International Championship 2026 Qualifying: White Stuns at 64, Awad Announces Himself, O'Sullivan Absent Again (September 17)
The qualifying rounds for the 2026 International Championship got underway on Thursday, September 17, at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester. The tournament — a prestigious ranking event with a total prize fund of £825,000 and £175,000 for the winner — will be held from October 31 to November 7 in Nanjing, China. Unlike the Home Nations qualifiers, IC matches are played in the longer best-of-11 format (first to 6 frames).
The opening day delivered several headline results: 64-year-old Jimmy White beat Matthew Stevens in a deciding frame, Egyptian debutant Mina Awad dismantled world number 42 Zak Surety, and Ronnie O’Sullivan withdrew from yet another tournament.
Day 1 Results (September 17)
| Match | Score |
|---|---|
| Anda Zhang — Zizins A. | 6-0 |
| Maguire S. — Baranowski M. | 6-5 |
| J. Robertson — Huang Jiahao | 5-6 |
| Slessor E. — Yao Pengcheng | 2-6 |
| R. Williams — Gong Chenzhi | 6-2 |
| Hawkins B. — Sykes O. | 6-0 |
| Lei Peifan — Boiko I. 🇺🇦 | 6-1 |
| Bingham S. — Burden A. | 6-1 |
| J. Brown — Yang G. | 5-6 |
| Woollaston B. — S. O’Sullivan | 6-2 |
| Day R. — Graham L. | 6-4 |
| Lines O. — Benzey C. | 6-0 |
| Mertens B. — Highfield L. | 3-6 |
| Wilson K. — Crowley L. | 6-5 |
| J. Jones — Pullen L. | 6-3 |
| R. O’Sullivan — Heathcote L. | cancelled |
| Stevens M. — White J. | 5-6 |
| Walden R. — Norris P. | 6-1 |
| Ford T. — Grace D. | 5-6 |
| Thomond J. — Heathcote L. | 3-6 |
| Surety Z. — Awad M. 🇪🇬 | 1-6 |
| N. Robertson — Ursenbacher A. | 6-0 |
Key Storylines
White rolls back the clock. Jimmy White, 64, beat Matthew Stevens 6-5 in a deciding frame to register one of the most remarkable results of the qualifying season. It was their first meeting since the 2020 Shoot Out and only the third since 2010. White’s previous win over Stevens came at the 2005 Masters — 21 years ago. The six-time World Championship finalist continues to defy the passage of time.
Awad — the upset of the day. Mina Awad, the 22-year-old Egyptian debutant who earned his tour card by winning the All-Africa Championship, dismantled world number 42 Zak Surety 6-1 in a stunning display. It is comfortably the biggest win by a tour newcomer this season. Awad, who recently relocated to Sheffield and is working with respected coach Chris Henry, has immediately backed up his tour card with a statement result.
Boiko falls. Ukraine’s Iulian Boiko was beaten 1-6 by China’s Lei Peifan. The longer best-of-11 format proved a step too far for the Ukrainian, who successfully navigated the best-of-7 NI Open qualifiers. He will return for the Scottish Open qualifiers (September 20–23).
O’Sullivan withdraws again. Ronnie O’Sullivan’s match against Louis Heathcote was cancelled — the seven-time world champion’s fourth consecutive tournament withdrawal (British Open, English Open, NI Open, IC). No explanation has been given. Heathcote received a walkover and subsequently beat Joshua Thomond 6-3.
Hawkins ends the Sykes story. Oliver Sykes’s remarkable qualifying run, which saw him beat Ursenbacher and Surety at the NI Open qualifiers, came to an abrupt halt against Barry Hawkins, who whitewashed the young qualifier 6-0.
Upsets across the board. Huang Jiahao beat Jimmy Robertson 6-5 in a decider, and David Grace upset Tom Ford by the same scoreline. Liam Highfield came through 6-3 against Ben Mertens, continuing his quietly impressive qualifying campaign.
Day 2 Preview (September 18)
Friday brings the second batch of IC qualifying matches, with several big names in action:
- Morning (10:30 BST): Zhou Yuelong v Hugill · Selby M. v Luo Zetao · He Guoqiang v Carrington · Vafaei H. v Cheung Ka Wai · Liu Hongyu v Lan Yuhao · Gilbert D. v Wang Xinbo
- Afternoon (14:30): Xiao Guodong v Emery · Brecel L. v Jamie Clarke · O’Donnell v Leclercq · Holt M. v Marco Fu · Jamie Jones v Mann · Chadha v Deng Haohui · Mark J. Williams v Higginson
- Evening (19:30): Lisowski J. v Carty · Hill A. v Kowalski · Wells D. v Oliver Brown · Selt M. v Muir · Long Zehuang v O’Kane · Saengkham N. v Craigie
The evening session features defending NI Open champion Jack Lisowski making his qualifying debut. Earlier in the day, Mark Selby, Zhou Yuelong, Luca Brecel, and Mark Williams are all in action. The Holt v Marco Fu tie is also one to watch after Fu’s impressive NI Open qualifying run.
Saturday’s schedule (September 19) includes the headline match of Ali Carter v Anton Kazakov 🇺🇦, pitting the freshly crowned English Open champion against the Ukrainian, as well as Chris Wakelin v Michael Larkov 🇺🇦 and Anthony McGill v Liam Davies.
About the Author
