Mark Allen to Miss British Open and English Open for Personal Reasons

Mark Allen will not play at the forthcoming British Open or English Open for personal reasons, the World Snooker Tour has confirmed. BBC Sport reported the withdrawals on Wednesday, extending the Northern Irish player's absence from professional competition and removing the reigning English Open champion from the next two ranking tournaments.

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Allen has already missed the Championship League, China Open and Wuhan Open, all ranking events, as well as the non-ranking Shanghai Masters. Sitting out the two Opens means the world number 13 will have been absent for the first five ranking events of the season. No further detail about the personal reasons for his withdrawals was provided in the confirmed announcement.

The English Open absence also means Allen will not defend the title he won in Brentwood last year. He had been scheduled to meet Sam Craigie in his opening match at this season's tournament. The event is due to run from 7 to 13 September, immediately after the British Open.

Allen had been drawn against Wang Xinbo in the first round of the British Open. That tournament is scheduled for 31 August to 6 September in Cheltenham. The World Snooker Tour confirmation therefore settles his status for both events before the two competitions begin on consecutive weeks.

His most recent competitive professional appearance came at the World Championship in Sheffield at the beginning of May. Allen reached the semi-finals for the third time before losing 17-16 to Wu Yize, who went on to win the championship. The match ended after Allen had missed a straight black from its spot in the penultimate frame when he had an opportunity to secure victory.

The latest withdrawals leave Allen's return date unspecified. What is confirmed is that his run away from competition will cover five ranking tournaments plus the Shanghai Masters, and that the English Open will crown a different champion this season. Any further timetable for the Antrim player's return will depend on a subsequent announcement from Allen or the World Snooker Tour.