Bizarre scenes overshadowed day one of the World Grand Prix snooker tournament as swarms of fans made an early exit.
The event, which is taking place in Hong Kong, took a peculiar turn after Kyren Wilson’s match was stopped for 15 minutes due to a curfew.
Hundreds of spectators had no choice but to head to the exits during Wilson’s clash with Matt Selt due to a local midnight restriction.
With the newly built Kai Tak Arena located 30 minutes away from the nearest metro station, the match was halted so that fans could return home before the curfew kicked in.
The incident appeared to anger Wilson’s management teams who criticised the organisation of the event.
They posted on X: “Literally, fans HAVE to leave, due to policies. You can’t make it up!” Snooker bosses, who were faced with a logistical nightmare with approximately 5,000 fans expected towards the final weekend, have found an agreement with venue chiefs which will allow spectators to remain in their seats until the conclusion of play for the rest of the tournament.
A World Snooker Tour spokesperson said: “Some fans were unable to watch the conclusion of the final match on Table One. The Tournament Organising Committee has since communicated with Kai Tak Sports Park and the relevant departments.
“We are pleased to confirm that spectators will be permitted to remain in the venue for the conclusion of all evening sessions for the rest of the tournament. We apologise for the inconvenience caused. Spectators who had tickets for this game will be able to exchange these for seats of the same value on Wednesday March 5th or 6th.”
At the time of the stoppage, Wilson was trailing Selt 3-2 and while the players patiently waited for fans to leave the arena, they were eventually able to return to the table to finish the match.
The delay appeared to have a positive impact on Wilson who was in danger of an early exit from the tournament.
With no spectators in attendance, the 2024 world champion hit back to clinch a 4-3 victory.
Up next for the 33-year-old is recently crowned World Open champion John Higgins in the last 16 after he came through a closely-fought contest with Ali Carter.
GettyJohn Higgins will provide the next test for Wilson in the last 16 in Hong Kong[/caption]
Wilson will be hoping to find some level of redemption after his Masters final defeat to Shaun Murphy last month.
Meanwhile, Murphy overcame Ben Woollaston 4-3 on Tuesday, Stuart Bingham toppled Mark Williams 4-2 and Jack Lisowski proved too strong for Zhang Anda.
Two-time World Grand Prix winner Judd Trump made a solid start to his campaign seeing off Gary Wilson and in doing so, ending Wilson’s hopes of qualifying for the World Championship.
Mark Selby came through his clash with Jackson Page unscathed, winning 4-3. While Jak Jones was beaten by the same scoreline by China’s Xiao Guodong.
