By Elliott West
“I have had four past students qualify for the World Championship but Si Jiahui is the first to win there which was amazing to see. He played with control and composure against a greatly experienced player and looked like he belonged out there. I am very happy and proud of him to see him do this on the big stage and turn his career around after he fell off the tour”.
Roger Leighton, Director of the Coaching Committee at Yushan International Billiards Academy.
Si Jiahui, photograph courtesy of The Guardian.
Introduction
Snooker sometimes produces an outsider who sets tongues wagging and that is certainly the case with the highly impressive Chinese player, Si Jiahui. The 20-year-old Chinese player who is currently ranked 80th in the world rankings and bases himself in Sheffield has brought a breath of fresh air to the game, producing a style of snooker that is mature for his age. A podium that has been vacated by the suspension of several key players such as Yan Bingtao, Liang Wenbo and Zhao Xintong due to suspected match-fixing. With Chinese talent dwindling on the professional tour, Si is one of two outsider players that I tip for this year’s World Championship if Ronnie O’Sullivan doesn’t steal the show, the other being Anthony McGill. Jiahui is so impressive because he keeps a cool head and plays the right shots when it matters. If he doesn’t win the world championship this year, he is definitely in my mind a future winner.
Impressive On The Eye
Si Jiahui has been a graduate of Q School twice, resulting in a brief on the main tour as a professional between 2019-20 and again in 2021. He first made his mark on the baize when he reached the third round of the English Open, beating Soheil Vahedi 4-0 and Stuart Bingham 4-1 before being whitewashed 4-0 by Zhou Yuelong 0-4 in the last 32 of the tournament. His next win as an amateur would cause a media outburst by Shaun Murphy, his opponent who he lost to in a decider 5-6. Murphy wasn’t happy that Si was allowed to enter the tournament as an amateur, believing that amateurs shouldn’t be allowed to play in professional tournaments. He would later apologise for his comments.
“He played like a man who does not have a care in the world because he does not have a care in the world. It is not fair, it is not right. I am not picking on him as a young man, he deserved his victory. Amateurs should not be allowed in professional tournaments, the end. This is our livelihood. This is how I put food on the table. This is how I earn money. Since turning professional at 15, I have earned the right to call myself a professional snooker player. He hasn’t done that. He shouldn’t be on the table”.
Shaun Murphy
Si would go on to win the 2022 WSF Open, defeating Lee Stephens 5-0 in the final and earning himself a two-year tour card as a result, guaranteeing a place until 2024. Jiahui has since reached the last 16 of the 2022 Turkish Masters, held in Antalya, beating Anthony McGill 5-2, and Tom Ford 5-1 before losing to Ding Junhui in a close match 4-5.
World Championship Hopes
Si’s first crack at this year’s World Championship has got off to a flying start. He has already beaten Shaun Murphy in an epic last-frame decider 5-4 and now is up against Robert Milkins in round 2. Milkins who came back from the jaws of defeat, trailing the match 2-7, found another gear and the current Gibraltar Open holder, held his nerve and went on to win the match 10-9. Milkins will be a tough cookie to crumble and Si will have to maintain his ice-cool attitude on the table if he has any chance of smashing the milk bottles of the player nicknamed The Milkman. Milkins is a seasoned professional and may have the edge with his wealth of experience and his polished play, which was somewhat erratic in the past.
The bookmakers have Si Jiahui at 25-1 to win the World Championship but in my eyes, the odds should be a lot less than that. You only have to look at the quote from Stephen Hendry after Si beat Shaun Murphy to get a flavour of some of the excitement that he is generating in this year’s Sheffield 17-day marathon. Hendry who isn’t someone to heap praise on players rates this Chinese snooker player if he can continue under the same winning sail.
“He showed that he’s got the temperament on the biggest stage, I think the composure and his cue ball control was very impressive”.
Stephen Hendry
A mindset that is echoed in Si’s work ethos.
“I’m playing with a great mindset because I’m not bothered about winning or losing.”
Si Jiahui
Even Shaun Murphy was gracious about his Chinese opponent in defeat. He could have gone off and sulked after his chances of the title were scuppered but like any true sportsman, he was magnanimous in defeat.
“Nothing but credit to him, I think he’s going to be the first Chinese world champion”.
“I see things in him which a lot of the other players don’t have. He has that swagger”.
“He’s a very raw talent. He plays right-handed and left-handed. He always tries to attack, I can only give him praise.”
Shaun Murphy
Afterthoughts
Si Jiahui has grown into a potential champion. Roger Leighton saw his raw talent when he was coaching Si in his early years and rated Roger as a snooker coach. The test for Jianhui is whether he can break new barriers and get to the final of this year’s World Championship, a challenge that has multiple pitfalls on this mamouth snooker journey. So he is ticking all the right boxes but look at how many players could potentially win this Crucible crown. The likes of Luca Brecel, Mark Allen, John Higgins, Neil Robertson and Mark Selby remain the big beasts and Ronnie O’Sullivan looms above them all.
Si’s snooker story so far has been remarkable and deserves a round of applause for just how far he has come in a short period. He has self-belief which is key to winning trophies and perhaps the Sheffield Prize will smooth out the few rough edges that this player still has. Journeymen often succeed through blood, sweat and tears and Si is certainly one of them. Even if he is beaten by a future opponent, he can go to sleep knowing that he is on a winning trajectory and that the way forward is upwards.
