November 21st 2024.
Judd Trump is eagerly vying for his second UK Championship title as the highly anticipated draw for the event has finally been announced. The main event will kick off this Saturday afternoon at the Barbican in York, bringing together the best snooker players in the world. But before that, the qualifying round will conclude on Thursday night in Leicester, with 16 players earning their spot alongside the top 16 players at the esteemed venue.
The defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan has been dealt a tough first match against Barry Hawkins in a repeat of the 2013 World Championship final. World number one Judd Trump, on the other hand, is determined to add another UK title to his name and will start his campaign in York against either Neil Robertson or Matthew Stevens. Meanwhile, world champion Kyren Wilson is aiming for his first UK Championship win and will face Stephen Maguire in the first round.
The first round is filled with exciting matchups, including Mark Selby taking on Jack Lisowski and an all-Chinese showdown between Si Jiahui and Wu Yize. The event will kick off with a bang on Saturday afternoon with the highly anticipated match between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Barry Hawkins.
Moving on to the schedule, the first day will see Ronnie O'Sullivan facing off against Barry Hawkins at 1pm, followed by Shaun Murphy taking on the winner of Ricky Walden and Zhao Xintong. In the evening session, Ding Junhui will go up against either Robert Milkins or Xu Si, while Xiao Guodong will battle it out with Dave Gilbert.
Sunday's matches will feature Mark Allen against Jackson Page and Ali Carter against Ryan Day in the afternoon session, followed by Si Jiahui facing off against Wu Yize and Mark Selby taking on Jack Lisowski in the evening. Monday's lineup includes Chris Wakelin against the winner of Zhou Yuelong and Matt Selt, and Kyren Wilson against Stephen Maguire. In the evening, Luca Brecel will go against Jak Jones and Gary Wilson will face either Liu Hongyu or Michael Holt.
On Tuesday, John Higgins will go up against either He Guoqiang or Stan Moody, while Judd Trump will face the winner of Neil Robertson and Matthew Stevens. In the evening, Mark Williams will take on Stuart Bingham, and Zhang Anda will battle it out with either Ben Woollaston or Lei Peifan.
It's worth noting that Mark Williams is currently holding the titles for both the Tour Championship and Champion of Champions. The UK Championship draw features some of the top players in the world, including O'Sullivan, Trump, and Williams. The first players to qualify were Stuart Bingham and Jackson Page on Wednesday afternoon, followed by Jak Jones and Stephen Maguire who secured their spots that same day.
In the evening session, Jack Lisowski, Ryan Day, Wu Yize, and Barry Hawkins also emerged victorious in their Judgement Day matches. Fans can catch all the action live on the BBC and Eurosport/Discovery+. The tournament has a grand prize of £250,000 for the winner, with the runner-up taking home £100,000. The semi-finalists will earn £50,000 each, while the quarter-finalists will receive £25,000. The remaining players in the last 16 and last 32 will earn £15,000 and £10,000 respectively.
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