Hossein Vafaei

Ranking titles: One

Career highlights

2011: Wins the World Amateur Championship at the age of just 17, beating Lee Walker in the final.
2012: Becomes the first Iranian player to compete on the pro tour.
2014: Wins the World Under-21 Championship, and makes a 147 in the semi-finals.
2017: Reaches his first ranking event semi-final at the China Open, beating Judd Trump in the quarters before losing to Mark Williams. Comes within one victory of becoming the first Iranian player to qualify for the Crucible.
2018: Again reaches the final qualifying round of the World Championship but loses.
2019: Reaches the semi-finals of the Welsh Open before losing to Neil Robertson. Another run to the last four – this time at the China Championship – ends with a narrow 6-5 defeat against Mark Williams. Climbs into the world’s top 32.
2020: Beats China’s Zhou Yuelong and Ding Junhui to reach the quarter-finals of the World Grand Prix.
2022: Makes history as the first Iranian player to win a world ranking title. His victory over Mark Williams in the BetVictor Shoot Out final is a landmark moment for Vafaei and snooker in Iran. Goes on to become the first Iranian player to compete at the Crucible; he wins two qualifying matches before losing 10-4 to Judd Trump in the last 32. Makes his first official 147 during the qualifying rounds of the European Masters.
2023: Reaches the Crucible for the second time and becomes the first Iranian to win a match at the venue, beating Ding Junhui to reach the last 16 before losing to Ronnie O’Sullivan.