Ryan Day claims 2021 Snooker Shoot-Out glory

Ryan Day secured his third ranking title at the 2021 Snooker Shoot-Out with victory over Mark Selby in the final.

The Welshman ended his three-year wait for ranking silverware by holding his nerve superbly in the unique shot clock event in Milton Keynes.

The former world number six had dropped to 50th in the world rankings, but landed the £50,000 top prize to ensure he is upwardly mobile once more.

Day began the final day of action by whitewashing Ben Hancorn 75-0 with a break of 71 in the Last 32, before snatching a 40-37 victory over 2020 finalist Zhou Yuelong in the dying seconds.

He then comfortably defeated David Gilbert 49-6 in the Quarter-Finals, before overcoming fellow Welshman Mark Williams 31-18 in the Last Four.

The first scoring opportunity of the final fell to Selby, but Day was dominant when presented with a chance, clinching the title in style with a break of 67 to triumph by 67 points to 24.

“It’s amazing,” Day told Eurosport. “It’s a lottery from the start, seven frames and you lift the trophy.

“When you get those opportunities, you just need to keep a cool head and that’s what I’ve done all week.”

“I’ve been struggling in ranking terms for a couple of seasons now and there was a possibility I could fall off the tour if I wasn’t too careful.

“This is obviously going to help massively, and you never know how many doors it might open in a year or two’s time.”

Victory for Selby would have seen him break Stephen Hendry’s record of eleven consecutive wins in ranking finals.

The three-time World Champion, who had previously never been beyond the Last 16 of the Shoot-Out, began the final day by defeating Liam Highfield 58-17.

He then dispatched Northern Irish amateur Declan Lavery 55-9 before edging out Robert Milkins 27-21 and completing his route to the final with a 43-15 success over Craig Steadman.

Steadman was bidding to become the first amateur player to win the Shoot-Out, having defeated the likes of Noppon Saengkham and Louis Heathcote en route.

Three-time World Champion Williams enjoyed an eventful run to the Semi-Finals which included a last-gap victory over Xiao Guodong with just one second to spare, as well as an 86 break in defeating Martin O’Donnell.

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Snooker Shoot-Out 2021 Results

Sunday February 7

Last 32
Matthew Stevens 10-74 Robert Milkins
Noppon Saengkham 37-27 Ken Doherty
Michael White 9-82 Louis Heathcote
Haydon Pinhey 33-37 Lyu Haotian
Hamim Hussain 0-96 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Joe Perry 16-43 Gerard Greene
Ian Martin 18-15 Sunny Akani
Ryan Day 75-0 Ben Hancorn
Xiao Guodong 28-29 Mark Williams
Declan Lavery 48-26 Elliot Slessor
Martin O’Donnell 28-11 Alexander Ursenbacher
Zhou Yuelong 66-12 Martin Gould
Liang Wenbo 7-107 David Gilbert
Allan Taylor 15-46 Craig Steadman
Liam Highfield 17-58 Mark Selby
David Grace 23-37 Mark Allen

Last 16
Mark Williams 35-11 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Mark Selby 55-9 Declan Lavery
Martin O’Donnell 26-12 Ian Martin
Noppon Saengkham 8-72 Craig Steadman
Robert Milkins 76-16 Lyu Haotian
Gerard Greene 2-65 Louis Heathcote
Zhou Yuelong 37-40 Ryan Day
Mark Allen 1-85 David Gilbert

Quarter-Finals
Ryan Day 49-6 David Gilbert
Mark Selby 27-21 Robert Milkins
Louis Heathcote 37-47 Craig Steadman
Mark Williams 86-13 Martin O’Donnell

Semi-Finals
Ryan Day 31-18 Mark Williams
Mark Selby 43-15 Craig Steadman

Final
Ryan Day 67-24 Mark Selby