O’Sullivan Makes Snooker’s Highest Ever Break With Historic 153
Ronnie O’Sullivan once again made snooker history after crafting the sport’s highest ever break, a stunning 153, in his quarter-final with Ryan Day at the World Open in Yushan.
The Rocket has achieved a perfect 147 break a record 17 times previously. However, this contribution was aided by a free ball and included 14 blacks with two pinks, before he deposited all of the colours to end on 153. That left the Englishman two points shy of the highest possible run of 155.
The only ever break to have exceeded 147 prior to this was a 148 made by Jamie Burnett at 2004 UK Championship qualifying. O’Sullivan’s incredible run this afternoon eclipses that and puts him in line for the £5,000 high break prize.
Earlier this season the seven-time World Champion became only the second player in snooker history to make two maximum 147 breaks in a single match, achieving the feat in his Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters semi-final with Chris Wakelin. He followed on from Jackson Page, who made two maximums in the penultimate round of 2025 World Championship qualifying.
Further runs of 62, 110, 103 and 95 saw him run out a 5-0 victor and book a place in the semi-finals against Wu Yize.
Here are the scores for that match
What can I add really? The man never ceases to amaze!
Tomorrow of course is another day, with another match to play … his opponent will be Wu Yize who beat Mark Allen by 5-1.
In the evening (in China), Judd Trump beat Hossein Vafaei by 5-1 and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh beat Gary Wilson by the same score, 5-1.
All four quarter-finals matches were one-sided. 😳 All the players still in the draw are fast and attacking. 😊
Ronnie O’Sullivan made an incredible 153 break, the highest ever in snooker’s history, during his 5-0 whitewash win over Ryan Day, which sets up a semi-final meeting with Wu Yize at the World Open in Yushan.
The momentous contribution came in the opening frame this afternoon, after Day left a free ball for O’Sullivan. He went on to deposit 14 blacks and two pinks, before clearing the colours to take the break to 153. That is just two points short of the highest possible break of 155.
He went on to conjure further runs of 62, 110, 103 and 95 to storm to victory in just 55 minutes. The Rocket averaged just 13.6 seconds per shot during the masterclass triumph.
“It was a great buzz. I could have tried to get the extra black, but I just thought nobody had made a break bigger than 147 on TV so I wanted to be the first. I’ve been the first of many things so I thought I might as well get that one as well. I feel blessed to achieve these things,” said 50-year-old O’Sullivan.
“Thank God for YouTube and streaming. If you are interested in a subject the algorithms will throw all sorts of good stuff at you. When a long time passes and I’m not here there will still be people saying it is pretty cool what that guy did.
“We are all blessed with a certain amount of ability to handle a certain amount of pressure. You are either a good pressure player or you aren’t. There are techniques which you can do to handle yourself well. I could have let the nerves get out of control but you have things you can do to lower the heart rate, stay focussed and stay present.
“I’ve never made anything more than a 147 (even when practising). For me if the excitement and the buzz is there, I can do great things. Unless there is something at the end of it I don’t. I hadn’t made a 147 for years, but I realised that I hadn’t made two in one tournament before so I went for it (at the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters).“
International Champion Wu continued his bid for a second title of the season with an impressive 5-1 demolition of Northern Ireland’s Mark Allen.
China’s 22-year-old Wu won his maiden title earlier this season by defeating John Higgins 10-6 in the International Championship final. Breaks of 83, 140, 77, 109 and 53 helped him storm to victory this afternoon and set himself up for a crack at O’Sullivan in the last four.
Wu said: “Today I felt really good. When I got down on the shot, I felt very confident. When I can find that form I know I’m capable of producing some very high quality snooker. I did prepare mentally for this match. Mark is a tough opponent and can drag you into his rhythm, but I felt ready for that today. My safety has been good recently, so as long as my break building goes well, I think I can handle these situations.
“The 153 break from Ronnie O’Sullivan was actually the first time I’ve experienced something like that. It was quite special and I was happy to witness Ronnie making another record. I’m really happy for him. Of course, he’s an idol. I think he’s an idol for everyone.“
Ronnie beat Ross Muir by 5-1 in his first round held-over match at the 2026 World Open in Yushan.
Here are the scores for that match:
As you can see, Ronnie played pretty well and scored heavily when in the balls. He didn’t make many mistakes. I can’t say that Ross made many mistakes himself because, more often than not when he made one, it was ruthlessly punished and he didm’t get another chance.
Here are the last two frames of the match shared on Youtube by WST.
Ronnie was due to play Ishpreet Singh Chadah in round 2, but Ishpreet has withdrawn, so, next for Ronnie is a round 3 match against Matt Selt on Wednesday.
Ronnie O’Sullivan eased through his opening clash with Ross Muir at the World Open in Yushan with a 5–1 victory, but afterwards admitted that restoring his game to the level he wants would be the “biggest achievement” of his career.
The Rocket has recently embarked on a quest to rebuild his game in a bid to rediscover his top form before his career is over. Earlier this season he admitted that his one remaining goal in snooker is to win a record breaking eighth World Championship.
O’Sullivan came close to perfection in today’s encounter with Scotland’s Muir. The Englishman deposited 15 reds and 14 blacks in the fifth frame, before going in off with the 15th black to end his run on 113. He went on to fire past the line with 114 in the next to progress. With his last 64 opponent Ishpreet Singh Chadha having withdrawn from the event, O’Sullivan now progresses to the last 32, where he will face Matthew Selt.
“I got here a week early just to do some practising on my own. I’ve been working really hard on my game. I know I haven’t played a lot of tournaments, but I’ve been working because my game has been in such a bad place. It isn’t like I’ve had my feet up while everyone has been playing. I’ve decided I really need to attack this now. I have one last throw of the dice really. The last three years have been awful in terms of confidence. I’m trying to work on that now and see if I can get back to delivering the cue freely,”
“I’ll commit to two years to work on it and try to prolong my career. Cueing how I was cueing, there was going to be no longevity in it. I’ve been working harder than I ever have done, it just hasn’t been on TV. It has been behind closed doors. I’m trying to attack it rather than hope something changes. I’m breaking it down and trying to recoach myself.
“I was saying to a friend the other day that if I manage to get out of this it would be my biggest achievement in snooker. If I can feel how I did six or seven years ago, that would trump anything. Seven World Championships, eight Masters, this would rank higher than any of those achievements. I’m under no illusions how difficult it will be but I’m not going to retire because something I tried didn’t work for me. I’m going to get back to my natural instinct of playing and recoach myself in some sort of way.” said O’Sullivan.
Ronnie has achieved what he has in his career so far BECAUSE he’s a perfectionist, although this constant quest for perfection has also been his undoing at times, and a torture… but he is who he is, it’s his core nature, it won’t change. He has to live with that nature through successes and disappointments, through bliss and despair at times … and we, fans, live it with him.
Hawkins Beats Lisowski To Land Fifth Ranking Title
Barry Hawkins reached the milestone of five ranking titles with a 9-5 victory over Jack Lisowski in the final of the BetVictor Welsh Open in Llandudno.
A pro since 1996, Hawkins has had a disappointing strike rate at the business end of ranking events over the years, losing eight of his 12 previous finals as well as 22 defeats in semi-finals. But this time the 46-year-old Londoner was clinical from the start, winning six frames in a row from 1-1 then fending off a late flurry from his opponent to clinch the result.
He becomes the 23rd player to reach the landmark of five ranking crowns, moving level with Zhao Xintong, Stephen Lee and Ray Reardon on the all-time list. The former World Championship finalist earns a first title since 2023, lifting the Ray Reardon Trophy for the first time and banking £100,000.
Hawkins cements his place among the elite top 16, moving up from 14th to ninth, and also jumps from 15th to eighth on the Sportsbet.io One Year Rankings, almost certainly earning him a place in the Sportsbet.io Tour Championship in Manchester which starts in four weeks.
A week ago Hawkins arrived on the North Wales coast with minimal expectations, suffering from lower back pain after pulling a muscle during a gym session. He struggled through his opening match, a narrow 4-3 success against David Lilley, and then grew in confidence as the pain subsided and his renowned all-round game blossomed. The Englishman took scalps including Mark Williams, Neil Robertson and Wu Yize to reach the final before an excellent display to beat Lisowski, making two centuries and four more breaks over 50.
In beating John Higgins 6-5 in a thrilling semi-final last night, Lisowski won the £150,000 BetVictor Home Nations Series bonus, and was clearly elated after the match. Having climbed that mountain, the 34-year-old seemed low on energy today, and let the tie slip away from him in the first session. The Gloucestershire cueman missed the chance to double his tally of ranking titles having captured his first with a dramatic 9-8 success against Judd Trump at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in October, and has now lost seven of his eight finals. He climbs four places in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings from 22nd to 18th.
Trailing 7-1 after the first session, Lisowski swiftly cut the gap tonight with breaks of 112 and 102 to close to 7-3. Frame 11 lasted 47 minutes and Lisowski led 22-18 when a sizzling long red set him up for a run of 37 to draw within three frames. Early in the 12th, Hawkins enjoyed a fluked red when attempting safety and went on to make 68 to regain his momentum at 8-4.
After the interval, Hawkins missed a tricky red to centre and Lisowski’s run of 53 kept his hopes alive at 8-5. But in the 14th, Hawkins made 32 before running out of position, then got back in with a thundering long red and added 33 to cue the celebrations.
“It means the world, I came close last season to a couple of big titles, I feel I deserved this one because I have been knocking on the door for a while,” said Hawkins, who lost 9-7 in the final of this event against Higgins in 2018. “I am so relieved because playing Jack is scary, he pots balls from everywhere and when he gets going he’s a hard man to stop. At 7-1 it’s for you to lose, things start going through your head like it could be the biggest collapse of all time. People were getting excited but I know it’s never over until it’s over. I was feeling it out there. He came out all guns blazing tonight, I knew that might happen and I had to stay calm.
“It’s massive to climb the rankings, I knew I needed to have a run in something to qualify for Manchester but I didn’t expect to win this one. To be in that event with only 12 players, you know you are doing something right, to be involved in it will be amazing. I want to thank the crowd here, they have supported us so well all week and that brings the best out of the top players.
“My dad is going through a lot at the moment so hopefully this will give him a boost.”
Lisowski said: “I was gone in the first session, I was very poor. I was trying my best but maybe there was a bit of a hangover from last night because I went through a lot. Barry was by far the better player today. He’s a great guy and I’m happy for him. I couldn’t sleep last night. The semi-final was like a final for me, I was so relieved to win and the way I won, to beat John. But that takes nothing away from Barry today, there are no excuses and I gave it my best. “
Not much to add really. Jack was indeed very poor in the first session. His quotes about possible fatigue after the late evening semi-finals’ win are not “excuses”. This is the reality: players are human. And it’s not just the fatigue … after an important match, there is tension and adrenaline in the body. Even if they are tired they might struggle to fall asleep before their body, and mind, find some calm. He’s not the first, and won’t be the last to experience that “hangover” feeling. He made a match of it in the evening, but the deficit was too big.
As for Barry … he’s a very likeable character and I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t be happy for him … except probably a few who had a bet on Jack to win 😎.
Most matches yesterday went to the highest seed . There were only three “exceptions”.
None of those “exceptions” is a big surprise really. Fatigue probably caught up with Zhao Xintong, and Stuart Bingham who beat him is a top player himself. Barry Hawkins beating Mark Williams is no shock, Barry on form is very, very efficient and he tends to do well on the bigger stages. Jian Jun has been in good form in this event, he beat Mark Selby in round 1. He’s probably already exceeded his own expectations and therefore playing with some freedom. Him getting the better of Robbie Williams is certainly no shock either.
Neil Robertson played what he described as one of the best shots of his career in the deciding frame as he beat Jak Jones 4-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the BetVictor Welsh Open in Llandudno.
A tense decider came down to the last four colours, and Welshman Jones narrowly over-cut his attempted long brown to a top corner. Playing with deep screw, Robertson drilled in the brown and gained position on the blue which was close to the baulk cushion. He was also faced with a tricky pink but rolled it home for victory.
He is into the 90th ranking event quarter-final of his career and is seeking a 27th title. The Australian, who made breaks of 122 and 73 today, will be up against Barry Hawkins in the first match on Friday at 12pm.
“In terms of the way the shot on the brown was executed, I would definitely say it was one of the best of my career,” said world number three Robertson. “It wasn’t as if I threw my whole arm at it, it was really well controlled and greatly timed. The pink was also difficult because I couldn’t inject much pace into it so if I had missed it might have stayed over the pocket. Thankfully I got through because in the decider we both missed chances.
“I have had to keep my composure for the last few months because things haven’t quite gone my way. I have put myself in positions to win tournaments but lost a few times to the eventual champion. Hopefully I can still add some more silverware this season. After I won the title in Saudi at the start of the season, along with Joe (Perry) and (psychologist) Helen we agreed I needed to stay focussed and try to add more. I feel fresh and I’m looking forward to the last few tournaments.
“These home nations events are like a marathon, there are so many people at the start, then once you get to the quarter-finals it’s like coming into the last bend. Now it’s go-for-it mode, I will be aggressive and hope that’s enough to win.”
Hawkins was on the verge of pulling out of this event before his opening match on Monday, suffering with back pain, but he is now into the last eight thanks to a 4-2 win over home favourite Mark Williams.
After sharing the first two frames, Williams made a break of 115 to lead 2-1 before Hawkins levelled with a run of 69. The key moment of the tie came in frame five when Williams, on a break of 57, potted a difficult red with the rest to a top corner, only for the cue ball to drop into a centre pocket. His opponent converted a long red and cleared with 62, then went on to seal the result in frame six with an 84.
“Sometimes when you have an injury it takes your mind off everything, you just go out there and play,” said Hawkins, who is into a 55th ranking event quarter-final and has four titles to his name. “I was so close to pulling out because my back was really sore. A few people persuaded me to play, I took some pain killers and as my first match went on it loosened up a bit.
“I don’t know how I hurt it. I might have tweaked it in the gym, and then went to practise and it got worse. It happened to me once before, it was a muscle strain – a lot of snooker players end up with bad backs and bad necks. Hopefully mine is slowly getting better.”
Reflecting on the match, Hawkins added: “Mark was so unlucky to go in-off (in the fifth frame), you couldn’t do that if you tried. I cued in the long red nicely and made a good clearance – those are the kind of frames that give you confidence.”
China’s 20-year-old Jiang Jun reached his second ranking event quarter-final – having got that far at the BetVictor Scottish Open in December – as he beat Robbie Williams 4-1 with a top break of 69. He now meets in-form Wu Yize, who crushed David Grace 4-0 with breaks of 78, 71, 104 and 70.
Stuart Bingham ended Zhao Xintong’s hopes of winning three consecutive ranking titles with a 4-2 victory in the last 16 of the BetVictor Welsh Open.
Crucible king Zhao had won his previous 11 matches, landing the World Grand Prix and Players Championship this month, but his dreams of becoming only the sixth player in snooker history to win a hat-trick of ranking titles in a row were smashed by Bingham, who goes into the quarter-finals in Llandudno to meet Jack Lisowski on Friday afternoon.
World number 17 Bingham, who turns 50 in May, hasn’t won a ranking title in seven years but has high hopes of landing a second Welsh Open crown having lifted the trophy in 2017. Top breaks of 75 and 64 helped him to an impressive win tonight.
“In the first frame my hand was shaking like a leaf, it was just adrenaline,” said the Essex cueman. “From the second frame I settled down and took most of my chances. If I can have a good run here it could get me into the top 16 for the World Championship so there’s a lot riding on it.
“I have great memories of winning this in 2017, it was Ray Reardon presenting me with the trophy and that was a special moment. I was actually watching a video of the final against Judd Trump the other day which gave me a bit of inspiration. I have had three finals in this event so it has been good to me.
“I have put more effort into practice recently. Before that I was going into my snooker room, doing an hour and then sitting with a cup of tea and looking at my phone. I realised that wasn’t enough so I have been working harder and hopefully I’m now reaping the rewards.“
Lisowski beat Jackson Page 4-2 in a fast and thrilling contest, the six frames taking just 66 minutes. Breaks of 67, 84, 99 and 54 helped Lisowski continue his best run since he won the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in October. Two more wins this week would earn him the massive £150,000 bonus for the leading money-winner across the BetVictor Home Nations series.
Page had been the last Welshman standing which means that the wait for a home winner goes on; Mark Williams was the last to lift the trophy back in 1999.
China’s Zhou Yuelong is also in the BetVictor bonus race and will land that windfall if he goes all the way to the title. He beat Sam Craigie 4-1 tonight with runs of 58, 74 and 54.
Zhou now plays John Higgins, who continued his superb start to 2026 by beating Zhang Anda 4-2 to reach a record-extending 156th ranking quarter-final. Scotland’s Higgins, runner-up in the Masters and Players Championship, knocked in runs of 95, 78 and 60 before rounding off the match with a 144 total clearance, the new target for the £5,000 high break prize
World Champion Zhao Xintong made it back-to-back tournament victories with a 10-7 defeat of four-time Crucible king John Higgins in the Sportsbet.io Players Championship final.
February has proven to be a trophy-laden month for the Chinese superstar. Zhao arrived in Telford off the back of beating compatriot Zhang Anda 10-6 in the final of the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong. He is the 14th player to win consecutive ranking events on the World Snooker Tour.
Zhao will head to Manchester for next month’s Sportsbet.io Tour Championship with the opportunity to become the first person to secure a clean sweep of all three Players Series tournaments in a single season.
This was Zhao’s fifth ranking event win and marks the continuation of a perfect conversion rate in finals. He is only the fourth player in snooker history to win his first five finals, following in the footsteps of Steve Davis, Mark Williams and Neil Robertson.
50-year-old Higgins misses out on the opportunity to be snooker’s oldest ever ranking event winner. He does become the second oldest ranking finalist, behind Rex Williams who was 53 in the 1986 Grand Prix title match, which he lost to Jimmy White.
Zhao began this week placed seventh in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings and the £150,000 top prize moves him to fifth. Despite picking up the £70,000 runner-up cheque, Higgins drops a place to sixth.
One positive for Higgins is he moves from 17th to 11th in the Sportsbet.io One Year list. With the BetVictor Welsh Open and the World Open to go he is currently in position to have a shot at defending his Tour Championship title, only the top 12 performers of the season qualify.
After a free-flowing afternoon of snooker, the pair came into this evening locked level at 4-4. In contrast, tonight’s play kicked off with a fragmented 47-minute frame which went the way of Higgins.
Zhao responded with breaks of 88 and 83 to take two of the next three frames and leave the match poised at 6-6 heading into the last interval of the tournament.
When play resumed, Zhao missed a long-range frame ball red which gave Higgins his chance. The Glaswegian slotted in a long ball and made 43 to steal on the black and move 7-6 in front.
Zhao responded by taking the 14th and then crafted the first century of the final, a run of 104, to move 8-7 ahead. He followed up with another big break of 126 to go one frame from the win at 9-7. Zhao crossed the line at the first chance of asking with a ruthless 92 to take the title.
“I’m over the moon. Honestly, I didn’t expect to adjust my form so quickly after coming back from Hong Kong. In fact, I was still dealing with jet lag for the first couple of days. I didn’t expect that my mindset would settle down so well afterwards. That gave me a lot of confidence in the later matches. Even though my opponents were very strong, I felt I could beat them. This result is something really special for me,” said 28-year-old Zhao.
“To hear players like Higgins and Ronnie O’Sullivan speak so highly of me — there’s really nothing that makes me happier than that. Of course I’ll keep working hard. There are still many tournaments ahead and I’ll try my best to win more titles.”
“In both finals, in Hong Kong and here in Telford, I personally didn’t think too much about the occasion. I think that’s one of the better aspects of how I’ve adapted my mentality. As long as I can play my own game, winning or losing isn’t the most important thing. I just focus on every single shot at the table. In that respect, I think I’ve done quite well recently.
“I haven’t thought too much about the World Championship. Even after winning this title, I still see it as simply the one of the upcoming tournaments. I’ll continue doing what I’ve been doing, stick to my routine, and look forward to the next event.”
Higgins paid tribute to Zhao’s brilliance: “I couldn’t pot a long ball all day and Zhao doesn’t really miss any long balls. The last three frames there were absolutely poetry in motion. I’m lucky to have my kids here and I can remember my dad saying he was lucky to see footballers like George Best and Jimmy Johnstone. My kids are lucky to see someone like Xintong. He is an absolute genius.“
There is nothing to add regarding the match. It was, as John Higgins put it, poetry in motion. The kind of match that doesn’t need commentary, that you may watch again on a quite late evening with music as a background. Extraordinary skills were on display – from both – and yet they made it look easy, naturally fluid.
Class from John Higgins in the post match interview. No bitterness whatsoever, instead saying that his kids were lucky to witness Zhao playing the way he did was classy and proof that, even after all these years in the job, he still loves his sport for the sheer beauty it can produce when played to near perfection.
One last thing though … I’m not very active on twitter anymore, but when I was more present on it, I had some disagreement with a guy who was obsessed with Chinese snooker players cheating and who regularly insisted that Zhao Xintong persistent cough was a tactic to disturb his opponents. Yesterday, Zhao was coughing a lot … including when himself was at the table. Surely he wasn’t trying to “disturb himself” out there? That would make no sense, would it? Actually, there are a few medical conditions that can trigger persistent cough, including a form of asthma. We have no right to know about players possible health conditions, it’s for them, and them only, to share such information IF they wish to share it. But we should refrain from judging without knowing all the facts.
Three out of four matches yesterday were pretty one-sided, which is a bit surprising because this tournament is for the best performers in the season (so far) and you would expect most of them to play well.
The only close match, and the last to finish, was the one opposing Zhao Xintong and Elliot Slessor. That one went the distance. Zhao found himself 5-2 down, benefitted from a huge fluke on the blue in frame 8, won that frame and went on to win the match. Knowing Elliott … that surely didn’t go down well with him 😇 .
2005 World Champion Shaun Murphy said he is working harder than ever before, following a 6-1 demolition of Zhang Anda to make the quarter-finals of the Sportsbet.io Players Championship in Telford.
The Magician began working with Peter Ebdon 18 months ago and he says that has initiated an enhanced work rate outside of the match arena. Over that period Murphy won the Masters for a second time last season and picked up the British Open title earlier this term.
Murphy made the final of the German Masters earlier this month, where he was runner-up to Judd Trump, and showed signs of that form again this afternoon. Following a tight first frame which went his way, Murphy embarked on a dramatic 147 attempt in the second. After potting 15 reds, an incredible table length cut on the 15th black found the heart of the pocket. Unfortunately he was snookered on the yellow and his run ended on 120.
Further runs of 88 and 81 helped Murphy to four of the next five frames and sealed his victory. That sets up a last eight meeting with either World Champion Zhao Xintong or Elliot Slessor.
“It has been a journey since Peter joined the team 18 months ago. One of the first things he said was that I needed to up my work rate. That I needed to work hard enough so I deserve it. I’ve always been a hard practiser, but I perhaps had started to enjoy my life a little bit too much. I’ve gone back to basics in the last 18 months. There are a lot of hours spent grafting that people don’t see and it is nice that it is coming out” said 43-year-old Murphy
“The old saying practice makes perfect isn’t true. It is practice makes permanent. If you are practising the wrong thing it means nothing. It is about quality and doing it more than anyone else. I’m determined that whilst I might not win every week, nobody will work harder than me. I will get the best out of the rest of my career and that involves living in my snooker room.”
On the other table, world number one Judd Trump booked his quarter-final berth with a 6-0 whitewash win against Zhou Yuelong.
Trump recently ended a title drought which saw him go all of 2025 without silverware. His victory over Murphy in the final of the German Masters meant there was an early tournament triumph in 2026.
It was an emphatic display this afternoon from the Ace in the Pack. Breaks of 61, 69, 63, 117 and 75 saw him storm over the finishing line. Next up he will play either Mark Williams or Barry Hawkins.
World Champion Zhao Xintong rallied from 5-2 down to beat Elliot Slessor 6-5 and make the quarter-finals of the Sportsbet.io Players Championship in Telford.
Zhao is riding the crest of a wave currently, having prevailed in the first ever ranking event to feature four Chinese semi-finalists at the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong. The 28-year-old beat Zhang Anda in the final to capture his first ranking crown since becoming the Crucible king last year.
In winning last season’s World Championship, Zhao’s closest clash came in the qualifying stages against Slessor. Eventually he triumphed 10-8 in what was the pair’s only previous meeting to date.
This evening’s encounter saw Slessor dominate the early proceedings. Contributions of 119, 79, 50 and 64 helped the Newcastle cueman into his 5-2 advantage.
A fluked blue in frame eight proved to be pivotal. Zhao made 117 and turned the momentum of the tie. He went on to craft contributions of 62 and 59 in the following two frames to force a deciding frame at 5-5.
Both players spurned opportunities, but a break of 65 in the end took Zhao over the line and set up a last eight meeting with 2005 World Champion Shaun Murphy.
“Tonight I didn’t play very well. I’m happy I managed to win. I only arrived back in the UK yesterday so I was a little bit jet lagged. I just have to try and get better in the next round,” said four-time ranking event winner Zhao.
“I know he is a very good player and it was always going to be a tough game. He played so well in the first frames and his long potting was so good. I didn’t have many chances. When he was one frame away he missed some balls and I tried to come back.
“I’m very happy I won in Hong Kong. It was my first ranking title in China so it was very important for me. I have no pressure now so I just want to enjoy every match.
“Shaun is a very strong player and I know it will be a tough game. To beat Shaun I know you have to play really well.“
On the other table, Mark Williams set up a mouth-watering showdown with Judd Trump after defeating Barry Hawkins 6-2.
Welshman Williams and Englishman Trump’s previous two ranking event meetings have been epic contests. Trump prevailed in the 2024 Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters final, winning 10-9 on the final black. However, Williams got his revenge at last season’s World Championship, coming through their semi-final encounter 17-14.
Today’s match saw Williams craft breaks of 64 and 101 en route to a 5-2 advantage. The decisive frame came down to the final black, which Williams deposited brilliantly to the yellow pocket to get over the line.
Murphy working with Ebdon is a strange combo given how different their “style of play” are, but it seems to work for now. As long as Ebdon doesn’t turn Shaun into someone putting all balls on cushions and dragging matches for hours … ok. I don’t think the risk is too high here given Shaun’s personality.
Of the “class of 92”, Willo is the eldest but the one who seems to play the best snooker consistently for now. I guess that his “carefee” attitude is a big factor. High stress levels usually don’t bring good performances.
