Day 3 of the Sportsbet.io Players Championship 2026

The WST Players Championship continued on Thursday, 19 February 2026, at the Telford International Centre, where the first two semi-finalists were confirmed following elite quarter-final matches. John Higgins and Judd Trump both secured 6–3 victories to set up a blockbuster semi-final clash.

Thursday, 19 February 2026: Match Results

Match	Phase	Result	Key Statistics
John Higgins [16] vs. Chris Wakelin [8]	Quarter-Final	6 – 3	Higgins break of 106; Wakelin break of 83
Judd Trump [5] vs. Mark Williams [4]	Quarter-Final	6 – 3	Trump breaks of 123, 70; Williams break of 141

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Key Match Reports

John Higgins vs. Chris Wakelin
Higgins, who only qualified for the event after Ronnie O’Sullivan’s withdrawal, continued his resurgent form by becoming the first player to reach the semi-finals. After a tense first half that saw the players locked at 2–2 at the mid-session interval, Higgins pulled away with a high-quality century break of 106 in the latter stages to secure his 91st career ranking semi-final.
Judd Trump vs. Mark Williams
In the 24th meeting of their storied rivalry, world number one Judd Trump overcame a high-scoring start from Mark Williams. Despite Williams producing a remarkable 97% pot success rate and an opening-frame total clearance of 141 (the highest of the tournament so far), Trump’s relentless scoring—including a 123 of his own—proved too much for the Welshman.

Tournament Outlook

The remaining quarter-finals are scheduled for Friday, 20 February, featuring:

Shaun Murphy vs. Zhao Xintong (1:00 PM GMT)
Mark Allen vs. Mark Selby (7:00 PM GMT)

Fans can follow live scores and updates on the WST Official Website or watch live coverage on Channel 5.

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