KEIGHLEY potter Rebecca Kenna is over the moon to be competing in the BetVictor World Mixed Doubles in September, calling it “the biggest thing to happen to women’s snooker”.

The pioneering tournament will see the world’s top four men – Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, Mark Selby and Neil Robertson – each paired with one of the top four women – Reanne Evans, Ng On Yee, Nutcharut Wongharuthai and Kenna.

Televised live by ITV, the invitation event will take place over the weekend of September 24-25 at the Marshall Arena at MK Stadium in Milton Keynes.

Kenna beamed: “It’s a great line up and I’m really looking forward to it.

“Having us four women on the professional tour has catapulted our game into the spotlight, but to now have this tournament on ITV, there’ll be loads of people who’ll see it.

“We’re mixing with four men at the top of our sport too, so I think it’s the biggest thing to happen to women’s snooker.”

Asked who she would like to be paired up with, Kenna said: “I literally have no preference.

“I still can’t compute the idea that I’ll be playing against three of them and will have one as my team-mate.

“It’s amazing, and having this experience will be massive. It’ll be an honour to play with them.”

This will be snooker’s first televised mixed doubles tournament in over 30 years, and Kenna said: “It’s a testament to how much the women’s game has grown lately.

“It needs pushing because we have better quality players now and those opportunities have grown.

“We’ve had years of women not playing for big prize money and not having big tournaments, but it’s events like this Mixed Doubles one that get the snowball rolling.”

She added: “These invitational events are normally reserved for elite players, so it’s a fresh test.

“It’s so high-profile, so I’m hoping it helps with my nerves and pressure, and I hope it makes me relax going forward.”

It’s a round-robin format at these mixed doubles, with each team-mate making alternate visits to the table, and then a final.

Kenna said: “It’s good having a round-robin, because it means I get to play everyone.

“I play all the time against the other three women, but I’m having to pinch myself about facing those male players, though I’ve got other tour matches first.

“That pushes me to have extra focus, and knuckle down before this big test.”

Kenna’s professional career has only just started, or rather, false started.

She explained: “My World Snooker Tour card started the other week, and my first event should have been the Championship League, but I was on holiday last week so I had to miss it.

“There are four weeks of Stage One and it was just bad luck that I’d been drawn to play that week.

“I asked to change my game week around but I wasn’t allowed.

“That means my first game on the professional tour is in a couple of weeks against Barry Pinches in qualifying for the European Masters.

“I have the UK Women’s Championship at the end of the month, and I want to play in as many of the women’s events as I can too, as long as they don’t clash with the professional tour.”