It has been a strange start to the season for Luca Brecel
Luca Brecel has pulled out of British Open qualifying on the day he was due to play after failing to show up for his Wuhan Open qualifier on Sunday.
The 30-year-old gave no warning on Sunday ahead of his scheduled contest with Haris Tahir, with his opponent eventually being handed a 5-0 win.
On Wednesday he was due to be in Leicester again for British Open qualifying against Alexander Ursenbacher, but pulled out on the day, allowing amateur player Ashley Carty to take his place in the draw.
A brief statement from World Snooker Tour on Wednesday afternoon read: ‘Luca Brecel has withdrawn from this week’s British Open qualifiers and been replaced in the draw by Ashley Carty.
‘Brecel was due to face Alexander Ursenbacher on Wednesday afternoon but has decided to pull out. Carty is the highest available player from the Q School top-up list.’
Whether he will be punished by the snooker hierarchy is yet to be confirmed, but he does face the possibility of a fine unless he gives an appropriate reason for his absence.
Belgian publication Nieuwsblad report that the British Open absence was due to medical reasons, although World Snooker Tour said there was no information on why he had pulled out.
Brecel has not given a reason for not playing in the two events at the Mattioli Arena, he has been busy on social media, seemingly enjoying himself.
On Sunday, when he was due to play Tahir, he posted picture on Instagram with his reported new girlfriend Shawney Demuyter and another of pizzas with two glasses of wine.
By Tuesday the Bullet was posting pictures wearing a bizarre mask and an eye-catching hat.
Wednesday saw the former world champ sporting a wig, shortly before he was due to be playing Ursenbacher.
The Belgian Bullet finished last season off impressively as he looked great on a run to the quarter-finals of the World Championship, where he was beaten by Judd Trump in an excellent contest.
They were encouraging signs for the man who had won the 2023 World Championship but had a very quiet time after that, skipping a number of tournaments and struggling for results in the ones he played in.
He has slipped down to number 39 in the world rankings and failing to play in either the Wuhan Open or British Open puts him at risk of falling further down in the rankings in the weeks to come.
His next scheduled matches were to be on July 17 in the Championship League, but he also withdrawn from that event.
The Saudi Arabia Masters in Jeddah in August is likely to be the next event for the Bullet.
Asked about his fall outside of the top 16 at the World Championship in April, Brecel said he was actually looking forward to qualifiers.
‘There’s also a good side, less travelling maybe, less extra tournaments so for me it’s maybe better,’ he said of no longer being in the top 16.
‘I enjoy the qualifiers to be honest, I don’t need to be on the TV table, I like being on the outside table as well. For me it’s all about playing snooker.’
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