Snooker results: Wu Yuze stuns Shaun Murphy with 6-2 victory at the Masters

Murphy, a brilliant winner at Alexandra Palace 12 months ago, had no answers to Wu who produced an impressive display on his Masters debut, the type that saw him win the International Championship in November.

A dejected Murphy told the BBC afterwards: "I’ve looked forward to today since last year. It was the worst performance of my season, and maybe my worst ever performance at the Masters.

"I’m gutted. Very below par. Everything I touched went wrong. None of my game performed well, but I’ve got absolutely no idea why.

"Wu looked calm, he looked at ease. He’s a wonderful talent.

"He fully deserved his win, and he’ll be a handful for whoever he plays next."

In truth, the writing was on the wall from the moment Wu went 2-0 to the good thanks to a sublime 137 clearance.

2-0 soon became 3-0, and Murphy did well to retreat to the mid-session interval with a frame under his belt.

However, Wu picked his pocket immediately after the resumption to lead 4-1 and leave the defending champion sitting uncomfortably in his chair.

Murphy rallied by dominating frame six, but Wu swiftly closed the door on a possible comeback from the Magician, finishing the match with a silky run of 56.

Xiao sends Selby packing

It was a day of shocks at Ally Pally as last month’s UK Championship hero Mark Selby was readily outpointed by Xiao Guodong.

Selby, three times a Masters champion, returned as the form player of the season, but Xiao reeled off breaks of 95, 62, 76 and 77 to race into a 4-0 lead.

Though Selby hit back with runs of 101 and 76 to reduce his arrears to 4-2, Xiao had all the answers.

A century of his own put him within touching distance of victory, and after Selby missed a tricky yellow off the cushion in the eighth frame, Xiao sealed a fantastic 6-2 triumph with a brilliant brown to middle.

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