By the end of Monday’s play at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, there will be just eight names left in the 2026 World Snooker Championship draw.
Four of those have already been confirmed, with Shaun Murphy, Mark Allen, Barry Hawkins, and reigning champion Zhao Xintong already safely through to the quarter-finals.
The other four have yet to be decided, and there is every indication that there will be a nail-biting conclusion to the second round on day ten of the competition.
None of the remaining matches can be called with any real confidence, although a player in each one has the edge heading into their finales.
Neil Robertson arguably has one foot in the quarter-finals, the Australian pulling away from Chris Wakelin with a timely three-frame burst to end their middle session on Sunday.
Robertson is 10-6 in front and needs just three more frames to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 2021.
From Wakelin’s point of view, matches have been won from this position in the past – albeit he will have to start scoring much heavier if he is to give himself a more realistic chance.
The situation in the other three matches is much closer, with Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, and Wu Yize each boasting only narrow 9-7 advantages over John Higgins, Hossein Vafaei, and Mark Selby respectively.
In the showdown between the Class of ’92 legends, it appeared as though O’Sullivan was coasting to a one-sided victory when he established a 9-4 lead over old rival Higgins.
But back came the Scot in trademark fashion by winning the last three of the second session, including one on the black and another on the pink, to keep himself in the hunt.
Trump, meanwhile, also produced a three-frame surge just at the right time to transform a 7-6 deficit to Vafaei into a 9-7 overnight lead.
The 2019 world champion compiled breaks of 100, 74, and 94 to establish a two-frame cushion, but he’ll be wary of the threat of the Iranian who is in form.
If Trump were to go on to victory and confirm his place in the last eight, it would guarantee that he would finish the 2025/26 snooker season as the world number one.
The other clash has seen rising star Wu build a small lead over a formidable player in Selby who is chasing a fifth Crucible crown.
In a game that has swung one way and then the other, both Wu and Selby have enjoyed spells in the lead.
The 22 year-old won five frames out of six in the middle of the second session to move 9-6 clear, but Selby won an important last frame to hang in there.
Five former world champions, seven current members of the top 16, and eight proven ranking event winners.
Plenty of entertainment is in store in what could be a manic Monday at the Crucible Theatre, with the race to win the 2026 World Snooker Championship heating up.
Featured photo credit: WST
