Shaun Murphy regrets the timing of his comments following his defeat to Chinese amateur Si Jiahui in the opening round of the UK Snooker Championship earlier this week.
The world number six lost 6-5 to Si, and afterwards stated his belief that amateur players should not be allowed to compete against professionals. Murphy believes that in facing amateurs, he is up against individuals playing without pressure.
"I think if I could go back in time I perhaps wouldn’t have said what I said, having just lost to Si Jiahui,” Murphy told BBC.
"I think it took the shine off his victory and I regret that, and I’d like to apologise to him for that.
"It was a great win, he played really well. He played better than I did, and he deserved his victory."
Shaun Murphy on defeat to Si Jiahui at UK Snooker Championship
Though he felt the timing could have been better chosen, Murphy said "I stand by my point of view."
"I don’t think amateur players should be allowed to able to play in professional events," he added.
"Ultimately the powers that be, [CEO] Steve Dawson and his team at World Snooker Tour, they’ve been very clear on the commercial reasons why we allow amateurs and top ups into the game."
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