World number 64 Mark Davis stunned World Champion Luca Brecel with a 6-3 victory to reach the last 32 of the International Championship in Tianjin.
It’s a significant result for the Englishman, who heartbreakingly lost out in the final round of World Championship qualifying last season to close friend Joe Perry 10-9. That was a result which appeared to cost Davis his professional status, until he was given a reprieve. Due to being ranked in 68th position it was decided he would stay on tour, because of an independent tribunal, the outcome of which was pending at the time.
The win earns Davis a last 32 clash with China’s Pang Junxu, who beat his compatriot Fan Zhengyi 6-5. Defeat for Brecel means his hopes of moving to number one in the world this week are now over.
It was a dream start for Davis, who charged into a 4-0 lead at the mid-session interval. The Hastings cueman compiled breaks of 51, 76 and 64 on his way to a clean sweep of the frames.
Davis had an opportunity to move one from the win in the fifth, but a missed red let Brecel off the hook and he got his first frame on the board. The world number two then fired his way back into contention with breaks of 87 and 94 to pull within one at 4-3.
Momentum appeared to be with the Belgian Bullet, but Davis turned the tide and composed contributions of 59 and 107 to take two on the bounce and wrap up a famous victory.
Davis said: “It feels brilliant. I’ve certainly not had many wins over the last two or three seasons against players with the calibre of Luca. I really enjoyed it. When I play World Champions, I try to enjoy it more because I’m coming towards the end of my career. I’ve struggled to do that over the years and I think that helped me.
“I should have gone 5-0 up and had a good chance. I missed a red and that is when the old voices come into your head and say that this is going to go wrong. Fortunately, the work I did with Terry Griffiths years ago and now Chris Henry, got me through. Even though I had a massive lead I know what it is like. The voices can start coming and I can massively struggle, but I didn’t really.”
Current world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan progressed with a 6-3 defeat of Mark Joyce. The Rocket composed breaks of 86, 110, 131, 116 and 81 to come roaring back from 2-0 down and progress. His last 32 opponent is Jak Jones. After today’s win he admitted that remaining world number one is not his current priority.
“For me it is about the titles, leaving a legacy and leaving targets for everyone else to try and chase. Hopefully I will be dead by the time they catch my targets,” quipped 39-time ranking event winner and seven-time World Champion O’Sullivan.
“I was happy to win today and I’m happy to be in the next round. Mark played well to start with. I made a couple of mistakes and he punished me. He looked good so I knew I had to play better. I was pleased I was able to get into the game and eventually win.”
Judd Trump continued his red-hot form and quest to move to the top of the rankings with a 6-0 whitewash over Welshman Michael White.
The Ace in the Pack has racked up a remarkable three consecutive ranking titles in recent weeks, capturing silverware at the English Open, Wuhan Open and the Northern Ireland Open. Today’s win is his 22nd straight victory and he is yet to drop a frame this week. Next up he faces a tough last 32 assignment against Stephen Maguire.
Zhou Yuelong kept up his ruthless run of form against Anthony Hamilton, registering a 6-0 win. He has now whitewashed Hamilton in their last three meetings and has won the last 21 frames they have contested.
Teenage tour rookie Liam Pullen scored the biggest win of his career so far, coming through a deciding frame to beat Thai number one Noppon Saengkham 6-5.
Zhang Anda fired a barrage of breaks at Mark Williams to score a 6-3 win. Zhang made contributions of 77, 85, 67, 77, 128 and 83 during the encounter.
Shaun Murphy succumbed to a 6-3 loss against Dominic Dale, while Neil Robertson’s slow start to the season continued with a 6-1 defeat at the hands of Daniel Wells.
