The semi-final line-up at the 2025 JenningsBet World Seniors Snooker Championship is now confirmed following a dramatic Friday at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. Former World Seniors Snooker champion Aaron Canavan and 2023 runner-up Alfie Burden will be joined by tournament debutants Dominic Dale and Hassan Kerde on semi-final Saturday at the sport’s most iconic venue.
The afternoon session began with a mouthwatering tie between recently-retired former professionals Dale and Joe Perry. 'The Spaceman' made an unforgettable arrival into the arena, donning a trilby and faux-fur coat for his entrance in a nod to the late Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins, and his performance lived up to expectations as he fired in stunning breaks of 97 and 99 before completing his 4-1 victory with a current tournament high break of 128. Dale said: “I’ve been practicing hard here and I’ve found some form. I was confident going into the match. I was trying to enjoy it and express myself.”
A seven-frame battle filled with drama followed as Burden and Tony Drago went all the way to a deciding frame. The Maltese cueist raced into a 3-0 lead in unusual circumstances as he won back-to-back respotted blacks to move one frame away from the last four. Drago began to show signs of nerves, however, missing opportunities in each of the next two frames and Burden took full advantage by forcing a decider with help from breaks of 53 and 51. The final frame was filled with tension as both players spurned multiple opportunities but it was Burden who was able to take it on the colours before letting out a roar to the Crucible crowd. Burden said: “I am very proud of the determination I showed from a really bad position which I put myself in. I made a lot of errors early on but I showed good spirit, dug in and refused to be beaten.”
A contest between two continental seniors champions kicked off the evening session as Australia’s Kerde faced South Africa’s Charl Jonck. The first four frames of the match were shared between the two players with a break of 70 from Jonck being the highlight. From there, however, the Australian pulled away and a contribution of 85 in the sixth frame was enough to secure a 4-2 success. Kerde said: “I’m over the moon, I feel like I’m shaking on the inside. I’m the first person to come from Australia and reach the semi-finals of the World Seniors Snooker Championship and hopefully I can do the country proud.”
There was late-night drama at the Crucible as the quarter-finals reached a conclusion with a meeting between qualifiers Canavan and Wayne Townsend. Canavan, a former winner of the most prestigious title in seniors snooker, started off the stronger and took a 3-1 lead before Townsend hit back with a break of 85 to reduce the deficit. The man from Jersey was able to hold his nerve, however, and took the next to win 4-2 and set up a semi-final meeting with Dale. The quarter-finals take place on Saturday 10 May from 12:00 BST live on Channel 5.
Alfie Burden produced a remarkable turnaround on Friday to stun Tony Drago and book his place in the World Seniors Championship semi-finals. The 2023 finalist looked set to bow out at 3-0 down against his good friend, but reeled off the next four frames to prevail on the final pink at The Crucible. Ironically, Burden faced Drago on his only appearance in the main stages of the professional World Championship in 1998, suffering a narrow 10-8 defeat. The Londoner, who ousted four-time World Seniors champion Jimmy White in round one, lost a tight opening frame this time around, and surrendered promising positions to lose the next two on re-spotted blacks. Burden stopped the rot and kept his hopes alive with breaks of 53 and 51 in a further two closely fought frames, before dominating the sixth to force a decider. It came down to the final pink and, after Drago’s loose safety left his opponent with a tempter from long-range, Burden knocked it in and let out a huge roar as he sealed his last-four place. “I’ve had a miracle!” he said. “Tony’s such a class act. The way he plays, he puts you under so much pressure because he’s so natural and just pots balls out of nowhere. He beat me on two re-spots and I was bang under it. I never gave up. I dug in. I didn’t play well today at all, but I’m still in the tournament and I’ll play better [on Saturday], hopefully.”
There, he will play Hassan Kerde, who recovered from 2-1 down for a 4-2 victory over Ken Doherty’s conqueror in Charl Jonck, sealing it with a break of 85. Meanwhile, Dominic Dale was in fine scoring form as he overcame Joe Perry 4-1 in a battle of the recently retired professionals – and two-time ranking event winners. The Spaceman entered the arena sporting an overcoat and trilby hat – apparently in tribute to the late Alex Higgins – and opened with a break of 97, though Perry controlled the second frame to level. However, Dale regained the lead with 99 and dominated frame four for 3-1, before rounding off victory with a superb 128 – his second century of the tournament. Next up for him in the semi-finals will be Aaron Canavan, after the 2018 World Seniors champion overcame debutant Wayne Townsend, who dethroned reigning champion Igor Figueiredo in round one, 4-2.
Dominic Dale could celebrate a landmark moment in his lengthy career at the World Seniors Championship in Sheffield. The two-time ranking event winner has hit centuries in victories over Craig Steadman and Joe Perry to reach the last four at the Crucible and a meeting with Aaron Canavan on Saturday afternoon. 2023 finalist Alfie Burden also remains in the hunt after edging Tony Drago 4-3 on Friday. Dale defeated Craig Steadman 4-2 with a 107 break and continued to impress in his quarter-final with former Welsh Open champion Joe Perry, who has quit the main circuit after the World Championship. Breaks of 97, 99, and 128 were put together in glorious style as the former Grand Prix and Shanghai Masters champion set up a semi-final meeting with Aaron Canavan, who completed a 4-2 win over Wayne Townsend later on Friday. The best-of-15 frame final takes places on Sunday at 12pm UK time with the winner earning a spot at the Champion of Champions event later this year.
