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Hawkins ends Ding Crucible dreams


Chinese teenager Ding Junhui failed to make the final stages of the World Championships after a 10-6 defeat to Barry Hawkins in Prestatyn on Tuesday. The 18-year-old was tipped to compete for the title at the Crucible after his UK Championship win in December.

 

Despite easing back from 6-3 down, Ding lost the last four frames to miss out on the televised stages in Sheffield.

John Parrott, the 1991 world champion, beat Mansfield's Lee Spick 10-9 to clinch his 22nd Crucible appearance. Parrott was an ever present at Sheffield from 1983 to 2004 but missed out last year when he lost 10-8 to Fergal O'Brien in Prestatyn.

 I was really pleased with how I finished it off in the last frame. Barry Hawkins The 41-year-old, who has slipped to 44th place in the provisional rankings, led Spick 8-5 but lost four successive frames before battling through.

He said: "I just wanted to qualify so that my wife and kids could sit in the front row and watch me walk through those curtains again in Sheffield." Hawkins, meanwhile, reached the semi-finals of the Welsh Open a fortnight ago and is now up to eighth in the provisional rankings.

He produced a superb 51 clearance against Ding to restore his advantage at 7-6 and potted a long black to clinch the next. And he sealed victory with a break of 106 to claim a Crucible place for the first time in his career. "I knew it would be a tough game and there had been a lot of build-up to the match but I just tried to play the same way I have been all season," he said.

This is just how it is - there are so many good snooker players around From EV "I made some good clearances and I was really pleased with how I finished it off in the last frame. "I've never played at the Crucible and never even been to watch. I've now qualified and secured my top 16 place as well so it doesn't get much better than that." Robert Milkins made the seventh maximum break in the 79-year history of the World Championship - but still missed out on a place at the Crucible.

The Gloucester player, 30, made the 147 in frame eight, pocketing £5,000, but was eventually beaten 10-4 by Mark Selby in the final round of qualifying. It was the first maximum made in the qualifying rounds of the tournament.

Selby will be joined in the first round in Sheffield by fellow Englishmen Nigel Bond and Ali Carter. Bond won after opponent Mike Dunn withdrew with a back injury midway through their match while Carter defeated Michael Judge 10-5.