Snooker
UK Championship 2024: Shaun Murphy Believes a Trophy is on the Horizon
Snooker star Shaun Murphy is confident in his game heading into the UK Championship, believing he is close to adding another title to his collection. The competition features top players battling for a prestigious ranking event and a £250,000 prize. Murphy reflects on the high standard of play in today's game compared to past eras, highlighting the need for top players to perform at their best to succeed.
Image credit: Getty Images / VCG
Shaun Murphy believes silverware is just around the corner heading into the UK Championship.
One of snooker’s three Triple Crown major titles, the sports top stars descend on York this weekend to battle it out for the prestigious ranking event.
The worthy winner will pocket a sizeable £250,000 cheque, but it is the glory of holding one of the sport’s most prized possessions its stars crave above all else.
“The signs have been really good for me this season,” a buoyant Murphy told Sportsboom.com in an exclusive interview.
“I feel like my game’s right there. I feel like if I was talking to you in almost a fortnights time and I’ve just won the UK Championship I wouldn’t at all be surprised.”
“It might not be the UKs, but it could be the Scottish Open, the Shoot Out or the Masters or something else that’s just around the corner.”
“I feel like my game is right there to be picking up a trophy.”
SNOOKER STRONGER THAN EVER NOW
Murphy scaled the Crucible mountain to land the game’s biggest prize back in 2005.
That era of top potters included the famous Class of ’92 — Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams — and Stephen Hendry, who took snooker to new heights with his breathtaking dominance in the 1990s.
But the standard on the World Snooker Tour is better than ever now and Murphy explained the difference for the sport’s biggest stars now as opposed to previous generations.
He added: “Every time I lose at the moment I’m losing to someone at their peak or very close to their peak. It can be frustrating, but you can take the positives that it’s taking someone to play that well to beat you. I’m taking the positives.”
“I would agree that the standard is the best it’s ever been."
I think what marks it as the best ever time is it’s not necessarily about how good everybody is down the ranks, but how good the top players have to play to win. That’s the difference for me.”
“I hate comparing eras, but I think the top players now have to play a lot nearer their best to progress in tournaments than they perhaps did in previous eras.”
“The gap between a top 16 player and a mid-ranked tour player is very small. If you’re not at the peak of your powers you can be taken on any given day.”
“That’s happened to me a couple of times this season. Players have played out of their skin, but then backed it up and went on to win.”
“No-one predicted Xiao Guodong was going to win in Wuhan, nobody thought Chris Wakelin was going to get to the final in Nanjing.”
“These players aren’t just churning out the odd result, they are consistently putting in tournament winning performances.”
Shane is a respected journalist who has covered a range of sports for a number of years.