Stephen Hendry opts out of 2024 World Championship Qualifiers
Hendry looks on (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA/Alamy Stock)
Stephen Hendry has confirmed he will not be competing in the upcoming World Championship Qualifiers.
The seven-time World Champion is approaching the end of his two-year invitational tour card and may have played his last game as a professional.
The 55-year-old has contested only five matches this season, losing all five, with his most recent win coming in the First Round of the 2021 English Open.
Hendry, who has juggled his return to the professional tour with his media commitments, has confirmed he will not be heading to Sheffield from April 8-17 to pursue a Crucible return.
Speaking on the WST Snooker Club podcast, Hendry revealed: “I’ve not entered the World Championship qualifying this year.
“There’s a couple of reasons. It starts the day after the Tour Championship finishes. I’ll have been working for ITV all week, and obviously not had much chance to practise, which I haven’t really done.
“I’m not going to bother this year. There’s a lot of things to do in between the Tour Championship and World Championship, so I thought I’d give it a miss this year.”
Hendry’s place in the qualifiers will be taken from the 2023 Qualifying School Order of Merit.
Former World Champions Neil Robertson, Stuart Bingham, Graeme Dott, Ken Doherty will be among the field for the qualifiers at the English Institute of Sport.
Sixteen qualifiers will join the world’s top 16 ranked players in the field for the 2024 World Championship at The Crucible from April 20 to May 6.