UK Championship 2021

[Rane]

A great result. It´s fine that Zhao (and Brecel) finally has shown their potential, when it really matters.

[Nifty50]

Just had a look at draw for next weeks Scottish Open. Zhao won’t be there as he got beat in qualifiers. That’s a shame but he will probably enjoy the time off.

[Starsky]

Really good to see different players contesting in a final .
Great play by Zhao and came across as a really nice kid.
Looking forward to seeing more of him in the future I hope.
Luca just wasn’t on it today regardless of the run he was getting . I’m sure he’ll also be back in a final sometime soon.

[cueman]

Great win for xintong. I think we've all seen the YouTube video of him as a young kid potting balls. I think, like brecel, these two are the most eagerly awaited two players we've expected big things of and yet neither have delivered, until now!

Brecel was a little unlucky today, didn't have great run of the ball and probably peaked in the semi. It's never easy to follow up a performance like he had against wilson.

Xintong played well as he has done most of the tournament. Certainly seems to have found the balance of when to attack and when to keep it safe. For me its his calmness that sets him apart from everyone else. If he can keep this level of performance and consistency the world is at his feet. It just makes you wonder where this has come from or why he's not been able to deliver this before now.

To win the UK as your first title, let alone first final is unbelievable. Reminds me a little of when Shaun Murphy won the world championship out of nowhere.

[Cue crafty]

Really good to see different players contesting in a final .
Great play by Zhao and came across as a really nice kid.
Looking forward to seeing more of him in the future I hope.
Luca just wasn’t on it today regardless of the run he was getting . I’m sure he’ll also be back in a final sometime soon.

Yep, Luca had his proper buzzing day yesterday and anyone who witnessed it would think wow, you can't really play better than that! But Zhao seems to have a more level excellence thàt is hopefully more consistent for him to find going forward.

I love Luca's style but it's probably not going to peak quite as often because it's very special, I hope I'm wrong but either way there's no loss for snooker as a game when players can compete at this level.

[Starsky]

Yep, Luca had his proper buzzing day yesterday and anyone who witnessed it would think wow, you can't really play better than that! But Zhao seems to have a more level excellence thàt is hopefully more consistent for him to find going forward.

I love Luca's style but it's probably not going to peak quite as often because it's very special, I hope I'm wrong but either way there's no loss for snooker as a game when players can compete at this level.

I agree about the different styles .

I really hope this isn’t just a glitch and we get to see other players competing in the business end of comps . Always thought the next Chinese player who came through would be robot like with a heavily coached style but happily I’ve been proven wrong tonight ( a Chinese version of Wilson )

Looking forward to seeing how the kid does in the Masters

[Cue crafty]

Great win for xintong. I think we've all seen the YouTube video of him as a young kid potting balls. I think, like brecel, these two are the most eagerly awaited two players we've expected big things of and yet neither have delivered, until now!

Brecel was a little unlucky today, didn't have great run of the ball and probably peaked in the semi. It's never easy to follow up a performance like he had against wilson.

Xintong played well as he has done most of the tournament. Certainly seems to have found the balance of when to attack and when to keep it safe. For me its his calmness that sets him apart from everyone else. If he can keep this level of performance and consistency the world is at his feet. It just makes you wonder where this has come from or why he's not been able to deliver this before now.

To win the UK as your first title, let alone first final is unbelievable. Reminds me a little of when Shaun Murphy won the world championship out of nowhere.

Yep, completely agree!! I probably would have slightly preferred to see Luca win today at full tilt if it happened for him, because I know he will not get so many many chances with his style and general form, which I actually commend and enjoy because he gives it his all. Hope he takes a big title one day!


Also hope Zhao takes enough confidence from this win to win more with his attacking style instead of a defensive tactic going forwards

[Odrl]

I definitely enjoyed the snooker tonight. Huge surprise in the context of the season I guess, but with most of the top players going out early this week, I think both Brecel and Zhao kind of lost the underdog status earlier in the week. It definitely felt like they belonged here. It was a bit of a struggle for Brecel in the end, but Zhao was quite intimidating in some patches. Great to see him cutting out the really crazy shots from his game, while still remaining quite attacking. As was mentioned in commentary, there is a kind of calmness about him that makes it seem like he isn't all that fast, but when you actually look at the shot times, he plays very quickly and instinctively. I loved the interviews with him as well. It was clear that he couldn't follow absolutely everything that was said, but he still expressed himself very well and won himself many fans, I'm sure.

Of the three great prospects that came on the scene just before Yan Bingtao, I definitely thought Zhou Yuelong and Lyu Haotian would reach the top sooner than Zhao Xintong, because they seemed to have a better all-round game than he did. But he definitely seems to have matured as a player now. I'm not expecting him to suddenly start winning everything, but I look forward to seeing him in the Masters.

The last few days have been the most snooker I've watched in some time. It was a lot of fun. Too bad it's back to the short format tomorrow.

[Billy]

Brilliant night for snooker! I have to say, and it’s something I doubted I’d ever hear myself saying, we have in Zhao a player as good as, if not better, than O’Sullivan at his best! An absolutely phenomenal talent!

[mikee]

It was good to see a different player come from nowhere to pickup one of the biggest titles ,bit like Ronnie nearly 30 years ago in the the same tournament .Got to laugh at the commentators throughout the event though ,especially Taylor and Hendry .Right from the off it was Trumps title with Selby and Robertson close seconds ,then it was Osullivans title to lose ,it’s all about Ronnie just turning up ,then Wilson is the red hot favourite to pick up his first triple crown .It was almost arrogant of them never to mention these newer younger players stood a chance of winning ,these newer younger players knocked out most of the seeds over two weeks . Makes you wonder if the pundits were even watching the games or taking much notice

[balkend]

Zhao to win tournament outright , the Chinese invasion is gathering strength

There will be more , the barricades are down

[Starsky]

There will be more , the barricades are down

I feel like it’s a changing of the guard somewhat with Ding not able to play in the Masters but being replaced by the newcomer( in winning terms ).
Zhao winning last night will be huge in China and no doubt there will be a load more kids picking up the cue there because of it.

[Rane]

It was good to see a different player come from nowhere to pickup one of the biggest titles ,bit like Ronnie nearly 30 years ago in the the same tournament .Got to laugh at the commentators throughout the event though ,especially Taylor and Hendry .Right from the off it was Trumps title with Selby and Robertson close seconds ,then it was Osullivans title to lose ,it’s all about Ronnie just turning up ,then Wilson is the red hot favourite to pick up his first triple crown .It was almost arrogant of them never to mention these newer younger players stood a chance of winning ,these newer younger players knocked out most of the seeds over two weeks . Makes you wonder if the pundits were even watching the games or taking much notice

I´ll defend the opinion that it was Ronnies tourmament. He´s very often been excellent at winning when all the others favorits fell in the early rounds. And going into the last 16 there wasn´t any players left that use to give him trouble, but hatts of to Wilson for raising the bar.

[Billy]

Can I just give a big mention, as no one else has bothered, to the phenomenal rip-roarer fart that was emitted during one of Luca’s breaks. If that was real it must have been a record-breaker in both decibels and duration.

[herbie]

Congratulations to Zhao Xintong! I have observed him for several years already because he was remarkable when I first saw him. Finally he achieved a big victory. I hope it is a breakthrough for him and he will continue to appear in quarter and semifinals of many more tournaments.