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Tue, 1:00AM
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11.4°C
ESE 9mph
 | Sunrise | 6:08AM |
| Sunset | 5:53PM |  |
Blaine Roberts-McNally
Sports Reporter
P.ublished 28th September 2026
sports
What's On This Week 28th September- 2nd October
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Photo by Markus Winkler: Pexels
The Rocket is back in action in China after a semi-final exit in Wuhan to once again aim to make a mark on the world of snooker in East Asia 26 years after he first won a championship in the metropolis.
O’Sullivan is bidding to win his first ranking title since January 2024 in a place that may be close to his heart after he beat Mark Williams in China. Open in the city all the way back in 2000.
With the previous Xi’an Grand Peix being rebranded and moved to Shenzen, the competition will be hoping to make an impact as it returns to the city for the first time in a long time.
This could be the last time we see O'Sullivan until November, as the most successful snooker player of all time’s schedule has reduced. The Rocket has made it clear that he is on the charge for a record eighth World title, and a good run or even a win in this one would do him the world of good.
Hoping to stop him at the first hurdle is Jiang Jun, a youngster who could be onto great things in his third year as a professional. He is coming into this off the back of two consecutive victories over Florian Nussle in International Championship qualification and most recently Oliver Brown in Scottish Open qualification.
Time: 12:30
Venue: Bao’an Sports Centre, Shenzen
The match will be shown on TNT Sport
The World Grand Prix kicks off in Leicester this week, with the top 16 of the PDC all involved and looking to take the title from Luke Littler.
Van Gerwen will be hoping to add to his stellar record of six Grand Prix championships and get himself back amongst the best of the best which he undoubtedly was before the emergence of Luke Littler and Luke Humphries.
He last won a premier PDC event last year with the World Series, but he will be hungry to add to the trophy cabinet. The Dutchman will have to do better than his last match here; he lost 6-2 in the Players Championship quarter finals to Scott Williams.
Ryan Joyce will be hoping to make a name for himself in the Grand Prix and do better than his best showing, which was a semi-final appearance in 2024.
He proved in that year that he is capable of beating top-ranked opponents, as he slayed Josh Rock, Nathan Aspinall and Rob Cross.
More recently he reached the final of the European Tour at the Baltic Sea Darts Open, where he was defeated by Luke Woodhouse. He is coming into this one after a tight 5-6 loss to Ross Smith in the European Tour in Antwerp.
Prior to that, though, Joyce was on a three-match winning run and will be hoping to recapture that form and pull off one of the results of his career as he looks to conquer one of the best players the game has ever seen.
Time: 20:40
Venue: Mattioli Arena, Leicester
The match will be shown on Sky Sports Darts, PDC TV
The Three Lions look for redemption in the Nations League group stage after losing their opening fixture in the competition. Czechia are in the same boat and are hoping Prague is the stage to get their first points on the board and to compound on England’s misery.
It was a night to forget for Thomas Tuchel’s England at Wembley at the weekend as they faced off against world champions Spain. It did not take long for the Spaniards to take the lead, as Yamal took advantage of a Marc Guehi mistake to finish one-on-one with debutant starter James Trafford in goal.
The tide did begin to turn, though late on in the first half, as two goals in four minutes from Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane saw England 2-1 up heading into the break.
A missed penalty from Harry Kane early into the second period was a sign of things to come; however, after that Baena got the equaliser, and Oyarzabal broke Three Lions hearts with a 74th-minute winner.
Czechia also lost a tight game against Croatia, where the action took place in the second period, where the match came alive first with a Croatia goal from icon Luka Modric. It took just seven minutes for the hosts Czechia to respond through an equaliser from Karabec.
Croatia got the last laugh, though, as Pasalic scored the winner in the 77th minute, leaving the away side with all the spoils.
England will be hoping they can get back on track and will be buoyed by the fact that they have conceded just once in competitive away matches since Euro 2024. As well as the fact that Czechia have failed to win a competitive match in regular time this year. '
Time: 19:45
Venue: Fortuna Arena, Prague
The match will be shown on ITV1 ITV X
Also by Blaine Roberts-McNally...
What's On This Week, 14-18th SeptemberWhat's On This Week, 7th-11th SeptemberWhat's On This Week, 31st August-4th September?What's On This Week? 17th – 21st AugustWhat's On This Week 10th -14th AugustThe shortened address for this article is: newspub.uk/1212y