Professional snooker

The 2025 Masters – Day 7

Monique Professional snooker tournament, Snooker

It was semi-finals day in Ally Pally yesterday. All the polls, all the pundits and commentators were giving Judd Trump as a massive favourite for the title. Kyren Wilson had other ideas … he’s the reigning World Champion after all and he’s wearing his crown with pride. Kyren will face Shaun Murphy. The Magician had brought his magic wand to the arena and conjured a 147 to the delight of the fans. Both men were awesome, albeit in different ways. We should have a fantastic final!

Here are the reports shared by WST:

MURPHY MAKES 147 AND REACHES FINAL

Shaun Murphy raised the roof at Alexandra Palace with a 6-3 victory over Mark Allen, making a 147 on his way to the final of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters.

Murphy is into the final in London for the third time, having lost to Neil Robertson in 2012 and won his sole Masters title in 2015. The 42-year-old will meet Judd Trump or Kyren Wilson over 19 frames on Sunday, with the Paul Hunter Trophy and £350,000 top prize at stake. World number seven Murphy will be aiming for his fourth Triple Crown success, having landed the World Championship in 2005 and the UK Championship in 2008.

After a slow start against Allen, losing the first two frames, he played fantastic snooker to win six of the next seven, undoubtedly highlighted by his historic 147 in frame six as he became only the fifth player in the 50-year history of the Masters to make a maximum.  

Murphy has come close to silverware already this season, notably losing to Trump in both the final of the Shanghai Masters and the semi-finals of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters. He will be fiercely determined to go all the way tomorrow and become the 12th player to win the Masters on multiple occasions.

Allen dominated the first two frames then Murphy took the third – without either player making a break over 50. Early in frame four, Murphy crunched in a long red to set up a break of 83 for 2-2. After the interval, Murphy made a 54 in taking frame five to go ahead, before lighting up the arena with his marvellous 147.

Having lost four frames in a row, Allen needed a foothold, and he got it in the seventh, coming from 30-0 down to make a 54 clearance, though his heart skipped a beat when he rolled the final brown along a baulk cushion and it stopped in the jaws of the pocket before toppling in. But Murphy quickly regained the initiative as a run of 72 made it 5-3.

Frame nine lasted 33 minutes as Allen missed chances to close the gap, and the Northern Irishman eventually made a safety error on the final green which let Murphy in to clear the table and reach his tenth Triple Crown final.

“The 147 was an incredible moment, one of the highlights of my snooker life since I was eight years old,” said Murphy. “I had always wanted to make a maximum in a Triple Crown event and had never really come close until the other day. This time I was thinking ‘don’t mess it up again!’ The roar when the last black went in was the loudest I have ever heard in a snooker arena. The crowds this week have been unbelievable. 

“It was a great match played in a great spirit and I’m thrilled to be in the final. Mark is such a tough player to beat, he’s by far a stronger tactical player than me so I knew I had to shake it up a bit and go for my shots. I had a bit of luck at the right time especially in the last frame.

“To face either the World Champion or world number one in the final – that’s how it should be at the Masters. To win the trophy again would be a dream because the last ten years for me has been a barren spell in terms of Triple Crowns. Certain other players are in these finals all the time, for me it’s more of an occasion. There’s no point coming this far without winning.”

Allen, who won this event in 2018, said: “Once Shaun got to 73 on the 147 I was cheering him on because it’s a very special thing to do, in front of this crowd. He held himself together really well. I was disappointed not to play my best, especially not to make it 5-4 because that would have been ‘game on’. There were just too many loose shots.” 

WILSON REACHES FINAL AND ENDS TRUMP’S SLAM DREAM

Kyren Wilson scored a superb 6-3 victory over Judd Trump in the semi-finals of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters, ending Trump’s hopes of winning all four major titles in a single season.

Wilson stormed back from 3-2 down to take the last four frames, making a break over 70 in each of those, to set up a final with Shaun Murphy on Sunday at Alexandra Palace with the Paul Hunter Trophy and £350,000 top prize at stake. Having lost his only previous final against Mark Allen in 2018, this is Wilson’s chance to win his first Masters title and add that honour to his World Champion status. 

Trump, having won the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters and the Victorian Plumbing UK Championship, was on a mission to become the first player to capture all four majors in a single campaign, but made uncharacteristic errors tonight. The world number one misses out on a third Masters final having won the title in 2019 and 2023.

The Bristolian has now lost three of four huge clashes with Wilson this season, having finished runner-up in the finals of the Xi’an Grand Prix and BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, though Trump did get the better of their UK semi-final meeting in York.

Wilson took the opening frame with a break of 61, then recovered a 37-0 deficit to snatch the second with an 89 clearance. The Kettering cueman had a golden chance for 3-0 but lost position from black to red on 44, then had to watch as Trump made 85 for 2-1. In the fourth, Wilson trailed 52-27 when he missed a tricky pot on the third last red, and Trump capitalised again to square the tie.

Wilson was just two pots from taking frame five when he missed the yellow with the long rest, leading by 23 points. Trump laid a series of snookers and gained 43 penalty points, before sealing the frame with a superb long pot on the blue. Back came Wilson with a run of 76 for 3-3, then he took advantage of Trump’s miss on a risky thin-cut black in the seventh to make 88 and edge ahead.

World number two Wilson kept his momentum going with a run of 85 for 5-3. And when Trump missed the pink to corner on 14 in frame nine, Wilson wrapped it up in style with a 106.

“From 3-3 it seemed to go into the blink of an eye to 6-3,” said 33-year-old Wilson. “I got into a rhythm and decided to be as positive as possible because you have to take your chances against Judd. I’m really pleased with the way I finished the match off. I’m looking forward to the challenge of the final.

“I want this title on my CV. I am a very different person and player compared to how I was in my first final here in 2018. I’ve got a lot of confidence going into this one. I have had a fantastic season already and I’m proud of the way I have managed to handle myself as World Champion.“

“Every match here could be a final so I go into every game with that kind of mindset and I feel I have already won three finals. Before the break-off tonight, Judd and I said to each other how great the atmosphere was. That was incredible tonight. I wish there were more tournaments like this because it’s so inspiring, it’s a privilege to play here.“

Trump said: “From 3-2 I didn’t play well. I played some loose safeties. Then at 3-3 I took on a risky black, if that had gone in it was 4-3 to me. I missed some easy balls which I didn’t miss in my first two matches. That threw me a bit and I didn’t get much fluency. Kyren played ok, I gave it to him a little bit. He scored more heavily than me and that was the main difference. I’ll dust myself off and try to win the next tournament.“

This is the last frame of the Kyren v Judd match, shared by ES on YouTube

Here is Shaun’s impeccable 147, shared by WST

Meanwhile in Morocco, the WSF championships, juniors and women, are under way. There is also a Q-Tour event played in the Middle-East. You can follow them here.

The 2025 Masters – Day 6

Monique Professional snooker tournament, Snooker

Day 6 at Ally Pally saw the conclusion of the quarter-finals round. Here is what happened, as reported by WST:

Afternoon match: Judd Trump 6-3 Ding Junhui

WONDERFUL TRUMP SMASHES PRIZE MONEY RECORD

Judd Trump came from 3-1 down to beat Ding Junhui 6-3 and reach the semi-finals of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters, a result which means he has set a new record for prize money in a single season, with four months of the 2024/25 campaign still to come.  

Clearly the man to beat at the biggest tournaments, world number one Trump has already won the Shanghai Masters, Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters and Victorian Plumbing UK Championship this season, and by reaching the last four at Alexandra Palace he is guaranteed £75,000 which brings his total to £1,295,200. That surpasses the previous record of £1,265,500, set last season by Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Motivated by glory rather than money, Trump’s focus is firmly on winning the title this week in London and then his attention may turn to the World Championship as he continues his quest to become the first player to win all four majors in a single season. That would bring his prize money tally for the campaign past the £2 million mark.

Having played the best snooker of the tournament so far in the last five frames today, he will relish his next match against Kyren Wilson or Luca Brecel on Saturday night. The 35-year-old is two wins away from a third Masters crown having lifted the trophy in 2019 and 2023; only O’Sullivan and Stephen Hendry have won more.  

China’s Ding, the 2011 champion, started strongly with breaks of 70 and 74 to lead 2-0. Trump hit back with a run of 75 in the third and he was on 48 in frame four when he missed an awkward red to a top corner, Ding capitalising with a 72 clearance for 3-1. 

After the interval the high scoring continued as Trump’s 97 reduced his deficit. In the sixth, Ding had a golden scoring chance but on 35 he missed a short range red, playing with the rest. Trump made 53 and later trapped his opponent in a snooker on the last red, then potted it along the top cushion to square the match at 3-3. That proved the turning point as the Englishman raced through the last three frames with  125, 62 and 75 to reach the last four for the seventh time.

“Ding didn’t do much wrong apart from the red he missed in the sixth frame, after that I played really well,” said 2019 World Champion Trump. “I always believe I’m going to win, even if I’m 5-1 down. You need that kind of confidence to win these tournaments. The standard this week so far has been exceptional, there have been some spectacular performances. It’s pleasing for snooker that the players can put on a show like this, it’s in safe hands. 

“I’m on track for my best season although I won six events in a season (in 2019/20) which was special. The magnitude of the tournaments I have won this time makes it more special, and also the standard I have been able to produce.“

Ding said: “I started well but missed some shots and Judd got more confidence. After that he made a lot of big breaks. The red in the sixth frame was careless, I was thinking about position and missed the pot. It’s going to happen sometimes. Judd always takes his chances.“

Evening match: Kyren Wilson 6-4 Luca Brecel

WILSON STAYS ON TRACK FOR FIRST MASTERS CROWN

Kyren Wilson overcame an ankle injury to beat Luca Brecel 6-4 in a thrilling finish, reaching the semi-finals of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters and keeping alive his dream of lifting the Paul Hunter Trophy for the first time.

The World Champion will take on world number one Judd Trump in a showpiece semi-final on Saturday night at Alexandra Palace. This will be their fourth meeting of the season – Wilson winning the finals of the Xi’an Grand Prix and BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, then Trump took revenge in the semi-finals of the Victorian Plumbing UK Championship. They also met in the last four of the Masters in 2018, Wilson coming from 5-2 down to win 6-5. 

On that occasion the Kettering cueman lost to Mark Allen in the final, and he will be determined to go one step further this time and complete the second leg of the Triple Crown. 

Wilson slept awkwardly on Wednesday night and woke up with pain in his ankle which left him struggling to walk. The injury has since improved and he was given permission to wear trainers during tonight’s match, though the pain hindered his performance. 

“I rate that as one of the best wins of my career,” said the world number two. “Not because of my performance, but because of what I had to deal with. I couldn’t put weight on the ankle or stand how I usually would, which was frustrating. But I saw it as a challenge and something I had never had to deal with before, and it was a test for me to see how I could handle it. I would play here on one leg so there was no danger of me pulling out.” 

Wilson’s breaks of 71 and 67 put him 2-0 up, then Brecel took the third with a run of 96 and had first chance in the fourth but missed a tricky black on 15 and had to watch his opponent make 64 to lead 3-1 at the interval. Back came Brecel with an 84 in frame five, before Wilson’s 78 made it 4-2. The Englishman led 25-4 in frame seven when he failed to pot a red with the rest, handing Belgium’s Brecel the opportunity to make 83 to halve the gap. 

A cracking long red set Wilson up for a break of 55 in frame eight to lead 5-3. He glimpsed the winning line in the ninth but missed a tough pink, trying to screw back for the yellow when he led 44-41, and Brecel kept his hopes alive by clearing the colours. Both players passed up chances in the tenth, which lasted 42 minutes and came down to a tense battle on the final pink. Brecel eventually misjudged a safety, and Wilson drilled the mid-range pink into a top corner. 

“I really enjoyed the game, though it was nervy towards the end,” Wilson added. “I was so pleased to see the pink drop. I’m really looking forward to playing Judd, we will both be up for it and hopefully bring the best out of each other. It’s an awesome feeling to be a part of the rivalry with him because he has been by far the best player in the world over the last few years. He inspires me to work hard to become a better player myself.“

What can I say? As so often, Ding lost despite being the strongest player at the start of the match, and going into the MSI with a lead. One of the pundits – it was Alan Mc Manus if I remember correctly – predicted that if Judd went on to win the first frame after the MSI, he would win the match. We have seen this pattern with Ding far too many times for me wanting it to remember it. Ding is a marvellous player to watch when he plays well but, too often he allows a small setback to derail him, and, of course, Judd Trump WILL take advantage if offered a chance. He’s very strong mentally and his will to win is phenomenal.

As for the evening match, I will only say this: Luca is a phenomenal talent who, as a player, doesn’t to justice to the gift he’s been blessed with. I don’t like to watch him. I like to watch his game, but I don’t like to watch his matches as I find him infuriatingly careless or presumptuous more often than not.

The 2025 Masters – Day 4

Monique Professional snooker, Professional snooker tournament

Here are the reports shared by WST on day 4 at Ally Pally, the last day of the 2025 Masters first round.

WILSON COMES THROUGH TOUGH ZHANG TEST

World Champion Kyren Wilson won his first match at the Johnstone’s Paint Masters for three years, beating tough opponent Zhang Anda by a 6-4 scoreline to reach the quarter-finals.  

A hard-fought contest was in the balance at 4-4, but China’s Zhang crucially missed chances in the last two frames, allowing Wilson to get to the finish line and end a losing streak at Alexandra Palace, having been knocked out in the first round by Stuart Bingham in 2023 and Judd Trump in 2024.

The Crucible king is into the quarter-finals for the fifth time and is aiming for his maiden Masters title, having come close in 2018 when he lost 10-7 in the final to Mark Allen. 

“It was a great match to be involved in,” said world number two Wilson. “At 4-4 I had to hang in there and stay positive. I was really impressed with Zhang’s long potting, he was floating them in from everywhere. Playing as World Champion this season has given me the confidence to see those matches out. I know I have a target on my back this year so I didn’t want to go out of this one early again. 

“A lot has changed for me since I was in the final here seven years ago. I have gone on to bigger and better things, achieving the dream of becoming World Champion. But there is still a lot of unfinished business.” 

The opening frame came down to a safety battle on the colours, resolved when Wilson converted a tricky pot on the green to a centre pocket and cleared for 1-0. Zhang levelled with a break of 85, before Wilson regained the lead. In frame four, Zhang led 64-0 when he ran out of position, and his opponent punished him with an excellent 69 clearance for 3-1. 

Wilson failed to score a point in the next two as Zhang compiled breaks of 65 and 83 to square the tie at 3-3.  A break of 69 from Wilson restored his lead, only for Zhang to respond again with a 141 total clearance, his first Masters century and the new target for the £15,000 high break prize.

In frame nine, Wilson led 52-0 when he missed the blue to a baulk corner, and Zhang had the balls at his mercy but his counter ended on 26 when he failed to pot the black off its spot. And Zhang had another clear opportunity in the tenth, only to miss a red to top corner when he led 15-13. The frame came down to the last three reds, and a superb pot to a centre pocket from Wilson set him up for a match-winning 38.

Kettering’s Wilson was wearing a unique waistcoat designed by 12-year-old schoolgirl Serena, the winner of a competition run by Johnstone’s Paint, STEM Learning and WST. The project challenged children age 11-14 to design a waistcoat, using a theme connected to the science curriculum and also including Johnstone’s Paint colour of the year, Acai Berry. Wilson himself was one of the judging panel and picked the winner from over 20 entries, then met Serena on the eve of the tournament to receive the waistcoat.

He added: “I feel like it was a brave thing to do! It’s great for the sport and the sponsors and fantastic for the children who made the designs.“

BRECEL COMPLETES STELLAR LAST-EIGHT LINE-UP

Luca Brecel showed flashes of brilliance in a 6-3 win over debutant Chris Wakelin at the Johnstone’s Paint Masters as he joined a quarter-final line-up which includes six former winners of the event plus the last two World Champions.

Brecel will meet current Crucible king Kyren Wilson on Friday evening at Alexandra Palace, after showdowns between Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson, Mark Selby and Mark Allen, then Judd Trump and Ding Junhui. The eight players left chasing the Paul Hunter Trophy have 31 Triple Crown titles between them.

Since his victory in Sheffield 20 months ago, Brecel has not won another individual title, but he showed improved form before Christmas with runs to the quarter-finals of the BetVictor Scottish Open then the final of the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship. Tonight’s display was far from perfect but he reminded fans of his genius with several extraordinary pots, notably a brown in the opening frame which Stephen Hendry, commentating for BBC, described as “one of the best shots I have ever seen.”

The Belgian ace doubled his tally of wins at the Masters, having previously only registered a single victory in his four previous appearances in London.

He said afterwards: “I think the next ten years could be my best. I am still very young and I have a good mindset to perform.”

Wakelin led 47-27 in the opening frame when he missed a tricky red with the rest, and Brecel’s 36 clearance included that thunderbolt brown, played at pace along the baulk cushion. Wakelin levelled with a run of 69 and had chances in frame three but couldn’t take them, and Brecel eventually converted excellent long pots on the pink and black. World number eight Brecel’s run of 89 made it 3-1 and he led 43-0 in frame five when he underhit an awkward red to a centre pocket, letting Wakelin in for a run of 67 to halve the gap.

Brecel dominated the sixth for 4-2, before his opponent emerged successfully from a safety exchange on the green in the seventh. Frame eight also came down to the green, Wakelin potting it but then missing the brown when he looked set for 4-4. Brecel rifled in tremendous long pots on brown, blue and pink for 5-3. Wakelin’s night ended when he touched a ball with the rest as he tried to move it into position for a scoring chance in frame nine, handing Brecel the table for a closing 73.

“There were a few misses but apart from that I felt good,” added 29-year-old Brecel. “It’s tough to settle in this arena, I played some good and bad frames but the most important thing was to get the win. I’m not yet 100% confident but I feel I’m getting better and really looking forward to the rest of the season.

“This tournament is so hard, because of the crowd and the history of the Masters. To win it you have to play really well, and don’t bottle it.”

Brecel is planning to take on the Ironman triathlon in 2028 and is training for that challenge. He said: “The feeling you get from running and cycling is amazing, you feel like a different person. People who don’t play sport under-estimate the benefits of it. I feel much lighter and I can go for longer when the matches get long and tough. It’s good mentally, for example tomorrow I will have a day off so I will go for a run which fills up the day and takes your mind off snooker.“

Wakelin has climbed into the top 16 for the first time this season and relished his first appearance at the sport’s biggest invitation event, though admitted that his focus has not been on preparation in recent weeks as he became a father for the first time last month.  

He said: “I absolutely loved it out there, walking into the arena is a moment I will never forget. I didn’t play well, but the last few weeks have been very hectic and the last thing on my mind has been practising for this event. I tried my best. Given it was my first time out there I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I felt comfortable.”

The main thing on Chris mind is of course his baby girl. She was born nine weeks prematurely and is still in hospital. Chris said that she’s doing well but, of course, she is still fragile and still needs special care. A match, even at the Masters, is nowhere near as important as the little one’s health and well being. Chris did extremely well under the circumstances. I wish Chris family the very best.

The above reports are comprehensive. I don’t have much to add.

Kyren, once again, is representing his sport in the best possible way and proves himself to be a really worthy World Champion on and off the table.

Zhang himself played really well and got a lot of praise from Hendry… well, maybe, Hendry still has vivid memories of the scare Zhang gave him at the Crucible in 2010. Back then, Hendry only won his opening match against Zhang by 10-9. At the time Zhang was only 18 and in his first season as a pro. Nobody expected him to push the seven times World Champion this hard. If I remember correctly Hendry had to win the last three frames.

Luca Brecel was his spectacular self. He can be infuriating at times because, given his humongous talent, he should win much more, but when on song he’s box office: daring, unconventional and extremely entertaining.

The 2025 Masters – Day 3

Monique Professional snooker, Professional snooker tournament

Hereafter you’ll find the reports shared by WST about day 3 at Ally Pally:

JUDD REMAINS ON TARGET FOR ‘TRUMP SLAM’

Judd Trump moved a step closer to an unprecedented clean sweep of all four major titles as he hammered Barry Hawkins 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals of the Johnstone’s Paint Masters.

Having already won the new Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters and Victorian Plumbing UK Championship this term, Trump needs to add the title this week and then the World Championship in the Spring to become the first player to land all four in a single season. On today’s evidence he will be hard to stop as he swept past Hawkins in just 106 minutes.

He is just one match away from a new record for prize money in a single season, as his tally for 2024/25 stands at £1,260,200, just shy of Ronnie O’Sullivan’s target of £1,265,500 set last season. If Trump beats Ding Junhui on Friday at Alexandra Palace to reach the semi-finals, he will bank a further £35,000 and set a new record with four months of the campaign still to come. 

The world number one is also setting a new bar for consistency as he has now reached at least the quarter-finals of 19 of the last 20 tournaments he has contested. Clearly the man to beat, he is aiming for a third Masters title having previously lifted the trophy in 2019 and 2023. 

Hawkins, who lost narrowly 10-8 to Trump in last month’s UK final in York, had first chance in the opening frame today but, leading 14-0, knocked in a red when splitting the pack off the blue. Trump took control and a 3-0 lead with top breaks of 59 and 47. Once again in frame four, Hawkins was on 33 when he opened the pack and a red dropped in, and again his opponent punished him with a 60 clearance for 4-0.

In the fifth, Hawkins was on 12 when he missed the pink to a centre pocket, and Trump’s 56 helped him extend his lead. World number 12 Hawkins at least avoided a whitewash thanks to a run of 70 in the sixth. But a rapid 112 from Trump in the next completed the scoreline. 

“I was expecting a really tough game, 6-4 or 6-5 either way,” admitted 35-year-old Trump. “Barry and I have had some great battles here. Today I didn’t do a lot wrong and punished his mistakes, I didn’t miss anything easy. In those games it’s important to keep your foot down, keep your concentration and not give away any easy chances. 

“This event keeps getting better. More people see it on the TV and want to experience it live. It makes the players feel so important, everyone wants to play their best. It’s probably my favourite event on the calendar, I get excited about it for a month before. 

“It’s great for snooker to have Ding back somewhere near his best. There have been times when he has struggled a bit, he has the weight of China on his shoulders so it’s not easy to do what he has done. Every game he plays at the moment seems to be a thriller but I hope it’s not too close when we play! I love playing him, he’s one of the nicest people on the tour.”

Hawkins said: “I didn’t think I had done that much wrong in the first four frames. Judd is playing some great stuff and every time I made a mistake he capitalised.

ALLEN TOO STRONG FOR DEBUTANT SI

Mark Allen became the sixth former champion to reach the quarter-finals of this year’s Johnstone’s Paint Masters as he beat debutant Si Jiahui 6-2 with a fine display in London. 

China’s 22-year-old Si is recognised as one of snooker’s best young talents and has leapt into the world’s top 16, but Allen’s vast experience was too much for him at Alexandra Palace as the Northern Irishman controlled most of the contest and ran out a comfortable winner. He will face Mark Selby on Thursday evening and so far all six players into the quarter-finals are former winners of the title, as Judd Trump meets Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson takes on Shaun Murphy. 

World number four Allen comes into this week full of confidence having won the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship just before Christmas and he looked sharp tonight, making a century and three more breaks over 70 as he marched into the quarter-finals of this event for the tenth time.

The opening frame lasted 40 minutes and came down to a safety exchange on the last red, Allen trapping his opponent in a snooker and taking the chance that followed to go 1-0 up. Si showed his quality with a superb break of 103 to level, before Allen compiled runs of 111 and 70 to lead 3-1 at the interval.

A run of 60 helped Si pulled one back, but Allen responded with an excellent break of 94 then dominated frame seven for 5-2. World number 13 Si had a clear scoring chance in the eighth but made just 6 before missing a simple red to a top corner, and Allen finished strongly with a break of 80.

“I played well, my safety was very good and I made it tough for him,” said Allen. “If he had potted ridiculous long ones and made breaks then so be it, but as it turned out I felt played better than him.

“He played so well at the Crucible (in 2023) so he is not scared of the big occasion. I just needed to play my game and make it hard for him. He pushed the boat out a bit because he probably didn’t fancy getting into safety battles. There was one at 3-2 when he went for a plant, when he had an easy safety. At that stage he was back in the game so there was no need for him to go for it, that was a bit of inexperience. 

“I can always improve and that’s why I work so hard in practice. But I have to enjoy those kind of performances. These are the events I want to win because it’s the best of the best. I always look forward to playing Mark Selby, I have a good record against him. Hopefully it will be a repeat of last year (when Allen won 6-5) which was high quality. Nearly every time we play our matches are close.“

Overall I didn’t particularly enjoy what I saw yesterday. Maybe I wasn’t in the mood but I’m not sure that my mood was the issue. Both matches were pretty one-sided and, well before the MSI, their outcome looked inevitable. There was no suspense, no real “tension”.

Judd Trump was excellent as he has been in most of his matches this season. Barry on the other hand was not at his best and was never given much opportunity to really settle and improve. When he eventually won a frame, the sixth, he did it with a good 70, but it was far too late.

The Mark Allen v Si Jiahui match was a high scoring affair. They had 6 breaks over 60 between them, including one century each. In the first two first frames, Si looked dangerous. After that, he he was largely outplayed in the safety department. Allen ruthlessly punished most of his opponent’s safety mistakes and there were far too many of them. This is a side of Si’s game that needs improvement! Even when Si won frame 5, the first after the MSI, with a good 60, I never had the feeling he could beat Allen on this form and in this mood.

Today is the last day of the first round. I expect Kyren to beat Zhang but I wouldn’t bet a caramel over the outcome of the evening match. It will largely depend on what kind of Luca will be on show. He’s equally capable to win by 6-0 and to lose by 6-0.

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David Hendon speaks about what he saw from Ronnie at the CLS, and his withdrawal from the Masters

Monique opinion, Professional snooker tournament, Snooker, Talking point , ,

David Hendon was, still is probably, in Leicester where he comments on the action.

Following Ronnie’s withdrawal from the Masters, and reading peoples’ reactions to it, David decided to explain what he witnessed during Group 3 at the 2025 invitational CLS: you can listen to it here.

Thank you David for sharing this and your balanced views on what happened.

And, yes, it’s a concern.

2025 Championship League Snooker Invitational Group 3 – Day 2

Monique Professional snooker, Professional snooker tournament

Kyren Wilson emerged the winner of the 2025 invitational CLS Group 3 yesterday evening.

Here is the report shared by WST:

WILSON BEATS JONES IN GROUP THREE FINAL

In a repeat of last year’s Crucible final, Kyren Wilson came from 2-1 down to beat Jak Jones 3-2 to win Group Three of BetVictor Championship League Snooker Invitational. 

Results / Tables and fixtures1

Wilson is enjoying a fine season as reigning World Champion having already landed two more titles at the Xi’an Grand Prix and BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, and he’ll have the chance for further silverware in February’s Winners’ Group, joining Hossein Vafaei, Si Jiahui and four others.

He finished second in the group phase today with four wins from five, behind Mark Selby who reeled off five victories in a row, with Ali Carter third and Jones fourth. In the semi-finals, Wilson edged out Carter 3-2 with a break of 77 in the decider while Jones impressed in a 3-1 defeat of Selby.

World number two Wilson took the first frame of the final then Jones hit back with runs of 70 and 115 to lead 2-1. Frame four went to Wilson with a run of 69, and he had first chance in the decider but made just 14 before running out of position and playing a loose safety. But Jones missed a tricky red to a centre pocket and that proved crucial as Wilson’s break of 55 secured the result.

Group Four gets underway on Friday with Barry Hawkins, Stuart Bingham and Jackson Page joining the action.

Congratulations Kyren Wilson.

Ronnie had two matches scheduled yesterday. He played the first one, lost by 3-2 to Robert Milkins. During that match his frustration boiled over. He savagely whacked his cue on the rail of the table and David Hendon reflected that he might well have been damaged it because he hit it really hard. Whether this was the case or not, I’m not sure, but Ronnie clearly stopped trying at that point, finished the match, and then withdrew from the event. It’s worth mentioning that Ronnie immediately apologised to both the referee, John Pellew and his opponent for his outburst, something the commentators appreciated.

It’s not the first time Ronnie withdraws from the invitational CLS, an event he essentially treats as good paid practice. and I’m sure he would have with drawn at the end of the day, no matter what2 but I can’t remember him doing it in the middle of a day with another match to play. So maybe, Hendon was right and Ronnie didn’t want to risk further possible damage to the cue. He got crucified for it on social media, but by doing it rigth away he actually made sure that Chris Wakelin would get the option to play in the next group although Wakelin apparently didn’t take it.

What’s next for Ronnie?

This season has, so far been a very strange one. Ronnie hasn’t played badly in general, but mistakes have crept into his game and he’s suffered several premature exits from tournaments. He’s clearly not happy and struggling with the whole situation.

Let me try to explain I say that Ronnie has not actually played badly. Here are the scores of the matches he played in the CLS:

Ronnie has played 24 frames in five matches over the last two days. All but one, the match against Kyren Wilson, the eventual group winner, went to a deciding frame. He won 10 of those frames, and made 10 breaks over 50 in the process, including three centuries, a 98 and a 90. That’s heavy scoring. So the scoring isn’t the issue. The issue yesterday was too many odd unexpected, frustrating mistakes … and at one time, after a positional mistake, Steven Hallworth in commentary stated that there was no way Ronnie could have played a certain shot “that way”, that his tip was almost certainly not how/what it should have been for the cue ball reacting the way it had. If Steven was right, then Ronnie certainly took the wise decision, giving himself more time to fix the issue before the 2025 Masters

  1. I have replaced WST links with the ones on snooker.org because the latter will remain valid over time ↩︎
  2. The reason I write that is because he starts his Masters defence on Sunday and I’m certain that he wouldn’t have wanted to stay for two more long tiring days in Leicester, especially if he wanted to fit a new tip on his cue as he was clearly not happy with the one he used at the CLS. ↩︎

Snooker News – 8 January 2025 … and more rant

Monique opinion, Professional snooker tournament, Snooker ,

The 2025 Championship League Snooker Invitational continued on Monday and yesterday with Group 2.

The group was won by Si Jiahui, and Jak Jones, the runner-up made his first professional 147.

Here is the report shared by WST:

JONES JOINS 147 CLUB, BUT SI WINS GROUP

Jak Jones made the first official maximum break of his career at the BetVictor Championship League Snooker Invitational on Tuesday, however he finished runner-up in Group Two to Si Jiahui.

…

Jones’ perfect break came in the third frame of a 3-0 victory over Chris Wakelin during the group phase, in which he also made breaks of 81 and 119. Wakelin failed to score a single point in the fixture as Crucible runner-up Jones showed his break-building calibre. It’s the 209th maximum in snooker history and seventh of the 2024/25 season so far.

China’s Si finished top of the group table with five wins out of six, followed by Ali Carter, Jones and Wakelin who all notched three wins. In the semi-finals, Si came from 2-1 down to beat Wakelin 3-2, making breaks of 94 and 77 in the last two frames. Jones saw off Carter 3-1.

Welshman Jones took a 2-0 lead in the final, but Si stormed back to 2-2 with runs of 101 and 94, then got the better of the decider to book his place in February’s Winners’ Group. Before that, the 22-year-old can look forward to a debut in next week’s Johnstone’s Paint Masters, and Si will head to Alexandra Palace full of confidence with a series of wins under his belt.

Group Three gets underway on Wednesday with World Champion Kyren Wilson, Mark Selby and Ronnie O’Sullivan joining the action.

Broadcast Information
Fans can watch the action unfold globally, with comprehensive live coverage available on two tables throughout the tournament. Table One will be streamed live on the Matchroom Pool YouTube channel and available to UK viewers as well as on Rigour in China and Viaplay in Scandinavia, the Netherlands, and Iceland. Table Two will be streamed live on the Matchroom Multi Sport YouTube channel, accessible to fans worldwide.

All results are available on snooker.org.

I’m coming out once again regarding WST “broadcast” information… and It’s not just about this event. I live now in Greece. Table 1 is geo-blocked in Greece despite the fact that there is no other way to watch it without a vpn. Next week the Masters will be played. Again I will have no means to watch it without a vpn. We have a television, with 40+ different channels available but only BBC news is part of the available packages. 1HBOmax is now the replacement platform for the ES player … but again, I need a vpn to use it because it’s not available in Greece. Vpns don’t come for free and you must know how to set them up. Over the last years WST policies, and broadcasters policies have made it increasingly difficult and costly for me to watch the snooker. IF the people in charge at WST really want the sport to be truly “global” and grow in new regions, these policies have to change. They won’t develop a growing interest in the sport if more and more people are prevented to watch it unless they have some IT stuff knowledge and are willing to pay. Quite the opposite, they will lose viewers in places were it used to be easily accessible.

  1. Some more channels are available via satellite TV. However, on top of the associated costs, there are restrictions on that too. In most traditional villages, satellite plates are not allowed. ↩︎