International Championship hit with hat-trick of big name withdrawals

TAIYUAN, CHINA - AUGUST 09: Shaun Murphy of England reacts in the first round match against Matthew Selt of England on day 2 of the 2026 World Snooker Tour China Open at Taiyuan Binhe Sports Center on August 9, 2026 in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province of China. (Photo by Tai Chengzhe/VCG via Getty Images) — Shaun Murphy is out of the International Championship (Picture: Getty Images)

Three star names have withdrawn from the International Championship due to medical reasons, with their opponents all receiving byes.

The trio of Shaun Murphy, Barry Hawkins and Luca Brecel are all out of the event in Nanjing, which starts on Saturday.

It is a blow for all three, with the International Championship boasting a top prize of £175,000, which world champion Wu Yize won last year.

Murphy was due to face Mitchell Mann, Hawkins was scheduled to face Ricky Walden and Brecel set for a mouth-watering clash with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.

All those games were scheduled for the last 64 of the competition and now Mann, Walden and Un-Nooh will get byes to the last 32.

There had already been a couple of significant withdrawals before the qualifiers were played in September.

Are you snooker loopy?

You're in the right place. I'm Phil Haigh, and I cover the game we all love for Metro.

In my newsletter, The Table, I analyse the biggest talking points, pull back the curtain on the sport and crown the biggest winners and losers every week.

Phil has been reporting on snooker for over a decade

Mark Allen chose not to play as he continues to deal with mental health issues, while Ronnie O’Sullivan was drawn to play a rare qualifier in Leicester and pulled out of the event.

Halo World Snooker Championship - Day Seven — Barry Hawkins has not made the trip due to illness (Picture: Getty Images)

Despite the string of absences there remain plenty of heavyweights in action in Nanjing including defending champion Wu, world number one Zhao Xintong and former champions Judd Trump, Mark Selby and John Higgins.

Selby takes on a fellow legend of the game in Jimmy White, who qualified for the event last month at the age of 64.

Ask Metro

The International Championship begins in the early hours of Saturday morning UK time, with the final played on Saturday November 7.