Cyclone Storms To Turkey Spot
UK Champion Zhao Xintong brushed aside Louis Heathcote 5-1 in an hour and 15 minutes to qualify for the final stages of the Nirvana Turkish Masters.
Zhao will now be in attendance at the main event, which takes place at Antalya on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast next month with a prize pot of £500,000 up for grabs.
The Chinese 24-year-old is in the form of his career so far, having won a maiden Triple Crown title at the UK Championship in December. Zhao added a second ranking event win last week at the German Masters, where he scored a stunning 9-0 defeat of close friend Yan Bingtao in the title match.
Zhao trailed this afternoon’s encounter 1-0 after Heathcote claimed the opener with a run of 77. However, from there it was one-way traffic with Zhao surging to the line with a barrage of breaks. He fired in contributions of 54, 101, 51 and 105 on his way to five on the bounce to wrap up the tie.
Graeme Dott sealed his qualification with a 5-0 whitewash win against Liverpool teenager Sean Maddocks. The 2006 Crucible king composed breaks of 52, 52 and 56 during the rout.
World number 96 Jackson Page secured a shock 5-3 win over 2015 World Champion Stuart Bingham. Welshman Page’s top score was a run of 63 in the decisive frame.
John Higgins came from 3-1 down to beat Barry Pinches 5-3. The four-time World Champion composed a break of 130 during the turnaround.
Shaun Murphy defeated Jimmy White 5-2, while Mark Allen beat Chang Bingyu by the same score line.
Yuan Sijun earned his trip to Turkey with a 5-3 win over Barry Hawkins, while Oliver Lines whitewashed Mark Lloyd 5-0.
For full results click here.