Gradinari Books Second Round Slot
Moldova’s talented 14-year-old star Vladislav Gradinari eased to the second round of Q School Event Two, thanks to a 4-0 whitewash win over Simon Bevz in Leicester.
Gradinari and his family moved to the UK in 2021 for him to pursue a career in snooker. He has already reaped the rewards of that, having won the English Under-14 Championship and made the last 32 of the Shoot Out earlier this year.
The Moldovan closed today’s win out with a break of 57 in the fourth. He now faces a tricky test in the second round against Ireland’s Ross Bulman. Although he’s aware of his family’s sacrifices to get to this point, Gradinari is keen to stay in the moment and enjoy his development as a player.
“We have sacrificed everything in our lives, my parents especially, just to get here and play near some professionals at the best level. I want to get as much experience as I can from these players. I need to enjoy playing at this age, because it is going to be difficult to enjoy it later,” said Gradinari.
“The Shoot Out was different. I have never felt anything like this. I was shaking in the first match. I couldn’t feel the crowd because there was so much space between the crowd and the table. It was like a practice table with sounds. I tried to enjoy it. The tournament was so much fun and it is perfect for kids to get some experience playing on the TV stage.”
Ukrainian 17-year-old Iulian Boiko bounced straight back from the disappointment of defeat in the final round of event one, defeating James Height 4-0. Boiko fired in breaks of 68, 90 and 56 on his way to victory.
Craig Steadman and Stuart Carrington, who were relegated from the professional circuit at the end of last season, scored wins to earn second round slots. Steadman came from 2-1 down to beat Jake Crofts 4-2, while Carrington whitewashed Pommy Kang 4-0.
Event two runs until Tuesday, with four tour cards on the professional circuit up for grabs.