The whole world admires Poles! He just wrote a beautiful story
Antoni Kowalski became the first snooker player from Poland to play in the main tournament of the World Championships. The Pole did not hide his emotion at what had happened.
And something truly historic happened! Antoni Kowalski sealed his participation in the world championship on Tuesday (April 14) evening, defeating the Welshman Jamie Jones 10:8. It was the 4th round of qualifying. Earlier, Kowalski beat the Englishman Connor Benzey (result 10:1 for the Pole) and Joe O’Connor (10:8).
In the latter case, the success of the Polish snooker player was truly impressive. Kowalski, ranked 69th in the world ranking, defeated the Englishman, who is currently player number 28.
Antoni Kowalski advances to the World Championships! The Pole fulfilled his dreams at the Crucible Theater
Kowalski, from Zielona Góra, outplayed Jones, who was 16 years his senior, after an exciting duel. Having a 5-2 lead in frames, the Pole allowed himself to be caught up and then overtaken by the Englishman, 5-6 from his perspective. Ultimately, however, the second part of the match belonged to Kowalski, who first returned to a three-point lead (9:6), and then closed the match with a frame (equivalent to sets in tennis) with a score of 81:16, i.e. the so-called 50+ break, a historic success.
At the age of 22, Kowalski won a historic ticket to the Crucible Theater in Sheffield, England. This means he will play in the main tournament of the World Championships, like the first Polish representative in the history of snooker.
Interestingly, Kowalski received a prize of £20,000 just for advancing to the main draw of the World Championships tournament in Sheffield. Additionally, he maintained the so-called World Snooker Tour card, which means he maintained his professional status. This is the case with snooker players from the top 64 rankings in the world and a few – like Kowalski – who do not fit into this group, but, for example, have just qualified for the main tournament of the World Championships.
With whom and when will the Polish debutant play at the famous Crucible Theater in Sheffield? The drawing will take place on Thursday (i.e. April 16). Among the Pole’s potential rivals… only legends and the biggest snooker stars. For example, the current champion Zhao Xintong (China), John Higgins (Scotland), Mark Selby (England) or probably the most famous name of this sport in the last few decades – Ronnie O’Sullivan (England).
The most important thing, however, is that these are historic moments for Polish snooker. And there is a lot of talk about Kowalski’s potential and his great success.
Broadcasts from the snooker World Championships will be available on Eurosport and HBO Max. The competition starts next Saturday (i.e. April 18).
