Mark Selby says facing Judd Trump is a similar challenge to taking on Ronnie O’Sullivan as the pair prepare for a rare meeting in the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals.

Both men triumphed in dramatic deciding-frames on Tuesday, with Selby edging Hossein Vafaei 6-5 and Trump beating Jack Lisowski by the same scoreline.

Outside of short-format events, the two former world champions first met way back in 2008, but it has not been a regular occurance at all in recent years.

They have played just once in the last four years, with Trump getting the better of the Jester from Leicester in the semi-finals of the 2022 Champion of Champions.

Selby is excited about the challenge, although he is well aware that an in-form Trump is a huge test.

‘It gets easier dont it?’ Selby joked after beating Vafaei. ‘I can’t rememebr the last time I played Judd, I think it’s been quite a while.

‘I think the last time I played him would have been hte Champion of Chamions at Bolton, semi-final. He played well and beat me there.

‘Looking forward to it. It’s always great to play Judd, you always know you’ve got to turn up. Very similar to playing Ronnie.

‘I’ll have a day off and come back fresh Thursday.’

Trump has been aware of his lack of opportunities against Selby for some time, noting back in 2021: ‘Everyone likes rivalries but we haven’t met at all over the last couple of years, we’ve barely played.’

With just one match between them since, he is also looking forward to the challenge, although points out that Selby is looking as good now as he has done for a while.

‘I haven’t played Mark Selby…whenever we’re due to meet one of us loses. We don’t evet meet,’ said Trump.

‘He’s a different player than the last two or three years, the last season he looks completely different, I think he’s due.’

While a meeting between the two top players has proved rare of late, a clash in a final is far more elusive with their only showpiece together coming all the way back at the China Open in 2011, which Trump won 10-8.

The quarter-final in Shanghai is on Thursday 14 September at 7am UK time.

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Fan Zhengyi continued his impressive form at the Shanghai Masters with a superb 6-3 win over Mark Allen to advance to the quarter-finals.

The 22-year-old is an unpredictable performer, memorably winning the 2022 European Masters title out of nowehere, but also well accustomed to a first round loss.

He is looking in very good nick in Shanghai this week as he followed up a 6-2 win over Gary Wilson in his opening game with a brilliant victory over the Pistol on Wednesday.

World number three Allen looked great as he opened the match with a break of 135 and was leading the game 3-2 at one stage, but that was before Fan really hit his stride.

The Chinese talent made breaks of 88, 91 and 84 in the last four frames, during which time Allen scored just nine points as he was almost entirely frozen out.

The pair had met twice before with Allen winning comfortably on both occasions, so it was a notable upset and a morale-boosting win for Fan who sets up a quarter-final clash with either Neil Robertson or Ding Junhui.

It is a blow to Allen in a tournament he described as his ‘favourite event in China’ after an early exit from the European Masters last month as well.

Also booking a quarter-final spot on Wednesday morning was world champion Luca Brecel who battled to a 6-4 win over Mark Williams.

The contest had a bit of everything, with both men making centuries, while they also dug into tactical battles when required.

Brecel downed Williams on his way to the Crucible title in April, which was his first ever win over the Welshman, and he has followed it up with another big victory in China.

The Belgian Bullet takes on either Shaun Murphy or Robert Milkins in the last eight as he looks to follow up his shock Crucible triumph in style.

Wednesday afternoon (UK time) sees those quarter-final line-ups completed as Robertson takes on Ding and Murphy meets Milkins.

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Ronnie O’Sullivan put together his top five snooker players ever, although his list is different to anyone else considering the quintet as he didn’t put himself in there.

The Rocket was speaking at the Shanghai Masters after beating Ali Carter 6-3 in his opening contest in the non-ranking event.

The 47-year-old set up a clash with his old rival John Higgins in the quarter-finals in Shanghai and the Scot was featured in O’Sullivan’s top five in snooker history.

The Wizard of Wishaw trails behind legendary names from the past, going all the way back to snooker pioneer and world champion 15 times from 1927-46, Joe Davis.

Asked for his top five ‘legend players in history’ at a post-match press conference, O’Sullivan said: ‘Stephen Hendry, number one. Steve Davis, number two. Joe Davis, number three. Ray Reardon, number four. John Higgins, number five.’

Asked whether he should have a place in the list, he said: ‘I don’t name myself.’

The Rocket and the Wizard will resume their rivalry on the table which dates back over 30 years when they used to batle it out as junior players.

O’Sullivan has always been full of respect and admiration for the Scot and he knows it will be a tough test when they meet on Thursday.

‘I’ve already put him in my legends list, so everyone knows what I think about John as a player,’ said O’Sullivan.

‘He’s been playing really well so far this season, helooked good in Germany, looked phenonmanl in his matches here so far.

‘It’ll be a tough game, but if I can give him a decent match I’ll be happy with that.’

O’Sullivan’s win over Carter was his first match of the season, so while he wasn’t at his blistering best, he looked comfortably good enough in the victory, making breaks of 101, 99, 81, 74 and 57 along the way.

He is right to say that Higgins is playing well, though, after he looked very good in a 6-3 win over Kyren Wilson earlier on Tuesday, and beat wildcard Deng Haohui 6-0 in round one, knocking in a 141 along the way.

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Ronnie O’Sullivan got his Shanghai Masters campaign underway on Tuesday with a 6-3 win over Ali Carter and made it clear that he is there to defend his title.

The Rocket walks his own path and is often coy about how much he cares about winning certain tournaments, but there was no denying that he is in Shanghai to do everything he can to lift the trophy.

The seven-time world champion has won the last three editions of the Shanghai Masters, not losing in the event since 2016 and his win over Carter keeps that immense run going.

‘I’d love to win this tournament, it’s one of my favourite tournaments,’ he told a press conference after beating Carter. ‘Fantastic venue, fantastic city here in Shanghai.

‘I always want to do well in the really, really big, important tournaments. This is a very important tournament.’

The 47-year-old made breaks of 101, 99, 81, 74 and 57 in the win over the Captain, looking in a bit of trouble at 3-3 but powering to victory.

O’Sullivan meets his old rival John Higgins in the next round and was asked if he could see any young players coming through to challenge the veterans in the near future.

He has not always been complimentary about the standard of players emerging in recent years, but says there are stars beginning to rise.

‘There’s some great young players. Everybody’s about as good as each other, there’s no standout player,’ he said. ‘I think the sport needs someone. I think the sport is more exciting if one player can dominate because everyone wants to see that player lose.

‘But at the moment there isn’t really one player dominating, there’s many, many good players. There’s a lot of very good youngplayers. Very good players from Belgium, Ben Mertens is good, Luca [Brecel] obviously winning the World Championship.

‘China has many good players. Si Jiahui played fantastic at the World Championship. Great talent, great player. It would be nice to see one of them dominate.’

Tuesday began with Mark Williams comfortably beating Pang Junxu 6-1 and Robert Milkins downing Bai Yulu by the same scoreling in the opening round, then the heavyweight last 16 contests began.

John Higgins continued his impressive early-season form by downing Kyren Wilson 6-3 and Judd Trump went all the way to a deciding frame before edging out his good pal Jack Lisowski.

Trump was looking good at 5-2 ahead before Lisowksi scrapped all the way back to 5-5 and was in with a chance to win the match before missing a pink to middle.

The Ace stepped in to make a break of 74 and book his spot in the quarter-finals.

‘I thought I’d blown it when I missed the yellow in the last frame, I was just over-thinking things,’ Trump told WST. ‘He was potting some really good balls, got in a great position and had that one tricky shot left.

‘I thought it was game over because he looked good from 5-2 down. I was already thinking about the flight home.

‘There was a lot of pressure out there, especially against Jack. You never want to come here and go out first round. Proud of digging in and making a good break under pressure.

‘I know he [Jack] will be disappointed because he made a good comeback in his first game and looked really good again.

‘He’ll be extremely disappointed, that’s why I didnt want to celebrate at the end because I know how tough it will be for him. But for me, an amazing win in the end.’

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Mark Williams has earned a clash with Luca Brecel at the Shanghai Masters and wants to see the wave the world champion is riding come crashing down.

The last 16 clash in Shanghai is a repeat of a second round meeting at the Crucible this year, which Brecel won on his way to becoming the world champion for the first time.

A dominant 6-1 win for Williams over Pang Junxu on Tuesday has set-up a rematch with the Belgian Bullet and he is hoping to gain at least some measure of revenge.

Brecel may still be buzzing from his stunning World Championship win, but Williams is hoping to bring him back to earth with a bang in Shanghai.

‘He beat me in the World Championships, if I did beat him, I’d rather reverse them round,’ Williams told WST.

‘He’s riding on a wave. We’ve all done it. The wave always comes crashing down, it’s just how long it takes. Hopefully I can take him off that wave tomorrow.’

The Shanghai Masters is the first main tour event in China since before the pandemic struck and Williams is delighted to be back there and playing in front of great crowds.

‘It’s brilliant,’ he said. ‘I don’t know how many was in there, but there was loads. It’s brilliant playing in front of a full house, that’s what the players want.

‘We played 9.30am here and my side and Rob Milkins’ side were almost full.

‘I think when you haven’t been to places like Shanghai for a long time because of Covid and all this, you don’t relaise how much you miss it.

‘Coming back here, we haven’t been here for so long it’s great to get out there. We’ve got a lot of tournaments in China and a lot of players are lookig forward to them.’

But having said that, the Welsh Potting Machine does not plan to drink in much culture while he’s away: ‘No not really. I’m not a sight-seeing person, I’ve been to China for 31 years and I’ve seen the Great Wall, I think that’s all I’ve seen.’

Milkins completed the last 16 line-up with a 6-1 victory over Bai Yulu also on Tuesday morning, with the Milkman setting up a clash with Shaun Murphy on Wednesday.

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Old rivals Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ali Carter will lock horns again on Tuesday on a blockbuster day of action at the Shanghai Masters.

The big-money event in China got underway on Monday, with Carter, John Higgins and Hossein Vafaei all comfortably seeing off their wildcard opponents.

There was also first round wins for Fan Zhengyi, Ding Junhui and Jack Lisowski, with Jackpot coming through an epic contest with Zhou Yuelong.

The pair were taken off at 4-4 as their afternoon session match was running long, and they returned to continue their race to six frames, which Lisowski won in a decider, knocking in a nerveless 84 to win 6-5.

Ding was far from his best but still managed to oust World Championship semi-finalist Si Jiahui 6-2, while Fan downed Gary Wilson by the same scoreline.

It was a good first day of action, but it looks set to be even better on Tuesday as the last 16 gets underway.

The final first round matches see Robert Milkins play Bai Yulu and Mark Williams meet Pang Junxu, before some seriously heavyweight affairs.

O’Sullivan and Carter will attract a lot of attention, but there is plenty more to enjoy, with Lisowski taking on Judd Trump, Vafaei playing Mark Selby and Higgins meeting Kyren Wilson.

Carter and O’Sullivan have met 23 times in all competitions over their lengthy careers, with the Captain winning just three, although memorably he downed the Rocket at the 2018 World Championship when the infamous ‘Bargegate’ occurred.

This will be O’Sullivan’s first match of the season, last playing in a quarter-final defeat to Luca Brecel at the Crucible, so Carter will hope that his 6-2 opening round win over Ding Zihao will give him an edge.

Higgins is in confident mood after he beat Deng Haohui on Monday and will be further buoyed as he beat his next opponent Wilson 5-3 at the European Masters last month and demolished him 13-2 at the World Championship in April.

‘I think I’m playing pretty decent stuff,’ said the Scot. ‘That obviously helps to be a little bit more motivated. I’ve said in a few interviews that I am trying to preserve my place in the top 16 to be in these tournaments. You don’t want to miss out. I’ve got my work cut out for the whole year to make sure I am still in the top 16.’

Vafaei picked up a 6-1 win over Gong Chenzhi in his opener on Monday and will be looking to extend a running run over Selby having beaten the Jester from Leicester three times on the spin – twice at the UK Championsihp and once at the Masters.

Outside of the short-format Championship League, Trump has won his last six clashes with his good pal Lisowski, but Jackpot’s last win over the Ace came in China, at the International Championship in 2018.

The last 16 will continue on Wednesday when world champion Luca Brecel, Mark Allen, Neil Robertson and Shaun Murphy enter the fray.

Tuesday 12 September (UK time)
Round One
02.30am – Robert Milkins vs Bai Yulu
02.30am – Mark Williams vs Pang Junxu
Last 16
07.30am – Kyren Wilson vs John Higgins
07.30am – Judd Trump vs Jack Lisowski
12.30pm – Ronnie O’Sulivan vs Ali Carter
12.30pm – Mark Selby vs Hossein Vafaei

The Shanghai Masters is available to watch in the UK on Eurosport and Discovery+

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Hossein Vafaei has no interest in reigniting the spat with Ronnie O’Sullivan which grabbed headlines at the World Championship.

Both men are in action at the Shanghai Masters this week, with Vafaei kicking off his campaign with a comfortable 6-1 win over wildcard Gong Chenzhi in his opening contest on Monday, setting up a last 16 clash with Mark Selby.

The Iranian is on the same side of the draw as the Rocket but he has no intention of bringing their beef back to the boil.

Vafaei memorably suggested last year that O’Sullivan should retire as he is not good for snooker, an eye-catching claim which appeared to have avoided the wrath of the Rocket until the two players were due to meet at this year’s World Championship.

O’Sullivan warned Vafaei not to ‘rattle his cage’ while the Prince of Persia refused to wilt and hit out at the seven-time world champion, saying he’s a ‘nice person when he’s asleep.’

The Rocket had the last laugh, hammering Vafaei 13-2 in their last 16 clash, but the pair laughed together at the end and hugged it out, seemingly ending their spat.

After Vafaei got his Shanghai Masters campaign underway on Monday he was asked if he planned to create any similar headlines this week, but he is not necessarily keen on the controversy again.

‘I’m so happy, this is myself, I’m not acting, I’m a snooker player and I love to be myself. If something is not right I have to say it, people accept it or don’t accept it,’ Vafaei told WST.

‘At the same time, we shouldn’t forget the respect as well, as much as possible.

‘Let’s forget that [the spat with O’Sullivan]. I’m going to make a new story again, maybe for someone else! No, listen, I love Ronnie, he’s my hero.

‘I play snooker because of him, if he’s not around snooker, who’s going to watch the snooker? Even myself, I’m one of his fans.

‘Sometimes it happens in any family. Let’s forget it.’

Also getting his Shanghai Masters campaign underway on Monday was John Higgins, who also dispatched a wildcard comfortable, downing Deng Haohui 6-0 to set-up a meeting with Kyren Wilson in the next round.

The Wizard of Wishaw sounds thrilled to be back in Shanghai in the first edition of the tournament since 2019 due to a pandemic-enforced break.

‘The venue is totally transformed from when we’ve played so many years here,’ said the four-time world champ. ‘It’s a better venue now. Backstage it just feels more prestigious as well.

‘Great arena to play in. It’s brilliant, obviously it’s a beautiful city, one of the nicest cities in the world, one of the nicest cities I’ve ever travelled to. It’s great to be back.’

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The Shanghai Masters finally returns to the calendar on Monday, with a stellar line-up at the big-money non-ranking tournament in China.

The event has not been held since 2019 due to the Chinese tournaments being wiped off the schedule due to Covid, but it is back and has attracted the biggest names in the sport.

Ronnie O’Sullivan is the defending champion after winning the last three editions of the Shanghai Masters and it is the first time fans will see him in action this season after choosing not to play the Championship League and the European Masters.

The Rocket is far from the only star of the show, with the world’s top 16 joined by the four highest-ranked Chinese players outside of the top 16 and four local wildcards, including exciting 20-year-old female star Bai Yulu.

Barry Hawkins may feel a little unlucky to miss out after surging back into the top 16 by winning the European Masters last month, but the field had been set before that victory.

Shanghai Masters Draw and Schedule (UK times)

Monday 11 September
Round One
02.30am – John Higgins vs Deng Haohui
02.30am – Gary Wilson vs Fan Zhengyi
07.30am – Hossein Vafaei vs Gong Chenzhi
07.30am – Jack Lisowski vs Zhou Yuelong
12.30pm – Ali Carter vs Dong Zihao
12.30pm – Ding Junhui vs Si Jiahui

Tuesday 12 September
02.30am – Robert Milkins vs Bai Yulu
02.30am – Mark Williams vs Pang Junxu
Last 16
07.30am – Kyren Wilson vs Higgins/Deng
07.30am – Judd Trump vs Lisowski/Zhou
12.30pm – Ronnie O’Sulivan vs Carter/Dong
12.30pm – Mark Selby vs Vafaei/Gong

Wednesday 13 September
07.00am – Mark Allen vs Fan Zhengyi
07.00am – Luca Brecel vs Mark Williams
12.30pm – Neil Robertson vs Ding Junhui
12.30pm – Shaun Murphy vs Rob Milkins

Thursday 14 September

07.00am: Ronnie O’Sullivan vs John Higgins
07.00am: Mark Selby vs Judd Trump
12.30pm: Fan Zhengyi vs Ding/Robertson
12.30pm: Luca Brecel vs Murphy/Milkins

Friday 15 September
7am & 12.30pm – Semi-final One

Saturday 16 September
7am & 12.30pm – Semi-final Two

Sunday 17 September
7am & 12.30pm – Final

How to watch the Shanghai Masters

The tournament is being shown in the UK on Eurosport and Discovery+.International broadcasters are listed here.

Shanghai Masters Prize Money

Winner: £210,000
Runner-up: £105,000
Semi-final: £70,000
Quarter-final: £35,000
Last 16: £17,500
Last 24: £10,000
Highest break: £10,000

Shanghai Masters Odds

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4/1
Judd Trump 11/2
Mark Selby 15/2
Shaun Murphy 8/1
Neil Robertson 8/1
John Higgins 12/1
Mark Allen 12/1
Luca Brecel 14/1
Kyren Wilson 16/1
Mark Williams 22/1
Ding Junhui 25/1
Jack Lisowski 33/1
Ali Carter 40/1
Hossein Vafaei 40/1
Robert Milkins 50/1
Si Jiahui 66/1
Gary Wilson 66/1
Pang Junxu 125/1
Zhou Yuelong 125/1
Fan Zhengyi 150/1
Dong Zihao 1000/1
Gong Chenzhi 1000/1
Bai Yulu 1000/1
Deng Haohui 1000/1

Odds courtesy of Betfair

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Stephen Hendry admits it is a concern for snooker that Ronnie O’Sullivan is the ‘lone, true star’ of the sport and is firmly into the second half of his epic career.

The Rocket is still the biggest name in the game, the most reliable draw and is ranked number one in the world despite turning 48 later this year.

Hendry and O’Sullivan share the World Championship-winning record with seven titles each and the Scot says it will be a problem for snooker when the Englishman eventually hangs up his cue.

Asked about O’Sullivan’s importance to the game by Simon Jordan on Up Front, Hendry said: ‘Hugely important. If he’s not in a tournament it’s not the same. That is a worry.

‘His truly great performances are going to be fewer and further between now than they were because he’s getting older, he’s doing other things. Getting himself up to play a tournament is going to be harder and harder.

‘On his day he’s still the best player by a mile. If he plays his best he wins.

‘He is the superstar of snooker. He’s the only player who won’t go to China unless he’s getting appearance money, and he’ll get it. As far as I know, no other players are charging appearance money. He is the lone, true star in snooker.

‘So that’s a worry. Although there are other players playing an unbelievable standard of snooker. [Neil] Robertson, [Judd] Trump, [Mark] Williams, [Mark] Selby, they’re all unbelievable snooker players. But unfortunately, and I think they know this, he is the one that brings that bit of stardust to the tournament.’

Hendry also gave his take on the future of the World Championship and whether it should remain at the Crucible beyond the current contract with the venue which runs until 2027.

The Sheffield theatre has hosted the event since 1977 but there has been talk of a possible move to a bigger venue elsewhere, or even a switch to the Middle East in order to boost prize money.

The man known as The King of The Crucible does not want to see that happen, saying he would hate to see the World Championship leave the venue, but revealed that world number four Judd Trump would be happy to see a move if it meant more money in the pot.

Asked whether he thinks The Crucible should be protected, Hendry said: ‘I do, but I might be considered old school. I spoke to Judd about it in China and Judd would like to see it in Saudi Arabia if the first prize becomes £2m.

‘But how would he feel about playing a World Championship in front of 20 people? He basically said he doesn’t care as long as he’s getting the big prize money, but I’d hate to see it.’

The 54-year-old suggested that a move to the Middle East would be a worry based on his experience with the Dubai Classic which ran from 1989-94.

‘The worrying this is, we played a ranking tournament in Dubai in the early 90s. Basically it was dropped like a stone when they weren’t interested anymore,’ he said.

‘That would be my fear. If Saudi Arabia took it and then got bored of the snooker and didn’t want it anymore. Where do you go from there?’

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There will be no shortage of big names at the table on the opening day of the English Open on 2 October, with the world’s top 16 all in action in Brentwood.

Ronnie O’Sullivan is nearly always the star of the show and he certainly will be in front of his home crowd in Essex as he takes on Andrew Pagett in his opening game of the ranking event.

World champion Luca Brecel plays Stan Moody, Crucible runner-up Mark Selby takes on Xing Zhao and probably the highlight of the opening round sees four-time world champ John Higgins take on Hong Kong legend Marco Fu.

The opening round is technically the qualifying round for the English Open, but the top 16 in the rankings see their qualifiers held over to the main arena at the Brentwood Leisure Centre.

Meanwhile, the rest of qualifying is being played this week in Leicester ahead of the main stage running from 2-8 October.

English Open Schedule Monday 2 October

10am
Mark Allen v Mostafa Dorgham
Ding Junhui v Ma Hailong
Ryan Day v Ashley Hugill
Robert Milkins v Robbie Williams

Not before 1pm
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Andrew Pagett
John Higgins v Marco Fu
Ryan Davies v Bradley Cowdroy (English amateur wild cards)
Jack Lisowski v Matthew Stevens

Roll-on Roll-off
Mark Selby v Xing Zhao
Neil Robertson v Sanderson Lam
Ali Carter v Jamie Clarke

7pm
Luca Brecel v Stan Moody
Shaun Murphy v Liu Hongyu
Mark Williams v Ian Burns

Not before 8 pm
Judd Trump v Sean O’Sullivan
Kyren Wilson v Oliver Lines
Barry Hawkins v Anthony Hamilton

Snooker fans are yet to see O’Sullivan in action yet this season, last watching the Rocket at the table as he was beaten by Brecel in the Crucible quarter-finals.

He will get his campaign underway at the Shanghai Masters next week on 12 September, before a busy schedule which sees him due to play the British Open, English Open and Wuhan Open in consecutive weeks.

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Barry Hawkins is not having the suggestion that he is ‘too nice’ to make the most of his talent, after claiming the fourth ranking title of his career at the European Masters.

The Hawk beat Judd Trump in the final in Germany last month after an impressive run to the showpiece, downing world champion Luca Brecel and Mark Selby along the way.

It continues a superb career on the table for the 44-year-old, but one which could have produced more silverware given he has lost in six ranking finals, two Masters finals and has been a regular face in semis and quarters over the last decade or so.

While there is no real weakness in his game, pundits have suggested that the affable, friendly and humble Hawkins is ‘too nice’ to deal with the ruthless winners who have racked up more titles, especially when he meets them at the business end of events.

When this suggestion was put to the Hawk on the Talking Snooker podcast, he joked: ‘I think it’s a load of rubbish! I’m horrible!’

However, in all seriousness, the European Masters champ does not reckon this is a reason he hasn’t won more titles, seeing no reason why you can’t be both friendly and successful.

‘I can see why they say that sometimes, but I just don’t think that’s true really,’ he said.

‘You’ve obviously got to be ruthless when you’re on the table, show a little bit of aggression I suppose, that makes sense. Fire yourself up and give yourself a kick up the bum when you’re out there.

‘But off the table there’s loads of great sports stars that are nice people and treat people well, but are absolutely ruthless winners. I can see why they say it but I don’t think it’s true.’

Hawkins does admit that there is a reason he hasn’t put more trophies in his cabinet, feeling like he has lacked the belief in his own game over the years.

This slight lack of confidence that he can win the big one may have been viewed from afar as a lack of ruthlessness, and it is something that has plagued him for most of his career.

‘When I started to get to quarters and semis I still didn’t really believe I could go on and win it,’ Hawkins said, looking back on his career so far. ‘I was just in the moment against these great players.

‘Until you’ve actually won one I never had that belief, which is a terrible thing to say, but it takes a long time to have that belief in you. Some people are just born with it but its something I’ve had to work on.’

Even during the Hawk’s peak – a spell which saw him reach the World Championship final in 2013 then four Crucible semis in five years, while also winning the World Grand Prix and Players Tour Championship Finals – he still didn’t really feel he belonged at the top.

‘It was a great period, and I must have been doing something right, but that was the problem, I still found it hard to believe that I was a top player, believe it or not,’ he said.

‘It’s mad. Even after all them results, when I think about it, I think, “was that really me?” The way my mind works is crazy sometimes.

‘But the last few years, especially now after winning the other day, I have to believe that I am one of the best players. But sometimes I find it hard to tell myself that.’

MORE : Wuhan Open field set as qualifying throws up shocks and strong showings

MORE : Barry Hawkins intends to cash in on great form after European Masters restores belief

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Most of snooker’s top stars will be heading to China for the inaugural Wuhan Open this year, but some big names have fallen at the first hurdle before the main stages.

The event has been added to the calendar this season as international events return to China after the height of the pandemic, with the main stages played in Wuhan from 9-15 October.

Eight matches have been held over to Wuhan, with Ronnie O’Sullivan, Luca Brecel, Ding Junhui, Zhou Yuelong, David Gilbert, Ali Carter, Anthony Hamilton and Si Jiahui seeing their first round matches delayed to be played in front of the Chinese crowd.

Notable names that will not be joining them in China include Shaun Murphy, Kyren Wilson, Gary Wilson and Anthony McGill, who all lost in the qualifiers in Leicester this week.

Murphy was downed 5-2 by impressive Belgian teenager Ben Mertens, McGill was edged out 5-4 by Indian professional Ishpreet Singh, Kyren Wilson lost 5-4 to He Guoqiang and Gary Wilson was beaten 5-3 by Ashley Carty.

Irish youngster Aaron Hill also stunned Joe Perry 5-0, Ian Burns sprung something of a surprise by ousting Ricky Walden 5-3, while Hossein Vafaei lost out in a deciding frame to Marco Fu, with the Hong Kong legend progressing with a 5-4 win.

There was better news for other big names, though, with the likes of John Higgins, Mark Williams, Neil Robertson, Judd Trump and Mark Selby all progressing without too much drama.

In one of the notable events of qualifying, Robertson made the 900th century of his superb career during a 5-0 win over fellow Australian Ryan Thomerson.

Barry Hawkins also continued his fine early-season form after winning the European Masters last month, beating Louis Heathcote 5-1 in a dominant display.

The brand new tournament, hosted at the Wuhan Sports Center is a significant addition to the World Snooker Tour calendar, with the winner picking up £140,000 in prize money.

First round winners claim £4,500, while Aaron Hill set an impressive target for the high break prize of £5,000, making a 145 against Perry.

MORE : Barry Hawkins intends to cash in on great form after European Masters restores belief

MORE : World Open to return this season as fourth Chinese event on World Snooker Tour calendar

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Barry Hawkins plans to ‘make hay while the sun shines’ and add more silverware to his collection after securing the European Masters title on Sunday.

The Hawk was in fine form in Nuremberg as he beat Judd Trump 9-6 in the final, backing up a superb victory over an in-form Mark Selby in the semis.

Picking up the trophy ended a ranking title drought which stretched back to February 2017 and the 44-year-old admits it was a feeling of relief that washed over him as he got over the line.

There had been four ranking final defeats since his previous triumph, plus showpiece losses at the Masters and Shanghai Masters, so the win in Germany was a substantial monkey off the Hawk’s back.

‘Obviously I was over the moon, delighted, the initial feeling was really good that I’d won but it was relief, I suppose,’ Hawkins told Metro.co.uk. ‘When you get to one or two finals it feels like a good achievement, but when you’ve been to quite a few finals and keep being the runner-up it’s not that nice, you want to get your hands on the trophy, it felt such a long time to get that feeling again. To finally win a tournament again is massive relief.’

The last four defeats in ranking finals came to John Higgins, Selby, Neil Robertson and Kyren Wilson, so there was no disgrace for Hawkins, and he admits that he didn’t go into those matches confident of downing players who went in as favourite against him.

However, it was different this time around against Trump, feeling calm and confident, which showed as he took an early lead and never relinquished it.

‘The last few finals I don’t think I believed I could win for some reason and it showed in my performance,’ said Hawkins.

‘A couple of times I was okay, I played well against Neil in the Players Championship final, I felt confident then, but he just played out of his skin, just one of them days, I hardly did anything wrong but he played unbelievable snooker.

‘The other finals I don’t think I 100 per cent felt I could win, but this one for some reason I just felt really calm, just a different mindset. It wasn’t the best, free-flowing final, but you’ve just got to win. I stood up at the end, I didn’t crumble, I stood up to the pressure, so that was good.’

There is no secret to finding success in big finals, with Hawkins not making any major changes over the summer, but he managed to take the confidence of his brilliant semi-final victory into the showpiece.

‘I think that was a big match for me because Selby was playing well,’ he said. ‘And the way I did it, big clearance at 4-4, first chance at 30-odd behind in the next frame I made a really good break.

‘It was a really high quality match, neither of us really missed anything, so to come through it was a massive boost of confidence. Then going into the final I looked good.’

There was also a determination to right the wrong of last season in the same tournament when Hawkins reached the European Masters final and things went seriously wrong.

A poor quality final was won 9-3 by Kyren Wilson and the Hawk was desperate not to let that happen again.

He explained: ‘When I got to four frames in the final, I thought “I can’t do any worse than last year.”

‘I was determined to show up and not play bad like last year because it was quite demoralising towards the end of that final, I just wanted to get out of there. I couldn’t do nothing against Kyren, the conditions didn’t help but I just didn’t turn up, I just played awful and I was determined not to do the same again.’

With a title in the bag as early as August, Hawkins has gone a long way to achieving his goals for the season already, but now he can aim even higher.

The CV is boosted and his ranking looks very healthy in the top 16, so the former World Championship finalist can allow himself to target the biggest prizes in the sport.

‘The goal every season is to win a tournament and to get into all the events – the Grand Prix, the Players, the Tour Championship, that’s massive. But the main aim was to get back in the 16 and be seeded for the Crucible so this has given me a massive boost to do that,’ he said.

‘Ideally you want to win one of the Triple Crown event, I’ve come close a couple of times and it’s so difficult to do that but if I did happen to win one of those that would be amazing. That would be on the bucket list, a Triple Crown would be unbelievable, if that came along I’d be very happy.

‘At least I know I can do it in the final, this has confirmed I can win. I’ve won a few tournaments now so I’m no one hit wonder, that’s quite nice to know. I must be doing something right.

‘If I can keep that sort of form up, I’ve shown that I’m capable of beating anyone and winning any tournament. I just need to keep my foot on the gas now, make hay while the sun shines and make the most of the opportuniy I’ve given myself.

‘There’s a lot to look forward to for the rest of the season. I’ll not rest on that win, stay focused, stay dedicated and try and push on.

‘It’s not easy because there’s so many good players about, but it’s a good springboard and I need to try and make the most of it. Getting in all those ITV series events, it’s more to practice for, it’s exciting. I’m really chuffed, when I think about it, I’m really chuffed, it’s good.’

MORE : International Championship, Wuhan Open and English Open draws made as Ronnie O’Sullivan gets Ken Doherty twice

MORE : Barry Hawkins conquers ‘low moments’ and doubt with European Masters glory

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A trio of draws have been made this week for three rankings events in the coming weeks: The Wuhan Open, English Open and International Championship.

All three events feature the biggest names in snooker, with the Wuhan Open a brand new event on the calendar this season and the International Championship returning to the schedule as the sport returns to China after a pandemic-enforced absence.

Ronnie O’Sullivan has drawn fellow former world champion Ken Doherty twice in the three draws and will take on the Irishman in the opening round of the Wuhan Open and International Championship.

There are qualifiers for all three events played in Leicester and Sheffield, although a number of matches featuring top ranked and local players are held over to the main venues in Wuhan, Brentwood and Tianjin.

O’Sullivan is still world number one so all his matches are held over, as are world champion Luca Brecel’s.

Wuhan Open qualifiers 1-5 September - Leicester

Friday 1 September
10am
Ryan Day v Long Zehuang
Wu Yize v Allan Taylor
Kyren Wilson v He Guoqiang
Mark Allen v John Astley
2.30pm
Neil Robertson v Ryan Thomerson
Noppon Saengkham v Andrew Higginson
Robbie Williams v Alfie Burden
Gary Wilson v Ashley Carty
7pm
Joe O’Connor v Dean Young
Jackson Page v Liu Hongyu
Ben Woollason v Oliver Brown
Mark Selby v Andy Lee

Saturday 02 September
10am
Xu Si v Anton Kazakov
Cao Yupeng v Jiang Jun
Tian Pengfei v Sanderson Lam
Zhang Anda v Ahmed Aly Elsayed
2.30pm
Joe Perry v Aaron Hill
Andy Hicks v Hammad Miah
Yuan Sijun v Ross Muir
Fan Zhengyi v Stuart Carrington
7pm
David Grace v Martin O’Donnell
Elliot Slessor v David Lilley
Robert Milkins v Zak Surety
Stuart Bingham v James Cahill

Sunday 03 September
10am
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh v Thor Chuan Leong
Scott Donaldson v Ma Hailong
Anthony McGill v Ishpreet Singh Chadha
Chris Wakelin v Mink Nutcharut
2.30pm
Tom Ford v Adam Duffy
Jamie Jones v Liam Pullen
Jack Lisowski v Jenson Kendrick
Pang Junxu v Stan Moody
7pm
Barry Hawkins v Louis Heathcote
Matt Selt v Sean O’Sullivan
Oliver Lines v Reanne Evans
Mark Williams v Andres Petrov

Monday 04 September
10am
Mark Joyce v Victor Sarkis
Matthew Stevens v Daniel Wells
Jamie Clarke v Mohamed Ibrahim
Lyu Haotian v Muhammad Asif
2.30pm
Jimmy Robertson v Rod Lawler
Judd Trump v Lukas Kleckers
Jak Jones v Mostafa Dorgham
Graeme Dott v Julien Leclercq
7pm
Stephen Maguire v Manasawin Phetmalaikul
Xiao Guodong v Alexander Ursenbacher
Shaun Murphy v Ben Mertens
Dominic Dale v Rebecca Kenna

Tuesday 05 September
10am
Michael White v Andrew Pagett
Hossein Vafaei v Marco Fu
Jordan Brown v Himanshu Jain
Mark Davis v Liam Graham
2.30pm
John Higgins v Dylan Emery
Ricky Walden v Ian Burns
Sam Craigie v Peng Yisong
Liam Highfield v Jimmy White

Matches held over to main venue. Tournament starts on 9 October

Luca Brecel v Xing Zihao
Zhou Yuelong v Baipat Siripaporn
Ding Junhui v Ashley Hugill
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ken Doherty
David Gilbert v Wildcard
Si Jiahui v Wildcard
Ali Carter v Wildcard
Anthony Hamilton v Wildcard

Matches held over to main venue. Tournament starts on 2 October

Mark Selby v Xing Zihao
Ryan Day v Ashley Hugill
John Higgins v Marco Fu
Kyren Wilson v Oliver Lines
Judd Trump v Sean O’Sullivan
Robert Milkins v Robbie Williams
Barry Hawkins v Anthony Hamilton
Mark Allen v Mostafa Dorgham
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Andrew Pagett
Jack Lisowski v Matthew Stevens
Ali Carter v Jamie Clarke
Neil Robertson v Sanderson Lam
Shaun Murphy v Liu Hongyu
Mark Williams v Ian Burns
Ding Junhui v Ma Hailong
Luca Brecel v Stan Moody

International Championship qualifying 18-23 September - Sheffield

Monday 18 September
9.30am
Stephen Maguire v Peng Yisong
Wu Yize v Ross Muir
Tian Pengfei v Stephen Hendry
Yuan Sijun v Long Zehuang
2.30pm
Michael White v Himanshu Jain
Ryan Day v Mink Nutcharut
Jackson Page v Liam Graham
Mark Joyce v Andy Lee
7.30pm
Barry Hawkins v Andrew Pagett
Matt Selt v Jimmy White
Robbie Williams v Ben Mertens

Tuesday 19 September
9.30am
Xu Si v Stuart Carrington
Cao Yupeng v Ashley Hugill
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh v Andrew Higginson
Matthew Stevens v Liu Hongyu
2.30pm
Joe Perry v Dylan Emery
David Grace v Jenson Kendrick
David Gilbert v James Cahill
Andy Hicks v Sanderson Lam
7.30pm
Jordan Brown v Sean O’Sullivan
Tom Ford v Stan Moody
Anthony McGill v Alfie Burden

Wednesday 20 September
9.30am
Xiao Guodong v Ishpreet Singh Chadha
Sam Craigie v Rory Thor
Stuart Bingham v Xing Zihao
Zhang Anda v Alexander Ursenbacher
2.30pm
Jimmy Robertson v Anton Kazakov
Noppon Saengkham v Victor Sarkis
Graeme Dott v Liam Pullen
7.30pm
Hossein Vafaei v Reanne Evans
Gary Wilson v Mohamed Ibrahim
Mark Davis v Rod Lawler

Thursday 21 September
9.30am
Mark Allen v Ma Hailong
Jack Lisowski v He Guoqiang
Lyu Haotian v David Lilley
Fan Zhengyi v Mostafa Dorgham
2.30pm
Elliot Slessor v Hammad Miah
Kyren Wilson v Adam Duffy
Mark Selby v Muhammad Asif
7.30pm
Jamie Jones v Ashley Carty
Mark Williams v Rebecca Kenna

Friday 22 September
9.30am
Robert Milkins v Marco Fu
Si Jiahui v Julien Leclercq
Jamie Clarke v John Astley
Dominic Dale v Oliver Brown
2.30pm
Joe O’Connor v Baipat Siripaporn
Ali Carter v Allan Taylor
Shaun Murphy v Andres Petrov
7.30pm
John Higgins v Manasawin Phetmalaikul
Neil Robertson v Ryan Thomerson
Chris Wakelin v Dean Young

Saturday 23 September
9.30am
Ricky Walden v Jiang Jun
Scott Donaldson v Louis Heathcote
Pang Junxu v Zak Surety
2.30pm
Oliver Lines v Lukas Kleckers
Jak Jones v Aaron Hill
Liam Highfield v Daniel Wells

Matches held over to main venue. Tournament starts on 5 November

Judd Trump v Wildcard
Anthony Hamilton v Wildcard
Ben Woollaston v Wildcard
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ken Doherty
Zhou Yuelong v Martin O’Donnell
Ding Junhui v Ian Burns
Luca Brecel v Ahmed Aly Elsayed

MORE : Barry Hawkins conquers ‘low moments’ and doubt with European Masters glory

MORE : Anthony Hamilton on retirement plan, evolving into a grinder and words of wisdom

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Barry Hawkins admits he has endured ‘so many low moments’ over his snooker career, but the European Masters title he picked up on Sunday is a huge and much-needed boost.

The 44-year-old was in excellent form in Nuremberg as he beate Judd Trump 9-6 in the final, following brilliant wins over the likes of Mark Selby and world champion Luca Brecel.

The fourth ranking title of his career came six years after the third, a seriously long dry spell for a player who has consistently been near the top of the sport over that time.

There have been defeats in finals and early losses during the Hawk’s lean patch, including missing out on a trip to the Crucible this year for the first time since 2005 after losing in World Championship qualifying.

Hawkins admits there have been hard times and many painful moments, but to put another title on his CV is the high he has been battling to experience.

‘Your belief takes a knock every tournament you turn up at. It is hard to take. There is only one winner at the end of the day. There are are 127 players who come up short. To keep having that belief is difficult if you keep getting beat,’ Hawkins told WST.

‘To finally come out as the winner at the end of a big event is amazing. If you get to finals you have done well and it is a great week. Once you get to a few finals you realise that nobody remembers the runner-up. You want to get your hands on a trophy and be the winner.

‘You always doubt yourself, whether you are good enough and whether you will get to the latter stages of tournaments again.

‘There have been so many low moments. I’ve lost count of them over the years. You are always going to get them. It is just about how you bounce back. That is the way it is. You need to keep practising and keep plugging away. Hopefully you will turn up one day and it will be your week. This time it was my week.’

Hawkins has burst back into the world’s top 16 thanks to the £80,000 top prize in Germany and will hope that he can remain there and not face World Championship qualifying again next year.

He will not be over-burdening himself with practice though, having first turned professional way back in 1996, it is not about churning out endless hours in the club for the Hawk these days.

‘I try to find a balance. I’m not practising as hard as I used to when I was younger,’ he said. ‘I am practising the right way now and that works for me. I don’t live on the table 24/7 like a lot of players.

‘If I turn up to tournaments fresh and looking forward to playing that seems to be the best way for me. You need to stay dedicated, but you don’t need to be doing a silly amount of hours.’

Hawkins is back in action on Sunday in qualifying for the Wuhan Open against Louis Heathcote.

MORE : Anthony Hamilton on retirement plan, evolving into a grinder and words of wisdom

MORE : Kyren Wilson reveals early-season injury from kebab row with Portuguese police

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Ronnie O’Sullivan has pulled out of the European Masters ahead of his scheduled first round clash against Andy Hicks.

The world No.1 had been due to get his season underway in Germany but, according to Eurosport commentator Dave Hendon, O’Sullivan took a late decision not to play the event.

A short statement, released by World Snooker, read: ‘Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the BetVictor European Masters in Germany for medical reasons.’

By skipping the tournament, as he did 12 months ago, O’Sullivan’s first competitive appearance of the season is not likely to come until the Shanghai Masters next month.

The 47-year-old is not the only high-profile player missing from the first major knockout event of the season with  Graeme Dott having pulled out, while  Liu Hongyu failed to obtain a work permit.

World champion Luca Brecel, meanwhile, gets his campaign underway against Jackson Page, but he will do so minus the cue that fired him to glory at the Crucible earlier this year.

Speaking to the World Snooker Tour website about the new season, 28-year-old Brecel said: ‘Very excited. It’s a shame, though, that my cue got lost. When I got back from Seattle to Frankfurt, the cue didn’t show up.

‘It was my favourite cue, I won the World Championship with it. I’ve had it for maybe two years, but I got really used to it, it was the best cue I ever had – my favourite cue ever.

‘It’s a nightmare to travel with, sometimes I wish I was a darts player with a small case.

‘They [the airline] said to report it online and fill in a form and hope you get it back. I’m still waiting, when I check the status online it says they are still searching for it.’

MORE : Luca Brecel admits fears after losing World Championship-winning cue

MORE : Stephen Hendry hails ‘sponge’ Ronnie O’Sullivan: ‘A lot of it goes over my head’

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Anthony Hamilton has made a strong start to his 33rd season as a professional snooker player, but he is eyeing up retirement and looking forward to it.

The Sheriff of Pottingham turned 52 this year but is still ranked number 36 in the world, kicking off his latest campaign by winning his opening Championship League group and both his qualifiers at the European Masters and British Open.

Hamilton can still mix it with the very best, but he is planning for the end of his career, which he reckons will come within the next three years.

While he still enjoys his matches, and some of his practice, injuries have blighted him for years already and he is looking forward to putting the grind of preparation for tournaments behind him.

Asked if he had treated himself to a break from snooker over the summer, Hamilton told Metro.co.uk: ‘Oh God yeah, Jesus! I have as long a break as I can.

‘After I retire I won’t play another shot, that will be it, because if you have a week off now, you go back and it’s like torture because you’ve lost all your feel. Extend that to a year and it’s the last thing I’d want to do.

‘When I’m about 70 and haven’t played for years, I’d go to the local and have two Guinness with my mate and a best of five. That’d be great, not play one safety shot, make a s***ty 30 or 40 and just be happy with two Guinness at lunchtime. That sounds alright, that sounds like a good time. Anything other than that sounds like torture for no reason.

‘I enjoy playing matches still, they’re a real buzz. I enjoy the build-up, practice-wise, but there has to be a carrot for practice. Playing without a carrot would be a day wasted. I’d do anything but that, I want to be outside, I want to do lots of travelling. You spend your whole life indoors because you have to. It’s a nice thought of what you’d do afterwards without snooker in your brain. Personally I think I’ll be happier.

‘I’m actually excited about retirement. I’ve got a little plan. I’m thinking I’ll try and play till I’m 55. Then I can pay off a few things, live off next to nothing for a while then go into the coaching side. That’s the plan.

‘If I can stay on for another three seasons, then even if I’m on the tour I’ll retire. I am a bit sick of being in pain all the time. And I have to experience the absolute turgid snooker that I’m playing as well. I’m doing it to win money and stay on the tour, but it’s not pretty. So the idea of retirement is the opposite of dread, I can’t wait.

‘I’ll do as well as possible in that time I’ve got left but I can’t think my body will get any better. It’s a full-time job just to get my body in a state to play a match! All the icing, the heating, the stretching, the fitness stuff. It’s full-time, just to be able to not miss tournaments through injury.

‘It’s worth it because you get to play and get to win. When I win a match now it’s so much more rewarding than winning five or six on the spin when I was 30. I know all the effort that goes in just to be there.’

The Sheriff has endured a string of injuries and ailments, notably his back, neck and eyes, and asked which is bothering him most right now he said: ‘Everything.

‘Bottom of my back is bad now. I was on the floor a few days ago because my back went. It’s near enough everything from the hips upwards. It’s a damaged spine, but everything is connected from that.

‘It’s just getting old, that’s what’s happening. There’s a reason that sports people are nearly all under 50.’

The ‘absolute turgid snooker’ that Hamilton references is a bit harsh on himself, but his Average Shot Time has crept up over recent years and his matches are often on the lengthy side as a result.

‘It’s never the plan,’ he said. ‘The plan is to turn up, get your cue out, pot a long red and make a hundred. Do that every frame. But as it goes along you just get embroiled into whatever you need to do to win.

‘Sometimes for me, because my eyes are bad, my back’s bad, sometimes I end up playing at a speed and in a style that I don’t recognise, but it’s just organically happened.

‘I’m not going out of my way to make life tough for players, I just don’t want to lose. So you end up going into your D, E, F game, then obviously experience means you can make it hard for players. But I don’t want to play like that, I want to make 80 every poke, that’d be lovely.

‘It all sounds a bit negative, but I’m not, I’m really positive about it. You have to be because it’s a hard situation. If I’m not positive I’d end up going, “you know what, f**k it all.”

‘But I do know the snooker’s not great to watch, unfortunately I’m not in the mode now of being a crowd-pleaser. I’m in the mode of putting food on the table. I apologise to any players past, present and future that have to sit through it but I’m just trying to win a match.

‘I wouldn’t want any of my friends or family to watch it, I don’t want to put them through that s**t. I’m happy being on my own because I can win my own crappy little matches on my own, I can see the money go in the bank and be happy I haven’t offended anyone.’

The Sheriff can still knock in the big breaks, he’s made three centuries already this season, but he embraces the grind when he has to and is happy to present something of an old school challenge to new players on tour.

Chinese teenager Xing Zihao was treated to a clash with the Sheriff in his very first match on tour at the Championship League in July, with the veteran winning 3-0, taking the last frame despite needing three snookers.

‘That was his first match as a pro and he must have been in 15 snookers on the spin!’ Hamilton said. ‘He must have been thinking, “what the f**k have I got myself into here?”

‘But he looks like a real talent, I was watching him practice before, he was brilliant. The youngsters from China, they’re brilliant but they have to learn the game, I hope he will, I hope somebody’s guiding him because he’s got an awful lot of talent.’

The former German Masters champion has countless pearls of wisdom to hand over to younger players, but he believes it is simple things that plenty of youngsters get wrong.

‘It’s mainly experience, but you can’t rush that,’ Hamilton said on where his younger opponents are going wrong. ‘There’s simple things they can do like putting the white on whichever side of the table is the most dangerous for the escape.

‘Simple safety shots that, if you watch Ronnie or Selby, or sometimes me then they’re not simple safety shots because you’re always trying to find the very worst place.

‘A lot of players get down, clip off the red and go for a good length, but they don’t realise that in three shots they’re in trouble because they’ve left you an easy shot to play.

‘It’s experience, but it’s also an ethos of making every shot count. A lot of kids only get excited when there’s a long pot on and a chance to get in and score. Watch Selby, he’s grafting as much on what seems like an innocuous shot, but he knows that in three shots it will pay dividends.’

Another, more philosophical piece of advice for players coming through, or anyone in the professional game, is to enjoy themselves, or at least try to because they are living a dream.

‘I’m not trying to be preachy, I’d say the same thing to myself at 25,’ he said. ‘I enjoy the matches, I’m really invested in them.

‘I hope the younger players try to enjoy it because they’ve got a great job. That’s one thing you’d say to the younger generation, it’s dead serious, but you’ve got to enjoy it because we’ve had a right result doing it in the first place.

‘It’s hard to enjoy at the time because it’s so hard to beat another geezer who’s an absolute machine, but if you can make sure you enjoy the moment after and the build-up to the next match then you’ll get something out of it. But it is dog-eat-dog, trying to stay on tour, it’s all stressful, you wonder where the enjoyment is sometimes.’

There does appear to be more enjoyment on tour this season as playing opportunities have been boosted thanks to the return of Chinese events. It might not last forever, but Hamilton is pleased to see a relatively buoyant atmosphere among players after tough times during the pandemic.

‘I think the players are generally feeling good about stuff,’ he said. ‘There’s plenty to go at. 13, 14, 15 tournaments again, it’s good isn’t it?

‘There’s no moaning. It’s quite weird that players aren’t moaning, it’s like a Haley’s Comet moment. But it is nice, it’s good.’

The merry band of snooker players, Hamilton included, head to Nuremberg this week for the European Masters, where the Sheriff will put another talented young player to the test when he takes on Louis Heathcote in the last 64 on Wednesday 23 August.

MORE : Kyren Wilson reveals early-season injury from kebab row with Portuguese police

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Kyren Wilson begins the defence of his European Masters title on Tuesday and is glad to be at full strength again after an unusual early-season injury.

The Warrior played at the Championship League earlier this summer and had something of a limp around the table, along with an impressive tan.

It didn’t seem to be hampering him as he won all three of his games in his first group stage and two of three in the second group, something he was very pleased with.

‘It was nice because I’d just got back from a stag do three days before, so I was pleased with how I performed,’ Wilson told Metro.co.uk.

‘I should have had a max [missing the final pink]. I just missed out on the final group, but they’re four-frame matches, they can go either way. A slice of luck can end the match, so I wasn’t too hard on myself. I was quite pleased with how I played considering how rusty I felt.’

A notable limp a few days after a stag do suggests there could be an interesting story to tell, and Kyren has done just that.

‘Yeah…I got a little bit worse for wear on the Albufeira strip and a policeman kindly treated my leg to his baton!’ Wilson explained. ‘So I had a bit of a limp, it was sore for a few days. It was just a bit of a misunderstanding, but it is one to remember.

‘I was very much worse for wear, as you’re supposed to be on a stag do. I was best man as well so it was my job to make sure the groom was well intoxicated.

‘There was a bit of a dispute over a kebab, one of my friends was over charged, which we weren’t happy about. The police came and before I said a word he wrapped his baton round my leg! All good now though.’

Wilson looked in good form at the Championship League but has not been in action on the main tour since, getting back into the swing of things in Nuremberg on Tuesday against Dean Young.

The 31-year-old picked up his fifth ranking title last season and is looking for more in the campaign to come, with high hopes of enjoying what’s ahead of him.

‘I’m just trying to win as many titles as possible,’ he said. ‘I feel like it’s going to be a fun year of snooker for me.

‘I’m finally not tinkering, I’m happy with my set-up, with my cue and I’m looking forward to a busy calendar. I thrive on back-to-back competitions, so I’m going to enjoy it.

‘I picked up my old cue the night before we left for the European Masters last year, so I wasn’t expecting anything but I went on to win it! So that was amazing.

‘Then I went into the old spiral of not being happy, I must have gone through six or seven cues, that led to a bit of inconsistency.

‘But after the Masters I found the cue I have now and I haven’t looked back. Multiple semi-finals and beyond, a 147 at the Crucible, so there was a lot of positive signs and I feel like I’ve already taken it into the new season at the Championship League. I feel like I’m settled.’

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World champion Luca Brecel is getting his new season underway next week, but he will be doing it without the cue that helped him to Crucible glory.

The Belgian Bullet is yet to play a match since he beat Mark Selby to win the World Snooker Championship in May, enjoying his time off by travelling the globe.

The 28-year-old is back in action at the European Masters on Tuesday in Nuremberg, but he admits that he is not feeling that confident, not only because he has been on an epic holiday, but because he will be without his cue.

The wood that he won the World Championship with, which he describes as his favourite ever cue, has been lost by an airline which brought him back to Europe from the States, and there is no sign of it turning up yet.

Speaking to World Snooker Tour about the season to come, Brecel said: ‘Very excited. It’s a shame, though, that my cue got lost. When I got back from Seattle to Frankfurt, the cue didn’t show up.

‘It was my favourite cue, I won the World Championship with it. I’ve had it for maybe two years, but I got really used to it, it was the best cue I ever had, my favourite cue ever.

‘It’s a nightmare to travel with, sometimes I wish I was a darts player with a small case.

‘They [the airline] said to report it online and fill in a form and hope you get it back. I’m still waiting, when I check the status online it says they are still searching for it.’

The Belgian is famously relaxed but he admits that without his favoured cue, he is not expecting much at the European Masters, already turning his attention to the Shanghai Masters in September.

‘Normally I don’t worry about it but this time I do because my other cue is not that good, I’m not that used to it,’ he said.

‘The other one was so good, I felt like I couldn’t miss sometimes and now it’s going to to be different.

‘Obviously I’ve travelled a lot, I’m still a bit tired, so I’m not quite confident in the first one. Maybe the first one is a bit of practice and Shanghai [Masters] is going to be the first proper tournament.’

The world champion takes on Jackson Page on Tuesday in the opening round of the European Masters.

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Kyren Wilson is relishing another chance to return to China this season as the World Open returns to the calendar, but it was a painful ending to his last outing at the tournament.

After four years with no events in China due to the pandemic, snooker is back in the country with the World Open confirmed for March, adding to the Shanghai Masters, International Championship and Wuhan Open which were announced in April.

The last time the World Open was held was in late 2019 and Wilson reached the semi-finals, a great effort but a run which ended in frustrating fashion.

Asked if he remembers his last outing in Yushan, Wilson told Metro.co.uk: ‘I do remember, and I know you’re going to talk to me about it and it’s going to hurt.

‘I was 4-1 up against Thepchaiya [Un-Nooh] and lost 5-6, he went on a bit of a mad one. He won a close one on the black and then played really well from there. I learned a lot from that match and I’m a better player for it.

‘My brother’s best friend and his mate were out there in China on a business trip and they’d just turned up on the day of the semi-finals. I hadn’t seen them beforehand, I’d played my game and they were in the hotel reception when I got back.

‘They were playing that football game of pool where you kick the big ball into the pockets and I was so angry I just volleyed one of the balls and stomped off to my room without even saying hello. We laugh about it now, but it hurt.’

Judd Trump went on to beat Thepchaiya in the final and Wilson has enjoyed plenty of his own success over in China, believing his career kicked into gear in the country eight years ago.

‘My career, in my eyes, started when I won the Shanghai Masters,’ he said of his shock 2015 triumph. ‘So fond memories over there and I just love having the opportunities.

‘Going all that way, you’ve got to try to make it count. there’s no distractions. you’re there just for snooker. It’s nice to see some sights and fans, but you’re there to try and do well, winning as many matches and titles as you can.

‘We’ve definitely missed the Chinese events over the last few years. The tournaments we’ve had in the UK have been great but it’s time we moved on to bigger and better things and I think China is definitely going to present that.

‘It’s a good position to be in, we’re all crying out for more tournaments, more travel, great to see another one on the calendar, looking forward to it.’

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The World Open returns to the World Snooker Tour calendar this season, with four events now being held in China as the country bounces back after the pandemic-enforced hiatus.

The ranking event will run from 11-17 March in Yushan, where the previous four editions of the tournament were held from 2016-19.

The WST annoucement confirms that ‘full details on the tournament will be announced in due course’ which will include when qualifiers will be played to make it to Yushan and the prize money involved.

Judd Trump won the last World Open when he beat Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in November 2019 and claimed £150,000 for his troubles, with the Thai runner-up picking up £75,000, so it is a major event that is returning to the calendar.

The invitational Shanhai Masters and two ranking tournaments – the Wuhan Open and International Championship – have already been announced for this season as Chinese competitions return to the professional circuit for the first time since 2019.

Steve Dawson, the WST chairman, said: ‘We are delighted to join forces with Star Xingpai, Yushan Municipal Government and CBSA to stage the World Open in Yushan in 2024.

‘Having been unable to stage tournaments in mainland China between 2019 and 2023 due to travel restrictions, we have made an emphatic return this season. To have four major Chinese events in our first full season back in the Far East underlines the huge appetite for snooker in China and the fact that we have built lasting relationships with our key partners.

‘Snooker’s future in China is bright and this is just the beginning. The World Open is a fantastic tournament in an outstanding location which has particular significance for snooker as it is the home of Star Xing Pai and the world’s first Billiard Sports City.

‘This title was won by four greats of our sport – Ali Carter, Ding Junhui, Mark Williams and Judd Trump – between 2016 and 2019. I have no doubt that all of the biggest stars will keenly anticipate the chance to return to Yushan in 2024.’

It had been a tough time for the tour during the height of the pandemic and there was significant unrest among players last season due to the lack of events, but the return of China has been a huge boost.

Speaking this week, world number 47 Robbie Williams told Metro.co.uk: ‘I think China was a big thing, getting that back on, just to settle a few grievances. The mood on tour seems to be fine now, with people I’ve spoken to.’

World number one Ronnie O’Sullivan will also be delighted with the news as he spoke of his desire to compete in more Asian events than UK tournaments, if possible, this season.

‘I’ve gone the other way now, I’m going to travel and play all the overseas tournaments and miss all the UK tournaments,’ O’Sullivan told TalkSport.

‘I can’t do it all. Before I used to say, ‘I won’t travel, I’ll stay in the UK’, which was sweet, but now I think at this stage of my career, obviously Asia’s a big place to play, bigger tournaments, so I’ll do them and miss the UK ones.

‘If I don’t do well in the Asian ones then I’ll get home early and then I don’t mind hopping on a plane and going to Scotland or Belfast but, if I do well, I want to have a week at home, chill out with the dogs and then get back on a plane and go back to India or wherever.’

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Liam Graham scored a superb first win on the professional tour this week, but he will not be popping the champagne, or even a bottle of lager, saying: ‘I’ve won one game. I’ve not done anything yet.’

The 18-year-old is in his rookie season on the World Snooker Tour and landed his first win in his third event by beating Cao Yupeng 5-4 in the British Open qualifiers.

The world number 40 is a fantastic scalp to claim for the teenager but he is not getting carried away with his maiden victory.

As Graham completed a seven-hour trip on public transport back to Glasgow from Leicester, the young Scot confirmed that there would be no celebrations to come.

‘No I won’t celebrate this at all, not a chance,’ Graham told Metro.co.uk. ‘I’ve won one game. I’ve not done anything yet.

‘I’m happy the win came against someone higher up the rankings, and he’s started the season well, so I was happy to beat someone in a bit of form. Shows my game is going in the right direction.

‘I don’t feel like I played my best stuff today either, just potted some good balls under pressure and cleared up when I had to. I did a good dish at the end so I was happy with the way I finished it.’

It was a tense finale to the game, with Cao having a chance to clear up for the victory, but missing a straight black after the final red to allow Graham back to the table, when he produced a fine clearance of his own.

The final black was especially tricky, with a safety shot not out of the question, but Graham says Stephen Maguire has taught him otherwise.

‘Nah, you don’t play safe on match ball,’ he said. ‘Maguire was actually moaning at me for playing too much safety when I was practicing with him. He said, “you don’t win matches by playing safe.” He got me being a bit more aggressive.’

Graham has only played the Championship League and European Masters qualifier before this win, but he felt those two events saw him play as bad as he possibly can.

‘I was absolutely terrible the first two events, some of the worst snooker I’ve ever played. Terrible,’ he said.

‘I felt like I couldn’t hit the ball properly. No idea why. It was like stalling your car, horrific. For two months I had that, couldn’t get through the ball at all, it was horrible.

‘It was in practice as well, I was playing terrible, so I had no belief going into any game. Just praying something would happen, it was wishy-washy, that’s what I’d call it. But I found something before this event so I was a wee bit more confident going in.’

Plenty of high-level practice helped get Graham back on track, while he looked to get a mental edge on his opponent as well.

‘I’ve been at Ding’s [Ding Junhui Academy] for a few days and found something that seemed to work,’ he said. ‘I played Maguire and [Anthony] McGill before I went down to Ding’s and found a bit of something there and it clicked in Sheffield.

‘I was practicing on the table by Cao Yupeng for two days, I made sure I was next to him every day. I wasn’t really watching him, I wanted to show him what I can do, I was hoping he was watching me.’

Graham is not short of wisdom for a rookie, saying there was no point being concerned about his early-season struggles as form comes and goes.

‘I wasn’t worrying. I knew I wasn’t playing well, but worrying was pointless because I knew my game wasn’t there,’ he explained. ‘Snooker comes and goes a bit, it can be very up and down. It’s one rose for three or four scaggy nettles.’

The prize for beating Cao is a trip to Cheltenham for the British Open where he could play all sorts of big names in the FA Cup-style draw in the event.

It’s not Ronnie O’Sullivan or John Higgins he fancies, though, saying it’s all about winning, so he’d be very happy with the easiest possible opponent.

‘Give me the worst player in the draw, that would be great,’ he said. ‘I want somebody to turn up on the day who’s using their wrong hand and forgot how to play the game.

‘I’m not after the glitz, glamour and TV, I’m there to win games. I’ve no interest in anything else.’

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‘It’s a hell of a lot better than last season, anything’s better than last season.’

That is Oliver Brown’s review of his start to the new snooker campaign, which has seen him win more prize money before the end of August than he did over the whole of last season.

It was a really tough rookie campaign for Brown which saw him win just three matches, but after a solid Championship League performance and wins at the European Masters and British Open qualifiers, he has matched that tally already this time round.

After beating Himanshu Jain 4-3 this week to reach the main stages of the British Open, Brown said he has found a way of taking the pressure off in the second year of his two-year tour card, which is paying dividends.

‘I think I’ve just not put as much pressure on it. I feel less under pressure this year, even though I’m fighting to stay on tour, than I did last year, which is a bit nuts really,’ Brown told Metro.co.uk.

‘Last year I wanted to get off to a good start to take the pressure off the second year and I was probably trying too hard to win.

‘I had a few tough draws that didn’t help, but I feel great this season. I just want to knuckle down and keep winning these first round matches.’

The 28-year-old has been on the fringes of the tour for a decade and finally claimed his professional place by winning the EBSA European Championship in October 2021.

That saw him put a stop to working for his family’s scrap and recycling business, but the timing was in some ways ideal and some ways tricky as he welcomed his first daughter into the world just after turning pro, which surprisingly saw him pick up his biggest scalp to date just hours later.

‘I wanted to get on the tour for maybe 10 years, to get on was a massive achievement but the hard work starts then,’ he said. ‘We had a little baby girl in July last year. I played Stephen Maguire three days later, I’d had maybe seven hours sleep in three days, so my mind was on the baby, I just relaxed and played really well [winning 5-4 at the 2022 European Masters].

‘But after that I struggled, probably trying too hard to win, but this season I’ve knuckled down and it’s started well.’

The Dronfield-based cueman says the arrival of his daughter has helped keep snooker in perspective and she was very handy to have around as he struggled for results last season.

‘It’s not easy going on a losing streak, you lose confidence, every game’s a pint of blood and it’s tricky to get into the winning mentality again,’ he said. ‘It’s all on you, it was tough last year but I’ve scrapped that from my mind and focussing on this year now and it’s going alright.

‘There’s worse things in life than a game of snooker. I want to get to the top of the game but it is a just game of snooker, if you put less pressure on yourself you’re going to enjoy it more and that’s what I’m doing now.

‘It’s not like after a game of snooker I come home and sit on my own, win or lose she’ll be there, I walk through the door and she’ll be smiling, It does make the losing easier.’

A more fluent, aggressive and natural style of play is something Brown wants to bring to the table this season after finding himself bogged down over the last campaign as he struggled for confidence.

‘I felt like I was being too hesitant, trying to stop players beating me rather than me beating them,’ he explained.

‘In the World Championship qualifiers in April I was turning shots down just so I didn’t get beat. That’s not me at all. I’m not a slow player, I go for my shots, that’s how I play.

‘For me to change my game, it didn’t work at all. I’m glad now that I noticed I changed my game in the Worlds because I’ve got straight out of it. I’m playing my own game now, in every tournament I’m in.

‘Everything I’d go for in practice against someone, as long as it’s the right shot, that’s what I’ll do in matches.’

It has been a good start to the new season but there is a long way to go for the world number 89, needing to crack the world’s top 64 or survive through the one-year list to keep hold of his tour card, which remains the aim.

‘These first round wins, if I keep them up, will stand me in good stead to stay on tour,’ he said. ‘The aim is to get in the top 64, but it could be the one-year list. Just keep winning now, that’s all I can do.’

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Barry Hearn wants snooker players to help promote their sport more, while he hopes the table game can replicate darts by creating more broad appeal.

In his role as President of Matchroom Sport, the 75-year-old is supposed to be in a semi-retirement but is still very much involved in the running of both sports, among others.

While the veteran promoter has been involved in snooker for much longer than darts, tungsten has eclipsed the baize in his affections.

Hearn admits he has been won over by the added razzamatazz of the arrows, but also he feels that professional darts players are more on board with his leadership than snooker pros.

Speaking to Stephen Hendry on his Cue Tips channel, Hearn was asked for his favourite sport of darts and snooker, replying: ‘Darts, for the sheer size of the extravaganza and the fact that…snooker players, in my book are still a little bit spoilt, and I’m being highly critical here.

‘I feel with darts players I’ve got 128 people to a man and woman behind me. They will do everything to propel their sport, to create media opportunities, I don’t get the exact same feeling with the membership from snooker.

‘A little bit stuck in the glory days, which actually weren’t the glory days. Prize money today is bigger than it’s ever been and getting bigger, viewership is bigger. They need to understand that this is a two-way street.

As I get older I realise how much I need talent to do the job that I know I can do properly. If I don’t get the support it’s a negative.

‘I’m hoping that the new breed understand that that is as equally important part of the game as knocking in balls, at the end of the day. There’s no point of being good unless you’re famous, you’ll never earn the type of money. If you’re good and famous you’re a multi-millionaire. That’s what I want.’

While snooker events can never replicate the rowdiness of a darts tournament, Hearn would like to see the attraction of the arrows copied in the cue sport.

He believes most fans at the darts are not interested in who they are watching, they are just there for the occasion, while snooker is more reliant on star names, particularly Ronnie O’Sullivan.

‘Darts, for the sheer speed of acceleration and the love from the crowd who are having just a brilliant time,’ Hearn continued on his lean towards darts. ‘When you buy a ticket for the darts you don’t know who you’re going to watch because if you don’t buy them before…and 40% of the time they don’t watch, we put timers on them.

‘What I want to do with snooker is I want people to buy tickets for the snooker, I don’t want it to be the Ronnie O’Sullivan show, as great a player as he is and a huge draw. No sport can rely on one person.

‘In darts, no one cares so much. Of course they want to see the top players but it’s not life and death to them.’

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Robbie Williams continued his fine start to the season on Tuesday with a superb 4-0 win over Pang Junxu at the British Open qualifiers and he is feeling the benefit of small changes he has made in recent months.

The 36-year-old was the underdog with the bookmakers against Pang in Leicester on Tuesday but made a mockery of the odds as he knocked in breaks of 134, 77 and 51 to whitewash the young Chinese star.

That was Williams’ eighth game of the new campaign so far and he has lost just once, with no shame in a defeat to three-time world champion Mark Williams at the Championship League.

He was delighted with another fine performance this week, and felt it coming, proving that he has built confidence over the last few weeks.

‘I was made up with today because obviously Pang is a brilliant player, so it’s a nice way to kick on with the season,’ Williams told Metro.co.uk after the 4-0 win.

‘I think I’ve only lost to him once, the first time I played him and I thought he was absolutely amazing. Since then I seem to have worked him out a little bit, so it’s all good.

‘For some reason I just fancied winning it. I was sat in bed last night thinking, you know what I’m going to win this. You just get feelings like that with certain players, I don’t know why.’

The world number 47 took less of a break over the summer than he normally does, helping a number of players prepare for Q School, which he feels has helped him kick off the campaign in style.

There have been a couple of other changes he has made as well, getting fitter and making himself feel a bit more comfortable at the table.

‘I cycle to practice every day now, it’s a little thing, but that’s been good,’ Williams explained.

‘Also, for eight or nine months I had a problem with my waistcoat, it’s too tight and I’ve been uncomfortable during matches. It’s only recently I’ve got it altered and got a new pair of trousers, maybe I was enjoying myself over the break a bit much!

‘I was playing John Astley a couple of weeks ago and I sat down and one of my buttons on the waistcoat popped off. I was thinking, this is embarrassing! So that made me get things sorted. It was my fault, I should have done it sooner.’

Williams has now been on the professional tour for 11 years, an impressive achievement in itself, but he wants to continue his progress towards the elite of the sport, currently at his best ever position in the world rankings.

‘I’ve not come off tour since first getting on, which is not what I expected when I first got on,’ he said. ‘It’s something I’m very proud of.

‘The top boys get all the acclaim and that’s absolutely fair enough, they’re on a different level, but I’ve got things to be proud of.

‘I think when I turned pro I didn’t feel ready. My first match was against Thepchaiya [Un-Nooh] which was a baptism of fire, I thought, “oh my god, if this is the standard I’ll be soon off again.” But you naturally grow into it and you feel like you belong there with every season that goes by.

‘There’s still nerve-racking situations though. The Crucible, the Shoot Out, it can be stomach-churning sometimes.’

A run to the British Open semi-finals last year was the highlight of last season but Williams feels he can step up another level from there.

‘I think so yeah. I feel a lot more confident as a player and as a person,’ he said. ‘I think getting to a couple of semis here and there has put me in good stead.’

Williams is back in action at the European Masters next week in Nuremberg, once again taking on Pang, this time in the last 64 in Germany.

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Ronnie O’Sullivan’s sponge-like qualities have been hailed by his fellow seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, who admitted he has struggled to be coached over his career.

O’Sullivan and Hendry are widely considered the two greatest snooker players of all-time, sharing the record for most Crucible titles and with the Scot (36) only behind the Englishman (39) on the all-time list of ranking title wins.

They have had very different careers, though, with Hendry’s seven Crucible crowns coming between 1990-99, while the Rocket’s have spanned 2001-22 and he still remains in contention to add more to his CV.

There are also plenty of differences in their games, with Hendry noting that he succeeded when doing everything his natural, instinctive way and felt that some coaching may have cost him later in his career, while O’Sullivan soaked up positive aspects for his game.

Speaking to Michael Holt about coaching and technique on his Cue Tips channel, Hendry said: ‘I couldn’t tell you one thing technically. I’ve had four coaches in my career and each time it’s like, “do I really understand that?” A lot of it goes over my head.

‘I sometimes think, would I have been alright without…I had my first coach Frank Callan because I didn’t think my long game was good enough to compete with the likes of Steve [Davis]. I could pot balls obviously, but [couldn’t] consistently rely on my long game.

‘So he brought a pause into my backswing, but I don’t know whether…I got deceleration at the end of my career, I call it the yips, and I don’t know if that came from the pause.

‘[O’Sullivan] He’s like a sponge, he takes things in from everywhere.’

Holt, a ranking event winner who now works as a snooker coach, said one of O’Sullivan’s great traits is his ability to learn from others, but only take what is a positive to his own game and ignore anything that could hamper him.

‘Ronnie’s a massive snooker geek, he knows everything. He’s like a robot,’ said the Hitman.

‘What he’s amazing at is disregarding the stuff that he’s not interested in and trusting what he believes in and then he just goes out there and plays, which is a talent in itself.

‘Ultimately that’s why he’s played for so long because he knows everything about his game.

‘I think that’s where the next level might come from, players will be more aware of what they do and how they do it. Disregard the myths.’

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Scott Donaldson is still trying to overcome a tremor which has seriously hampered his snooker career, but after securing his first win of the season he is hopeful there are better times ahead.

The 29-year-old was forced to retire from his World Snooker Championship qualifying match with Ryan Day in April, with the shaking in his leg making it impossible for him to perform.

It was a return of a problem which he had dealt with in his arm after taking the Covid vaccine in 2021, but an issue which had apparently cleared up before infuriatingly returning in Sheffield.

The Scot is still undergoing tests to find out exactly what the problem is, with the search for answers still going on.

‘It’s been different, that’s for sure,’ Donaldson told Metro.co.uk. ‘It’s still an ongoing process, I’m still going to get tests and scans in the next month or two. They think they know what it is but I don’t want to say until it’s been confirmed.

‘I don’t want to say too much because I’m still getting tests. I don’t want to say it’s this and then it ends up not being.’

Donaldson had won two matches in Sheffield before having to pull out of the match with Day after four frames, and he explains exactly how the frustrating time played out.

‘It was horrible because I hadn’t had the tremor for so long,’ he said. ‘Towards the end of the match against Yuan Sijun I was clearing up, I got to the pink and my leg just started trembling really bad when I was down on the shot.

‘I don’t know how I got over the line, I think I just needed one more frame so I just scraped through it. But I said to my wife, that didn’t feel normal. I thought I was just tired after a really long match. But the very first safety shot against Ryan I felt it right away and it didn’t improve whatsoever.

‘I just said to Ryan, “listen mate, there’s no point in me going back out there, I just can’t play to any level, it’s going to be 10-0, it’s pointless, I just can’t compete.”

‘I had a really bad time in the tournament office, a very emotional time. It’s a few months since then so now I’m kind of understanding what it is I’ve got and trying to work round it. Trying to play at least.’

The issue first emerged two years ago and Donaldson explains how opponents were concerned for him as he visibly shook while trying to play.

‘I had it from June/July to November 2021 and I was able to play but not to any kind of level. I had to basically accept 70-80 per cent of my game maximum,’ he said.

‘I remember playing Dean Young at the British Open and I asked him after if he’d seen me shaking. He said, “yeah, I couldn’t believe it!”

‘I played Ben Hancorn as well and he was asking me if I was alright because I was shaking so much. I felt ok, just couldn’t stop shaking. But I was still difficult to play, just not at the level I know I can.

‘It was in my arm before. I felt it after the Covid jab so it was in my left arm, then it moved across my body. It spread a bit, but then five months later it faded away and I thought it was gone, but my left leg seemed to take a hit at Sheffield for some reason.

‘I just got this tingling feeling in my leg and it feels very weak at times. It was strange to get it back, it’s hard to explain but the body is just not working as well as it was before.’

The issue is not a painful one, but it is confusing and a nightmare while trying to play a game of the finest margins like snooker.

Explaining the symptoms, Donaldson said: ‘It’s a bit like being extremely nervous. When people say your legs are like jelly, it’s like that.

‘Or if you’ve got pins and needles, the numbness goes away but you have a tingling sensation down your leg. It’s that sort of ball park. Whenever I was to put pressure on it it would just cave in, shaking, trembling.

‘I’ve rested up and I’m just trying to play a match at a time or even just a frame at a time, trying to feel like I can actually get down on the shot and play properly.’

Donaldson has had some significant encouragement by picking up his first win of the season, beating David Grace in European Championship qualifying.

‘It was awesome just to be able to play, regardless of the result,’ he said. ‘I tried something different to get round it and I was just so happy to be able to go and play without even thinking about anything else. Before I was on the shot and could only think about keeping my leg still, not about the shot in front of me, so that was really good.

‘I’m not sure how much I can judge it on a qualifier though, with only my wife watching. It wouldn’t be as nerve-racking as other venues. Ben Mertens says his is worse when he plays bigger matches, I don’t know if it’ll be the same for me. It’s trial and error at the minute.’

18-year-old Mertens has also been suffering with a tremor in his head since taking the Covid vaccine and the pair have chatted through their similar, but not entirely identical problems.

‘I spoke to the doctor about Ben, similar symptoms and they came about in pretty much an identical way. The doctor thinks it’s slightly different, what he’s got, but I’ll have a chat with Ben next time I see him and see how he’s getting on,’ said Donaldson.

‘It’s amazing how he can play properly like that. It shows how much ability he must have to be moving like that and still be that accurate. I like Ben a lot and I hope he can get through it.’

As a side effect of the vaccine, the issue is a controversial one and one that Donaldson would rather not be a part of, but it is an experience that has had a very real impact on his career.

‘I’m really trying to avoid that [vaccine debate], it causes more problems than it’s worth,’ he said. ‘All my family have had the vaccine and they’ve not had an issue. People will have side effects. I can only really speak for myself, this is what I’ve been through.’

The former Championship League winner is back in action for British Open qualifying on 15 August before going to Nuremberg for the European Masters a week later.

He is hoping that the control of the tremor he managed in his last outing continues and he can enjoy playing and perform somewhere near his excellent best.

‘I’ve thrown targets and goals out the window years ago, I just want to go and play,’ he said. ‘If I can bring anything close to my game then I can compete. I might not win a lot of tournaments, but I can compete, and that’s what I really want to do.

‘I just want to play snooker, I don’t complicate things. I’m not out to make a million, I just want to make a decent living.’

MORE : Chris Wakelin ‘in the best place he’s ever been’ and aiming big this season

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Judd Trump lifted the trophy at the CBSA event in Huangguoshu on Saturday, beating John Higgins 5-1 in the final.

The tournament was put on by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association tour, but they invited a string of professionals from the World Snooker Tour to compete and give both the event and host city a PR boost.

Unsurprisingly it was the main tour professionals who dominated the competition, with Trump edging out Kyren Wilson in the semi-finals and Higgins thrashing Yuan Sijun 4-0 to make it to the showpiece.

There it was Trump who bossed the contest, seeing off the four-time world champion 5-1 to get his hands on the impressive trophy and pocket 200,000 CNY – around £22,000.

The 33-year-old wrote on social media: ‘Nice start to the season in China.’

The Ace played in the Championship League at the start of the season, falling at the second group stage, and this represents the first title he has lifted since the Masters in January.

Some of the professionals travelling to China fell early, with Jack Lisowski losing to Tu Xuan and Stephen Hendry to Cai Jianzhong in the last 32.

There were some high profile contests by the last eight, where Higgins beat Mark Williams and Wilson downed Mark Allen 4-0, while Trump beat Cao Yupeng 4-1 and Yuan ousted the only non-professional left, Zhao Hanyang 4-3.

Trump will be back in action at the European Masters in Nuremberg, Germany from 22 August before returning to China for the Shanghai Masters which runs from 11-17 September.

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Chris Wakelin is enjoying a fine start to the season, feeling as good as he ever has and is now aiming to make strides towards the top of the sport.

The 31-year-old has been on the professional tour since 2013, enjoying some limited success as he floated around the mid-rankings, until things changed earlier this year.

Wakelin had been struggling for form early last season, but sprung back into life around Christmas and went on a run all the way to the Shoot Out title in January, claiming his first ranking crown and a very handy £50,000 in prize money.

The one-frame Shoot Out divides opinion, but the Rugby cueman could hardly care less as it has proved to be a springboard to him enjoying the game far more than he ever has and quickly climbing the rankings.

‘It’s the best place I’ve ever been in mentally,’ Wakelin told Metro.co.uk. ‘Winning a tournament and the financial pressures that were relieved by the Shoot Out has been amazing.

‘I’ve just enjoyed the game so much over the last six months. Enjoyed competing and playing. Normally I get to the point where I don’t want to go out and compete because I don’t want to disappoint myself or the people around me but I’ve been in a completely different mindset the last six months and I look forward to playing every single match.

‘It’s a tough game when things aren’t going well so you’ve got to really enjoy the high moments when they come around.’

Whether it was the Shoot Out or the World Championship, Wakelin put to bed lingering doubts in his mind over whether he was capable of getting over the line in a final when he beat Julien Leclercq with a break of 119 to lift the trophy.

The benefits are not just the silverware on the mantlepiece and the cash in the bank account, but a new sense of confidence and belief in himself.

‘I spent 10 years wondering if and when that moment would ever come, when the stars align and things happen that you only ever dreamt of,’ he said.

‘All players dream of winning something, it doesn’t matter if it’s the Shoot Out or the Mickey Mouse Open, you want to be the person standing there with the trophy.

‘It’s made a big difference to me mentally, I feel like the shackles are off now and my game’s gone through the roof in the last six months. I’ve felt better, worked harder, I’m back on the fitness train again. There’s a huge amount of positives that have come from winning the Shoot Out.

‘Some players say it doesn’t mean as much as proper events, but you still have to pot the balls under the most pressure.

‘I watched Hossein Vafaei in the final the year before pot a long red and make 70-odd and remember thinking “how has he done that under that pressure?”

‘I didn’t think I could ever stand there and do that. So to go there this year and eclipse that performance that Hossein did, it made me realise that while I thought I wasn’t good enough to achieve those sort of things, I literally went out and did it.’

Up to number 28 in the world after a good showing at the Championship League to start the campaign, Wakelin is only looking up, with the top 16 and the Masters on his mind.

‘I’m not a million miles away from getting in the Masters this year, if I can have some good performances over the next six months,’ he said.

‘If I can lift some more silverware…I guess all my targets link in together: get in the Grand Prix first, lift some silverware before Christmas, get in the Masters, not have to qualify for the World Championships. It all links in together.’

How things have improved for Wakelin recently is illustrated by having a realistic chance of reaching the Masters, when not too long ago he wouldn’t even consider such a thing.

‘I went to watch the Masters a few years ago with my old manager,’ Chris explained. ‘We were outside and he put his arm around me and said, “it’ll be amazing to come back here in a few years time…” My response was, “oh yeah I’d love to come and watch the darts.” He said, “no you plank! I meant to come and play here!”

‘Five or six years ago, my main thought of Alexandra Palace was it is where the darts is. Playing there was a dream. There’s still a little part of me thinks maybe it won’t happen, but a huge part of me that has emerged over the last six months knows that is now my goal. It’s no longer a pipe dream, it’s a potential reality if I keep doing the right things.’

Did he ever get to the darts? ‘Well…Barry [Hearn] got us tickets a few years ago for the World Championships but my car broke down on the way there! 

‘It was the same car that took me to the English Open in 2016 when I beat Ronnie O’Sullivan and got to the quarter-finals. My manager said if I won that quarter-final I could leave that pile of junk in the car park with the keys in it with a ‘FREE’ sign on it.

‘But I lost and a couple of months later it broke down on the way to the darts. It’s gone now, thankfully. Those days are hopefully behind me now.’

Wakelin reached finals day at the season-opening Championship League and won his European Masters qualifier last week to make a great start to the campaign, but he is not resting on his laurels.

He started last season similarly but then hit a seriously sticky run of results, only to bounce back to Shoot Out glory and where he is today, which he puts down to a little help from a friend.

‘I had a similar start to this last season, but then I lost six matches on the trot, so I’m well aware that despite starting well I really need to keep the hammer down, because this time last season the wheels fell off.

‘I played Thepchaiya, [Joe] O’Connor, [Ben] Woollaston, [Shaun] Murphy, Tian [Pengfei] and they all played amazing against me. I don’t remember ever playing that bad but I just got a string of bad results and before you know it the season’s half way over and I’m coming to Christmas thinking I’m in jeopardy of losing my tour card.

‘I was in a really bad spot career-wise and in the rankings. A good friend of mine Jason thought I might need some extra help so he took some time off work and came over and supported me for a couple of days a week, helping me practice and came to every tournament.

‘Then before I knew it I’d won two matches to qualify for Germany, five matches in the 6 Reds qualifiers, seven matches in the Shoot Out and two more at the German Masters, beating Neil Robertson in that last one. From nowhere I’d won 16 matches on the trot after six losses in succession

‘It was very much needed, that run of form. It came at just the right time thanks to the support from a very good friend of mine. Jason’s my best mate, we laugh incessantly when we’re together, never a dull moment. He just puts me in the right frame of mind, he’s a great guy to have around.

‘His wife Kate as well is super supportive, they’ve been a big part of my life for a long time now and I’m really grateful for the help they’ve given me over the last 12 months. He’s with me this season again, he’ll be a big part of it.’

Enjoying his snooker, with the right team around him, Wakelin has stepped up a level to be a force to be reckoned with, expect to see plenty more of him this season.

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Sean O’Sullivan made the first maximum break of the season at the European Masters qualifiers last week and the mammoth effort came as a relief after a tough time on and off the table.

The 29-year-old was beaten by Barry Hawkins in the match in Leicester on Friday, but came up with the perfect frame nonetheless, the first 147 of his career.

Any maximum is a remarkable break, but the incredibly difficult black O’Sullivan potted after the final red was especially memorable, leaving him very relieved that he didn’t spurn the opportunity for a bit of history.

‘It was pretty plain sailing then I butchered the last red. I don’t know what the odds would have been on me potting that and getting a chance on the yellow,’ O’Sullivan told Metro.co.uk.

‘I was just relieved because I knew I wouldn’t get a better chance than that, the balls were perfect from about 32 onwards.

‘I didn’t really celebrate because I wanted to stay focused. I just had a couple of minutes, went and washed my hands and splashed some water in my face, then I didn’t score another point in the match!

‘I kind of regret it, I wish I’d enjoyed it more at the time but it’s such a weird thing when there’s not many people watching, literally two or three people. There’s no one to celebrate to really. But it’s nice, there’s so many good players that have never had one. I’ve done them in practice before but not many!’

The Storm may have been beaten 5-2 by the Hawk, but he is pleased to be playing well again after kicking off the season in pretty disastrous fashion.

The Championship League saw him playing competitively for the first time with a new cue and things did not go well, with a hat-trick of 3-0 defeats from his three games.

‘It’s been such a mad couple of weeks,’ O’Sullivan said. ‘I’d never have believed I’d have been able to make a max given the way I played at the Championship League.

‘I’ve only had a new cue for a couple of months and I’ve been really struggling with it. I’ve been back and forth to John Parris changing it. Tips, the balance, tweaking all sorts.

‘I’ve managed to finally find what I wanted and I’ve had two weeks since the Championship League, my table got new cloth two days after that and I’ve just been hammering the hours, pretty much leaving the club at closing time every day.

‘I knew I have to be at one with this cue and know what’s going to happen when I play every shot because I was guessing on probably half the shots before. It’s a scary thought when you’re trying to pot some balls for a living.

‘I just really worked hard to give myself a chance. I wanted to beat Barry and I didn’t but the 147 shows I’m doing something right.’

The troublesome new cue was just the latest issue that O’Sullivan has faced in his career, with a more worrying problem emerging last season.

The Londoner has struggled with back problems for years and after a knee issue was added to his worries he sort help, discovering that he is suffering with a form of arthritis.

‘I’ve got a very rare type of arthritis called ankylosing spondylitis,’ Sean explained. ‘It’s mainly in teenagers and young adult men.

‘It’s a weird one. I only found out because last year my knee swelled up and I was playing Championship League with a massive knee support on, it was a nightmare.

‘I went to a rheumatologist, because I hadn’t injured it, it just swelled up. I’d had terrible backaches for months as well before that. They thought I probably had this rare type of arthritis and I did.

‘They drained my knee of fluid a couple of times. It was a problem because I couldn’t straighten it. Probably half of last season I had to bend both legs, which for a short arse like me is not ideal.’

Things are looking up, though, with the ankylosing spondylitis under control and the back problems largely dealt with thanks to adalimumab injections. The knee remains a problem, but the situation is far brighter now than it was a few months ago.

‘The arthritis was early stages, so not all doom and gloom, I’ve done some physio and this biological treatment which stops the pain and stops it progressing,’ he said.

‘Since September I’ve given myself injections every two weeks. My back is very rarely painful, it’s been great. Before I was really struggling with that, I couldn’t get out of bed.

‘The knee is still a bit of a problem, I’ve got impingement in it. When I try and straighten it, it can really hurt. If it was the left knee I might have been okay, but because it’s the one I’m trying to straighten all the time it’s just constantly hurting.

‘I’ve been trying to do some running more, but the rheumatologist said I can’t do any of that. they’re going to send me off to some specialised physio for that, to strengthen the knee and the muscles around it to hopefully it starts strengthening itself, because it has been a tricky one.’

O’Sullivan first turned pro at 18 and is now in his second stint on the main tour, with his snooker journey being a testing one both physically and mentally so far.

The Storm has spoken about dealing with mental health struggles in the past as well as the illness and injuries which have hampered him, but he is focusing on the positives and looking forward to more hard practice before his next events in September.

‘Never a dull moment with me, honestly,’ he said. ‘It’d be boring otherwise wouldn’t it?

‘I’m glad now where I am with it all. I feel like I’ve dealt with it pretty well, but I’ve had some ups and downs. Even two weeks ago my head was in the bin. Do I just give the cue back? Is it the cue or is it me? Was it because I wasn’t playing on a new cloth at the time? It’s a mixture of everything.

‘The table got done four or five days after I played the Championship League. I picked my cue up again then and just said to myself, “That didn’t happen, season starts now” and I’ve pretty much locked myself in the club every day and just practiced as hard as I could.

‘I feel like I’m at 75-80% with my cue now whereas literally two weeks ago it was more like 25-30%, it was that bad, I really struggled.

‘I’m just glad I’m in a place now where I can feel about 80% happy, which is enough to get me through matches and competing. Hopefully in a month’s time I’ll be at 100%.’

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