Jimmy White wins qualifying match but 14-year-old Michal Szubarczyk is knocked out; The 2025 World Snooker Championship runs from Saturday, April 19 to Monday, May 5. Kyren Wilson will be the defending champion, having defeated Jak Jones in the 2024 final
Last Updated: 09/04/25 6:56am
Jimmy White maintained hopes of qualifying for the World Snooker Championship
Veteran Jimmy White kept alive his hopes of qualifying for the World Snooker Championship for the first time since 2006 with a nail-biting, final-frame win, while 14-year-old Michal Szubarczyk was knocked out.
The veteran six-time runner-up, who turns 63 next month, was 7-3 down against Ukrainian Anton Kazakov just after the resumption of the evening session but reeled off six frames in a row – including a break of 126 – to put him on the brink of victory.
However, Kazakov, who at 20 is 42 years younger, won the next two to set up a final-frame decider despite having only two breaks over 50 in the entire match.
White eked out a 36-point lead with 35 points remaining on the table, but four successive fouls gave Kazakov the initiative.
The Ukrainian was unable to take full advantage, and White finally mopped up the colours to clinch victory at 1.20am.
In the afternoon session White had suffered the rare indignity of losing the third frame on the “three-miss rule”, which applies when a player fails to hit the intended ball on three consecutive occasions when they have a clear view of it and are not snookered.
Michal Szubarczyk was knocked out in qualifying (picture courtesy of WPBSA)
Poland’s 14-year-old Michal Szubarczyk’s attempt to break Ronnie O’Sullivan’s long-standing record by becoming the youngest qualifier was ended by Scotland’s Dean Young, who won 10-8.
Snooker ranking tournament winners 2024/25
- Championship League: Ali Carter
- Xi’an Grand Prix: Kyren Wilson
- Saudi Arabia Masters: Judd Trump
- English Open: Neil Robertson
- British Open: Mark Selby
- Wuhan Open: Xiao Guodong
- Northern Ireland Open: Kyren Wilson
- International Championship: Ding Junhui
- UK Championship: Judd Trump
- Shoot Out: Tom Ford
- Scottish Open: Lei Peifan
- German Masters: Kyren Wilson
- Welsh Open: Mark Selby
- World Open: John Higgins
- World Grand Prix: Neil Robertson
- Players Championship: Kyren Wilson
- Tour Championship – John Higgins
- World Championship – takes place April 19 to May 5
Winners of non-ranking events
- Shanghai Masters: Judd Trump
- Champion of Champions: Mark Williams
- Riyadh Season Championship: Mark Allen
- The Masters: Shaun Murphy
- Championship League Invitational: Mark Selby
