Two matches were played to finish yesterday: Ding Junhui beat Zak Surety by 10-7 and Si Jiahui beat David Gilbert by 10-6. Here are the reports shared by WST:
Ding Junhui reached the last 16 of the Halo World Championship for the first time in five years with a 10-7 victory over Zak Surety, who set a new record for the most centuries by a Crucible debutant.
Ding had lost his opening match at the Crucible in each of the last four years, but has finally broken that streak and is into the second round for the 12th time. The world number ten, who won his first ranking title in five years at the International Championship earlier this season, will meet Luca Brecel or Ryan Day next. He will be one of at least five Chinese players in the last 16 – a record – and the 38-year-old remains the only man from his country to have reached a world final, having finished runner-up to Mark Selby in 2016.
Surety may be heading back to Essex but he takes away his own piece of Crucible history as the only player to make four centuries on his debut. Nervy in the early stages, he fell 4-0 behind and that was too big a gap to recover, but he showed his break-building quality and the World Open semi-finalist underlined why he is considered one of the most improved players on the tour this season. Only Ryan Day in 2004 and Jackson Page in 2022 had previously compiled three centuries on their debuts.
Trailing 6-3 after Monday’s first session, Surety hit back this afternoon, winning three of the first four frames with breaks of 109, 136 and 110 to close to 7-6. Ding made an 86 in frame 14 before Surety took the 15th with a run of 50 to stay in touch at 8-7. But 15-time ranking event winner Ding finished strongly, making a century of his own with a 116 then a 75 in frame 17 to wrap up the tie.
“There was big pressure when Zak made the centuries, he was winning the frame every time he got a chance,” said Ding. “I didn’t pot a ball for a long time but I tried to focus on my game and then scored when I got chances. I will try my best in the second round, I can be more relaxed now because in the last few years I have lost in the first round.
“I would love to see a Chinese player win the title, it would be great for Chinese snooker and for the young players and fans, it will help more people to start playing.”
Surety said: “It’s a shame I gave Ding such a big head start because I felt brilliant out there today. It’s nice to go away with the centuries record but it would have been nicer to win the match. I was nervous early on and couldn’t settle. I am the biggest snooker nerd so I have heard all the stories of how players feel when they first come here. I was waiting for the nerves myself, once I started playing it felt as if the arena was getting smaller and everything was on top of me.
“I made a century to go 6-3 and I felt relaxed last night, then today I settled in straight away. At 8-7 I potted a long red but didn’t get position then played a bad safety and left Ding a chance. That was my biggest mistake because it wasn’t a hard shot. I can walk away now with my head held high and desperate to get back here. At 4-0 down I was wondering if I really belong because I couldn’t pot two balls in a row.“
I didn’t watch that match … but I certainly will do at some point. Zak Surety is brilliant to watch, as is Ding but for very different reasons. Zak is flamboyant and Ding is mathematically precise. As I was watching Ronnie’s first session, I couldn’t help noticing the fans roars constantly coming from the other table. They were having a great time out there! Zak puts his heart and soul in his game and his passion “transfers” to those watching1.
Si Jiahui maintained his unbeaten record in the first round at the Crucible as he beat David Gilbert 10-6, his first win in a ranking event since January.
Si showed only glimpses of his best, and in fact was described as an “edgy mess” by his opponent, but did enough to set up a last 16 meeting with Mark Selby or Ben Woollaston on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The 22-year-old clearly enjoys this famous stage – two years ago on his debut at the Theatre of Dreams, Si enjoyed a tremendous run to the semi-finals, and he impressed again last year with an opening victory over Mark Williams.
“The crowd here is always amazing,” said Si. “They’re so enthusiastic and generous with their applause. It really lifts your spirits. Most players enjoy competing here – it gives you that special feeling.“
After a strong start to the season highlighted by runs to the semi-finals of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters and the final of the Wuhan Open, Si has struggled for results in the second half of the campaign, notably losing his opening match in the last five consecutive ranking events. The Sheffield-based cueman has now broken that streak and there is still time to finish the season on a high with a deep run at the sport’s flagship event. He will be one of at least six Chinese players in the last 16, joining Ding Junhui, Zhao Xintong, Lei Peifan, Xiao Guodong and the winner of the tie between Zhang Anda and Pang Junxu.
Si led 6-3 after the first session and took the opening frame tonight with a break of 98. Gilbert, a semi-finalist here last year, potted nine reds with blacks at the start of frame 11 but his hopes of a 147 ended with a missed red to a centre pocket on 72. That proved enough to pull a frame back, but Si dominated the next with a top run of 55 to lead 8-4. Frame 13 came down to the last red and Si, leading 57-30, converted an excellent long pot to a baulk corner to move to the brink of victory.
After the interval, Gilbert found some fluency with breaks of 104 and 102 to close to 9-6. A scrappy 16th frame was resolved when Si laid a tough snooker with three reds remaining, and from the chance that followed he crept past the winning post.
Si added: “At 3-3 I potted a really tough red which completely changed the momentum. That gave me confidence and helped me find some rhythm and go 6–3 ahead. Today’s performance was solid. He made two centuries towards the end and that made me nervous, but I managed to hold my nerve and close it out.
“I think I’ve become a better rounded player. Playing against top players constantly exposes your weaknesses, and I’ve been actively working on those. My form recently hasn’t been perfect, but I’m trying to find ways to adjust. Hopefully I can keep building and get better as the tournament goes on.
“I’m sure more and more Chinese players will make their mark here in the future. So many of us are in the main draw. Everyone’s working hard, and we’re all improving together. I think it’s all about mindset. Everyone here is tough, the margins are really fine. If you over-think the venue or the occasion, it can backfire. I’ve learned to treat it just like any other tournament. That relaxed approach has really helped me perform better.“
Gilbert said: “I thought we were both very poor. I couldn’t pot a long ball and my mid-range game was non existent so I was making it easy for him. Plus the snooker Gods were against me – to be 6-3 down after the first session was laughable. I really looked forward to coming here and I was really pleased to qualify. I love the Crucible but it’s not very nice when your game isn’t there.
“If it had gone 9-7 I honestly think he would have collapsed, he looked a complete edgy mess the whole way through. He will have to play a lot better than that. I am not Mark Selby, Ronnie O’Sullivan or John Higgins where my bad game is good enough to come out of a bad session 5-4 ahead. If I had practised more with Mark in the build up I think I would have come out of yesterday’s session 8-1 ahead. I nearly didn’t even play in this tournament so I’m pleased to have played here, I am not down about it. I’m disappointed the season is over now because I am back into a better routine.“
I didn’t watch that match either. I watched a bit of Trump v Zhou and, honestly, I’m unable to say much about it. Trump scored well, obviously. Zhou can play better. That’s about what I can remember … 2
I hope this makes sense … that how I felt even in amateur events when I was watching Zak. ↩︎
No I was drunk 😉. I’m prone to migraine attacks and had one last night. Usually, in the hours before the actual pain starts, I suffer what’s called “aura”. I’m not in actual pain, but I’m unable to concentrate, my eye-hand coordination is messed up, I struggle to park my car something I’m usually very good at … and when I come out of it, I have little recollection of the recent past hours… ↩︎
Ronnie O'Sullivan 