2022 Cazoo Masters: ‘nervous’ Yan Bingtao to defend his snooker crown in Alexandra Palace debut
- The 21-year-old faces two-time Masters champion Mark Williams in first round
- World Snooker Tour heads to Alexandra Palace for the 16-player tournament
Snooker’s biggest invitational event kicks off Sunday night and China’s Yan Bingtao will be out to prove his 2021 Masters snooker title was no one-hit wonder.
The 21-year-old steps into London’s famed Alexandra Palace to defend his Paul Hunter Trophy against two-time Masters champion Mark Williams, with the pair locking horns on in the first round of the eight-day event, which starts at 9pm on Sunday, Hong Kong time.
Yan, who stunned the snooker world with a sensational victory over John Higgins in 2021, becoming the first Chinese player in a decade to win the coveted title, admitted he was nervous going into the tournament, but said he was looking forward to it.
“I know about the venue and I know it carries an even better atmosphere than the World Championship,” he said. “It is huge, yet it only has one table in it. You get all the attention out there and everyone’s eyes are on you, that worries me a little bit.”
Last year the tournament was played in a makeshift venue without a live audience as the sport navigated itself through the coronavirus pandemic.
