Luca Brecel fails to qualify for World Snooker Championship in new low | Other | Sport
Luca Brecel’s seemingly snooker nightmare hit a new low as the Belgian missed out on a qualification spot at this year’s World Championship. Brecel won the tournament three years ago, but after dropping down the world rankings, the 2023 champion was forced to enter qualifiers.
It marks the first time since 2021 that Brecel won’t be involved in the main draw, with a 10-5 defeat against Jak Jones the latest in a long line of disappointing results this season. The 31-year-old has made it past the third round of a ranking event just once, with the once world No.2 now as low as 46th in the rankings.
Brecel had battled through a tense match against talented Chinese potter, Chang Bingyu, to set up the clash against Jones. For the most part, the Belgian Bullet was giving as good as he got, as both players shared the opening eight frames of the match, with neither pulling out more than one frame in front.
That all changed in the ninth frame, as Jones put his foot on the accelerator, winning four frames in a row to give himself an unassailable lead.
Brecel saved some face by winning the 13th to drag it back to 8-5, but Jones upped the ante after the final interval to wrap things up and book his spot in next week’s Championship.
Brecel has previously come out and put to bed any rumours that his struggles on the table are down to mental health problems, inisiting he’s been feeling confident and happy. He said in November: “Some people have come up to me and said ‘oh, is it mental health’ and they have tried to help.
“It’s not my head. I’m perfectly happy. I’m fine. It’s not mental. It’s physical things in my body. Strange. I’ve been to the doctor many, many times. Maybe 18 times in three to four months.”
Brecel will now sit out the biggest event in snooker, which runs from mid-April to early May, and won’t return to competitive action until the 2026/27 season gets underway in June. Brecel’s lowly spot in the rankings means he faces an almighty battle to get himself back in contention for the coveted top-16 positions in the world.
