The round of 16 in Wuhan delivered some stunning performances and unexpected results, including some that aren’t what the promoters wished for. Here are the reports by WST:
TRUMP ENHANCES RECENT DOMINANCE OVER HIGGINS
Judd Trump scored the latest in a string of recent victories over John Higgins by winning 5-2 in their last 16 showdown at the Wuhan Open.
Defending champion Trump has now triumphed in 11 of his last 12 meetings with Higgins. However, that is a reversal from earlier in his career when Higgins had the upper hand. The Ace in the Pack only leads the head-to-head standings 18-14.
Clashes between the two include two world finals, which Higgins won in 2011 and Trump in 2019. Today’s match didn’t quite live up to those encounters in terms of standard, but the win for Trump sees him continue a streak of having made at least the quarter-finals of every ranking event he has entered in 2024. The 29-time ranking event winner now faces either Chris Wakelin or China’s home hero Ding Junhui.
The opening two frames this afternoon were shared, before runs of 49 and 48 helped Trump to take the third. Further contributions of 74 and 56 then saw Trump to move a frame from victory at 4-1. Higgins rallied with a fine 126 to stay in contention, but there was to be no comeback with Trump claiming the seventh to get over the line and secure his 50th match win of the calendar year.
Trump said: “It was tough early on in my career against John. He was at his peak and I wasn’t quite the player that I am now. It is turning a bit the other way and when you are in form and have a great record against someone, it definitely helps when you go out there. That little bit of extra self belief just helped me to get over the line.
“Games against Ding in China don’t come around often so you have to enjoy that kind of match. It is a special atmosphere and one I really look forward to. Chris is also in great form and it is going to be a battle between them first.”
Jack Lisowski produced a phenomenal display to blow away China’s Wu Yize 5-0. The six-time ranking event finalist needed just one hour and 26 minutes to compile runs of 68, 81, 51, 65 and 117 on his way to victory. He now plays Long Zehuang, who beat Ben Woollaston 5-3. When asked about his prospects for the weekend ahead, Englishman Lisowski was confident but keen not to overplay talks of a maiden ranking title.
Lisowski said: “If you are asking me if I can win it, yeah if I play really well I have a chance. Just because you have played three or four good games you aren’t entitled to do well. Everyone is really tough and you just have to keep plugging away. I could play garbage, but hopefully I’m here giving another cringe interview after winning!“
Shaun Murphy progressed after a thrilling 5-4 victory against Ali Carter. The high quality encounter saw both players trade blows with big breaks, before a crucial run of 68 in the last gave Murphy the win. He awaits the winner between Barry Hawkins and Xiao Guodong.
WAKELIN SCORES DREAM WIN OVER DING
Chris Wakelin described beating Ding Junhui in China as what dreams are made of, after defeating the home hero 5-3 in front of a vocal crowd at the Wuhan Open.
Wakelin was competing against Ding on Chinese soil for the first time in his career. However, recent times have seen the Rugby cueman become more accustomed to performing on snooker’s grandest stages.
Last year Wakelin secured maiden ranking silverware at the Shoot Out and was runner-up to Judd Trump at the Northern Ireland Open. He also made it to the semi-finals of the recent English Open, where he again lost to Trump. Awaiting in tomorrow’s quarter-finals is another meeting with the Ace in the Pack.
Defeat for 14-time ranking event winner Ding means he will have to continue his wait for a first full format title since the 2019 UK Championship.
After Ding took the opening frame with a break of 69, Wakelin blitzed clear with back-to-back century runs of 128, 139 and 132. That left the Englishman 3-1 ahead at the mid-session.
When play resumed, Ding hit back with a break of 87, but it was Wakelin who made 92 in the sixth to lead 4-2. It had looked as if Wakelin had got himself over the line in the seventh when he left Ding needing snookers, but a critical in-off allowed his opponent an opportunity to steal by a point on the black and he obliged. Wakelin didn’t linger on that moment and recovered to win the next and secure a famous 5-3 win.
“It was my first time playing Ding out here and that was some atmosphere. Obviously the crowd really wanted him to win and when it went close they got behind him. I thrived on it out there. When I first walked out, I thought I would have crumbled and a couple of years back that is what would have happened. To play like I did, on such a big stage, against the God of snooker here in China, is what dreams are made of.”
Chris Wakelin
World Number 22
Wakelin added: “I just believe in myself now. The results over the last couple of years have given me the confidence to go into these sorts of situations and have belief that the game is there. The biggest thing for me wasn’t the three centuries on the trot, it was the last frame. He missed a red in the middle and given what happened before, I came to the table unsure about how I was feeling. When I got motoring through the balls I was confident I was going to get over the line.
“Every single player on tour is capable of playing like that, but to do it on the big stage is something that I’ve not been capable of. I’ve not had the temperament and the belief to stand there and knock in three centuries on the trot in front of Ding and a home crowd in China. That is a massive moment for me and it will give me a lot of confidence going forward.“
Zhang Anda came through a nerve shredding clash with Mark Joyce 5-4, by the barest of margins. The final frame came down to a re-spotted black, where Joyce first missed his chance before Zhang deposited the black to the left middle to seal victory. He now plays Si Jiahui, who defeated Duane Jones 5-2.
Xiao Guodong emerged a 5-2 victor against Barry Hawkins. That sets up a quarter-final clash with 2005 World Champion Shaun Murphy.
All the detailed results are on snooker.org
Chris Wakelin played indeed very well, and to be fair to the Chinese crowd, they appreciated what he was doing and applauded him enthusiastically. Of course, they wanted Ding to win but there was no sign of hostility nor resentment towards Chris. He deserved the win and they knew and accepted it. I have put some of his quotes in bold. I think they are important. I don’t believe that “every single player on tour” is as capable as Chris is, but I do believe that there are many more who are. Players that the fans don’t appreciate enough, often because they don’t even watch them.1
Maybe worth mentioning, Si Jiahui actually won five of the last six frames in defeating Duane Jones, and had three centuries in the process (100,107, 114).
- Partly because they are not shown on TV and promoted enough. ↩︎