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The Irish Sun

Inside the ‘Ding Junhui curse' that's struck at Crucible again after wreaking havoc SIXTEEN times this season alone

FORGET the Crucible Curse, Ding Junhui 's hex puts that to shame. And its most recent victim SIXTEEN matches this season. 2 The Ding Junhui Curse started last season at the Players Championship 2 If a player defeats Ding at an event, they are destined to lose their next match - and it struck again this week for Luca Brecel Basically, if a player defeats Ding at an event, they are destined to lose their next match. This spooky jinx has stalked EVERY opponent Ding has faced this season. It struck again for Brecel at the World Championships on Wednesday - but the Belgian has already been a part of the sequence this year. Brecel hammered Ding 13-4 in the second round in Sheffield last week, but succumbed 13-8 Judd Trump in the quarter-finals. READ MORE SNOOKER With Ding out of an event, his opponents have suffered defeat in the next round, including Ronnie O'Sullivan, Trump, TWICE over the last year. The Ding Junhui Curse was first activated at the 2024 Players Championship last February. Ding, 38, went out in the first round 6-4 to next match in the competition to Zhang Anda. And it extends over periods when Ding loses a final or gives a bye to an opponent after he pulls out of a competition. Most read in Snooker CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Even when Trump defeated Ding in the final of the 2024 World Open, The Ace lost his opening fixture at the next tournament - the Tour Championship . Selby looked destined to end the run after drubbing Ding 10-2 in the semi-finals of the Tour in Manchester earlier this month. Scary moment snooker fan collapses live on BBC during World Championship coverage The Leicester Jester led fellow four-time world champion Higgins 8-5 in the final, only to lose the final five frames in a 10-8 defeat. Even Ross Muir couldn't break the spell after Ding withdrew from their last-64 meeting at the German Masters in January. After receiving a walkover, the Scot was dumped out after losing 5-2 to Yuan Sijun in the next round. Apart from his title run at the International Championship in November, when Ding lifted the trophy with a 10-7 win over Chris Wakelin in Nanjing, every unfortunate rival to defeat the Chinese player has faced an instant demise in the next round. The Ding Junhui Curse in full: 2024 Players Championship Round 1: Ding 4-6 John Higgins Next round - Higgins loses 6-4 to Zhang Anda 2024 World Masters of Snooker Round 2: Ding 3-4 Ali Carter Next round - Carter loses 4-1 to Luca Brecel 2024 World Open Final: Ding 4-10 Judd Trump Trump loses his next match at the Tour Championship 10-4 to Mark Williams 2024 Tour Championship Quarter-Final: Ding 8-10 Mark Allen Next round - Allen loses 10-5 to Mark Williams 2024 World Championship Round 1: Ding 9-10 Jack Lisowski Next round - Lisowski loses 13-11 to Stuart Bingham 2024 Shanghai Masters Quarter-Final: Ding 3-6 Ronnie O'Sullivan Next round - O'Sullivan loses 10-3 to Judd Trump 2024 Xi'an Grand Prix Round 1: Ding 4-5 Alfie Burden Next round - Burden loses 5-4 to Xu Si 2024 Saudi Arabia Masters Last 32: Ding 4-5 Stuart Bingham Next round - Bingham loses 6-2 to Mark Williams English Open (Brentwood) - Ding did not play 2024 British Open Round 1: Ding 3-4 Aaron Hill Next round - Hill loses 4-1 to Mark Allen 2024 Wuhan Open Last 16: Ding 3-5 Chris Wakelin Next round - Wakelin loses 5-4 to Judd Trump 2024 International Championship - Ding wins the tournament 2024 Champion of Champions Round 1: Ding 0-4 Judd Trump Next round - Trump loses 6-4 to Neil Robertson 2024 UK Championship Last 16: Ding 5-6 Shaun Murphy Next round - Murphy loses 6-2 to Barry Hawkins Shoot Out (Swansea): Ding did not play 2024 Scottish Open Last 16: Ding 3-4 Luca Brecel Next round - Brecel loses 5-1 to Xiao Guodong 2024 Riyadh Season Championship Quarter-Final: Ding 0-4 Ronnie O'Sullivan Next round - O'Sullivan loses 4-2 to Mark Allen 2025 Masters Quarter-Final: Ding 3-6 Judd Trump Next round - Trump loses 6-3 to Kyren Wilson 2025 German Masters Ross Muir had a walkover win over Ding in Round 1 Next round - Muir loses 5-2 to Yuan Sijun 2025 World Open Last 16: Ding 2-5 Shaun Murphy Next round - Murphy loses 5-1 to Joe O'Connor 2025 World Grand Prix Last 32: Ding 3-4 Xu Si Next round - Xu loses 4-3 to Hossein Vafaei 2025 Players Championship Last 16: Ding 2-6 Mark Williams Next round - Williams loses 6-3 to Kyren Wilson 2025 Tour Championship Semi-final: Ding 2-10 Mark Selby Next round - Selby loses 10-8 to John Higgins 2025 World Championship Second round: Ding 4-13 Luca Brecel Next round - Brecel loses 13-8 to Judd Trump Robbie Williams was the last person to escape it nearly 14 months ago. At the 2024 Welsh Open, Williams defeated Ding 4-2 in the last 64 and went on to reach the last 16 where he bowed out to Mark Allen. This season, the stat began with O'Sullivan at the Shanghai Masters last July. O'Sullivan defeated Ding 6-3 before losing 10-3 to Trump in the semi-finals. Of course, while the new hex may only be a seasonal haunting, the 48-year-old 'Crucible Curse' shows no signs of being lifted. Simply put, that curse is the belief that no first-time world champion has ever successfully followed up with a defence in the next year. Defending champion World Snooker Championship 2025 WE are BACK at the Crucible for another thrilling fortnight of snooker action! There will be a new champion this year after reigning champ You can follow every frame of the tournament LIVE - plus the latest news, interviews and reaction - as it happens with our dedicated BLOG. Latest News Snooker Explained FULL schedule and results for 2025 How much prize money can be won? 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