Mark Allen has withdrawn from the China Open and Wuhan Open due to personal reasons, it was announced on Friday.
The Northern Irishman was due to compete in both Chinese ranking events this month but has now confirmed that he will not take part in either tournament.
The 2026 China Open gets under way in Taiyuan on Saturday, while the Wuhan Open is scheduled to take place toward the end of August.
Allen’s withdrawals come after he was also absent from last month’s Shanghai Masters, meaning he will miss all three of the major Chinese events on the calendar this summer.
The 40-year-old did not compete in Shanghai for the second consecutive year, and he has not played a competitive match on the World Snooker Tour since his dramatic World Championship semi-final defeat to Wu Yize at the Crucible.
Allen led late on but missed an easy frame-ball black in the 32nd frame as Wu fought back to force a decider, with the Chinese player eventually winning 17-16 before going on to claim his maiden world title in Sheffield.
The current world number 12 was due to begin his China Open campaign against the winner of the wildcard round match between Hossein Vafaei and Liu Linhao.
Instead, the winner of that contest will now progress directly through to the last 16.
Allen will also miss the opportunity to collect valuable ranking points at both Chinese tournaments.
There is a top prize of £250,000 on offer at the China Open, which has returned to the World Snooker Tour calendar for the first time since 2019.
Confirming his decision to withdraw, 2010 China Open semi-finalist Allen said: “I am gutted to miss these two events in China and my apologies to the fans and promoters in Taiyuan and Wuhan.”
“I love playing in China and appreciate the support we always get there, but there are personal reasons why I can’t make it this time.
“I hope to be back playing in China later this season.”
Allen is now likely to return to competitive action at the British Open, which begins at the end of August.
His extended absence means the former Masters champion will have gone several months without a competitive match by the time he is next seen on the World Snooker Tour.
The China Open represents one of the biggest ranking events of the early 2026/27 season, with the winner’s prize providing a significant opportunity for players looking to make an early move up the rankings.
Among those in action on day one will be Wu, who faces fellow Chinese potter Yao Pengcheng, and home favourite Ding Junhui who meets David Gilbert.
Three-time China Open champion Mark Williams is in action against Zhou Yuelong while Barry Hawkins takes on Liu Hongyu.
Featured photo credit: WST
