BREAKING: Shanghai master draw has been released" Ronnie...

BREAKING: Shanghai master draw has been released” Ronnie O’Sullivan set on a high battle” Ali Carter Lock horns with Qiu Lei” price list…..

World champion Kyren Wilson and defending champion Ronnie O’Sullivan lead the 2024 field when the Shanghai Masters get underway on Monday.

The first important tournament of the 2024/25 season sees the top 16 from the world rankings participate in the Shanghai Grand Stage. They will be joined by eight more from China — the next four highest-ranked Chinese players and an extra four wildcard amateur

Shanghai Masters prize money
Champion: £210,000
Runner-up: £105,000
Semi-final: £70,000
Quarter-final: £35,000
Last 16: £17,500
Last 24: £10,000
Highest break: £10,000

Who are the former champions?

Ronnie O’Sullivan is a record five-time winner of the event – twice when it was previously staged as a ranking event and all three times since its transition to invitational status in 2018.

Dominic Dale was the first Shanghai Masters winner back in 2007, but the Welshman won’t be in action this time around.

Ricky Walden and Stuart Bingham are other prior champions who have failed to receive an invitation.

John Higgins, Mark Selby, Ding Junhui, Kyren Wilson, and Ali Carter are all in the 2024 Shanghai Masters draw, however, having previously won the tournament when it was a ranking event.

Who is in the 2024 Shanghai Masters draw?

As it’s a 24-player field, the top eight seeds have been awarded byes through to the last 16 of the competition.

That includes reigning champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, world champion Kyren Wilson, and Mark Allen – the latter set to compete in his first event as the sport’s world number one.

Judd Trump, Luca Brecel, Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy, and home favourite Ding Junhui – the Shanghai Masters champion in 2013 and 2016 – are the other players from the top eight in the rankings who enjoy the benefit of having to play one less match.

The other members of the top 16, meanwhile, include former finalist Mark Williams and 2010 winner Ali Carter.

Carter won the season-opening Championship League Snooker tournament earlier this month to claim a sixth career ranking success. Gary Wilson, Zhang Anda, Tom Ford, Jak Jones, John Higgins, and Barry Hawkins are additionally in the draw and will play one of the other eight Chinese players. The four from the rankings list who have qualified are Si Jiahui, Zhou Yuelong, Pang Junxu, and Lyu Haotian.

Amateurs Zhou Jinhao and Wang Xinbo have been nominated by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association, while Cao Jin and Qui Lei earned spots through a qualifying event that concluded at the weekend.

2024 Shanghai Masters draw

All times in UTC+1

Round 1 (bo11)
Zhang Anda vs Zhou Jinhao
(July 15: 2:30am)
Ali Carter vs Qiu Lei
(July 15: 2:30am)
Tom Ford vs Si Jiahui
(July 15: 7am)
Mark Williams vs Wang Xinbo
(July 15: 7am)

Gary Wilson vs Pang Junxu
(July 16: 2:30am)
Jak Jones vs Cao Jin
(July 16: 2:30am)
John Higgins vs Lyu Haotian
(July 15: 12:30pm)
Barry Hawkins vs Zhou Yuelong
(July 15: 12:30pm)

Round 2 (bo11)
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Zhang/Zhou
(July 16: 7am)
Ding Junhui vs Carter/Qui
(July 16: 12:30pm)
Luca Brecel vs Ford/Si
(July 16: 7am)
Judd Trump vs Williams/Wang
(July 16: 12:30pm)

Mark Allen vs G. Wilson/Pang
(July 17: 7am)
Mark Selby vs Jones/Cao
(July 17: 7am)
Shaun Murphy vs Higgins/Lyu
(July 17: 12:30pm)
Kyren Wilson vs Hawkins/Zhou
(July 17: 12:30pm)