Former defending champion Shaun Murphy was eliminated in the second stage, while Long Zehuang and David Gilbert advance into the third stage of the BetVictor Championship League ranking event at Morningside Arena, Leicester.
Group C
Despite starting the day with a strong 3-1 victory against Chinese cueist Long Zehuang, Shaun Murphy’s fortunes took a dramatic turn.
Zehuang mounted an impressive comeback, claiming the top spot by defeating 2022 Snooker Shoot Out champion Hossein Vafaei and three-time semi-finalist Jamie Jones with back-to-back 3-0 wins.
Adding pressure to the defending champion, Murphy entered his last match needing at least a draw to top the group above Zehuang. However, Iranian cueman Vafaei derailed Murphy’s title defence hopes, compiling a dominant run of 96, 86, and 89 to win 3-0.
Murphy finished third in the group, with Zehuang securing the top spot due to a frame difference of two. Vafaei, who achieved a century break of 129, edged past the former champion into second place.
Group B
David Gilbert continued his momentum following his blockbuster performance in stage one. Gilbert clinched his first win of the day against 2023 European Masters quarter-finalist Ashley Carty. Despite Carty’s attempt to clear the table in the final frame to level the score, a missed red allowed Gilbert to finish the match 3-1, with a final run of 68 surpassing Carty’s run of 57.
Gilbert maintained his winning streak against 23-year-old He Guoqiang with another 3-1 victory, followed by a formidable 3-0 performance against 2015 World Champion Stuart Bingham. Echoing his dominant display from the previous stage, Gilbert advanced to the third stage, showcasing his composure and skill once again.
The Championship League is the first ranking event of the new season and was won last year by Shaun Murphy. The opening tournament of the season runs until July 3rd. In the first phase, 128 players are split into 32 groups of four, with those 32 group winners going through to the next round.
The tournament takes place over three stages, starting on Monday, 10 June. Winners’ Week will run from Friday 28, June concluding with Finals Day on Wednesday, 3 July. The eventual winner will also receive an invite into the 2024 Champion of Champions this November 11 to November 17 alongside the £20,000 first-place prize.
Stage 2 continues on Saturday 29th June with the 2023 Snooker Shoot Out champion Chris Waken returning in Group A, alongside Thepchaiya, Un-Nooh, Fan Zhengyi, and Scott Donaldson. Neil Robertson withdrew from the tournament today, leaving only Ali Carter, Jack Lisowski, and Wu Yike making up Group E for tomorrow.
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(Photo by Zheng Zhai)
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