Mark Selby beat Neil Robertson by 6-2 yesterday evening to book his place in the final of the 2025 Champion of Champions. Surprisingly, it’s the first time that Mark reaches the final of this particular event.

Here is the report shared on the event website:

SELBY MARCHES INTO HIS FIRST CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS FINAL | 2025 SPORTSBET.IO CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS

Mark Selby produced a masterful performance to defeat two-time Champion of Champions winner Neil Robertson 6–2 and book his place in the final of the 2025 Sportsbet.io Champion of Champions for the very first time.

Selby commented: “I knew I’d have to be at my absolute best to beat Neil, and I felt really sharp out there tonight. Once I got in front, I managed the game well and kept control. It’s special to reach the final here at home in Leicester — but I’m not done yet. Tomorrow, I’ll be giving everything to lift that trophy.”

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The opening frame set the tone for a tactical contest, with Selby edging ahead after a missed red from Robertson. The Jester from Leicester then doubled his lead in style, compiling a superb 126 to take command early in the match.

Robertson responded with a composed 76 break in the third to halve the deficit, but his momentum stalled in the fourth. A tight safety exchange fell Selby’s way, allowing him to reassert control. The home favourite pressed on, producing an assured break of 86 in the fifth to extend his lead to 4–1.

The Australian, ever resilient, struck back with a brilliant 104 to keep himself in contention at 4–2. A tense seventh frame followed, decided on the final black. A rare miss from Selby looked to hand Robertson the chance to close the gap — but the two-time champion returned the favour with an unexpected error, allowing Selby to move just one frame from victory.

In the eighth, another strategic battle unfolded. Robertson fought tooth and nail to force an opening, but Selby’s safety superiority once again proved decisive as he sealed the frame — and the match — to reach his first Champion of Champions final.

Selby will now face World No.1 Judd Trump in a best-of-nineteen showdown across two sessions, beginning at 12:45pm, in what promises to be an electrifying finale.

I didn’t see anything of the match. Life, as they say, came in the way of snooker.

The final today should probably be close but I expect Mark Selby to prevail. Judd Trump has not been anywhere near his best, he isn’t too happy with his cue and tip and, the event being played in Leicester, it is to be expected that the majority of the audience will be on Mark Selby’s side.

Judd Trump beat Zhoa Xintong by 6-2 yesterday and booked his place in the 2025 Champion of Champions in the process. Here is the report shared by WST:

Trump Hits Zhao For Six To Reach Final

Judd Trump reeled off six frames in a row to beat Zhao Xintong 6-2 and reach the final of the Sportsbet.io Champion of Champions for the sixth time.

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The battle between the world number one and World Champion in Leicester was dominated by Trump as he recovered from a slow start to set up a final clash on Sunday against Mark Selby or Neil Robertson. Trump has won just one of his previous five finals in this event, lifting the trophy in 2021, and the 36-year-old has the chance to double that tally.

He will also be aiming to win his first title in 11 months, since last year’s Victorian Plumbing UK Championship. Trump was runner-up at the Northern Ireland Open three weeks ago, losing 9-8 to Jack Lisowski, and now has another opportunity to end his barren streak.

China’s Zhao took the first two frames tonight with breaks of 50 and 72 but Trump won the next five with top runs of 68, 73, 77 and 66 for 5-2. In frame eight, the Englishman was in first and made 38 before missing a red to centre, but Zhao’s counter ended on 30 when he failed to convert a tricky red to a top corner. That ended his hopes as Trump sealed the result with a break of 63.

He said: “From 2-0 I felt I controlled the game. I scored heavily and didn’t miss much. I am happy to be in the final because I am still not 100%, I’m probably more like 10%. I have changed my tip from brass to titanium this season and I am really struggling. I don’t feel comfortable or fluent, I really have to take care over every shot. When I play my best I know I will win nine times out of ten, but over the last few years I have learned how to win more often when I am not at my best.“

Zhao looked tired, which is not really surprising as he only very recently returned from China and probably his body isn’t fully back on “UK time” just yet. In such circumstances, as long as you keep yourself busy you’re more or less ok, but when you stop, and sit down, that’s when fatigue really hits you! Not taking anything away from Judd who played very well once he got going.

Yesterday was the last day of the “group phase” at the 2025 Champion of Champions and it was Neil Robertson who booked the last spot in the semi-finals.

Here is the report shared on the event web site:

ROBERTSON POWERS INTO SEMI-FINALS AS HE CHASES THIRD TITLE | 2025 SPORTSBET.IO CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS

Neil Robertson produced another display of trademark heavy scoring and composure on day four of the 2025 Sportsbet.io Champion of Champions, defeating Tom Ford and four-time world champion John Higgins to seal the final semi-final place — and move one step closer to lifting the trophy for a third time.

Robertson commented:  “I felt really good out there today. It was a tough one for John because I thought he played well, but a couple of tight misses cost him at important times. We both made errors, as you do in a match of that intensity, but overall it was a really high-quality battle. This event always seems to bring the best out of me, so I’m delighted to be back in another semi-final and fighting for the title again. I’m looking forward to facing Mark (Selby) — we get on great off the table, but once we shake hands on Saturday, it’s game on.”

Robertson started the day in clinical fashion, racing into a 3–0 lead against Tom Ford. Though Ford responded with a break of 97 to get on the board, Robertson wasted no time in closing out the match 4–1 to book his place in the group final.

Robertson then took on John Higgins, who had endured a far tougher path to the group final. The Scotsman was pushed to the limit by last year’s finalist Xiao Guodong, eventually scraping through 4–3 to set up the blockbuster clash between two former Champion of Champions winners.

Robertson struck first before Higgins levelled, but the Australian regained control with a superb century of 127. Higgins again responded immediately, refusing to let the match slip away. Robertson, however, found another gear — compiling a 115 to lead 3–2, then extending that advantage to 4–2 with more assured scoring.

A missed red from Robertson allowed Higgins to pinch the seventh frame, only for the Scotsman to return the favour with an error of his own, gifting the Australian a 5–3 cushion. Higgins, showing trademark resilience, produced a stunning 124 after a tense safety exchange to reduce the deficit once more, but another slip in the next frame proved costly. Robertson stepped in decisively to close out a 6–4 victory and advance to his seventh Champion of Champions semi-final.

With all four semi-finalists confirmed, the stage is now set for a thrilling final three days in Leicester. World No.1 Judd Trump will face World Champion Zhao Xintong, while Mark Selby awaits Robertson for what promises to be a blockbuster clash.

I don’t have much to add regarding the matches played yesterday.

Tom Ford is not a “pressure player” by any means and Neil Robertson was not only too strong for him, he is also someone who looks confident and acts very assertively during matches. Neil can be very intimidating.

Xiao Guodong had his chances, he could have beaten John Higgins. He won the Wuhan Open last August but has done very little since. I’m not sure why. It may be that after that win he relaxed too much and hasn’t put the work in for a while or it may be that being a ranking event winner so early in the season has brought more expectations¹ and he struggles to cope with them …

1. Expectations he puts on himself or pressure generated by other people expectations, or both. I don’t know. ↩︎

Mark Selby emerged the winner of his group yesterday in Leicester.

Here is the report shared on the event web site:

SELBY FIGHTS BACK TO REACH SEMI-FINAL AS WILLIAMS’ TITLE DEFENCE ENDS | 2025 SPORTSBET.IO CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS

Mark Selby rose to the occasion in front of a home crowd on day three of the 2025 Sportsbet.io Champion of Champions, battling past defending champion Mark Williams in a tense group final to book his place in the semi-finals.

“It was a mad match, really,” said Selby. “I felt good early on and managed to get in front, but Mark dug deep like he always does. Towards the end I probably overthought a few shots and started to feel a bit frazzled, but I just tried to stay strong and keep fighting. To get over the line here in front of the home crowd means a lot.”

Selby began his day in dominant fashion, cruising past Championship League Snooker winner Stephen Maguire with a flawless 4–0 whitewash to reach the group final. There, he met Mark Williams — who had also looked sharp in his opener, dispatching Alfie Burden by the same 4–0 scoreline to set up a mouthwatering clash between two former world champions.

Williams took control early, edging into a 2–0 lead before Selby responded in trademark style. The Jester from Leicester reeled off four consecutive frames with composed runs of 81, 136, 70 and 70 to turn the match on its head and lead 4–2. But the Welshman refused to go quietly, showing his trademark grit to win three frames on the bounce and move one away from victory at 5–4.

Refusing to surrender, Selby pounced on a missed green from Williams to force a decider with a superb break of 95. In the final frame, a further error from the defending champion left the door open, and Selby kept his composure to seal a dramatic 6–5 win — ending Williams’ hopes of back-to-back titles and booking his own place in the semi-finals.

Selby will now face the winner of tomorrow’s Group, which sees Neil Robertson take on Tom Ford in the opening match, followed by John Higgins against Xiao Guodong.

It was a mad match indeed … here are the scores:

It was indeed incredibly hard fought and here is an indicator of how very hard it was. The Group 2 final went to a decider, just as the Group 3 final did. The Group 2 final was decided on the final black, a dramatic end, and yet it finished just past 11pm local time. Yesterday, the Group 3 final didn’t provide that kind of drama, the last frame was a low scoring one and yet it ended half an hour past midnight … which means that the match duration was about 90 minutes, 1 1/2 hour, longer than the previous group final despite finishing on the same score! I didn’t stay to watch it, it was 2:30 morning time at my place when the last ball was potted. I wonder how many at the venue stayed to the end. People who came by public transport may have been forced to leave before the end in order to catch the last bus, tram or trolley…

On Monday, Shaun Murphy complained about the “despicable” treatment he received from Matchroom. Mind you he had to play first only four days after a long trip back from China, where he had reached the QFs in Nanjing. Yesterday, Zhao Xintong who won the 2025 International Championship in Nanjing on Sunday, arrived from China, around 7:30 in the morning , traveled to Leicester and won his group … 😇 … nuffink said…

Here is the report shared by WST:

Zhao Wins Black-Ball Thriller Against Wilson

World Champion Zhao Xintong won a dramatic deciding frame on the final black to beat Kyren Wilson 6-5 and reach the semi-finals of the Sportsbet.io Champion of Champions in Leicester.

Zhao, who beat Mark Allen 4-0 earlier in the day, said: “I just tried my best out there and I’m really happy with how I played today. I missed a few shots and Kyren took full advantage to go 5–3 ahead. I didn’t want to let him win too easily — I wanted to make it a real battle. I just kept fighting, stayed focused, and managed to come back. I was a bit lucky in the last two frames, especially with the final black, but sometimes you need that. I’m just happy to make it through to my first Champion of Champions semi-final.”

Tuesday’s action began with a tremendous battle between Wilson and recently crowned Northern Ireland Open champion Jack Lisowski. Runs of 88, 115 and 60 put Wilson 3-0 up before Lisowski recovered to 3-3 with a top break of 115, only for Wilson to take the decider with a 122. China’s Zhao began his quest to win this event for the first time by white-washing Allen with breaks of 68, 88, 119 and 76.

In the group final, Zhao took a 3-1 advantage with breaks of 73, 99 and 78, then Wilson hit back with 104, 62, 120 and 88 to lead 5-3. Zhao recovered with 136 and 64 for 5-5 and had first chance in the decider, making 58. Wilson replied with 54 to take it to the last black, but his attempted pot from distance to a top corner rattled in the jaws, went twice across the table and finished in the mouth of the same pocket. Zhao tapped it in to set up a semi-final with Judd Trump on Friday night.

On Wednesday, defending champion Mark Williams opens against World Seniors Champion Alfie Burden, while Leicester’s own Mark Selby takes on Scotland’s Stephen Maguire.

That Zhao v Wilson final yesterday was quality. The event may not be ranking but every player involved badly wants to win!

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