The 2024/25 snooker season’s first big tournament of the year got underway earlier this week at the Shanghai Masters, with a snooker legend closing in on a historic milestone.
The prestigious non-ranking event will feature 24 players, including the top 16 in the Order of Merit and eight Chinese players.
Ahead of the tournament, Cues and Arrows looked at three snooker superstars at the Shanghai Masters to watch closely as the week progresses, with Ronnie O’Sullivan eyeing a potential fifth title in a row in the Chinese city.
Proceedings so far have provided no shocks, though last year’s finalist and former world champion Luca Brecel was defeated by the inform Chinese talent Si Jiahui 6-2 in the last 16.
John Higgins closing in on 1,000 career centuries
On Wednesday, John Higgins will face Shaun Murphy, aiming to cement himself in the history books once more.
Higgins currently sits on 998 career century breaks and is on the brink of becoming only the second player of all time to reach 1,000. O’Sullivan reached 1,000 in the final frame to defeat Neil Robertson at the 2019 Players Championship.
The Scot labels this potential accomplishment as ‘the second man to walk on the moon’, which shows the magnitude of the occasion.
“I’ve never really went for centuries over the years,” said Higgins on WST. “It was concentrating on winning frames, but when you get close to it, then it is a nice milestone.
“I will hopefully be second only to O’Sullivan, which most people are nowadays in different records. I would be the second man to walk on the moon! So it would be special.
“I would love to do it in Shanghai, at a prestigious event,” said Higgins. “No disrespect, but I don’t want to do it in the qualifiers in Leicester when nobody is there.”
A new transformative era of breaking building
O’Sullivan and Higgins have inspired a generation of talent from their prolific break-building ability in their respective careers.
Since both of them turned professional in 1992 alongside three-time world champion Mark Williams, with the trio being dubbed as ‘The Class of 92’, the Welshman believes that O’Sullivan and Higgins are the top two players of all time.
With the duo turning 50 next year, the pair are still formulating many century breaks across the long, drawn-out season and are feisty competitors at the peak of their powers.
Judd Trump is the closest to Higgins on the accumulated centuries list, with 982, followed by Australian Neil Robertson in fourth with 939.
Snooker Centuries List
- Ronnie O’Sullivan – 1,264
- John Higgins – 998
- Judd Trump – 982
- Neil Robertson – 939
- Mark Selby – 821
- Stephen Hendry – 777
- Ding Junhui – 663
- Shaun Murphy – 657
- Mark Williams – 634
- Mark Allen – 618
Correct as of thes 16th July 2024.