- Judd Trump and Ronnie O’Sullivan exit World Snooker Championship
- Qualifiers Stuart Bingham, Jak Jones advance to semi-finals
- Mark Allen becomes new world No. 1
Judd Trump and Ronnie O’Sullivan both withdrew from the World Snooker Championship on an extraordinary day of quarterfinal play at the Crucible.
Both highly regarded players, who were expected to set up an intriguing last-four match, were eliminated in the round of 16 by qualifiers Stuart Bingham and Jak Jones, respectively.
Bingham was in phenomenal form, evoking memories of his 2015 world championship. Although he is no longer ranked among the top 16 in the world and entered the tournament at No. 29, he managed to distance himself from an increasingly agitated O’Sullivan by sealing a nerve-wracking 13-10 victory in the final three frames.
In conjunction with David Gilbert’s 13-8 victory over Stephen Maguire, this is the first time since the inaugural year the tournament was held at the Crucible in 1977 that three qualifiers have advanced to the semi-finals. Gilbert is scheduled to meet Kyren Wilson, who defeated John Higgins 13-8 to advance to the 12th rank in the world rankings.
As a consequence of the results on Wednesday, Mark Allen will begin the upcoming season as the new world No. 1. Notwithstanding his loss to Higgins in the second round at the Crucible, the Northern Irishman has surpassed O’Sullivan and Trump, whose points from the 2022 world final have been deducted, on account of his form over the past two seasons, during which he has won five ranking titles.
O’Sullivan surged ahead with a 136-point break in the opening frame of the evening, but his play became progressively more unpredictable. In exasperation, he struck the table after failing to make a red in the twenty-first frame.
Bingham narrowly missed O’Sullivan’s glimmer of hope by a single frame with a nerveless break of 104, then held on in the following frame despite missing a pink to the middle that had provided a glimmer of hope.
O’Sullivan dismissed the character of his defeat, having missed the opportunity to become the first eight-time world champion of the modern era.
“I thoroughly enjoyed it,” O’Sullivan remarked. “I enjoy the struggle. The majority of the time, I have avoided the conflict. Simply put, it is a matter of managing that type of temper. “Previously, instances of anger would last for twenty minutes, but now I can essentially erase them without their impacting my performance.”
When fans returned to their seats to observe the match at the opposite table and the two players seated and waiting, O’Sullivan appeared perturbed and advised the referee, Desislava Bozhilova, to “relax.” With a grin on her face, she responded, “I am chilled.”
“Everyone will be looking at the draw and thinking, ‘This is my chance to become world champion,'” Bingham said. It is imperative to avoid taking anything for granted, and while I am the only individual [remaining] in possession of that memento, its significance remains uncertain.
“It would have every possible meaning.” Few individuals have achieved the feat of winning it twice. The previous two seasons have been subpar. Having fallen outside the top 32, I approached the game with no preconceived notions. “Having faced off against the greatest player of all time, I emerged victorious.”
Previously, Trump’s sloppy performance was retaliated against by Jones, the world No. 44, who converted an overnight score of 8-8 to a 13-9 victory and advanced to the round of eight for the first time.
As a result of his adversary luring him into a war of attrition, Trump made no concessions. “I felt as though I had numerous opportunities that I failed to seize,” stated Trump. “Today, I had ample opportunities to secure victory; therefore, the sole culpability lies with myself?” “Many of the frames moved at a snail’s pace, and I became bogged down.”
Jones is currently two victories away from joining Terry Griffiths (1979) and Shaun Murphy (2005) as the only qualifiers to have won the championship as a qualifier. He defended his playing speed and stated that he noticed Trump was uneasy early in the match.
Jones remarked, “I believed Judd put forth considerable effort.” “He was not as aggressive and fast-moving as he typically is.” I seized the opportunity after noticing it immediately, which was somewhat unexpected.
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Jones is confronted with the even more formidable challenge of persuading his mother, Debbie, to attend his inaugural live performance. Jones maintains that she has not had the opportunity to witness her son compete live or on television since he turned professional at the age of 16. She does not anticipate that the one-of-a-kind occasion of a Crucible semi-final will alter her stance.
Jones stated, “She will not even watch me on television.” “At home, she will be ironing or cleaning the house while I am away playing.” She acts as if nothing is happening while she waits for my father to call her with the outcome, as she dislikes being observed. A Crucible semi-final is a different story; she might advance, but she will not enter the arena.”
Gilbert completed a noteworthy resurgence in his career by defeating Maguire 13-8 and securing a re-qualification spot in the semi-finals. The second occurred in 2019. After a brief period of ranking in the top 16, his form deteriorated, and he entered this tournament at position 31 in the world.
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