Top snooker referee Desislava Bozhilova has backed Shaun Murphy's call for the introduction of a shot clock. The 2005 world champion has long campaigned for a 30-second cap on shot deliberation, a proposal he reiterated on his Onefourseven podcast in 2024.
Bozhilova, who officiated last year's World Championship final, told the Telegraph she supports a shot clock for routine shots but believes players should be granted extra time when snookered. 'In the middle of a break, I'd say a 30-second limit should be enough. It would help to stop time-wasting,' she said.
Murphy's tournament has been eventful off the table. During his first-round match against Fan Zhengyi, he was distracted by a spectator who muttered 's*** shot' and later by a light switching on at a neighbouring table. Despite the disruptions, Murphy won 10-9 and advanced to face Xiao Guodong.
Murphy took to Instagram to address the spectator incident, writing: 'Just a friendly reminder that if you're sat on the front row in the Crucible and I play a shot that may not work for a particular reason, it's probably best not to say 's*** shot' out loud.' He added that the light issue was 'poor' and that World Snooker were investigating.
