Jack Lisowski Knocks Out Bai Yulu in UK Championship Qualifiers

Jack Lisowski defeated Bai Yulu 6-1 in the final qualifying round of the UK Championship in Leicester, ending the Chinese world women’s champion’s bid to become the first woman to reach the tournament’s last 32. Lisowski quickly dominated, taking the first four frames with breaks of 79, 69, 64, and 77. Although Bai, 21, responded with a half-century to win a frame, Lisowski sealed his victory with two more impressive runs of 85 and 66.

Lisowski acknowledged Bai’s impressive run, admitting that her story was always in the back of his mind. “I just tried to keep my concentration,” he said, reflecting on the critical moment when Bai missed a blue to equalize at 1-1. Jack Lisowski, 33, regarded as one of the best players without a ranking title, now advances to the draw for the UK Championship in York, the first Triple Crown event of the season.

In other results, Stephen Maguire won a dramatic 59-minute deciding frame to edge Elliot Slessor 6-5. Despite a strong comeback from Slessor, Maguire held his nerve winning with a 71 break and finishing the match with a nervy victory on the colours. Maguire, who has not won a ranking title since 2020, called it “the toughest frame I have ever played.”

Meanwhile, Stuart Bingham secured a dominant 6-0 win over Jimmy Robertson and Welsh players Jackson Page, Jak Jones and Ryan Day also progressed with solid victories. Jones impressed with four half-centuries and two centuries in his 6-3 win over Fan Zhengyi. Barry Hawkins completed the Welsh success, defeating Hong Kong’s Wang Yuchen 6-3.