The Wuhan Open quarterfinalists are decided: the world number one suffers a shocking defeat, a dark horse emerges, and China secures three spots with Xiao, Zhang, and Si advancing.

On August 28th Beijing time, the round of 16 at the Wuhan Snooker Open concluded yesterday, finalizing the quarterfinal lineup. Among them, three Chinese players—Si Jiahui, Xiao Guodong, and Zhang Anda—all won their matches. Additionally, a major dark horse, Moody, emerged, while the world number one, Trump, was eliminated and sent home!

Nine Chinese players reached the last 32, but only three managed to break through to the last 16. In the round of 16, these three continued their strong performance by winning all their matches. Defending champion Xiao Guodong was in fiery form, overwhelming Celt by winning three frames in a row early on, then steadily dominating with strong offense and defense, eventually crushing Celt 5-2, including one century break and two 50+ breaks throughout the match!

The 18-year-old rising star Moody is arguably the tournament’s biggest dark horse. On his way to the last 16, he eliminated Ding Junhui and Zhou Yuelong, breaking the so-called Ding Junhui curse. In the round of 16, he stormed through with a 5-0 rout over Hawkins, including one century break and two 50+ breaks. His form is incredibly impressive and somewhat surprising!

Trump, ranked world number one, has had a disappointing season without remarkable results. At the Wuhan Open round of 16, he faced Gary Wilson. Both players played at a fast pace, and the match was tightly contested. Trump reached a match point at 4-3, but Wilson made a remarkable comeback, using excellent defensive skills to gradually chip away and eventually clinch a 5-4 upset victory over Trump, advancing to the quarterfinals!

Si Jiahui faced Maguire, who had eliminated Zhao Xintong. By mid-match, Si was in hot form, quickly taking a commanding 4-1 lead. Maguire saved a match point with a 120-point century break, but Si ultimately closed out the seventh frame to win 5-2. It’s unclear how Zhao Xintong ended up losing!

Zhang Anda played against Aaron Hill in a rollercoaster match full of twists. Zhang lost the first frame but then won three straight to take the lead. Hill responded by winning three frames in a row. Zhang found himself in trouble but fought back hard, winning two consecutive frames to narrowly defeat Hill 5-4 and advance to the quarterfinals!

The quarterfinal matchups are set: Xiao Guodong will face the dark horse Moody, Zhang Anda will challenge Mark Williams, Si Jiahui will go up against Mark Allen, and Higgins will meet Gary Wilson!

Written by/Titan Sports Fiction