Mark Allen faced Wu Yize in a lengthy tactical battle at the World Snooker Championship semi-final
18:36, 01 May 2026Updated 18:55, 01 May 2026
The World Snooker Championship has taken a chaotic turn(Image: BBC)
The World Snooker Championship crowd grew increasingly frustrated during a tactical battle between Wu Yize and Mark Allen in the semi-finals.
Sarcastic applause and calls for re-racks echoed around the venue as the pair battled through an extraordinarily lengthy frame, with Allen holding a 30-point advantage.
The Englishman compiled a break of 43 before the black became trapped by eight reds at the right-bottom pocket. Yize and Allen then traded safety shots around the reds for more than 35 minutes, prompting jeers from the increasingly restless snooker spectators.
Stephen Hendry and John Parrott watched on in disbelief from the commentary box, with the Scotsman stating: “The referee has got to call this, I’m afraid. I think he should’ve called it a while ago.”
At one stage, an audience member shouted: “Can we have a rerack?” to which the match official replied: “Thanks for the advice, but we can do it without you.”
Mark Allen eventually gave away the foul(Image: BBC)
According to Parrott, no additional frames of snooker were allowed to begin after 6:15pm, meaning any remaining frames scheduled for today would simply be carried over to the next session. The BBC said: “With John Higgins and Shaun Murphy due to get back underway at 7pm, it appears extremely unlikely that the eight frames scheduled for this session will be played.
“If the players are called off early those frames will be added to their final session on Saturday evening.”
The referee gestured towards Allen following the prolonged tactical exchange and cautioned that intervention might be necessary. He said: ” I was always hoping the black was going to drop in, obviously. But that is not happening.”
As the battle drew on, the referee informed Yize and Allen that each player would be permitted three additional shots before the balls would be re-racked. Allen was visibly displeased with the ruling, arguing that play should be allowed to continue.
He ultimately potted the black, accepted the foul, and allowed the frame to proceed.