REIGNING world champion Kyren Wilson rolled his eyes as Rob Walker tempted fate during his introduction on day one of the World Snooker Championship.
Wilson, 33, returned to the Crucible to begin his world title defence today in his opening match against world No.36 Lei Peifan.
Kyren Wilson rolled his eyes as he was introduced on day one of the World Snooker Championship[/caption]
Wilson returned to the Crucible hoping to win for a second year running[/caption]
Wilson was last year’s World Snooker Championship[/caption]
The Warrior pocketed the £500,000 as last year’s winner when he beat Jak Jones 18-14 in the final.
And now he’s back to try and become the ninth player to win the tournament in back-to-back years.
But it won’t be easy as he battles not only with the other 31 other players, but also the Crucible curse – something that seemingly left him rolling his eyes during his introduction.
Iconic BBC announcer Rob Walker gave Wilson a huge welcome down to the tables on the first day of the tournament, but may have jinxed his chances of success by asking “could he do it again?”.
Announcing Wilson out to the fans inside the historic Sheffield theatre, he said: “To a man who has been riding the crest of a Crucible wave for 12 months.
“Following up the victory here with five finals and four titles, in an almost flawless season so far. Could he do it again? Let’s find out.
“Here he comes, the reigning, defending, champion of the world, Kyren Wilson.”
Wilson, who appeared to be having a conversation with someone backstage during his announcement, rolled his eyes as soon as Walker mentioned him retaining his title.
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It’s not known if Wilson was rolling his eyes at the announcement or at his backstage conversation.
But you would forgive him for trying his best not to jinx his chances and be yet another victim of the Crucible curse.
The Crucible curse is the quip given to the fact that no first-time world champion has ever retained their crown the following year.
Since the tournament moved to the Crucible in 1977 it has cursed 19 players in a row with every debut champion crumbling under the pressure of snooker‘s grandest stage.
Some have come close though – Joe Johnson and Ken Doherty both made it to the final the year after their maiden victories – but most don’t get anywhere near that far.
As recently as 2023, Luca Brecel was doomed by the curse, losing in the first round of the 2024 tournament after winning the title the year before.
In fact, seven champions have gone on to lose their first match the following year.
Wilson is is determined to lift the curse on his return to South Yorkshire and posted a hilarious video to social media in an effort to exorcise the demons.
In the video, Wilson jokingly completed some of the superstitions people believe to bring bad luck, including smashing a mirror and holding his World Championship trophy next to a black cat.
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins