World Snooker Championship: Four-time champion Mark Selby shocked by debutant Joe O'Connor
Mark Selby, who has won the world snooker championship four times, has promised to think about retiring. This comes after he suffered a humiliating 10-6 loss to Joe O'Connor, a player who had to qualify to compete, on Monday. Selby described his performance as "pathetic".
Selby, who expressed doubts about his future as a pro player following his loss to Gary Wilson in the Tour Championship a few weeks ago, suffered a defeat by 10-6 to his fellow Leicestershire player O'Connor. Selby fell behind by five points (7-2) after the morning session on Sunday.
Selby displayed his well-known ability to fight as he started the game with a remarkable break of 112 points. Additionally, he shot a 91-point score to decrease the difference to 8-5 at the halfway point of the match.
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O'Connor, who is the only newcomer in the competition this year, appeared calm and composed while scoring 56 points in the following round. With just one more frame to go, he was on the brink of achieving a remarkable triumph.
Selby struck once again, scoring a break of 67, and looked poised to narrow the gap to within just two frames in the next round after taking a lead of 39 points. However, his adversary made a confident shot down the rail, effectively sealing Selby's defeat.
After losing to Gary Wilson in the Tour Championship just a few weeks ago, Selby was uncertain about his future. He acknowledged that he needs to make changes if he wants to stay on the tour next season.
Selby, who has only made it to one ranking final this season, stated: "I will need to reflect on my performance throughout the summer. When I'm not playing snooker, I feel content, but when I do, my mood drastically changes. From start to finish, my performance was unsatisfactory."
This is the first time Selby has lost in the first round since 2018. He said he would think about his future during the summer.
During the interview with BBC, Selby stated that he would discuss with his wife Vicky to consider the available possibilities.
It's a major decision that I'm facing right now, and if I choose to continue playing, I will require assistance. Specifically, I may need more support in terms of my mindset to fully appreciate the game.
All I aim to do is to go out there and have fun. However, I have a tendency to take things too seriously and put unnecessary pressure on myself, even treating every situation like a matter of life or death. This has always been my personality, trying my best and pushing myself to the limit.
O'Connor is set to compete against either Kyren Wilson, who currently holds the No. 12 seed ranking, or Dominic Dale in the second round of the competition.
Shaun Murphy started his endeavor to clinch his second world title with a remarkable performance, effortlessly making his way to the next round with a convincing win of 10-5 over Lyu Haotian.
At the beginning of the session, Murphy was leading 6-3 and he hoped to keep up his momentum. He managed to win the first frame by taking advantage of Haotian's 38-point deficit, thereby increasing his lead to four.
Murphy won the following round, making it five rounds in a row, but Haotian managed to win two of the next three rounds, prolonging the tie a bit.
Murphy looked calm and composed, not showing any signs of struggling. Since the 2005 world champion only required one frame to secure the victory, Murphy sealed the deal in an impressive fashion with a break of 81. This victory marked his first entry into the second round of the tournament since 2021.
"Murphy Defends Crucible Against 'smelly' Remarks"
Murphy expressed his disapproval of criticism towards the renowned snooker venue, the Crucible, after professional snooker player Hossein Vafaei of Iran referred to it as having a foul odor. Murphy considered Vafaei's comment to be disrespectful towards the Crucible's esteemed reputation.
The beginning of the competition this year has been worsened by negative remarks aimed at the famous location where the event has been held for more than four decades.
Murphy, who won the championship in 2005, replied to Vafaei's remarks by saying that the snooker arena is a sacred place. He believes that it is inappropriate for a professional in the sport to publicly denounce their playing grounds.
Hossein needs to learn more about the tour's operations regarding our collaboration with WST and broadcasting partners. Additionally, he should understand how exceptional this place is.
Do you believe that his public disapproval of one of the major collaborators is beneficial for the development of our sport? His actions have not been advantageous to the progress of the sport.
Monday At Crucible: What's The Buzz?
Mark Williams, who has won the world championship three times, managed to take the lead against Si Jiahui, who reached the semi-finals unexpectedly last year, during a very competitive first session of their initial round match.
At the beginning of the match, Williams managed to complete an outstanding 142 points clearance. However, Si put up a fight and Williams had to work hard to win the last two frames before the end of the session, which allowed him to take the lead of 5-4. The match will resume on Tuesday.
A previous winner named Stuart Bingham defeated Gary Wilson, who was seeded 10th, with a score of 10-5. This victory earned Bingham a spot in the next round of the competition.
At the beginning of their match on Sunday, Bingham had taken the lead with a score of 6-3. However, Wilson, who has won two ranking events this season, won the first two frames of the day. He achieved this by scoring two consecutive half-centuries, which brought him very close to catching up to Bingham with only one frame behind.
Wilson's chances were hindered by unexpected mistakes during critical moments. As a result, he became more and more frustrated while Bingham saw through the next three frames and won the match.
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The WST has made an agreement to increase the sport's advertising in Saudi Arabia, and the upcoming second World Masters of Snooker competition will provide a prize of $1 million (£810,000) for any competitor who can put a unique golden ball after a maximum break.
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