Tehran: The prominent Iranian snooker player, Hossein Vafaei, with a brilliant performance in the 2026 Snooker Championship League, advanced to the final stage and ultimately finished among the top four players of the event.

According to Islamic Republic News Agency, the 2026 Snooker Championship League was held from June 23 to July 15, and Vafaei progressed to the final stage of the tournament. In the qualifying round, Vafaei was placed in Group 18. He first defeated his British rival Oliver Sykes of England 3-1, then beat Florian Nuble from Austria 3-0, and in his third match, drew 2-2 with Chinese snooker player Fang Zhengyi, finishing as the group leader to advance to the main Stage B.

In his first match, he overpowered Luca Brecel, the Belgian star and former world champion, 3-0. Vafaei then beat Ian Burns from England 3-1 and drew against Peng Junxu, securing his place in the next round and finishing among the top eight players.

In the final stage, Iran's snooker national player lost his first match 3-0 to Jack Jones from Wales, but then delivered a dominant performance to beat Dylan Emery, another Welsh representative, by the same score of 3-0. In his third and final match, Vafaei drew 2-2 with Zhang Anda from China. Vafaei finished runner-up in the final group stage, narrowly missing the final match, and wrapped up his run as one of the top four players of the 2026 Snooker Championship League.