Walsall's Mark Joyce returns to Barbican Centre for Mark Selby clash in UK Championship
Walsall’s former two-time quarter-finalist Mark Joyce will begin his quest in snooker’s UK Championship this evening.
Joyce, 40, has been handed a tricky first round draw at York’s Barbican Centre, where he will tackle fifth seed and four-time world champion Mark Selby.
The pair have previously met on five occasions, the first time in 2015, and Selby has won all of the meetings.
The Black Country cueist’s place among the sport’s leading players for one of the three ‘Triple Crown’ events of the season was sealed after some excellent form in qualifying.
Joyce, a quarter-finalist in York in 2010 and 2017, won three matches in qualifying in Leicester to make the televised stage of the tournament.
He saw off Ukraine’s teenage talent Iulian Boiko via a decider 6-5 before dispatching of Xiao Guodong, of China, and English veteran Joe Perry to qualify.
He has made the Barbican just once since a memorable run to the last eight in 2017, which came in 2021 and ended in a first-round exit to Northern Irishman Jordan Brown.
Joyce was edged 6-5 by Ryan Day in a last-eight meeting in 2017 and 9-7 by Mark Williams at the same stage in 2010.
World No.62 Joyce and Selby go head-to-head in a best of 11 from 7pm this evening. Victory would mean Joyce pockets at least £15,000 from the main stage of the tournament. Defeat in round one is worth £10,000.
Reaching the televised stages is an early highlight in the fledgling snooker season for Joyce, who had only previously won three matches this season, in the Championship League and in qualifying for China events the Wuhan Open and International Championship.
Already through to round two in Yorkshire after a thrilling first day’s action are Ding Junhui, who saw off defending champion Mark Allen, former world champion Williams and Tom Ford and Jamie Clarke, who both won deciders.
