Mark Allen experimenting in practice in bid to claim World Snooker Championship and complete career Triple Crown
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Published 28/01/2025 at 23:38 GMT
Mark Allen is safely through to the second round of the German Masters in Berlin, but the Northern Irishman had a laser focus on the Crucible after his 5-0 win over David Lilley. Allen has reached the final four of the World Snooker Championship twice in the past, but has suffered plenty of early exits too. The 38-year-old revealed he has been experimenting to give him an edge come April.
Allen completes whitewash victory over Lilley
Video credit: TNT Sports
Mark Allen says he is "trying something very different" in a bid to complete his Triple Crown set at the World Championship this April.
The Northern Irishman whitewashed David Lilley 5-0 in the first round of the German Masters, on a Tuesday that also saw shock exits for Mark Williams and Jack Lisowski.
Having sealed two thirds of his career Triple Crown by winning the UK Championship in 2022, four years after his Masters triumph over Kyren Wilson, Allen is determined to finally take home the biggest prize in snooker.
After his win over Lilley, the world No. 4 said he is experimenting with lengthier practice-session matches to give him the edge in Sheffield this spring.
"To be honest, all eyes are on Sheffield for me now," said Allen. "It has been that way for a while. I'm starting doing longer matches when practising.
"Not taking anything away from the events leading up, but I'll be experimenting here and there to see if I can get something to work.
"I am trying something very different this year. I am trying to find something that I believe will work in Sheffield.
"I've gone there with lots of confidence off the back of winning tournaments and not done well. I feel like I need something that will last me for 17 days and I haven't had that before."
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The 38-year-old has reached the final four at the Crucible twice in the past, most recently in 2023, but three of his last four World Championships have ended in second-round defeats.
However, there was little danger of Allen departing at the first hurdle in Berlin this week, as breaks of 74 and 71 against Lilley earned him a last-32 clash with Wu Yize on Wednesday.
The 21-year-old from Lanzhou has enjoyed his best season on the tour to date, reaching the English and Scottish Open finals already.
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Lei crunches in red to secure Scottish Open final victory over Wu
Video credit: TNT Sports
But Wu is yet to claim a senior title and is competing in the main draw of the German Masters for the first time.
Allen said that "the sky is the limit" for his "exciting" opponent, who won the IBSF World Under-21 Championship at the age of 14.
"Wu has a massive future and he's been in two finals," said Allen. "The sky is the limit with him, but it has happened so many times with young prospects from China.
"They show promise and have a lot of pressure which they haven't dealt with very well. It will be interesting to see how he does, because he is definitely exciting for the sport."
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