Ronnie O’Sullivan will face Zhou Yuelong in the last 32 of the UK Championship – but Judd Trump has been handed a nightmare draw. This year’s competition starts at York Barbican on Saturday and will run until December 7.
O’Sullivan, who is an eight-time winner of the competition, will face Yuelong on Tuesday, with Trump getting the action underway when he takes on Stephen Maguire on Saturday afternoon. Trump is not only the world number one, but he is also the defending champion after beating Barry Hawkins 10-8 in last year’s final.
The championship is the first Triple Crown tournament of the season, with the other two – the Masters and the World Championship – both taking place in 2026. And the start of this year’s competition will see the return to the circuit of O’Sullivan.
The 49-year-old moved out to the Middle East this summer, and although he is loving life in the sunshine, for tax reasons, he cannot be in the UK for longer than is permitted without being penalised by the authorities, meaning he has to pick and choose his competitions.
O’Sullivan lifted the trophy in 1997, 2001, 2007, 2014, 2017, 2018 and 2023, and Ken Doherty, who helped conduct the draw, believes The Rocket’s match is set to be a cracker, as he also threw his backing behind defending champion Trump.
He said: “I think the way Trump is playing, he is going to be hard to stop. Going back to his old cue, if he has done so, will be a good thing for him.
“But it will be a really good test for him, that one, but I am really looking forward to Zhou Yuelong against Ronnie O’Sullivan. That is going to be a cracker as well.”
Elsewhere in the draw, Si Jiahui will take on either Hossein Vafaei or Ryan Day, Ding Junhui will face either Tom Ford or Xu Si, while Mark Allen is set to take on Scott Donaldson.
Mark Williams takes on David Gilbert, Xiao Guodong faces Pang Junxu or Noppon Saengkham and Wu Yize is set to face Michael Holt
Number four seed Neil Robertson faces He Guoqiang or Julien Leclercq, Kyren Wilson will take on Elliot Slessor, with Barry Hawkins facing either David Lilley or Artemijs Zizins.
Mark Selby takes on either Lei Peifan or Jimmy Robertson, John Higgins will meet Ben Woollaston and Shaun Murphy takes on Lyu Haotian.
Gary Wilson will face either Zhang Anda or Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Zhao Xintong will take on Long Zehuang or Louis Heathcote.
O’Sullivan has skipped the smaller UK-based events in recent years and he recently admitted: “I’ll try and come back if I can. There’s the flying involved, the expenses involved. It’s not a short flight.
“Maybe next season I might play a few more [in the UK]. But this year I just want to settle in Dubai and play as many tournaments in China and Saudi Arabia as I can.
“I’d love to play the UK Championship and the Tour Championship if I can. Probably just be two tournaments this year in the UK before the World Championship. It’s hard with all the travel and all that. I’m not getting any younger, so I have to prioritise.”