Eight gamers within the 2024 Shanghai Masters draw stay within the hunt for glory with the quarter-finals on Thursday’s schedule in China.
Three days of intriguing motion on the Shanghai Grand Stage has resulted in 16 of the 24 rivals from the unique subject already bow out.
Amongst these are world champion Kyren Wilson and world primary Mark Allen, however a number of heavy hitters are nonetheless in rivalry for the £210,000 prime prize.
Let’s, then, check out the 4 upcoming matches within the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals.
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Ding Junhui
(Thursday, 12:30pm UTC+1)
For the primary time in 15 years, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ding Junhui will encounter one another on Chinese language soil.
Contemplating they’re by far and away the 2 hottest gamers within the snooker-loving nation, it guarantees to be an electrical ambiance.
That assembly in 2009 was additionally within the quarter-finals of the Shanghai Masters when the match was beforehand attributed with rating standing.
O’Sullivan gained 5-3 on that event en path to securing the primary of his report 5 titles within the competitors.
Certainly, the Rocket has typically loved the higher hand from this rivalry through the years.
Ding, himself twice a Shanghai Masters champion, misplaced three high-profile encounters in opposition to O’Sullivan across the New Yr interval final season, together with within the closing of the UK Championship.
The Chinese language cueist produced a powerful end to disclaim an in-form Ali Carter in his last-16 decider, whereas O’Sullivan coasted by means of his opening take a look at in opposition to wildcard Zhou Jinhao.
Judd Trump vs Si Jiahui
(Thursday, 12:30pm UTC+1)
The match between Judd Trump and Si Jiahui may need to play second fiddle on Thursday afternoon’s billing to O’Sullivan and Ding.
But that is an equally fascinating conflict on the quarter-final schedule on the 2024 Shanghai Masters.
Each gamers are recognized for his or her attacking prowess, highlighted already throughout their early fixtures within the match.
Trump contributed a brace of 112 century breaks en path to a routine victory over Mark Williams, whereas Si has compiled a 131 and 7 extra breaks above 50 in his two wins in opposition to Tom Ford and Luca Brecel.
The latter victory can have been significantly candy for the 22 year-old having squandered an enormous result in Brecel in final 12 months’s World Championship semi-final.
Si will probably be in search of extra revenge when he takes on Trump, who he misplaced to within the German Masters closing again in February.
In truth, Trump has gained all 5 of their prior conferences and will probably be a powerful favorite to advance.
Pang Junxu vs Mark Selby
(Thursday, 7am UTC+1)
Mark Selby misplaced the opening body of his first match of the brand new season however proceeded to win the next six in opposition to wildcard Cao Jin.
The Leicester man gained this match manner again in 2011 and can face one other Chinese language contender as he bids for a spot within the final 4 this week.
Pang Junxu will probably be Selby’s subsequent opponent, the 24 year-old rising from a titanic tussle with world primary Mark Allen in a deciding body.
The pair needed to be pulled off as their drawn-out session within the afternoon risked interfering with the night bout of play.
Once they resumed, Pang managed to prevail on the ultimate blue to arrange a fixture in opposition to the participant who beat him in his solely earlier rating occasion closing – the 2023 WST Traditional.
Pang will most likely have to boost his sport in opposition to Selby, who’s unlikely to place in as wretched a efficiency as Allen produced.
Selby will probably be his half of the draw, with a number of high-profile names already disposed of, and pondering he’s obtained an awesome probability of difficult for the silverware.
Shaun Murphy vs Zhou Yuelong
(Thursday, 7am UTC+1)
Zhou Yuelong conjured arguably the results of the fledgling 2024/25 snooker season thus far together with his 6-0 dismantling of world champion Kyren Wilson.
The 26 year-old has appeared very sturdy from the off this week, underlined by his three-ton efficiency to beat Barry Hawkins within the earlier spherical.
However whereas his scoring has been spectacular – boosted by a few terrific frame-winning clearances in each video games – few would have predicted the pummelling that he’d inflict on Wilson.
Zhou, a former World Cup winner however with out a person title on World Snooker Tour, faces Shaun Murphy within the final eight.
The Magician produced a powerful show to see off the problem of fellow former world champion John Higgins with a 6-3 scoreline.
Murphy, a finalist in 2019 when he misplaced 11-9 within the closing to O’Sullivan, enjoys a superior head-to-head report in opposition to Zhou.
The Shanghai Masters is arguably the largest match on the annual schedule that the 2005 world champion has by no means gained, so he’ll be eager on mounting a critical problem once more.
2024 Shanghai Masters draw
Spherical 1 (bo11)
Zhang Anda 3-6 Zhou Jinhao
Ali Carter 6-0 Qiu Lei
Tom Ford 3-6 Si Jiahui
Mark Williams 6-3 Wang Xinbo
Gary Wilson 5-6 Pang Junxu
Jak Jones 2-6 Cao Jin
John Higgins 6-1 Lyu Haotian
Barry Hawkins 4-6 Zhou Yuelong
Spherical 2 (bo11)
Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-1 Zhou Jinhao
Ding Junhui 6-5 Ali Carter
Luca Brecel 2-6 Si Jiahui
Judd Trump 6-2 Mark Williams
Mark Allen 5-6 Pang Junxu
Mark Selby 6-1 Cao Jin
Shaun Murphy 6-3 John Higgins
Kyren Wilson 0-6 Zhou Yuelong
Quarter-Finals (bo11)
All instances in UTC+1
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Ding Junhui
(July 18: 12:30pm)
Si Jiahui vs Judd Trump
(July 18: 12:30pm)
Pang Junxu vs Mark Selby
(July 18: 7am)
Shaun Murphy vs Zhou Yuelong
(July 18: 7am)
Semi-Finals (bo19)
O’Sullivan/Ding vs Si/Trump
(July 20: 7am and 12:30pm)
Pang/Selby vs Murphy/Zhou
(July 19: 7am and 12:30pm)
Last (bo21)
TBC vs TBC
(July 21: 7am and 12:30pm)
Featured picture credit score: WST
