UK Championship: Hossein Vafaei predicts snooker revolution in Middle East as he chases glory – 'It is going to happen'

ByEurosport

Published 01/12/2023 at 09:57 GMT

Hossein Vafaei is aiming to become the first player from Iran to lift a major ranking event as he chases title glory at the UK Championship in York. The world No. 18 won the Shoot Out last year, but believes the prestige of carrying off the UK title would have massive benefits for the growth of the sport in the Middle East. Vafaei plays Zhang Anda on Friday in the last eight.

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Hossein Vafaei is nicknamed the 'Prince of Persia' but the Iranian showman is convinced snooker will receive a huge boost in the Middle East if he becomes UK Championship king at the York Barbican this weekend.

Vafaei producd a regal scoring performance in a 6-1 demolition of Matthew Selt in the last 16 on Thursday evening, rolling in breaks of 132, 94, 56, 133 and 121 to set up a quarter-final meeting with International champion Zhang Anda on Friday afternoon.

World champion Luca Brecel – who lost 6-4 to Zhang in the last 16 on the other showpiece table in York – has become a national treasure in Belgium after his totemic Crucible success in May.

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Vafaei feels a similar landmark sporting victory for Iran at the UK Championship would be of massive benefit to green baize growth in his region of the world.

“It would be amazing. If I go all the way, it is good for the game, it is good for snooker in the Middle East, it is good for all of the players and the snooker market," he told reporters.

"Something would happen after I won, and you would have the Dubai Open, Saudi Open and Qatar Open. It is going to happen soon I’m sure."

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The United Arab Emirates last hosted a major ranking event in 1994 when Alan McManus won the Dubai Classic with a 9-6 victory over Peter Ebdon.

Neil Robertson also clamed the solitary staging of the Bahrain Championship in 2008 with a 9-7 win over Matthew Stevens, a tournament that never returned to the elite calendar.

As it is, Vafaei will secure a spot at the 49th Masters at Alexandra Palace next month (7-14 January live on Eurosport and discovery+) if he can overcome Zhang, and Ding Junhui loses to Mark Williams in their quarter-final joust.

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“I played fantastic today. It couldn’t be any better than that," Vafaei said after improving upon his 6-4 win over Shaun Murphy in the first round. "I started like a dream. Everyone dreams of starting a match like that.

"I felt really good and playing like that in front of big fans in the York Barbican is an amazing feeling.

“It is so enjoyable. You can’t explain that or teach that. I enjoyed tonight a lot. I scored really heavily and as a player you dream of performing like that in an event like the UK Championship.

“It is just a matter of time. I am from a different country and I need to learn lots of different things to compete with legends. It is tough to get to that level, but I am getting there."