The Masters: schedule, preview, and draw for the quarterfinals
Eight players remain in the contention to win the prestigious invitational title at the quarterfinal stage of the 2023 Masters. Three additional victories are required after successfully overcoming their first obstacle in order to win the Paul Hunter Trophy and the £250,000 top prize. The forthcoming matches of the Masters quarterfinals at Alexandra Palace are summarised here.
Shaun Murphy vs Stuart Bingham
When Shaun Murphy defeated reigning champion Neil Robertson on the first day of the competition. It seemed like a very long time ago. The Magician won’t be able to rejoin the group until Friday night. When he’ll face off against Stuart Bingham. In a spectacular World Championship final that took place at the Crucible Theatre eight years ago. Bingham triumphed in an improbable victory. In his first-round encounter against Kyren Wilson on Wednesday, Bingham defeated the Australian with a hat-trick of century breaks and held on to win despite a late-game stumble. Since they both have their names engraved on Masters silverware, Murphy and Bingham are aware of what it takes to succeed in London. Murphy had a better head-to-head record, but Bingham prevailed in their lone meeting in this competition when they met in the same stage in 2021.
Barry Hawkins vs Judd Trump
Only the snooker gods will know how Judd Trump managed to win his match against Ryan Day in the round of 16. For the most of the match, the 2019 winner was nothing short of terrible. He could count on a forgiving Day making error after mistake of his own. Trump might just get a fresh lease on life going ahead after making an unexpected appearance. Barry Hawkins, who pulled off the biggest upset to date by thrashing the hot-shot Mark Allen 6-0. Will be his opponent in the quarterfinals of the Masters tournament. Trump and Hawkins have a tight head-to-head record, with the former holding a 14-13 advantage. Over all of their previous encounters, despite Hawkins having won the last three. In their previous meeting at the Ally Pally, Hawkins prevailed 6-5 by winning the final two frames.
Hossein Vafaei vs Jack Lisowski
Given that it pits two of snooker’s most exciting young prospects against one another, many will regard this match as the tie of the round. Hossein Vafeai made the most of his last-minute call-up on Sunday night by defeating Mark Selby in his debut while Lisowski defeated John Higgins. Both athletes have the potential to become multiple champions, but they haven’t quite reached that position yet. Thus, one of them has a fantastic chance to make it to the Masters’ final four for the first time in their individual careers. The statistics, though, don’t seem good for Vafaei, who has only defeated Lisowski once in their previous seven meetings. That includes two losses in the most recent UK Championships. Lisowksi will be determined to make up for many of his prior transgressions this week after ultimately failing to qualify for the final in York in November.
Mark Williams vs Ronnie O’Sullivan
Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Williams square off in a heavyweight match for the fiftieth time in a professional competition. The Rocket, who has defeated Williams 34 times and has historically dominated their rivalry, significantly leads the record. On Monday, O’Sullivan thoroughly destroyed Luca Brecel 6-1. And the next day, Williams overcame David Gilbert 6-2. The Welshman claimed in his post-match press conference that he is due an O’Sullivan victory. He could not have gotten any closer than when he lost to O’Sullivan by a score of 10-9. Williams has the credentials to make this match intriguing. But O’Sullivan moving on to the next round seems more plausible. The tough opponents Selby, Higgins, and Robertson are all out. The seven-time champion will be focusing on winning championship no. 8 in London.
Watching the Masters
The BBC and Eurosport will show the whole 2023 Masters season live.
The action may be viewed on Matchroom for all other territories.
a subscription-based live streaming service.
