Story bySteve Sutcliffe - BBC Sport journalist at York BarbicanSun, December 7, 2025 at 11:44 PM UTC·1 min readDefending champion Shaun Murphy will play Wu Yize in the first round of the 2026 Masters at Alexandra Palace. Mark Selby's victory in Sunday's UK Championship final promoted him to eighth seed for the tournament, meaning he will play Xiao Guodong. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSelby's triumph meant Ronnie O'Sullivan dropped out of the seeded positions, handing him a mouth-watering meeting with Neil Robertson. World number one Judd Trump will face Ding Junhui in a repeat of this week's UK Championship quarter-final, which the Englishman won 6-2. The tournament, in which only the top 16 in the world rankings compete, will run from 11-18 January. Two-time Masters winner Robertson taking on eight-time champion O'Sullivan is arguably the standout tie of the round. However, the match between left-handers Mark Williams and Mark Allen, plus John Higgins' tie against Barry Hawkins, also promise to be intriguing contests. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMasters first-round drawShaun Murphy v Wu YizeMark Selby v Xiao GuodongNeil Robertson v Ronnie O'SullivanKyren Wilson v Si JiahuiJudd Trump v Ding JunhuiMark Williams v Mark AllenJohn Higgins v Barry HawkinsZhao Xintong v Gary Wilson.