Snooker legend Steve Davis had an issue with some of the equipment at the Masters on Sunday as reigning champion Shaun Murphy was dumped out
Steve Davis had concerns with the table at the Masters on Sunday(Image: BBC)
Snooker icon Steve Davis criticised the tables at the Masters by suggesting they were not level. The reigning champion Shaun Murphy was ousted by Chinese player Wu Yize, but much of the post-match discussion revolved around the condition of the table.
Yize achieved a remarkable victory against world No. 7 Murphy at Alexandra Palace, quickly gaining a three-frame lead on Sunday afternoon. The 22-year-old ultimately triumphed with a 6-2 win.
However, during both this session and the evening session, which saw Mark Selby defeated by Xiao Guodong, the conversation focused on how easily the table was playing. This became particularly apparent after the first frame when Davis voiced his opinion.
As Yize prepared to take a challenging shot with a red pinned against the top rail, aiming to slice the ball into the top-right pocket with a 68-11 lead, the camera angle revealed the red closely following the cushion before dropping in.
Commentator Stephen Hendry noted that the red stayed remarkably close to the cushion before falling in, implying that the table was playing relatively easy and the pockets weren’t particularly tight.
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Davis, however, had a gripe about the state of the table slate itself. While on punditry duty for the BBC, he suggested that fitters should examine its level.
He expressed his concerns after the first frame: “It was concerning what happened at the top of the table with that red going in. The table fitters need to look at that because that is wrong.”
Despite Yize’s dominant performance against Murphy, Davis continued to voice his complaints during the Masters. His concerns resurfaced in the third frame when Yize executed another impressive shot with apparent ease.
“I don’t want to put a downer on everything,” Davis began, “But that pink along the cushion and the shot, the way we used to play it, he knows full well, the table is not effectively level at the top. It’s going to hug the top rail.”
After pointing out what he believed to be an issue, he also offered advice to the organisers: “I don’t know if they do, but the table fitters need to go out and check the level of the top slate.
“If those balls are hugging that top rail, then it’s going to make the game incredibly easy to make big breaks. It’s also wrong that a ball should go in that easily.
“It’s not so much the size of the pockets, which we had at the UK Open, which was nippy,” Davis clarified, “But this looks like it’s not level.”
Current world champion Zhao Xintong begins his Masters tilt on Monday evening when he faces Gary Wilson in his opening round clash.
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