Vladislav Gradinari: 14-year-old says he felt ‘natural’ and ‘played really well’ in Shoot Out win over Ng On Yee

One of the biggest stories to come out of the first day of this year’s snooker Shoot Out was the remarkable result achieved by Vladislav Gradinari.

At just 14, the Moldovan youngster – who is based in Leeds – claimed the scalp of Ng On Yee, beating the three-time women’s world champion in the first round.

Despite his tender years, Gradinari was not at all overawed by the crowd at the Morningside Arena in Leicester, marking his debut at the unique one-frame ranking event with a 40-1 win.

“I played really well, and I’m happy with that,” the youngster told Eurosport afterwards.

“I felt really natural at the table and I’m really happy with this win.”

A relaxed-looking Gradinari got on the scoreboard first, opening up a nine-point lead before playing safe. On Yee spotted an opening but could not capitalise on a terrific opener and Gradinari took advantage.

He opened up an 18-1 advantage with just three minutes left of the allocated 10 assigned to each frame, and went on to seal the win to progress to the next round.

Gradinari is now the youngest player to win a televised match at a ranking event.

Awaiting his second round opponent, who he will face on Friday, Gradinari was excited at the prospect of continuing his journey at the tournament.

“I will be looking forward to it”, he added.

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