Yesterday was the last day of the quarter-finals round in Telford. The Players Championship is for the 16 best players of the season and always delivers quality matches. Here are the reports by WST on what we got to enjoy yesterday:
World Champion Zhao Xintong produced a superb display to beat Shaun Murphy 6-3 and progress to a maiden Sportsbet.io Players Championship semi-final in Telford.
Zhao arrived in form after winning the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong — his first ranking title since becoming World Champion. He triumphed in what was a historic all-Chinese semi-final lineup to take home the top prize. He is now two wins away from completing the second of three steps in a Players Series clean sweep.
Victory sets up a last four showdown with either Mark Selby or Mark Allen, who contest this evening’s last remaining quarter-final. Defeat for Murphy means he will have to wait for a third chance to get his hands on the Players Championship crystal.
The first frame this afternoon went the way of Zhao, but breaks of 66 and 77 saw Murphy move 2-1 in front. A crucial moment in the tie saw Murphy spurn a red in the fourth, allowing Zhao to make 66 restored parity at 2-2.
That switched the momentum and Zhao then claimed three on the bounce, including a tournament high 142 and a 95, to move 5-2 ahead. Murphy did pull one back, but it was to no avail after Zhao fired in a sublime 118 in the ninth to book his place in the semis.
“I’m really happy with my performance. I know Shaun is a very good long potter and that if I gave him a chance I would be in trouble,” said 28-year-old Zhao.
“I’m happy to be in the semi-finals. I’m keeping really good form, both physically and mentally. The pressure is not as much as it used to be so I’m able to enjoy the event a lot more.
“The World Grand Prix in Hong Kong has boosted my confidence a lot. It was my first ranking event win after winning the World Championship, so it was a significant moment.”
Murphy said: “Nobody likes losing. Who likes losing? I’m very frustrated. Again, someone has played out of their skin against me. That is not the Zhao Xintong that was here a couple of days ago against Elliot Slessor. There is nothing I can do about that. It keeps happening week after week and all I can do is my best. I don’t think I did a great deal wrong. I thought Zhao Xintong was, in the middle of the match especially, unplayable.”
Mark Allen summoned both his break building power and tactical nous to beat Mark Selby 6-2 and reach the semi-finals of the Sportsbet.io Players Championship in Telford.
It’s a third consecutive victory over UK Champion Selby for the Northern Irishman and he clinched it in steely style, winning a 55-minute tactical frame against one of the sport’s greatest ever strategists. The head-to-head standings now sees Allen lead 12-9.
The win strengthens Allen’s push for Sportsbet.io Tour Championship qualification, where only the top 12 of the season make the field. He now moves up to 10th place provisionally on the Sportsbet.io One Year List. For the time being he will be hoping to add a third Players crown to his CV, having won the event in 2016 and 2024.
Defeat for Selby means he will now turn his attention to next week’s BetVictor Welsh Open in Llandudno, where he is defending champion. That will also be an important week for Allen, who currently leads the BetVictor Home Nations Bonus standings. Whoever tops the list at the conclusion of the Welsh Open pockets a bumper £150,000 payout.
Former UK and Masters champion Allen appeared to be surging to a whitewash win this evening when breaks of 70, 67, 53, 74 and 130 put him into a 5-0 lead.
Selby typically refused to wilt and composed contributions of 127 and 91 to remain in contention at 5-2. A drawn out eighth came down to tactical exchange on the yellow akin to two chess grandmasters pitting their wits against each other.
Eventually it was Selby who flinched, leaving a free ball which Allen gratefully deposited before running out the winner. He now faces World Champion Zhao Xintong in tomorrow’s second semi-final.
“It was a fun challenge (the final frame). There is more to the game than scoring and winning in one visit. The traditionalists and the purists enjoy that side of the game too. Even though I got the better of that one tonight, there is no doubt in my mind that Mark is the best there has ever been at that. He is so clever and sets you into traps. I felt I held my own tonight,” said 39-year-old Allen.
“Even though he was 5-0 down he suddenly put me under it. There was only a shot or two from it being 5-3. I can take a lot of positives from winning a scrappy one to get over the line. That was nearly an hour long frame and not many people win those against Selby.
“There is a long way to go this season. I want to win this weekend, but there are bigger events on the horizon. The Welsh Open carries some weight for me with the BetVictor Bonus and trying to become the first to win all four Home Nations events. After that we have Yushan, hopefully the Tour Championship and then Sheffield. Even though it is a big weekend, it is a big two months coming up as well.”
Zhao Xintong played really well and he’s someone I like to watch. He’s smooth, clever, aggressive and doesn’t waist time. When things don’t go his way, he just gets on with it. Shaun Murphy is very similar1. With those two, a long, drawn out, boring match is highly unlikely. I enjoyed watching them and I’m happy with the outcome as well.
The evening match was not that different, albeit slower. It was maybe not what you would have expected from those two as they sometimes become very “tactical”. Mark Allen was dominant for the first five frames, then Mark Selby responded in style winning the next two with big breaks. He didn’t enter in that “mood” where he puts every ball on cushions 😉… It’s only the last frame that became scrappy. There was a break over 50 in every frame other than the last one.
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Maybe a bit more classical, less imaginative when things get awkward though. ↩︎
Ronnie O'Sullivan 