The Masters 2024 Day 1 recap - Shaun Murphy too good for Zhang Anda, Jack Lisowski records big win over Luca Brecel

Updated 08/01/2024 at 16:38 GMT

Hello and welcome to Eurosport's live coverage of the 2024 Masters, the second triple crown event of the season. Last year the tournament was won by Judd Trump for the second time, joining the list of 11 players who have won the famous tournament more than once. Trump has been one of the form players so far in this season along with Mark Allen.

‘Disbelieving headshaking in the crowd’ - O’Sullivan’s Top 5 shots from 2023

Thank you and goodbye

And that's Day 1 of the 2024 Masters in the books. Thank you for your company for what has certainly been two interesting matches.

The Masters

No Filter: Behind the scenes as O'Sullivan wins record eighth Masters crown

00:12:17

16/01/2024 at 11:57

There's more to come tomorrow as Ronnie O'Sullivan takes on Ding Junhui from 1pm before it's Mark Williams versus Ali Carter from 7pm. As always, you can follow live on discovery+, the Eurosport app and at eurosport.com.

Murphy post-match

"I'm really pleased. I've played quite well this season until the back-end of last year, the last month or so of '23 wasn't great. I felt like my game was on the tilt a little bit and I wasn't getting the results. I worked really hard over the festive period which is unlike me, I would usually put the cue down and not play. It was so rewarding regardless of what else happens this week, it was so rewarding to see that come out when it mattered the most.

"When I lost in the Scottish Open, on the way home we were trying to figure out, where has it gone wrong? What happened to the player at won three tournaments, where's that player gone last year. And I felt that perhaps I just wasn't quite putting in enough time on my own. Maybe that was the first place to look, maybe that was the first part of the puzzle rather than trying to reinvent the wheel. So I decided when I was back in Dublin I would not go out all the time, not get involved in the parties and the Christmas spirit and all the rest of it and get stuck in on the table and even though my club in Dublin, the Stephen's Green Club, was closed, they've given me the secret key and I was in there crafting.

"You get your chance; you work so hard for them and I've had matched where they just don't come. You just sit down and watch a bit. But sometimes it's nice to have put the work in and when those balls go where you mean them to it's very pleasing.

"The research has shown me that I'm definitely on the right track, we're looking for more shape and more spin. But I think the conditions over here in this part of the world re only necessarily suited to the specs of my original cue. And I have the other two waiting until we go back out to the Far East. Next time we go I'll be taking them because I still believe there's something in it.

"I altered [the cue] because I was looking for it to give me more deflection, I wanted more spin. And so I've had it shortened, so effectively it's thicker at the top end which gives you that little bit more spin. And that seems to have helped me, I'm really pleased with it. I've got cues now that are slightly thicker at home and when we go to the Far East that spin is less, so I'll reach for cue 2 or 3 and I'll get the same spin as I get here out there.

"I'm very thankful for the support I get and I always get a great welcome in every arena we play in. The crowd here are very respectful. They are a little more boisterous than the average UK crowd, but that's part of what makes this tournament so special a the 16 players that are lucky enough to be in the draw every year it's magic, you wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

"[The Masters] is totally different - it's the clichee: anyone could beat anybody, but it gets said because it's true and every single one of these ties could be a final of an event. How well has Zhang Anda played to get in this tournament, you know, from a standing start this season. That's a reflection of his success - fully deserved. He's a complete mirror image of the Zhang Anda from last season. I'm not sure what they're feeding him in Sheffield, but I could do with some of it myself!

"There was a funny thing: WST wanted us to wear those crowns. A few of us liked it, a few of us didn't, there was rumours a few of the multi, multi, multi-winners wanted multi crowns to represent how many they had won. It was a little bit conspicuous for me, which says a lot with some of the suits and some of the gear I move! I think enough is made of the whole triple crown thing, I'm not sure we need it emblazoned on our gear."

Zhang post-match

"Shaun played better than me tonight. I missed some very simple shots and he took his chances to win the game.

"I'm still happy to have played at this beautiful venue. Tonight just wasn't my time; maybe the next!

"I'll just try to do my best at the next one. This season has been very good; we still have the Grand Prix, world championships ... still good chances!"

Murphy 6-2 Zhang

Fairly light work in the end for Shaun in what was an astonishing match. Anda will have felt he should have been ahead or at least level at the break - frankly, he was the better player in the first half, but, somehow, Shaun managed to capitalise remarkably well when he was offered an opportunity at crucial moments to take the advantage. The second half was a different story with Shaun coming out firing and leaving Anda without a chance whatsoever.

And thus, your first quarter-final fixture at the 2024 Masters is Jack Lisowski versus Shaun Murphy.

Murphy 5-2 Zhang (89-0)

The red refuses to fall but the frame already is well in Shaun's bag.

Murphy 5-2 Zhang (68-0)

Frame ball now for Shaun. The question now is if he can sign off with a century.

Murphy 5-2 Zhang (30-0)

Shaun splits the red and his positioning here looks pretty perfect.

Murphy 5-2 Zhang (1-0)

It took a good while, but, finally, there's the opener for Shaun.

Murphy 5-2 Zhang

The odds are in Shaun's favour tonight as he keeps finding an edge. He's one frame away from the next round.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (78-32)

Shaun misses the red, but it doesn't matter as the frame is his.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (76-32)

Free ball now for Shaun and it falls.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (75-32)

... and he doesn't with the cue ball and the red on opposite ends of the table and pink and green in-between. Foul points for Shaun who now steps to the table.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (71-32)

There's the snooker now, but it's Anda who finds himself in need to somehow find the red.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (71-32)

Here we go now. Safety from Anda for now though, not quite the snooker.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (71-9)

Frame ball sunk, but Shaun misses the plant and invited Anda back to the table. He needs a snooker to turn this around.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (30-8)

Not too bad from Shaun who splits the reds and opens up some options.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (1-8)

This time it's Shaun with the opener.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (0-8)

He can't get much out of it though and has to leave the table. On the upside, there's no opener for Shaun either and we're back to safeties.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang (0-1)

After quite a few safeties, there's finally an opener from Anda.

Murphy 4-2 Zhang

Timely intervention from Anda. He possibly gave himself more work than he needed to, but it's a frame clawed back and he sure needed it.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (7-116)

No mistake from Anda now as he clears the table to wrap up the frame.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (7-70)

And it won't come to even one snooker as Shaun misses and Anda converts the left opener.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (1-69)

Opener for Shaun, but he needs two snooker to turn this around.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (0-69)

He got lucky twice when his shots hesitated to fall, but that should be the frame wrapped up for Anda, although he now has to leave the table.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (0-38)

Poor attempt on splitting the reds and the cue ball sits nestled amongst them. Anda finds a way out for now though.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang (0-1)

Opener from Anda and he has options from here.

Murphy 4-1 Zhang

Whatever Shaun has done during the mid-session break, it did the trick. By far the quickest frame of the evening, and by far the best he has played.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang (86-0)

The pink refuses to fall and Shaun misses the century, but the frame is his.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang (65-0)

The red is potted and that's the frame ball for Shaun.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang (58-0)

Best snooker of the evening now from Shaun who is on a roll here.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang (40-0)

Not entirely smooth from Shaun, but he keeps getting away with it and indeed makes his shots look fairly straightforward.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang (1-0)

Anda splits the reds and gets close to potting. The red refuses to fall though and Shaun capitalises with an opener.

Murphy 3-1 Zhang

We've reached the mid-session break and, really, any frame so far could have gone either way. Anda looked in control, but time and again, Shaun somehow found an edge to turn things around in what has been an astonishing match.

Here are your match stats:

Pot Success: Murphy 91%, Zhang 94%
Long Pot Success: Murphy 33%, Zhang 100%
Rest Pot Success: Murphy 86%, Zhang 100%
Safety Success: Murphy 81%, Zhang 71%
Positional Success: Murphy 91%, Zhang 87%
Highest Break: Murphy 65, Zhang 84

Murphy 3-1 Zhang

Shaun lived up to his nickname, the Magician, there as that frame should have been Anda's. But one error at the wrong time and there was what could be a crucial steal.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (65-61)

Shaun at his best as he comes around the back of the brown to get a position on it - maybe not entirely intentional, but excellent it was. He clears the table from there and it's his frame.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (16-61)

Excellent work from Shaun who plays a soft canon into pink to separate it from the red it was nestled against. He has every chance to turn this frame around now.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (1-61)

Big shot from distance and Anda misses it. Worse so, there's an opening for Shaun.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (0-61)

It just about looked Anda's frame for the taking, but there's a positional error. He's forced to a safety.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (0-30)

The split doesn't quite work for Anda, but he finds a magnificent option to hit thin and direct the red up and into centre right.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (0-2)

Superb opener from Anda and this time he has options.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang (0-1)

Not the most convincing break-off from Shaun and Anda has an opener. No position from there though and we're on to safeties.

Murphy 2-1 Zhang

Not the most fluent, not the prettiest frame ever, but it's been a very intriguing one with the former Masters champion coming out top. Mind you, there were two astonishing shots in this frame with Anda's blue fluke and Shaun's twice-cushioned opener.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (48-40)

Shaun pots pink and that's his frame.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (15-40)

Finally, red falls and Shaun is back at the table. Great chance for him now.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (14-40)

Anda catches the red too thin, leaving a long opener for Shaun, but he misses it at bottom left. Chance in turn for Anda, but he too misses.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (14-40)

Nowhere to go for Anda now and he opts for the snooker behind blue. No problem for Shaun though who finds the red and trades for a safety.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (14-29)

Anda splits the reds now, but Shaun can't capitalise as he misses from long range. Anda doesn't hesitate to grab the offered chance.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (14-28)

Nowhere to go from there though for Shaun and he makes the safety. Anda, in turn, places the cue ball right in the bunched up reds, touching two of them.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (14-28)

What a frame this is as Shaun sends the key ball via the cushion twice before it falls at bottom left. Absolutely unreal.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (13-28)

That's it for now for Anda though as the red dances refuses to fall.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (13-25)

One of the rarest flukes you'll ever see. The blue bounces on centre left and refuses to go in. However, it moves up the table and sinks at top left.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (13-2)

Opener from Anda. The situation on the table is still rather tricky though, so don't expect a high break.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (13-1)

Miss on blue now from Shaun be gets lucky and doesn't leave Anda much to capitalise on. He does find an opener, but with black nestled against the side cushion though, there's nothing from there and we're trading safeties now.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (12-0)

Shaun runs through the pink and into the reds, searching the split, and it maybe doesn't quite work out.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang (1-0)

Very nice from Shaun who catches the red thin and directs it into centre left. He has some options from here, but black is tied.

Murphy 1-1 Zhang

It's all square again as Anda grabs his chance with an unreal opener and leaves nothing on the table from there.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (8-121)

Anda clears the table and bags the frame.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (8-70)

Not the neatest break building from Anda with some scrappy positioning, but he gets away with it and pots the frame ball.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (8-38)

Quite a few safeties later, Anda finds a terrific long opener.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (8-37)

Opener for Shaun and a chance to get right back into this frame. He braves an awkward angle on black but doesn't get his positioning quite on point. Safety it is.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (0-37)

Anda hangs his head as he misses the desired position on pink. He opts for black instead, but it refuses to fall.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (0-1)

Miss from Shaun and Anda finds the opener.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang (0-0)

Not the best break-off from Shaun, but Anda can't capitalise as he misses his attempt. Fortunately for him, he doesn't leave Shaun anything.

Murphy 1-0 Zhang

An eventful first frame that was decided by a great snooker more than anything else. Nevertheless, that's the advantage for Shaun.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (112-41)

And that's the frame for Shaun who has made no mistake since stepping back in action and clears the table.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (69-41)

This time Anda misses everything but sinks the cue ball. Shaun now steps to the table after a very lucrative snooker indeed.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (65-41)

And foul again, carbon copy of the previous attempt. Of course, Shaun is letting Anda try that one again.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (58-41)

Foul as Anda needs to go via the cushion and hits the black rather than the red. He'll need to have another go at that.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (51-41)

Jinxed it. Error now from Shaun as the red bounces on bottom right and refuses to fall. The good news is that it doesn't leave Anda much either.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (45-41)

Well played by Shaun who deals with an awkward red at the top of the table, plays green, and gets the positioning back at the bottom. It's his frame to lose now.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (1-41)

There indeed was a long opener and Shaun makes it, playing the plant beautifully.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (0-41)

Bit of a let-down now from Anda who catches the reds slightly too thin and doesn't achieve much separation on them. He opts for a safety but there might be a long combination for an opener on offer for Shaun.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (0-1)

Miss from Shaun and a chance for Anda who sinks red in bottom right.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang (0-0)

The players have arrived and we are ready to go. It's best of 11 and Anda to break.

Murphy 0-0 Zhang

We're in for a cracking game between two players that haven't met since August 2022. Back then, Shaun had the edge by five frames to three, but Anda now is on the better run of form, having won three of his last five games compared to Shaun's one. Anything could happen!

Hello again!

... and welcome back to London's Alexandra Palace. Everything is set for the evening session as world number six Shaun Murphy takes on world number 13 Zhang Anda.

Coming up ...

We're roughly three hours away from the next fixture as Shaun Murphy is set to take on Zhang Anda. Coming to you live on discovery+, the Eurosport app and at eurosport.com from 7pm.

Lisowski post-match

"[It's] amazing. It's such a daunting venue to play at sometimes. I wasn't that confident today, but I've been practising hard the last few days. I just started well, I felt good straight away and the first four frames just went by in a blur - it felt great.

"I had a few sessions with Lee Walker and he got me to come into a shot a bit straighter. [He's looking to make technical changes] because I steer; I get down on the shot, I can be thick or thin, and as I hit in I go one way sometimes or the other. And, theoretically, if you get down straighter, there should be less steering.

"My season has not been great and I'm still quite up and down, but today I just felt like everything is going to go in. On days like this you still get annoyed because it's such a hard sport. I really want to find some consistency; I want to feel bad and [still] play like that.

"I think I was going for my shots today [but with control], there was nothing too stupid. I'm not a natural safety player, I'm always gung-ho. [Luce Brecel] missed a few and was straight in. It settles you, so I felt relaxed today, I guess.

"I think I just felt good today and when I feel good, I play at that pace, whereas when I'm not so confident I might play quicker or slower.

"It's so noisy in there, I couldn't hear myself think, so I was talking to myself a little bit, saying things like, keep your concentration, just obvious stuff to try keep in the moment. Because, suddenly, in two frames Luca changed the game and it was 4-2. I know what it's like because I've had that before; I'd just be away with the fairies and before you know it, I've lost 6-4 and I'm going home."

Brecel post-match

"I didn't feel well at all; terrible game. After the breaks I made to win the two frames I felt good, actually, but then I missed a stupid red on 72 again. I need something like a little maxy break or something like that [to kick start me again]. It will come, it's okay; I've been there many times, everyone's been there. I'll be back - I don't know when though!

"The things I can do on the practice table, no one else can, just on the match table when you really need to do it ... I'm always relaxed, I feel no pressure and maybe that's the problem."

Brecel 2-6 Lisowski

And that's it as Jack progresses to the next round. Certainly a combination of him playing well, indeed excellently at times, and Luca being far from 100%.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (27-77)

Yellow refuses to fall, but it doesn't matter as it's the frame and the match for Jack.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (27-70)

Unreal from Jack who hits the red thin after a missed snooker from Luca and sinks it in top left.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (27-69)

Luca misses snooker as he can't quite place the cue ball behind black and Jack finds the red no problem.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (19-69)

Black in bottom right and it's the frame ball. He has no position on the aforementioned two reds though and invites Luca back to the table.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (19-49)

Some luck and some brilliance for Jack who is getting the most out of this situation so far. Two reds are sitting nestled against the bottom cushion though and will likely cause him some issues sooner or later.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (19-26)

Jack is trying desperately to separate the reds and while that doesn't quite work out, he plays a beautiful combination that gives him an edge.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (19-2)

The opener is there and Jack takes it. This frame will be hard work though with the reds in some awkward positions. Don't expect high breaks here.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (19-1)

Second chance for Luca and he sinks the red. There's nowhere much to go though and the error follows swiftly.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (11-1)

And that's it for now as Luca attempts the black anyway and misses. Jack misses the combination in turn though.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (5-1)

Luca grabs his chance and sinks the opener. Black is blocked, pink is way up at the top of the table though.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (4-1)

Opener at last as Jack gets past pink for an excellent finish on the red. However, he misses pink from there.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski (4-0)

Foul from Jack. He seeks to hit the red thin with a long ball but misses it completely instead.

Brecel 2-5 Lisowski

Bit of good fortune for Jack here with Luca missing black from the spot and his game has looked a bit scrappier than earlier on. Still, he has one hand on the ticket to the next round.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski (1-86)

Blue refuses to fall and it remains a 23 break, but it's enough for Jack to take the frame.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski (1-72)

Brilliant from Jack who sinks blue from an awkward angle. This is his frame to lose now.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski (1-64)

So that didn't last long. Luca misses black on bottom right from the spot and looks like he can't believe it. Jack finds a red to sink.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski (1-63)

Slight error from Jack and he catches green. There's nowhere to go and he attempts a safety. However, there's a long opener and Luca takes it.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski (0-1)

Long search for an opener, but Jack finally capitalises on a safety error.

Brecel 2-4 Lisowski

Luca got away with one there when Jack missed the opener, but, nevertheless, the reigning world champion is looking in some momentum now.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski (103-0)

And that's enough for Luca who takes the frame.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski (73-0)

Opener for Luca and that's the frame ball.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski (72-0)

Miss from Luca now as red bounces on bottom left. The good news for him is that Jack misses the combination on centre right in turn.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski (49-0)

Luca looks a different player now. Very neat frame from him so far and the maximum break is on offer.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski (8-0)

Opener for Luca and black is open on both sides.

Brecel 1-4 Lisowski

Much better from Luca. Some positioning trouble early on, but he handled it well and used the second chance he was offered in that fifth frame beautifully.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (95-0)

He misses the century as green stops short of centre left (it does find its target with some help from the cue, mind you), but it's the frame for Luca.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (63-0)

Frame ball for Luca now as red finds centre right. There's a century on offer here.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (41-0)

Positioning remains Luca's weakness with some scrappy play, but he gets away with it and achieves some very nice separation on the reds now.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (16-0)

Second chance for Luca who finds a neat opener on centre right.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (15-0)

Correction on red, but then it's a positioning error on the next colour from Luca. He leaves after a 15 break, but the good news is there's nothing on the table for Jack.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski (1-0)

Opener for Luca.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski

Here are your match stats at the mid-session break and it's a magnificent 97% pot success for Jack compared to 81% for Luca.

Pot Success: Brecel 81%, Lisowski 97%
Long Pot Success: Brecel 67%, Lisowski 75%
Rest Pot Success: Brecel 100%, Lisowski 100%
Safety Success: Brecel 80%, Liswoski 80%
Highest Break: Brecel 27, Lisowski 100
Total Points: Brecel 73, Lisowski 400

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski

Interesting stat: in the history of the Masters, only twice has a player come back from a 4-0 disadvantage to win a best of 11.

Brecel 0-4 Lisowski

It's been the Jack Lisowski show so far who has been shooting the lights out. He looks supremely confident in his frame building and has been excellent at capitalising on chances.

In contrast, Luca has admitted pre-match that he's not at 100% confidence and has indeed looked it. Some errors here and there and he's made it way too easy for his opponent who has punished everything.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (24-74)

Desperate attempt from Luca with a lot of drive on the cue ball but it misses the red and that's the frame.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (24-69)

Attempt number two and it's a nice one again. Luca separates the cue ball and the red with blue in-between them, forcing Jack to come off the cushion twice. Still he finds the red.

Crucially, Luca now finds himself snookered as Jack places the cue ball against the top cushion, yellow and blue blocking the way to red.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (24-69)

Luca locks the cue ball behind pink with the only remaining red at the top cushion. Jack finds it anyway.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (1-69)

Error from Jack now as the red refuses to fall on bottom right. Luca sinks it and he remains at the table, but he needs three snookers to turn this frame around.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (0-26)

Magnificent break building again from Jack who is looking ultra confident now. Luca, meanwhile, looks like the mid-session break can't arrive soon enough.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski (0-1)

Again, miss on the long red from Luca and he leaves Jack an opener.

Brecel 0-3 Lisowski

Better from Luca but not good enough. In contrast, Jack looks ready to grab any chance he gets and run away with it.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (28-100)

No problem for Jack who clears the table.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (28-65)

Nice shot on the way to the frame ball from Jack who makes a red-red combination on bottom left and the cue ball runs right up the table. Beautiful play from him and he eventually finds bottom right with black for the frame ball.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (28-31)

Jack has black open on both sides now. This looks his frame to lose now.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (28-5)

One moment he plays an unreal opener and the next he sinks the cue ball while attempting green. Luca is forced to leave the table and gifts Jack an opener.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (28-0)

Wow! Peak-Brecel there with a long ball for a long red with an awkward angle on bottom left. Shot of the match so far.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (27-0)

He got lucky with one red that danced around bottom left and only eventually decided to fall earlier, but that's the end of the break for Luca.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski (1-0)

Opener for Luca. He has options to work with.

Brecel 0-2 Lisowski

Rather one-sided so far. The main difference has been that whenever Jack had to leave the table, he controlled the situation well, not leaving his opponent a way in, while Luca's safeties have been scrappy.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski (0-134)

It's the frame and a career 300th century break for Jack; 100 break exactly at his second go at the table.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski (0-71)

Jack grabs the second chance he's been given in this frame and sinks red in bottom left for the frame ball. If he clears the full table, he can even get a century out of this.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski (0-35)

There's an error on the positioning from Jack and he plays a safety instead. Luca answers with an attempted safety, but it's not good enough, leaving Jack a long, tight-angled red on bottom right.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski (0-30)

Separating the reds doesn't quite work out for Jack - he's forced to continue the break with blue, rather than black, but he remains at the table.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski (0-1)

Poor from Luca who misses a long red by what felt like half a mile. He leaves an opener for Jack.

Brecel 0-1 Lisowski

Jack clearly with the better start here. He's done well to find ways to deal with tricky situations and, crucially, executed the required shots nicely.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski (21-92)

Nice break with a 70 clearance for Jack. Very neat play from him.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski (21-62)

Some very nice positioning work from Jack and pink in the right centre is the frame ball.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski (21-23)

The reds just about started to look better for Luca, but he misses pink on centre. Even worse so, he leaves an opener for Jack who has some straightforward shots ahead of him before things will get a bit more tricky.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski (7-22)

Long ball on red for Luca and it's the opener. Not the most straightforward options from here, but definitely something to work with.

Brecel 0-0 Liswoski (6-22)

Error on the safety from Jack, but it doesn't do much damage.

Brecel 0-0 Liswoski (6-1)

Near miss for Jack and Luca capitalises to get a neat opener. He misses his second red though and leaves Jack an opener in turn.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski (0-0)

The players are at the table and we're just about ready to get going, it's Luca to break. Remember, we're playing best of 11.

Brecel 0-0 Lisowski

Everything is served for an exciting opening match between world number 4 Luca Brecel and world number 16 Jack Lisowski. The last time the two met was in February last year at the Players Championship when Luca stole the win 6-4. Is it revenge time for Luca who is on the better run of form, having won two of his last three matches compared to Luca's three consecutive defeats?

We're about to find out!

Welcome

Hello and welcome to Day 1 of The Masters. We're all set for a very exciting day at London's Alexandra Palace with world champion Luca Brecel facing off against Jack Lisowski.

Later in the day Shaun Murphy will play Zhang Anda.