Shaun Murphy storms into World Snooker Championship last 16

SHEFFIELD: Shaun Murphy dazzled the Crucible Theatre crowd with a commanding 10-4 win over debutant Daniel Wells, securing his place in the last 16 of the World Snooker Championship on Wednesday.

Murphy delivered a masterclass in his opening match. He took a dominant 7-2 lead by the end of Tuesday’s session, capped off by a jaw-dropping no-look trick shot—potting the black after bouncing it off four cushions without even watching the ball’s final path. The crowd erupted in disbelief and admiration.

The 2005 world champion now sets his sights on a potential clash with world number one Judd Trump in the next round, as he looks to lift the World Championship trophy again—two decades after his first triumph.

Against Welsh qualifier Wells, ranked 49th in the world, the Sheffield audience was treated to an exhilarating display of high-quality snooker. Each frame featured a break of at least 50, with six century breaks shared equally between the two players—three apiece.

Murphy, who won the Masters in January, is aiming to become the first player since Judd Trump in the 2018–19 season to win both the Masters and the World Championship in the same year.

After wrapping up the first session with a 7-2 advantage, Murphy extended his lead with a composed break of 53.

Though Wells mounted a brief comeback with impressive breaks of 115 and 68, Murphy responded with a majestic 133 to move within one frame of victory. He sealed the win with a clinical 71 in the final frame.

Meanwhile, Trump holds a 6-3 lead over China’s Zhou Yuelong in their first-round encounter, which will conclude on Wednesday evening.