Marco Fu produced a late blitz to overcome 1997 Crucible king Ken Doherty 10-6 and move within two matches of a first trip to the Theatre of Dreams in six years at Cazoo World Championship qualifying in Sheffield.
Legendary Hong Kong cueman Fu’s last appearance at the Crucible came all the way back in 2018. Since then, he has had to endure a period of exile from the tour with travel restrictions during the pandemic and eye problems which have also kept him out of action for an extended period.
Though the eye issues persist, the three-time ranking event winner has shown flashes of form this season. He made the last 16 at the Welsh Open and thrashed Mark Selby 5-1 at the German Masters, before being forced to retire from his second round match against Alfie Davies in the mid-session.
Fu and Doherty were nip and tuck for much of the match today. However, with the scores locked at 6-6, it was Fu who produced a scintillating burst for the finish line. Breaks of 97, 136 and 61 saw him move one from the win at 9-6. He then embarked on a 147 attempt in the last frame, but the final two reds were at the baulk end and his run ended on 104 attempting to get position on the black.
Next up here at the English Institute of Sport, Fu faces a tough test against Iranian number one Hossein Vafaei.
“Ken is an old friend and old opponent. I’ve been playing him since I first turned professional and he is a tremendous player. You don’t expect him to be the same standard as 20 years ago, but he is still so classy around the table, beautiful to watch. That class will always be there. It is always nice playing him, a bit like a reunion after what happened with Covid.”
Marco Fu
Former Crucible Semi-Finalist
Fu added: “It has always been a privilege and a dream for everybody to play at the Crucible. I miss playing there. I’m just going to take it one match at a time. I needed to win four matches at the start of the event to get there, I’ve won two and it is going to get more difficult. I’m starting to enjoy playing and that is the most important thing.
“It shows the standard nowadays that Hossein is at the qualifiers. That shows you how strong the game is. I’m looking forward to playing him. He is an attacking player and quite quick. It is going to be a good game.”
Belgian Julien Leclecq appears to have all but secured his tour survival after a crucial 10-3 win over Hayden Pinhey. The 21-year-old former Shoot Out finalist now plays Joe O’Connor in round three.
Scotland’s 2006 World Champion Graeme Dott scored a 10-5 win over the Egyptian Mostafa Dorgham, while Jiang Jun sprung a shock 10-8 win over former European Masters winner Fan Zhengyi.