Higgins Hammers Phetmalaikul
John Higgins rattled in two centuries and three more breaks over 50 as he beat Manasawin Phetmalaikul 6-1 in the qualifying round for the International Championship.
Four time Crucible king Higgins can look forward to a trip to Tianjin in China in November for the £825,000 world ranking event. Runs of 50, 51, 115, 137 and 57 helped the Scot to an emphatic win over Thailand’s Phetmalaikul.
Neil Robertson’s Australian derby with Ryan Thomerson was in the balance at 4-4, before Robertson pulled away to take the last two frames, closing with a break of 104.
Crucible semi-finalist Si Jiahui edged out Julien Leclercq 6-5 in a dramatic finish. Shoot Out runner-up Leclercq made a 122 to level at 5-5 then led 56-0 in the decider, only for China’s Si to snatch it with a 68 clearance.
Shaun Murphy top scored with 88 in a 6-1 win over Andres Petrov while Joe O’Connor compiled runs of 131, 81 and 90 in a 6-1 defeat of Baipat Siripaporn.
Marco Fu enjoyed a 6-4 success against Robert Milkins, making breaks of 87 and 68 in the last two frames. John Astley potted blue and pink in the deciding frame to beat Jamie Clarke 6-5.