Snooker chiefs hit back at Shaun Murphy over amateur players rant

Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxing Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Afterwards the 39-year-old launched an extraordinary tirade against World Snooker Tour for allowing players like Si to compete via the ‘top-up’ system, in which the top-ranked players outside the tour gain entry if the 128 available professional slots cannot be filled. He shouldn’t be on the table.” World Snooker Tour issued a robust response, saying it “strongly disagreed” with Murphy’s claims and insisting the opportunity for young amateur players to compete on the biggest stage formed a “crucial part” of their development. We respect Shaun’s opinions, but in this case we strongly disagree with his comments World Snooker Tour statement “For the best young players, the chance to compete on the big stage is a crucial part of their development and the development of the sport as a whole. “We respect Shaun’s opinions, but in this case we strongly disagree with his comments.” This season there are only 122 professional players on the World Snooker Tour, mainly because a number of the amateur tournaments which offer tour cards as prizes were not played due to the pandemic.