{"id":7689,"date":"2026-04-22T14:44:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T14:44:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=7689"},"modified":"2026-04-22T14:44:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T14:44:31","slug":"chris-wakelin-not-feeling-love-from-stephen-hendry-he-doesnt-think-im-any-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=7689","title":{"rendered":"Chris Wakelin not feeling love from Stephen Hendry: ‘He doesn’t think I’m any good’"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Chris Wakelin is certain Stephen Hendry doesn\u2019t rate his game (Pictures: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Chris Wakelin does not feel like he gets the credit he deserves from Stephen Hendry, believing the seven-time world champion \u2018clearly doesn\u2019t think he\u2019s any good.\u2019<\/p>\n

The world number 13 got his World Snooker Championship campaign off to a winning start by beating Liam Pullen 10-6 on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The 34-year-old has had a great couple of seasons on tour, with his Scottish Open title this season his second ranking tournament win, which followed an impressive Crucible quarter-final run last season.<\/p>\n

The Monster is firmly establishing himself in the upper echelons of the game, but he does not feel like Hendry sees him that way.<\/p>\n

In fact he thinks the seven-time world champion doesn\u2019t rate him at all, claiming that Hendry suggested Pullen could beat him at the Crucible despite having never watched the 20-year-old play.<\/p>\n

\u2018Someone who doesn\u2019t rate me at all is Stephen Hendry,\u2019 Wakelin said after his first round win. \u2018Every single Players event, whenever I\u2019m playing a match on TV he always says the other guy is going to win. I laugh about it every time and it gives me a lot of pleasure to just go out there and do my thing.<\/p>\n

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You’re in the right place. I’m Phil Haigh, and I cover the game we all love for Metro<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In my new newsletter, The Table, I’ll be analysing the biggest talking points, breaking down frames and crowning the week’s winners and losers every Monday.<\/p>\n

The World Championship is here, so there’s no better time to sign up.<\/p>\n

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Phil has been reporting on snooker for over a decade, since working in World Snooker’s press office in 2012<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\u2018He obviously doesn\u2019t rate me at all because I\u2019m not world number one or world champion in the past, but it\u2019s my job just to go out there and focus on my game. You\u2019re always going to have critics in this sport as you do in every sport so it doesn\u2019t surprise me in the slightest.<\/p>\n

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Wakelin got the better of debutant Liam Pullen in the opening round (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018Even on his YouTube the other day, which I\u2019m a big fan of and watch it every week, he said on there that he fancied Liam Pullen to beat me, and in the next breath he said I\u2019ve never seen him play before. Whatever.\u2019<\/p>\n

It was actually Steve Davis who suggested Pullen could have a run on Hendry\u2019s CueTips channel, but the Scot did admit that he hadn\u2019t seen him play.<\/p>\n

Hendry did say of Wakelin that he was a \u2018lesser seed\u2019 than some others, when he was referring to Liam Highfield taking on world champion Zhao Xintong he said: \u2018The fact he\u2019s playing the world champion; all the attention isn\u2019t on him. Or would he want one of the less [seeds]. For example, this is no disrespect, but let\u2019s say he\u2019d have drawn Chris Wakelin, would that make a difference for Liam Highfield.\u2019<\/p>\n

Wakelin suggested this feeling has been running for a number of years as he played Hendry in 2021 and took the opportunity to get a dig in back then.<\/p>\n

\u2018When I played him a few years ago [losing 3-2 at the British Open], everyone was ringing me up before and saying, \u201coh you\u2019re playing him, he\u2019s come back,\u201d I thought I\u2019d have a little dig so when they asked me, are you looking forward to playing a seven-time world champion and legend, I said I was a bit young to remember when he was at his best but my mum was a huge fan \u2013 and then he beat me!<\/p>\n

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Stephen Hendry is a pundit for BBC and Channel 5 (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018I\u2019ve got a massive amount of respect for anyone who\u2019s ever won a tournament in this game, it\u2019s so difficult. Stephen being a seven-time world champion I\u2019ve got nothing but admiration for the guy but he clearly doesn\u2019t think I\u2019m any good.\u2019<\/p>\n

Asked if Wakelin would like to see Ronnie O\u2019Sullivan go clear of Hendry on eight World Championship titles this year, he said with a laugh: \u2018Oh yeah, just to see his face at the end. <\/p>\n

\u2018They\u2019ll definitely stick him on commentary for the final session of the final. It will be a long time coming and it would be quite funny. I\u2019d be at the front of the queue to congratulate Ronnie.\u2019<\/p>\n

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