Mark Allen has now missed eight ranking events since the Crucible

Mark Allen has withdrawn from the Shenzhen Open, the eighth ranking event he has pulled out of since the 2026 World Championship. The reason given each time has been personal, with no further explanation.

The list of withdrawals

• Championship League
• Shanghai Masters
• International Championship
• British Open
• English Open
• China Open
• Wuhan Open
• Shenzhen Open

His last competitive match was the World Championship semi-final at the Crucible, a 17-16 defeat to Wu Yize in April and May 2026.

The Northern Ireland Open in October is his next realistic return. It is his home event in Belfast, and the one he has historically travelled shortest for.

Why a Pakistani snooker follower should care

An absence of this length from a top-ten player reshapes the draw in every event that follows, and the two-year ranking list is what decides seedings and Crucible qualification. Every tournament Allen misses, his defending points from the previous season drop off with nothing replacing them.

That opens seeded places for players outside the top 16, which is the band Asian and qualifying-route players compete in. Pakistan's own professionals have come through that route: Muhammad Asif won the IBSF World Amateur title three times, and Babar Masih and Ahsan Ramzan have carried the same path, Ramzan taking the IBSF world title in 2021 at 18.

What has been happening while he has been away

Ali Carter won the English Open on 13 September, beating Mark Williams in the final for his first title in that event. Zhao Xintong topped the world rankings after beating Neil Robertson in Wuhan in August. Duane Jones won the British Open on 6 September, having knocked out Mark Selby in the final.

Snooker's Asian swing continues through the autumn, and the schedule remains the easiest professional circuit for Pakistani players to reach, with most of the ranking events now held in China rather than the United Kingdom.