Marco Fu has revealed his intentions to play in this year’s World Snooker Championship in Sheffield.
The Hong Kong cueist hasn’t participated on the Main Tour since the start of 2020, when he lost in the first round of that year’s Welsh Open.
Fu, a former World Snooker Championship semi-finalist, has abstained from the circuit during the global coronavirus pandemic.
As a result, the 44 year-old quickly dropped outside the top 64 on the official rankings list and was subsequently relegated.
But Fu was immediately granted an invitational tour card in recognition of his achievements in the game and the unusual circumstances surrounding his prolonged absence.
Although he hasn’t utilised that option until now, the three-time former ranking event winner will soon be making his long-awaited comeback.
“I’ve just entered this year’s World Championships!” Fu tweeted on Monday to the delight of many snooker fans.
Referee Jan Verhaas replied that it was “great news” and there were dozens of additional messages of support.
The former world number five will, of course, have to start right at the beginning of the qualifiers when he rejoins the action in Sheffield next month.
That means Fu will need to win four matches in total before he’ll potentially have the opportunity to compete at the Crucible Theatre again.
It’ll be interesting to see what kind of standard he’ll be able to produce and it’s surely inevitable that he will be a bit rusty.
But there will be many competitors in the qualifiers who will be desperate to avoid someone of Fu’s calibre.
In addition to reaching finals of both the UK Championship and the Masters, Fu won silverware at the 2007 Grand Prix, 2013 Australian Open, and 2016 Scottish Open.
The World Snooker Championship qualifiers get under way on April 4 at the English Institute of Sport.
Featured photo credit: WST
