Ronnie booked his place in the last 16 at the Crucible, wit a 10-1 win over Thepchaiya Un-nooh. He will now face Ding over three sessions. It will be his 100th match at the Crucible.

Here are the numbers …

He also set a new record in the process … and he did beat the previous one by some margin!

Here is the report by WST:

Monday 3 Aug 2020 10:41AM

Ronnie O’Sullivan’s 10-1 demolition of Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in the first round of the Betfred World Championship smashed the record for the fastest ever match at the Crucible.

O’Sullivan averaged just 14 seconds a shot as he swept to victory, compiling two centuries and six more breaks over 60. The contest lasted just 108 minutes, easily beating the previous record of 149 minutes which was set last year when Shaun Murphy beat Luo Honghao 10-0.

Five-time Crucible king O’Sullivan goes through to the last 16 for a potentially epic meeting with UK Champion Ding Junhui.  Any doubts as to whether O’Sullivan has the form and motivation to compete for the title in Sheffield have been answered by a magnificent display.

World number six O’Sullivan took an 8-1 lead in Sunday’s first session with top breaks of 101, 85, 115, 74, 88, 76 and 65. He took the opening frame this morning with a run of 93, and soon sealed the result in frame 11 with breaks of 41 and 48.

“Thepchaiya didn’t perform and that made it easier for me,” said 44-year-old O’Sullivan, who hasn’t reached the semi-finals at the Crucible since 2014. “For the last two weeks I have had plenty of practice on a proper match table. In the past I have done a lot of exhibitions on different tables and then when I come to a tournament it’s hard to adapt. So it has been good to replicate the right conditions on a proper table.

“Usually this tournament is very intense but it is more relaxed this year. At this stage in my career I would rather win less and play for longer than win a lot in a short space of time. So I just pick the events that I enjoy.

“Having no crowd here makes it more like a practice session, there is less tension. But it will be weird for whoever wins the final if there are no fans there. That would be a strange experience.”

Rocket’s Crucible Speed Records

Fastest 147: five minutes and eight seconds (1997 World Championship)
Fastest best-of-19 match: 108 minutes (v Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, 2020)
Fastest best-of-25 match: 167 minutes (v Tony Drago, 1996)

There were more quotes in the press:

“I prefer it (without crowds).

“I do not have to deal with the pressure and expectation of the crowd, getting in and out of the venue, and so much less is put on my shoulders.

“It feels like a holiday buzz and I can stay in a hotel close to the venue. Previously it has been difficult for me to get any peace and quiet.

“I am very private, and I don’t socialise much. Everybody is welcome to my world now, it suits my life.”

source: BBC

 He made me look good really, he missed a few balls that he wouldn’t normally miss,’ the Rocket told the BBC.

‘It just goes to show, you don’t need a crowd at the Crucible for it to get to you, it’s something about the venue.

‘I actually prefer it, so much less is put on my shoulders.

‘It’s how I live my life, I’m very private, I don’t socialise much, this suits my way of life in many ways.

‘It’s all I wanted to do, win my first match, I didn’t have any expectations other than that, so I’m just pleased to get through.’

…

Ronnie was beaten by Ding in this season’s UK Championship and, despite the Chinese lacking form for much of this campaign, the Rocket is expecting a stern challenge.

‘Form is temporary and class is permanent and Ding is class,’ said the Rocket. ‘It’s probably one of the hardest matches you can get in this year’s World Championship.’

 

Source: Phil Haigh for Metro.co.UK

And here is the post-match interview

and the conversation with Rob Walker

Ronnie likes Ding as a person, often saying that he is his Chinese brother, and he likes to play him too as they play a similar game. It should be a good match.

Day 3 at the Crucible saw Ronnie build a 8-1 lead over Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

They resume their match this morning (Sheffield time).

Other than that here are WST reports on the action yesterday

Afternoon session:

Sunday 2 Aug 2020 05:43PM

John Higgins may have lost the last three Betfred World Championship finals, but he has not given up hope of a fifth title and started his 2020 campaign strongly with a 10-5 defeat of Matthew Stevens.

Higgins is making his 26th consecutive appearance at the Crucible but his hunger for success remains strong. The Scot can now look forward to a second round tie against either David Gilbert – who he beat in the semi-finals last year – or Kurt Maflin.

World number five Higgins was runner-up to Judd Trump last year, to Mark Williams in 2018 and to Mark Selby in 2017. In all he has appeared in eight finals in Sheffield – only Stephen Hendry has played in more.

Welshman Stevens trailed 6-3 overnight but made a strong start today with a 138 total clearance. Higgins took two of the next three to lead 8-5 then crucially snatched a 32-minute 14th frame by clearing the colours. He made a 53 in the next as he sealed his spot in round two.

“When it went 6-4 I was thinking I just wanted to win one frame to be 7-6 ahead at the interval,” said 45-year-old Higgins. “So to nick two and be 8-5 ahead was massive.

“To come to the Crucible after all these years and walk out with no fans there – it’s not nice. But it’s still the Crucible and I was still on edge. I fell sorry for the debutants because they will not experience what it is like when it’s packed.

“In the big events so far this season I have let myself down. I am coming here a big underdog, but for the past month I have put a lot of work in and felt as if I have been hitting the ball pretty well. A couple of months ago I didn’t even think this tournament would happen so it is brilliant to be involved.

“I have got a chance. I have been through it all and I know what it takes. I’ll be ready for the next game.”

Evening session:

Sunday 2 Aug 2020 09:42PM

Neil Robertson believes that the unique Crucible atmosphere can still inspire him, despite the lack of crowd, as he reached the second round of the Betfred World Championship with a 10-5 win over Liang Wenbo .

World number two Robertson was pushed hard by his Chinese opponent for much of the contest, but grew stronger at the business end as he set up a meeting with Barry Hawkins or Alexander Ursenbacher in the last 16.

Surprisingly for a player of his calibre, Robertson has not reached the Crucible final since he won the title in 2010, and in fact has been knocked out in the first round four times in that period. This time the event is played behind closed doors, but Robertson still hopes to draw inspiration from his surroundings.

After an excellent season which has seen him lift trophies at the Champion of Champions, European Masters and Players Championship, he is in good enough form for a tilt at the title.

Liang won the opening frame today with a break of 82 to draw level at 5-5, only for Robertson to fire runs of 97 and 89 for 7-5. Frame 13 came down to the last red and Liang missed a tough pot to a top corner when leading 61-40, handing his opponent the chance to extend his lead to three frames at the interval.

That effectively ended Liang’s resistance, as Robertson was able to take the last two frames with a top run of 50 to complete the scoreline.

“Without a crowd it’s all about who plays the best snooker,” said Australia’s 38-year-old Robertson. “But the Crucible still creates a different atmosphere, you are still walking down the stairs, the seats and the dividing wall are still there, the lights are coming down. So it still feels great being out there, it’s just unfortunate that there’s no crowd. The applause when a player makes a century or wins a frame is a nice touch.

“When the draw came out I was hoping to get one of the debutants because they are not used to the Crucible. So to get Liang was up there with the toughest draws. He made an unbelievable break to go 5-5 and I was wondering how I was going to shake him off.  I missed a couple then he started to get nervy and miss a few which helped me out. I pinched really important frames at key moments, especially the one to go 8-5 ahead.

“It’s disappointing that I haven’t been back to the final since 2010. I have won so many big tournaments since over a long distance. It is something I have to address, I spoke to Joe Perry about it. Look at John Higgins, he has sessions which he should lose 6-2 and he gets out of them 4-4, while I’ve had 4-4 sessions which I should have won 6-2. Tightening up my safety a bit and making sure I am playing the right shot all the time will make a difference. I have worked a lot on my fitness and I felt fantastic tonight. I wish I had done that a few years ago.”

Late evening:

Sunday 2 Aug 2020 11:53PM

Norwegian Kurt Maflin secured his first ever match win at the Crucible, after edging out David Gilbert 10-8 in a thrilling first round clash at the Betfred World Championship.

Maflin became Norway’s first and only Crucible competitor so far in 2015. On that occasion he lost a nerve shredding encounter with Mark Selby 10-9. He sealed his return to the Theatre of Dreams for the first time since then at the recent qualifying event, thrashing Matthew Selt 10-1 in the final round.

For the second consecutive year, Gilbert leaves Sheffield after a heartbreaking loss. He went on a superb run to the semi-finals in 2019, but succumbed to a gut-wrenching 17-16 defeat against John Higgins.

It was Maflin who held a narrow 5-4 lead after yesterday’s opening session. He doubled his advantage when he fired in a century run of 102 in tonight’s opening frame. Gilbert hit back with breaks of 102 and 93, before taking the 13^th frame to lead 7-6 at the mid-session interval.

Maflin restored parity when they returned, but Gilbert claimed a dramatic 15^th frame on the pink to lead 8-7. World number 43 Maflin refused to wilt and embarked on a superb 147 attempt. Having potted 13 reds with blacks, he failed to get good position on the next red. He potted it, but clipped the yellow and broke down on 105.

Maflin recovered from the disappointment of missing out on the maximum by moving one from victory with a contribution 63 which made it 9-8.

Gilbert had looked favourite to force a decider, but spurned two opportunities on the final red. The second of those misses left the balls at Maflin’s mercy and he cleared to the pink and booked a second round clash with John Higgins.

Maflin said: “I felt like I played pretty well and pretty solid. I feel like I could have beat Dave 10-6 or something and I made it a little bit hard for myself. It meant a lot as I think I have grown a little bit as a snooker player. My all round game is getting stronger, I feel like I can mix it up with anyone now.

“I think this result will take off in Norway in terms of social media. I have quite a big following and fanbase behind me. There are a lot of people interested and sending me good luck messages on Twitter. They are a real good bunch of people and I really appreciate all of the support I am getting from back home in Norway.

“Me and John are good pals. He is one of my favourite players to watch, you have to put him in the top four players of all-time easily. I can’t wait to get back out there in a couple of days and start again.”

It’s a bit weird that there is no mention at all about Yan Bingtao going 7-1 up on Elliot Slessor. Elliot Slessor probably didn’t start the championship in the best frame of mind, if this piece by Phil Haigh is anything to go by. Here is an excerpt:

‘I’ve always pictured me, my missus and my granddad, who come to all the tournaments with us and support us through thick and thin. Only being able to take one, I’m absolutely gutted, really.

‘It’s spoilt it a bit, for me, because I’ve always pictured how it would be, and now I’m just seeing it as another tournament.

‘Just play it and get out the way, it’s not how I pictured qualifying for the Crucible when I was younger. Hopefully I’ll qualify again and enjoy it and look forward to it a bit more.

‘It’s not that I’m not looking forward to it, but it has spoilt it, I thought I’d be buzzing and over the moon, but I’m not. It’s 100% taken the shine off. ‘I don’t really care about the crowd, it’s just those two, they’re the only two people in the world who mean the world to us.

‘I like a crowd there, but it could be 30 or 30,000, if the two people I want there in the right scenario aren’t there, it is gutting.

‘I’ve been with my missus for seven years, nearly eight, I’ve been thinking about this since I was a kid, but it is what it is. I play my game and if it’s not good enough I come home.’

After the session, Elliot came on Facebook and posted this:

Hopefully, he gives a better account of himself today.

They introduced “canned applause” yesterday and people’s opinions on them are divided. Ronnie looked totally nonplussed the first time he heard them. Personally, I would get rid of them asap. There is no crowd. It sounds weird and totally artificial, a bit like the laughers in “Friends” … like telling the viewers in front of their television or screen “Now is your time to laugh/applaud”.

Other than Ronnie’s match, I didn’t see much of the action. From the little I saw, Liang Wenbo got very nervous in the second session. Neil was playing well but Liang got opportunities; he didn’t take them.

Action resumed yesterday in an empty theatre. Stuart Bingham, Ding Junhui and Mark Williams joined Judd Trump in the last 16.

Here are the reports by WST:

Morning and afternoon sessions:

Saturday 1 Aug 2020 06:52PM

In his first competitive match in six months, China’s Ding Junhui won a dramatic deciding frame to beat Mark King 10-9 in the opening round of the Betfred World Championship.

The Asian number one now faces the mouth-watering prospect of a last 16 clash with either Ronnie O’Sullivan or Thepchaiya Un-Nooh. His preparations for the Crucible have been less than ideal, having had to spend 14 days in quarantine after arriving in the UK, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ding has travelled to Sheffield this year harbouring hopes of becoming Asia’s first World Champion. He reached the final in 2016, but was  runner-up to Mark Selby. Ding won the fourth Triple Crown title of his career in December, beating Stephen Maguire 10-6 to win the UK Championship.

King was making his first Crucible appearance since 2013. On that occasion he was also beaten by Ding, suffering a 13-9 defeat in the last 16.

The pair came into this afternoon with just a frame between them, after Ding established a narrow 5-4 advantage in yesterday’s first session.

King took a tight opening frame by depositing a fine long range yellow to the top pocket and clearing the colours to make it 5-5. Ding remained undeterred and emphatically regained the lead with a sublime century run of 125.

Essex cueman King restored parity at 6-6, before another century contribution of 119 from Ding saw him lead 7-6 at the mid-session interval.

When they returned, King claimed the 14^th frame with a gutsy clearance of 34, to make it 7-7. However, breaks of 85 and 67 moved Ding to the verge of victory at 9-7.

King pulled one back and then stole the 18^th on the black to force a decider at 9-9. It all came down to a safety battle on the final red, but it was Ding who eventually deposited a brilliant long pot to the top corner and cleared to clinch victory.

After the match Ding said that he hopes his new coach Chris Henry can help give him an edge and improve the mental aspect of his game.

Ding said: “Sometimes I need to learn new things, the control of the game and psychology. I don’t want to read the book myself! I just want to have someone with the experience to be able to tell me how to do it.

“After 14 days of quarantine, I only had eight or nine days to get ready for the World Championship. I’m not sure I can play well with that little practice, I will just try. I am looking forward to the second round and I am looking to improve my game. Whoever I play, I want to win.

“There were still nerves for me without the crowd. It doesn’t change a lot. We were both concentrating on the table, I didn’t think about the crowd and it was ok for us.”

Meanwhile, John Higgins started his bid to reach a fourth consecutive Crucible final by taking a 6-3 lead over Matthew Stevens.

Welshman Stevens, runner-up here in 2000 and 2005, had the better of the opening exchanges and took a 3-2 lead with top breaks of 60, 77 and 94. But four-time World Champion Higgins got the better of a tight sixth frame, and that turned the tide as the Wishaw potter then fired runs of 60, 61 and 69 to establish a three-frame overnight advantage. They are back on the baize at 2.30pm on Sunday.

When it came to a decider many on social media predicted that Ding would lose from there. Whenever deciders come into the conversation, most fans go about John Higgins and Mark Selby, In fact Ding has a better win % in deciders than both of them (source cuetracker.net). It may come as a surprise but from the current top players, he’s only second to Ronnie. When I pointed that out, I got a reply saying that, had there been a crowd, he definiyely would have lost. I’m wouldn’t be so sure. The crowd is a massive factor in China, less so in the UK. What definitely was a huge factor in Sheffield in previous year, was a massive presence of the Chinese media. They always put enormous pressure on him. My guess is that, just like my friend Tai Chengzhe, they weren’t able to travel this, or not in big numbers certainly. The coverage seems to be done from China, going by those pictures shared by Tai:

Evening session:

Saturday 1 Aug 2020 09:35PM

Mark Williams showed glimpses of the form which has won him three Crucible titles as he reeled off seven frames in a row to beat Alan McManus 10-5 in the first round of the Betfred World Championship.

Williams has often contemplated retirement in recent years but the 45-year-old insisted tonight that he will keep playing as long as he can, admitting that time away from snooker during lockdown has given him a new perspective on the sport and enthusiasm for competition.

The Welshman certainly had a spring in his steps tonight as he outplayed fellow veteran McManus. Scotland’s McManus led 5-3 during the first session on Friday but didn’t win another frame as his opponent rattled in breaks of  68, 50, 79 and 59 as he eased into the last 16. Williams, who won the title in 2000, 2003 and 2018, now faces Stuart Bingham.

The 2019/20 season had been a patchy one for Williams before it ground to a halt in March – he reached just one ranking event final and one other semi-final. His passion for snooker and for practice has flickered on and off in the past, but now he has no doubt about his future plans.

“I have made the decision to never retire and that has been a weight off my shoulders,” said the 22-time ranking event winner. “I am not going to change my mind and I am excited to see where I’ll be in the rankings when I’m 50. If I win another tournament then brilliant, if not I will still enjoy playing.

“Everyone has been through tough times and the lockdown gave me time to think. Snooker started off as a hobby, which turned into a job and you can earn an unbelievable amount of money if you do well at it.

“My father worked down a pit near where I grew up for 30 years. When I was 13 he took me down with him for a shift. It was the scariest thing I have ever seen. I remember crawling around in the dark on my hands and knees, it was horrible. He did it to make me realise that playing snooker was a much easier way of making a living. Thinking about that has given me a kick up the backside and forced me to stop being a big baby when other people are out there doing proper jobs.”

As for the match against McManus, Williams added: “Yesterday he outplayed me and I was happy to be 5-4 down because it could have been 7-2. Tonight I put pressure on him, then he got frustrated and I knew I had him as long as I didn’t make silly mistakes.”

This is what Mark Williams shared yesterday on social media. His Nan had kept that pictures all those years.

There was also a very strange incident at the start of the evening session …

That’s never happened before, and it wouldn’t because there used to be a “gap” at both sides of the dividing mobile “wall”, allowing for people to move around if needed. This year, because of the covid-19 crisis, there isn’t…

Main points of interest:

• The defending Champion Judd Trump survived a scare. He beat Tom Ford by 10-8.
• The “pilot” aiming at reintroducing crowds at sporting events ends after just one day.

Judd Trump survived a scare and progressed to round 2 with a 10-8 win over Tom Ford. Here are the reports by WST.

Morning session

Friday 31 Jul 2020 02:31PM

Defending champion Judd Trump has work to do in his first round clash on day one of the Betfred World Championship, trailing Tom Ford 5-4 after the opening session.

World number one Trump, who has won a record six ranking titles this season, is aiming to become the first maiden winner of the event to defend his title the following year.

Trump secured the world crown in the most emphatic fashion possible in 2019. He stormed to an 18-9 demolition of four-time Crucible king John Higgins in the final to seal his first World Championship win.

Ford, ranked 26^th in the world, defeated Gerard Greene and Stuart Carrington at qualifying to secure his place in the final stages at the Crucible. He’s compiled two 147 breaks this season and had a golden opportunity to add a third in the first frame this morning.

With just two open reds left on the table, Ford missed a black and broke down on 97. He then took the second frame with a break of 53, before adding a third to move into a surprise early 3-0 advantage. Crucially, Trump remained in touch heading into the mid-session with a century run of 104.

The Ace in the Pack closed the gap further when play resumed, a break of 61 allowed him to pull within one at 3-2. However, Ford emphatically responded with breaks of 140 and 61, to re-establish his three-frame cushion at 5-2. Trump then claimed the eighth, before a dramatic last frame of the session.

Ford had led 48-0, but missed a straightforward pink and allowed Trump to clear with 61 to set up an intriguing final session at 7pm.

On the other table, 2015 World Champion Stuart Bingham emerged with a narrow 5-4 lead over Crucible debutant Ashley Carty.

By coming through qualifying earlier this week, Carty saved himself from relegation off the professional circuit. Bingham has had an up and down season, but did secure his maiden Masters title with victory at Alexandra Palace in January.

Bingham had taken control in the early stages to move into a 4-2 lead. However, world number 82 Carty wasn’t intimidated on his first appearance at the Crucible. He took two of the last three frames, with breaks of 118 and 69, to end just a frame behind heading into tomorrow morning’s concluding session.

Evening session

Friday 31 Jul 2020 10:54PM

Judd Trump came from 5-2 down to beat Tom Ford 10-8 in a tough opening to his Betfred World Championship title defence – and in doing so became only the second player to make 100 centuries in a single season.

When he trailed 3-0, 5-2 and 6-4, Trump was in danger of becoming the latest victim of the Curse of the Crucible; no first-time winner has ever successful retained the title the following year. But he grew stronger as the match progressed and, in the end, was a comfortable winner as he booked a last 16 meeting with Yan Bingtao or Elliot Slessor.

And the highlights of Trump’s fightback were his breaks of 104 and 131 in frames four and 15 as those were his 99th and 100th centuries of the 2019/20 campaign. Neil Robertson’s record of 103, set during the 2013/14 season, is now under serious threat.

World number one Trump arrived in Sheffield as the first player to win six ranking titles in a single season and will now feel confident of setting new landmarks over the coming fortnight.

Bristol’s Trump took the last two frames of the first session to trail just 5-4 coming into tonight’s conclusion.  Ford made a 48 clearance to take the opener before Trump’s run of 63 made it 6-5. Late in frame 12, Ford missed a crucial green to a baulk corner, and his opponent snatched it by potting brown and blue. Trump took the lead for the first time with a break of 70 before Ford hit back to go 7-7.

Runs of 131 and 57 put 30-year-old Trump 9-7 ahead. Leicester’s Ford kept battling and won frame 17 with a run of 69.  But Trump dominated the next to secure his place in round two.

“It was a bit of a struggle to get going this morning,” said Trump. “I was happy to be only 5-4 down then towards the end tonight I was making less mistakes and scoring more heavily. The first match here is always hard. I’ll go home now to regroup and when I come up the second time I will be more relaxed.

“It’s nice to be in the exclusive club to make 100 centuries in a season though it would have been more special for Neil because he was the first to do it. If I do well in the tournament I should beat his record.”

Trump was disappointed by today’s announcement that there would be no fans at the Crucible until at least August 15th, but was pleased to be among the small handful of players today to witness the reduced crowd.

“I felt very safe, the layout was superb and it was a good atmosphere,” he added. “It was great to be introduced as World Champion in front of my family, at least I got to experience that.”

On the other table, Alan McManus established a 5-4 lead over three-time World Champion Mark Williams after their first session. Scotland’s McManus is competing at the Crucible for the first time since his epic run to the semi-finals in 2016. He had the first opportunities in both of the opening two frames, but it was Williams who moved 2-0 up with runs of 47 and 70.

From that point 1994 Masters champion McManus assumed control. The 49-year-old fired in breaks of 105 and 84 to draw level and head to the interval at 2-2. When they returned, McManus made it three on the bounce in a dramatic finish to the fifth frame as Williams missed the final pink to a top corner, leaving it for McManus to move 3-2 ahead.

Welshman Williams restored parity with a break of 60, but two frames on the bounce from McManus saw him move 5-3 ahead. Williams claimed the last frame of the session with a break of 68 to reduce his deficit ahead of the conclusion tomorrow evening at 7pm.

Judd Trump didn’t play well at all during the first session. Whatever he told the press ahead of the Championship, he felt the pressure. He played better, but yet not great in the second session. Tom Ford could certainly have won this match, and he probably would have if it had been played at the EIS without a crowd, rather than on TV in the Crucible Theatre on the opening day of the World Championship. Tom is an excellent player but remains vunerable under pressure. That is unlikely to change and is part of what separates the very good players from the winners.

Judd Trump had been very critical of Anthony Hamilton, branding him “selfish”, and suggested that Ronnie should withdraw too, claiming that he’s the “only one who doesn’t need the money” – which frankly coming from the man who has earned £1,094,900 at the table only (not counting sponsoring) last season and already £909,600 this season is … “rich”. He claims that he felt very safe.

Ahead of the event, Rob Walker recorded this short video, introducing us to the safety measures in place:

There is no doubt that WST and WPBSA have made every effort to keep everyone safe, and I can see why Judd Trump feels safe. But he is missing the point. The problem is that as soon as you introduce a crowd – and we are talking about a possible 350 persons here – you are taking risks and things are not under your control. You rely on eveyone being sensible and socially concerned. Yesterday, prior to the announcement, very few were wearing at mask while seated.  With the virus being airborne, and the ventilation being done through the air conditioning, one infected person has the potential to spread the the virus everywhere in the Crucible arena pretty quickly, despite social distancing.  That person might even be asymptomatic and totally unaware of their condition. Fans – and players – are sat there for hours, plenty of time to get contaminated.

All the other matches that started yesterday, produced a 5-4 score after the first session:

Stuart Binghan 5-4 Ashley Carty

Ding Junhui 5-4 Mark King

Mark Williams 4-5 Alan McManus

They will all conclude today.

WST published this today … 

Friday 31 Jul 2020 01:47PM

Following today’s announcement from the UK Government that the easing of certain restrictions in England has been postponed, there will be no access for fans to the Betfred World Championship from Saturday August 1.

Fans at the Crucible for the rest of today (Friday) will be able to watch the action live, but from tomorrow the event will be played behind closed doors. WST remains hopeful that a small crowd will be allowed for the final on August 15 and 16, and will follow Government advice on this.

The Betfred World Championship had been selected by the Government as one of the small number of pilot events for safe the return of spectators to live sport, and it was the only indoor event.

However today’s announcement included restriction on crowd access at all of these pilot sporting events.

Fans who had tickets for the Crucible will be offered the chance to transfer them to the 2021 event, or will be offered a full refund.

WST Chairman Barry Hearn said: “We realise this will be a huge disappointment for fans who were excited to witness the magic of the Crucible over the next fortnight, and we feel the same ourselves.

“At every stage of this process we have been following Government guidelines and working with them on the correct procedures. We have had very positive feedback from the Government, they have been impressed by the measures we have implemented.  Safety has always been our number one priority and we have met every aspect of the Government guidelines in this regard.

“Above all it’s a great shame for people who had those golden tickets, but in the circumstances we are now living in we have to accept the decision and move on.

“Snooker has led the way in terms of the return of live sport, in recent weeks we have been the first to stage live televised events and now live events with a small crowd. In the months to come we will  continue to find innovative ways to bring sport back safely and entertain our many millions of fans around the globe.”

Fans who have tickets will be contacted soon by the tickets providers to explain how to transfer to next year or receive a refund.

There you have it.

Having their tickets transferred or refunded will not console the fans, especially those who took days off work, traveled and booked hotels for this.

The UK proved to be one of the worst countries in the way they handled this crisis, with England boasting the highest death rate in Europe. The northern part of England was particularly hard hit. Yet, a gamble was taken to bring back fans “live” at sporting events, including indoors at the Crucible in Yorkshire, a small intimate venue with poor ventilation.  This was irresponsible, this was putting money and business ahead of people’s lives, whilst shielding behind “government guidance”. Eventually, the risk was too high even for Boris Johnson’s government.

This morning, I was watching the snooker on television. Barry Hearn, all smiles, and again very rude to Anthony Hamilton. In stark contrast, WPBSA chairman, Jason Ferguson was class.

Most fans were watching without a mask in a venue relying on air conditioning for ventilation. I won’t lie, it made me both angry and apprehensive. Thankfully, it’s over. Hopefully nobody will be infected by the end of today.

Don’t get me wrong. The efforts made by WST and WPBSA to make the previous events, played behind closed doors, safe were outstanding. They only deserve praise for the way the CLS, the Tour Championship and the World Qualifiers were run in recent months. But as soon as you introduce a crowd, and rely on everyone attending to act responsibly, it’s out of your control. It only takes one idiot to compromise everyone’s safety, and there is always (at least) one idiot. This was a very serious risk, one that in my opinion should never have been taken.

I was branded “negative”. Those who know me, know I’m nothing like that. But I’m not reckless either, and I value my and others’ lives and health.

The 2020 World Championship continues. A number of people owe Anthony Hamilton an apology, including Barry Hearn. He was branded “selfish” for being sensible. He should have been playing this afternoon. He was looking forward to it until he realised that this was too risky given his health condition. He was publicly criticised and slated. He’s 49, he may never get another Crucible opportunity. He took a very difficult decision and now he must be devastated.

This is what Barry Hearn had to say about it: