Mark Selby It was noted by eventual world champion John Higgins, amongst others, in his victory speech, that Selby was the most improved player on the tour. These performances in the 2006/07 season earned Selby a place in the top 16 for the very first time for the 2007/08 season, where he was ranked 11th. Selby's wins over Lee, Ebdon, Carter and Murphy at the 2007 World Championships also won him the inaugural 888.com Silver Chip award for outstanding performance, awarded by the Snooker Writers' Association at the post-championship ball. After a moderate start to the season, Selby had a strong run
Mark Selby tournament. Selby announced he was 90% fit just before the start of the 2012/2013 season as he continued his recovery from the disc bulge in his neck. His first event was the Wuxi Classic where, ironically, he played Hawkins in the last 32. Selby this time won 5–2 and then breezed past Jamie Cope 5–0 to set up a quarter-final match with in-form Stuart Bingham, which Selby lost 4–5.<ref name="2012/13"></ref> Selby then won seven matches in a row in reaching the quarter-finals of the Six-red World Championship, but there he lost 5–7 by Judd Trump. He then suffered a shock