Hossein Vafaei has called the Crucible snooker's answer to Wimbledon, two years after branding the world championship venue as 'smelly'. The Iranian player expressed his respect for the historic venue following his 10-3 victory over Si Jiahui, which secured his place in the second round of the World Snooker Championship.
Vafaei's Change of Heart
In 2024, Vafaei described the Crucible as 'smelly' and compared its practice facilities to 'playing in a garage'. However, after the announcement that the tournament will remain in Sheffield until at least 2045, he highlighted the venue's importance. 'The Crucible is a historical place,' Vafaei said. 'You can't compare the Crucible to anywhere else because the Crucible is the home of snooker for all the snooker players. The Crucible for us is like the Wimbledon Championships. We have to keep the history and then we have to give it respect.'
Difficulties as an Iranian Player
Vafaei also spoke about the challenges of competing while his home country, Iran, is involved in conflict. 'It's very tough to be an Iranian at this time,' he said. 'It's like you lifting 10 people on your shoulders. It's very hard.'
Match Performance
Vafaei entered Thursday's afternoon session with a 6-3 lead, having won five consecutive frames on Wednesday to overturn a 3-1 deficit. He continued his dominance, punishing a missed pink from Si to take the first frame 81-22, then winning a safety battle to extend his lead to 8-3. A break of 78 in the 12th frame brought him within one frame of victory, and he sealed the match with nine consecutive frames, setting up a last-16 meeting with world number one Judd Trump.
Anticipation for Trump Match
'It couldn't be a better match for fans to watch,' Vafaei added. 'Of course it's a tough opponent, I respect him a lot. Hopefully we both show a good performance and everyone enjoys it.'
Murphy in Strong Position
In another match, 2005 world champion Shaun Murphy took a commanding 6-2 lead against Xiao Guodong in their second-round encounter.
