The draw for the 2025 German Masters has only eight players left in it with the quarter-finals next up on the schedule in Berlin on Friday.
Just two members from the top 16 in the world rankings remain in the hunt for glory at the Tempodrom.
Three among the other six contenders are proven ranking event champions while the remaining trio will bid for a maiden ranking title this weekend.
Let’s take a look at the four matches on the German Masters quarter-finals schedule.
Neil Robertson vs Yuan Sijun
Neil Robertson may not be a top-16 seed, but as a former world champion and a 24-time ranking event winner, he may as well be one.
The Australian knocked out defending champion and world number one Judd Trump in the last 16 on Thursday.
Robertson has continued to lack consistency this season, but his form has generally been vastly improved compared to the two prior campaigns.
The 42 year-old is through to a fourth ranking quarter-final of the ongoing term and will look to challenge for a second piece of silverware having already won the English Open.
Yuan Sijun will be the former world champion’s next challenge to overcome, the Chinese competitor stunning the in-form Shaun Murphy in a deciding frame.
Murphy, this month’s Masters winner, hadn’t lost a single frame across his first two games in the German capital but struggled for peak form against Yuan.
The latter is a win away from matching his previous best run in a ranking tournament when he reached the 2019 Gibraltar Open semi-finals.
Robertson and Yuan have met twice already this season, sharing one victory apiece.
When is it? Friday, January 31st at 7pm UTC
Wu Yize vs Barry Hawkins
World number 12 Barry Hawkins is the only top-16 member left in the top half of the 2025 German Masters draw.
The Englishman received a bye through to the last eight after opponent Ricky Walden was forced to withdraw from the competition through medical concerns.
Hawkins, who reached the UK Championship final in December where he was narrowly denied glory by Trump, will face Wu Yize.
The up-and-coming star from China compiled a brace of century breaks and made three other frame-winning contributions in a 5-2 defeat of Alexander Ursenbacher on day four.
Wu has been steadily knocking on the door of a big breakthrough this season.
The 21 year-old embarked on runs to the finals of both the English and Scottish Opens but was denied a maiden title on both occasions by Robertson and Lei Peifan respectively.
Hawkins is still significantly more experienced at this stage of a tournament but lost to Wu in their only other meeting in Edinburgh last month.
When is it? Friday, January 31st at 7pm UTC
Xiao Guodong vs Aaron Hill
Xiao Guodong has undoubtedly represented one of the players of the 2024/25 snooker season.
The 35 year-old, who won the Wuhan Open in October, made it through to a fifth ranking quarter-final of the season after comfortably beating Elliot Slessor 5-1.
Xiao continues to be officially ranked outside the top 16, but it’s only a matter of time before he establishes himself in that elite bracket.
Indeed, the Champion of Champions finalist boasts a provisional end-of-season ranking inside the world’s top ten.
Xiao will next encounter Aaron Hill, who is the lowest-ranked competitor remaining in the German Masters quarter-finals as the world number 58.
The 22 year-old has matched his best performance in a ranking event by making it this far, continuing his fine run with a 5-3 triumph over Tom Ford in the last 16.
By guaranteeing himself £13,200 in prize money, Hill has eased any tour survival concerns he may have had and can look forward to another season on the main tour.
Of course, the young Irishman will be hoping to do even better than that and extend his challenge for a first title at the professional level.
Xiao and Hill have never clashed before on the World Snooker Tour, so it will be a new experience for both.
When is it? Friday, January 31st at 2pm UTC
Anthony McGill vs Kyren Wilson
Following Trump’s demise, world number two Kyren Wilson is the new favourite to etch his name onto the Brandon Parker Trophy in 2025.
The reigning world champion edged Jak Jones 5-3 in a repeat of their Crucible final from last May to set up a quarter-final fixture against Anthony McGill.
Nine years ago, when McGill beat Wilson to win the 2016 Indian Open, it looked as though they were both on course to regularly challenge for titles.
But while the latter has pushed on, McGill has generally failed to feature at the business end of tournaments since then.
The Scot, who beat Zhang Anda to reach this point, was once ranked as high as number 12 but currently has a provisional end-of-season ranking of a lowly 55.
Since their title-deciding match at the Indian Open, Wilson has won all four of their battles in ranking events – including a memorable 17-16 showdown in the World Championship semi-finals in 2020.
Wilson missed out on a maiden Masters success at the Alexandra Palace just over a week ago but has won three titles in Germany in the past and will fancy his chances of glory again from here.
When is it? Friday, January 31st at 2pm UTC
Featured image credit: WST
