64) which means that Burden will take on Shaun Murphy in Wuhan. Liu Hongyu made a 127 in a 5-2 win over Phil O’Kane and he will now face John Higgins. Two-time champion Xiao Guodong will start the defence of his title against Wang Xinbo, who beat Scott Donaldson 5-1.
Latvia’s Artemijs Zizins compiled two runs of 136 as he beat David Lilley 5-2, and he’ll take on World Champion Wu Yize in Wuhan.
Yao Pengcheng kept up his perfect start to the season as he won his sixth consecutive match, white-washing Jack Lisowski 5-0 to qualify for the final stages of the Wuhan Open.
China’s 29-year-old Yao, playing his second season on the pro tour, won three matches in Leicester last week to qualify for the China Open, and has registered another trio of victories this week to book his place in Wuhan in August. Against Lisowski he fired breaks of 108, 52, 53, 57 and 106 to win in just 71 minutes.
Gary Wilson edged out Aaron Hill 5-4, gaining revenge for a 6-5 reverse against the same player last week. From 3-1 down, Wilson hit back to 4-4, then recovered a 62-0 deficit in the decider to make a superb 65 clearance.
Steven Hallworth followed up Tuesday’s win over Luca Brecel by beating Zhang Anda 5-4 with a top run of 100. Daniel Wells top scored with 117 in a 5-1 defeat of Stuart Bingham.
Dylan Emery fired runs of 104 and 90 as he beat Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 53, while Stephen Maguire enjoyed a 5-2 success against Stan Moody. Chang Bingyu came from 2-0 down to beat Joe O’Connor 5-2.
It’s very difficult to fully follow those qualifiers, simply because of the number of simultaneous matches.
One player in particular impressed me and that is Yao Pencheng. He has qualified for both the 2026 China Open and the 2026 Yuhan Open final stages. He’s not a kid, he’s 29. He’s in the second year of his first tour card. He is good tactically but he is also a heavy scorer in the balls. Hereafter, for instance, are the scores for his withewas of Jack Lisowski:
Remember, Jack was the highest ranked player in the draw …
In the 2026 China Open qualifiers, he had beaten Theppy, the second highest ranked seed in the draw.
He could be Ronnie’s opponent in the first round proper at the venue in Wuhan … provided that Ronnie actually turns up1 and beats Ashley Carty in his first match.
Jimmy White started his 47th consecutive professional season with a fine display as he beat Sean O’Sullivan 6-2 in the first qualifying round of the China Open.
All-time legend White, who turned pro in 1980, is still competing at the top level at the age of 64 and looked full of enthusiasm as a century break helped him to a resounding victory. He meets Louis Heathcote in round two on Thursday in Leicester and needs three more wins to reach the final stages in Taiyuan, China, in August.
After losing the opening frame, White hit back to take the next three. He lost the fifth but again won three in a row, making breaks of 112 and 59. “I’m delighted with the win and I played well,” said the Whirlwind. “We go again tomorrow. I still love the game and I have been working hard on the practice table. I’m happy to for Sean to be back on the tour because snooker is in his blood.”
Oliver Sykes, by contrast, played as a pro for the first time and the promising 20-year-old Englishman enjoyed a superb 6-1 win over Liu Wenwei with a top break of 92.
Thailand’s Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon returned to the tour for the first time in ten years and top scored with 121 in a 6-3 defeat of Joshua Thomond. Another Thai, Chatchapong Nasa, recovered from 4-0 down to beat Liam Davies 6-5.
Austria’s top player Florian Nuessle won only three matches in his first season as a pro but he made a strong start to his second campaign, beating Allan Taylor 6-2 with top breaks of 118 and 103. Andrew Higginson showed his break-building quality in a 6-4 win over Leone Crowley, compiling runs of 90, 89, 51, 70, 113 and 123.
Jamie Clarke, back on tour after a one year hiatus, came from 4-0 down to beat Anton Kazakov 6-4 with a top run of 74. Julian Leclercq recovered a 4-3 deficit to beat Ashley Hugill 6-4 with a top break of 100.
Marco Fu was in magnificent form in a 6-1 win over Oliver Brown as he made a fine start to the 2026/27 season in the second qualifying round of the China Open.
Hong Kong’s greatest player Fu, age 48, enjoyed some impressive results last season, notably reaching the last 16 of the World Open, and hopes to continue that momentum this term. And he was at the top of his game in Leicester today, making breaks of 79, 78, 58, 84, 134 and 62, with an average shot time of 18.3 seconds.
He meets Hossein Vafaei on Friday and needs two more wins to make it to the final stages in Taiyuan in August.
Canada’s Sahil Nayyar enjoyed a 6-1 win over Liu Yang, while Duane Jones came from 3-0 down to beat Alexander Ursenbacher 6-5, making breaks of 74, 66, 114, 64 and 86 then taking the decider on the final pink.
Liam Highfield was another to score heavily as he knocked in 86, 135, 77 and 103 during a 6-2 defeat of Florian Nuessle. China’s Lyu Haotian saw off Julien Leclercq 6-3 with top breaks of 105 and 133.
Michal Szubarczyk, last season’s rookie of the year, came from 5-0 down to 5-5 against Ross Muir only to lose the decider, as Muir took it with a run of 73.
Hammad Miah believes that a settled life away from the table will help him become a more successful player as he continued his winning start to the season with a 6-4 defeat of Robbie Williams in the second qualifying round of the China Open.
Miah was relegated from the tour at the end of the 2024/25 season then regained his card earlier this year by winning the World Snooker Federation Open. The 32-year-old is now starting his fourth spell as a professional and is determined to fulfil his potential this time, and has impressed so far this week, beating Michael Larkov in round one before today’s victory over Williams which featured breaks of 107, 60, 51, 54, 56 and 125. He meets Aaron Hill on Saturday, needing two more wins to make it to the final stages.
Alongside Alfie Burden, Miah is running Hertford Snooker Club, and he is also now father to girls aged four and one. “My mind is not just focussed on snooker, other things are keeping me occupied which is helping me a lot,” said Miah. “The club is going really well, we have created a nice space and it feels like a relaxing area for everyone – even for myself. It’s a nice community we have built. And when you become a dad there is nothing more important, you could have the worst day of your life then you go home and see your kids and you forget about it.
“It feels amazing to be back on tour, I am so excited. I feel I am much more capable now, I just need to put the hours in which has always been the problem for me.“
China’s Long Zehuang top scored with 134 in a 6-3 win over Robert Milkins, while Iulian Boiko closed with a 91 as he saw off Zhang Yang 6-1.
Former UK and Masters champion Matthew Stevens began his 33rd professional season with a 6-2 defeat of Deng Haohui, top scoring with 73 and 86. Steven Hallworth made a 130 as he stormed to a 6-0 whitewash of Huang Jiahao, while China’s Jiang Jun beat Sahil Nayyar 6-1 with runs of 89, 85, 114, 55, 50 and 98.
After his best ever season in 2025/26, rising star Iulian Boiko continued his fine start to the new campaign with a 6-2 victory over Lei Peifan in the penultimate qualifying round of the China Open.
Ukraine’s 20-year-old Boiko meets Liu Hongyu in the final round on Sunday, with the winner to go through to the televised stages in Taiyuan in August.
Last year, Boiko reached his first ranking semi-final at the Shoot Out, as well as runs to the last 32 of the British Open and Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters. He is up to 87th in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings and will look to continue his climb this season.
Breaks of 82 and 84 helped him take a 5-0 lead today, and although former Scottish Open champion Lei took the next two frames, Boiko sealed the result by winning the eighth on the black.
China’s Yuan Sijun came from 4-2 and 5-4 down to beat Louis Heathcote 6-5, making a break of 70 in the deciding frame, while amateur wild card Chen Ruifu continued his surprise run by beating Zak Surety 6-1 with a top run of 93.
Breaks of 134 and 96 helped Ali Carter see off Gao Yang 6-4, while Jackson Page beat Ben Mertens by the same scoreline with a top run of 100. World Open champion Thepchaiya Un-Nooh won’t be in Taiyuan as he lost 6-3 to Yao Pengcheng, while David Gilbert closed with a break of 117 as he beat Liam Pullen 6-4.
Tom Ford completed one of his best ever fight-backs as he battled from 5-0 down to beat Liam Highfield 6-5 in the final qualifying round of the China Open.
Highfield dominated the first five frames with a top break of 84, before former Shoot Out champion Ford stormed back to 5-5 with top runs of 100, 101, 52 and 94. In the decider, Highfield was in first and made 53, but couldn’t get past the winning post and Ford eventually won it with a green-to-black clearance.
Last season was a disappointment for Ford as, hampered by a shoulder injury, he reached just one ranking event quarter-final. But having started the new campaign strongly he can look forward to a trip to Taiyuan in China in August for the Ā£1.2 million event.
Scottish Open finalist Chang Bingyu gave another demonstration of his break-building quality as he beat Jack Lisowski 6-1 with runs of 58, 79, 69, 51, 83, 78 and 132.
Stuart Bingham won a one-sided battle of former World Champions against Luca Brecel, top scoring with 104 in a 6-0 rout. Jackson Page compiled runs of 107 and 123 in a 6-3 win over Yuan Sijun, while Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham enjoyed a 6-1 success against Elliot Slessor.
Matthew Selt made a 102 in a 6-5 defeat of Ali Carter, while Zhang Anda saw off Daniel Wells 6-4.
Of the 16 qualifiers, 7 are Chinese. Gone is the time when the young Chinese players appeared to struggle to qualify for their home events.
Jack Lisowski, the highest ranked player needing to qualify, fell victim of a truly remarkable performance by Chang Bingyu :
Xu Si , who reached the last round of qualifiers suffered a double disappointment: he missed the final black on a maximum in the last frame of his match against Jamie Jones in the penultimate round and then was beaten by David Gilbert in the last round (6-2).
The lowest ranked player to qualify is 29 years old Yao Pengcheng, currently ranked 79th.
