UK Championship: Two-time winner Selby eliminated in first round

Mark Selby, a two-time champion of the UK Championship, was defeated in the initial round of the 2024 tournament. His compatriot, Jack Lisowski, orchestrated a remarkable comeback during their match at the York Barbican on Sunday evening. Lisowski, ranked 21st globally, trailed 3-0 and had accumulated only six points as Selby asserted control in the early frames, achieving two impressive centuries. However, Lisowski managed to regain momentum, securing six of the subsequent seven frames with the help of breaks measuring 55, 63, 100, 70, and 61. This led to a 6-4 victory, advancing him to a last-16 encounter against Ali Carter. The prospect of an upset seemed unlikely given Selby’s accumulation of 329 points across the initial three frames, while Lisowski, who had progressed through two qualifying stages, had only potted a red and a blue ball. Nevertheless, Selby attributed the turning point to his inability to establish a 4-0 lead. Selby stated, “I played well to go 3-0 then I misjudged a red in the next frame and that was probably the turning point of the match. If I had gone 4-0 I would’ve broken the back of the match, but Jack played well and I know he is capable of that. When his mind is right, he is capable of beating anyone.” He further commented, “I feel my game is OK and I’m losing to great players.” Selby, who was the fifth seed, suffered his loss after the top seed and current champion, Ronnie O’Sullivan, had been defeated 6-4 by Barry Hawkins on Saturday afternoon. Lisowski, who is scheduled to face Ali Carter in the last 16, remarked, “It’s all a bit of a blur.” He added, “I played well, good safety and good scoring. Wherever I go I play quite risky snooker so the crowd always wants to see something and make a game of it.” Lisowski also noted, “There’s something about the crowd at York. It’s really grown here and it’s turned into an incredible tournament and the crowd are a part of that.” In another first-round match, former world number one Mark Allen secured a 6-4 victory over Jackson Page, despite describing his performance as “awful” and stating his game “is not in a good place.” Allen is set to compete against either Si Jiahui or Wu Yize in the last 16 of the UK Championship. Allen, from Northern Ireland, who claimed the tournament title two years prior, managed only a single break of 50 against 23-year-old Page, a player ranked 41st and participating in his inaugural last-32 match at the UK Championship. Allen commented, “It wasn’t fun to be part of that match. I’m just playing like that all the time and it’s hard to put my finger on why, that’s the frustrating thing.” He continued, “I got the job done and that’s pretty much it, it was awful. I’m not in a good place with my game, everything else is fine but with snooker I’m just struggling.” Allen also stated, “I’m probably trying too hard, I just needed to give 100 per cent on every shot and nothing is coming easy for me.” Mark Allen, who won the 2022 UK Championship and was a finalist in 2011 and 2018, ascended to the top of the world rankings for the first time following the World Championship in May, before being superseded by Judd Trump at the close of August. Currently ranked third globally, the 38-year-old has advanced to two semi-finals during the 2024-25 season, experiencing defeats against Mark Selby at the British Open in September and against Xiao Guodong in the Champion of Champions earlier in the current month. Welshman Page initially held a 3-2 advantage, but Allen, an 11-time ranking event champion, utilized his experience to win four of the subsequent five frames, thereby securing the match. Despite his win, Allen, whose next opponent in the last 16 will be either China’s Si Jiahui or Wu Yize, expressed bewilderment regarding his current lack of form. He further elaborated, “I’m doing all the things that got me to world number one, working really hard on the practice table but it’s not coming easy. I’m hoping one performance turns it around but I feel a million miles away from that.” Allen also commented, “Jackson is a brilliant talent but not very experienced on the big stage so I thought I would take advantage of that and it nearly backfired.” He concluded, “It’s not fun, I’m not going to lie – I couldn’t enjoy any part of that match. It’s unsettling given how much I practice, and considering how hard I’ve been working. I’m probably not as far as I think I am, I’m my worst critic.” During the afternoon session, England’s Ali Carter secured a 6-4 victory over Welshman Ryan Day in another fixture. Carter has reached the semi-finals of the UK Championship on two occasions, losing both times. He had not registered a win in the advanced stages of the tournament since his 9-8 defeat to Shaun Murphy in the semi-finals in 2012. Carter stated, “It’s all about getting a win. Wins have been hard to come by of late and it has zapped my confidence. It was hard work from start to finish.” He also observed, “I found the table was quite heavy and to screw back was quite different, but you have to play on whatever the table is like.” Reflecting on his history at the venue, Carter said, “I’ve had some good times here, but mostly terrible ones. I was 8-4 up in the [2012] semi-finals against Shaun Murphy and that went wrong 9-8 and I’ve not had too much success since then.” He expressed hope, “Everything is so dependent on doing well in the big ranking events. I’ve not had a good run here for a long time so let’s hope it leads to one this year.” The final match of the evening saw China’s 13th seed Si Jiahui defeated 6-4 by his fellow countryman Wu Yize.