With the fallout from the Stephen Lee verdict still fresh in the air, it is easy to forget that there is a ranking event currently in progress as the third day of the Shanghai Masters saw the line-up for the last 16 finalised today.
Click below for a round-up of the key stories so far…
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- Click here to view the latest projected seedings
Having qualified for his first full ranking event venue with four victories, Kyren Wilson today continued his run with a hugely impressive 5-1 victory against eighth-seeded Stuart Bingham. While it was not a high-scoring win (a 147 chasing break of 97 in frame four aside), any win against a player of Bingham’s class is an excellent result for Kyren as he looks to rise up the rankings on his return to the professional circuit.
The draw does not get any easier for Kyren however, as he next faces reigning Australian Goldfields Open champion Marco Fu, who brushed aside China’s Cao Yupeng, who had only narrowly survived an upset against Zhou Yuelong in the wildcard round a day previously.
There does however remain home interest in the tournament following victories for Ding Junhui and perhaps more surprisingly, Xiao Guodong, who overcame David Gilbert and Stephen Maguire respectively today.
For Ding, perhaps this tournament will provide him with the chance to have an extended run at a tournament in China, something that he has often been criticised for not doing in recent years. Xiao meanwhile will also fancy his chances of going further still, with Leeds’ Peter Lines awaiting in the last 16 after his deciding frame victory against Matthew Stevens yesterday.
Turning to those at the very top of the rankings, there was to be little trouble for Neil Robertson and Mark Selby, who both saw off wildcard opposition to progress, but there was a shock for Judd Trump, whose stuttering start to the season continued with a 5-1 defeat to Michael Holt, who hit top breaks of 115 and 97 en route to victory.
Next up for Holt will be Martin Gould, who won the last three frames of his match with Bluebell Wood Open winner Ricky Walden today and is chasing his first full-ranking event quarter-final since last season’s Australian Goldfields Open.
Elsewhere, Mark Allen was to lose out to former Shanghai finalist Ryan Day in this evening’s session, while the in-form Mark Davis continued his winning streak with a 5-3 win against Ali Carter, to set up a last 16 match with a familiar opponent in John Higgins.
All in all, the usual good mix of upsets and impressive performances that we have come to expect in the opening days of a major event and it will be interesting to see now who has peaked and who will only improve in the run up to Sunday’s final…