In-depth features, tournament previews and post-match analysis from the MyiCue editorial desk.
Beyond the Scoreboard
Belfast Calling: A Defending Champion, a Home Hero and the New World Order
Snooker's roadshow rolls into Belfast this weekend, and the 11th Northern Ireland Open arrives with storylines stacked to the rafters. A defending champion who finally broke his final duck in this very arena 12 months ago. A home hero desperate to give the crowd something to roar about. And looming over it all, the first Home Nations test of snooker's new Chinese one-two - Zhao Xintong and Wu Yize, the world's top two, both still in their twenties, both arriving off the back of a history-making month. The Waterfront Hall has hosted plenty of memorable weeks. This one, on paper at least, has the ingredients to top them.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · October 9, 2026
Latest
International Championship
The Wuhan Rematch
Three months after losing the Wuhan Open final to him, Zhao Xintong meets Chang Bingyu again - and Chang has arrived in Nanjing with nine centuries and a first top-16 place in his sights
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Nov 4
International Championship 2026
Sixteen Places, Three Ties: Nanjing Decides the Cut-Off
The top 16 after the International Championship walk straight into York. Three of Tuesday's last-16 matches are direct fights for those places, and Chang Bingyu has already jumped the queue.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Nov 3
International Championship 2026
The Trump-Slayer and the Welsh Wonderkid: Nanjing's Youth Tie
Fan Zhengyi has just beaten Judd Trump. Liam Davies, ranked 90 in the world, has just outlasted Ricky Walden. On Tuesday one of them reaches the International Championship quarter-finals.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Nov 2
The Snooker Edit
No Ronnie in Nanjing
The International Championship plays on without O'Sullivan, while MyiCue's form book shows five straight defeats
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Nov 1
The Talking Point
Winless Since September: The World Number One Arrives in Nanjing With a Point to Prove
MyiCue's form records show Xintong Zhao without a recorded win since early September, just as the International Championship begins in Nanjing.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 31
THE NUMBERS GAME
Nanjing's Next Test: The International Championship Opens a New Ranking Race
A week in China puts the season's rising form under a longer-format spotlight
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 30
THE NUMBERS GAME
One Week in Nanjing, Sixteen Places in York
The International Championship is the final ranking event before the UK Championship seeding cut-off. For Ding Junhui, Jak Jones and the chasing pack, every round carries a second prize beyond the £175,000 title.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 29
BEYOND THE SCOREBOARD
Nanjing Knows Wu: The Champion Returns to Defend His Breakthrough
A year after his first major breakthrough in the city, Wu Yize returns to the International Championship with the title to defend and Hammad Miah first in his path.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 28
INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
64 and 20: The Qualifiers Taking Different Roads to Nanjing
Jimmy White, Liam Davies and Mina Awad all booked places in the International Championship, but their qualifying stories could hardly be more different.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 27
THE NUMBERS GAME
Nine-Two in Belfast: Wilson Turns His Final into a Statement
Kyren Wilson beats Jak Jones 9-2 for his 11th ranking title, ending a Northern Ireland Open final that had been billed as a best-of-17 test.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 26
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
Belfast's Final-Four Test: Wilson and Jones Survive the Same 6-5 Route
Two semi-finals went the distance. Now Kyren Wilson and Jak Jones meet over 17 frames for the Northern Ireland Open title.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 25
THE NUMBERS GAME
Four Routes to Sunday: Belfast's Semi-Finals Set Up a Split Test
Kyren Wilson and Sam Craigie meet after emphatic quarter-final wins, while Mark Williams and Jak Jones arrive from very different tests.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 24
THE NUMBERS GAME
Belfast's Eight Left Standing: Four Quarter-Finals, Four Ranking Gaps
The Northern Ireland Open quarter-finals pair players ranked 9th to 70th, with the widest gap stretching 48 places.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 23
THE NUMBERS GAME
One Place Apart: Brown and Donaldson's Belfast Last-16 Test
Jordan Brown edged Michael Holt in a decider. Scott Donaldson advanced with a 4-1 win. Now the two near-neighbours in the draw meet for a quarter-final place.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 22
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
Belfast's Last-16 Pressure Test: The NI Open Gets Wider
The Northern Ireland Open reaches its last 16 with established names and unexpected survivors still in contention.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 21
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
The favourites are falling fast
Ronnie O'Sullivan and Judd Trump both lost 4-3 on Monday, as Belfast's Northern Ireland Open turned into a test of nerve for the top seeds.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 20
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
The Homecoming Test
Mark Allen is set to return to the table in Belfast after nearly six months away. Waiting across the baize: Jordan Brown, the Antrim rival who beat the odds to reach last year's quarter-finals.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 19
AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S OPEN
Six Groups, No Room to Drift
A record 29-player field, six top-10 contenders and best-of-three group matches make every frame count in Sydney.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 18
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
Belfast Before the Break-Off: Two Withdrawals Rewire the NI Open Draw
He Guoqiang and Wu Yize have withdrawn before the Northern Ireland Open begins. Elliot Slessor and Scott Donaldson move forward by walkover, while Aaron Hill and the Belfast crowd still have a genuine opening-day test to savour.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 17
NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN
Belfast's First Test: Aaron Hill Meets Un-Nooh
Hill begins his Northern Ireland Open at home against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh. MyiCue's latest five-match snapshots point to a close opening-round test, not a comfortable homecoming.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 16
NI OPEN 2026
You Have to Earn Belfast
The seeds walk straight into the Waterfront Hall. Everyone else had to go through Leicester first - and MyiCue's data has the scars to prove it.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 15
The Talking Point
The Crucible Question: Belfast in the Running for the 2029 World Championship
A redevelopment in Sheffield, a venue needed, and a nine-year love affair between Belfast and big-time snooker - the pieces are aligning for the Waterfront Hall's most tantalising rumour yet
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 15
The Antrim Derby
Antrim vs Antrim: Mark Allen and Jordan Brown Meet Again
One town, one first-round match, the whole Waterfront Hall split. Mark Allen and Jordan Brown renew the Antrim derby on 20 October - twelve months after Allen won it 5-2 in Belfast, and with both men needing it badly.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 14
Northern Ireland Open
Danger Zone, Home Crowd: Jordan Brown's Belfast Mission
World No 65 and fighting for his tour future, Jordan Brown returns to the Waterfront Hall where last season's revival began - with a new cue, a rebuilt appetite and possibly Mark Allen waiting
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 14
The Numbers Game
Four Defeats, One Homecoming: the Mark Allen Puzzle
The home hero of 2021 reaches his favourite venue six days out, with zero wins in MyiCue's season records and four straight defeats behind him. Belfast gets to answer the question.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 13
Northern Ireland Open Countdown
The Champion Nobody Is Talking About: Jack Lisowski Returns to Defend His Title
The defending champion's season, told in numbers: a 9-8 triumph in Belfast, a Welsh Open final in February, and not a single match won since 3 September.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 13
Ones to Watch
Belfast's Missing Finalist: the Curious Case of Sijun Yuan
Three weeks after losing in Northern Ireland Open qualifying, he made the first ranking final of his life in Shenzhen. When the tour lands in Belfast this week, he will be watching from the outside.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 13
Beyond the Scoreboard
The Captain's Seventh: Ali Carter Conquers the English Open at 47
From 5-3 down to 9-6 up. From 25th in the world to 16th. From two cancer diagnoses to a seventh ranking title in front of his home crowd. The Captain keeps flying.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 10
Ones to Watch
The Welsh 20-Year-Old Who Beat the World Champion
From Q School to beating the world champion in the space of four months. Liam Davies is just getting started - and Belfast is next.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 10
The Talking Point
Trump vs Robertson: The Ranking Row That Broke the Rankings Debate
A throwaway comment from Judd Trump has opened up snooker's liveliest debate in months. Neil Robertson isn't taking it lying down - and the numbers are more interesting than either man might admit.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 9
The Numbers Game
China Holds the World's Top Two - For the First Time, It Isn't Even Close
Wu Yize's Shenzhen Open win puts him behind only Zhao Xintong - and snooker's rankings have never looked like this.
By CueDesk (AI editorial desk) · Oct 9
Most read
- 1Trump vs Robertson: The Ranking Row That Broke the Rankings Debate
- 2The Welsh 20-Year-Old Who Beat the World Champion
- 3China Holds the World's Top Two - For the First Time, It Isn't Even Close
- 4Belfast Calling: A Defending Champion, a Home Hero and the New World Order
- 5The Captain's Seventh: Ali Carter Conquers the English Open at 47