After a day hiatus, the 2024 English Open resumed yesterday and the top 32 ranked players entered the fray. There were a few held-over matches as well. From this round on it’s a straight “classical” knock-out.
Ali Carter took flight on the table, before stating he intends to literally take to the Essex skies this afternoon following a 4-0 whitewash win over Ian Burns at the BetVictor English Open in Brentwood.
As well as being a six-time ranking event winner, Carter is a fully qualified pilot and said he was keen to take advantage of the favourable flying conditions after this morning’s quickfire win.
The Captain needed just 74 minutes to dispatch Burns, top scoring with 78 in the third. Next up Carter faces either Essex rival Stuart Bingham or Wu Yize.
Carter said: “It’s lovely only being half an hour down the road. I’m going to go flying this afternoon with my mate who is a pilot. The weather has been great so it will be nice to get airborne. We are going to go to Clacton, parking up and getting a bag of chips then fly home.
“Me and Stuart have known each other since we were kids when we used to practise against each other. It would be another tough match. I’m in the next round and he has it all to do to get to me.“
Hungary’s 17-year-old prodigy Bulcsu Revesz scored an impressive 4-2 win over Yuan Sijun to make the third round. He now faces former UK Champion Stephen Maguire.
David Gilbert won the last two frames to defeat Michael Holt 4-3, while Ricky Walden whitewashed former Women’s World Champion Mink Nutcharut 4-0.
World number one Judd Trump got the defence of his BetVictor English Open crown underway with a fiercely contested 4-3 win over China’s Liu Hongyu.
…
The Ace in the Pack captured the title here in Brentwood 12 months ago, when he defeated Zhang Anda 9-7 in an absorbing final. That started a sequence of three back-to-back tournament wins with further titles coming at the Wuhan Open and the Northern Ireland Open in the following weeks.
Trump is once again in red hot form this season, he picked up silverware at the Shanghai Masters and sealed a thrilling triumph in the inaugural Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters. Victory in Riyadh came courtesy of a 10-9 final win over Mark Williams, which saw Trump secure a massive £500,000 pay cheque.
The Bristolian had led 3-1 when he embarked on a 147 attempt in the fifth. However, he left a cut back black short on 65. Liu punished that mistake with a brilliant clearance of 68 to remain in contention. Liu forced a decider, but a break of 57 saw Trump over the line.
“It was a massive event in Saudi and I’ve already had a brilliant start to the season. It is difficult to keep doing it, but I have showed up here this week. I think it is the best thing for me to keep going while I have the momentum and hopefully I can improve as the tournament goes on,” said 35-year-old Trump.
“The decider in Saudi was the biggest frame I’ve ever played and probably the biggest Mark has ever played. Not many finals come down to deciders these days and to come down to the last black makes it even more special. It is a frame I’ve watched back quite a few times already. Every time I watch it inspires me to keep practising.”
World Champion Kyren Wilson scored a 4-1 win over David Grace to secure his place in the last 32.
The Warrior has enjoyed a strong start to his campaign as Crucible king, having picked up silverware at the inaugural Xi’an Grand Prix. He top scored with a fine 108 in today’s match and now faces either Anthony McGill or Xiao Guodong.
Wilson said: “Every now and then I have to remind myself I’m World Champion. It is a pinch me feeling. I’ve dreamed of it since I was six years old. It is something that does scare me. It was an unbelievable feeling I will never be able to replicate, but I can still get a high of winning events like I did in Xi’an. That is still the focus.”
Shaun Murphy blitzed to a 4-1 win over Jamie Clarke in impressive fashion. The Magician conjured runs of 72, 115 and 124 on his way to victory this evening. He now faces a potential blockbuster clash with Neil Robertson, who plays Jackson Page in the last 64.
Stuart Bingham lost out on home soil in a 4-3 defeat to China’s Wu Yize, who now progresses to face Essex cueman Ali Carter.
Four-time World Champion Mark Selby beat Aaron Hill 4-2, while home favourite Zak Surety scored a shock 4-0 win over Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham.
Although those reports have more “flesh” than what we were served in the earlier rounds, they still mainly focus on the British players results. Whilst the World Champion Kyren Wilson and the World Number one Judd Trump obviously fully deserve the spotlights, it doesn’t explain or justify why only one match won by an Asian player features in these reports. Yet, other than Wu Yize’s victory there were wins for Xiao Guodong, Zhang Anda, Fan Zhengyi (who beat top 16 Ryan Day) , Si Jiahui, Pang Junxu and Ishpreet Singh Chadha who got the better of Jak Jones, the World number 13, and finalist in Sheffield last May.
Ishpreet Singh Chadha is a more than decent player and someone who is unlikely to succumb to nerves. Mind you, before turning professional as a snooker player he was a professional gamer…
Also missing is Oliver Lines win over World number 13, Rob Milkins, but yeah, that was a latish finish.
Ronnie O'Sullivan 