Snooker World Championship quarterfinals confirmed; only seed Si Jia Hui eliminated; quarterfinals feature O'Sullivan vs Higgins & Ding Junhui vs Zhao Xintong clashes.

On April 24 Beijing time, the first round of the Snooker World Championship main event concluded. In the final match, Australian "gun" Robertson defeated Chinese player Pang Junxu 10-6, securing the last ticket to the quarterfinals and boarding the final train. Thus, all 16 quarterfinalists are now determined: the "75 Three Legends," the "80 Five Tigers," and two standout players from the post-90s generation are all prominently listed. China secured only four spots. The quarterfinals feature two key showdowns: Rocket O'Sullivan versus Higgins, and Ding Junhui versus Zhao Xintong!

Robertson has performed well this season, winning the Saudi Masters championship with £500,000, ranking first in the single-season standings and third in the world rankings. As a seed, he directly entered the World Championship main event. His first-round opponent was Pang Junxu; the overall skill gap between them was significant, with little chance for Pang to upset. Robertson aimed squarely for the quarterfinals!

After the match began, the situation turned into a tug-of-war, with both sides exchanging blows. In the second frame, Robertson miscalculated the score and conceded prematurely, receiving a warning from the referee, which allowed Pang Junxu to take a 3-2 lead. However, this incident did not affect Robertson's mindset. Robertson stabilized his play and won three consecutive frames to reverse the score to 5-3. Pang Junxu, unwilling to yield, chased back two frames to tie at 5-5. But then the momentum shifted; Robertson, combining offense and defense, delivered a lightning four-frame streak to reach 9-5 and secure match point. Pang Junxu fought hard to narrow the gap by one frame, but ultimately lost 6-10. Thus, Robertson claimed the last quarterfinal ticket!

With Robertson's advancement, all quarterfinalists for this tournament are now confirmed. Seed players collectively performed strongly, with only Si Jia Hui falling short; 15 seeds advanced to the quarterfinals. The upcoming quarterfinal matchups have sparked significant attention, with two peak clashes set to ignite the snooker world: Higgins versus O'Sullivan from the "75 Three Legends," both荣誉满满 (honor-filled) over 50 years old yet still fiercely competitive, drawing maximum viewership. Simultaneously, the clash between China's veteran and rising stars Ding Junhui and Zhao Xintong for a quarterfinal spot is also万众瞩目 (highly anticipated). Other matches include Xiao Guodong challenging Murphy, the Grand Slam champion who narrowly defeated Fan Zhenyi; post-90s standout Karen Wilson versus Mark Allen; world number one Trump versus qualifier dark horse Vafaei; Australian "gun" Robertson versus Wakelin; Hawkins challenging the ever-sharp Mark Williams; and four-time World Championship champion Selby versus Chinese newcomer Wu Yize. These matches are essentially key battles非常值得一看 (very worth watching). Let us wait and see!

Text/Sports Novel