Doherty finds top gear to coast past Dunn
Ken Doherty, clicking into form at just the right time, made a flying start to the Honghe Industrial China Open yesterday.
Looking for a confidence-boosting run in Beijing ahead of next month's World Championship, Doherty comfortably reached the last-16 with a comprehensive 5-2 victory over Englishman Mike Dunn.
And Doherty, desperate for a positive result having slipped to 15th in the provisional world rankings, immediately signalled his intent with a 140 total clearance in the opening frame.
Dunn, a board member of the sport's governing body, the WPBSA, responded well to lead 2-1 but Doherty reeled off the following four frames, helped by runs of 64 and 63, to earn a second-round meeting with Welshman Ryan Day.
"I'm very pleased to get through." said Doherty.
"It doesn't matter what tournament you're in, there's always a lot of pressure involved with your first match and that's even more acute when you've travelled such a long way.
"I've always enjoyed playing here and in Asia in general. It's a good feeling to spread the snooker gospel around the world and that's what we're doing.
"The season didn't start well for me but since Christmas I've had a lot more of my old confidence back and I'm playing an awful lot better."
While Doherty will remain in the Chinese capital for at least two more days, fellow Dubliner Fergal O'Brien will be returning home after losing a high-quality encounter 5-3 to Scotland's Stephen Maguire.
O'Brien scored heavily, compiling breaks of 86, 70, 62 and 128, but could not reverse the result when he tackled Maguire in the Northern Ireland Trophy final in Belfast four months ago.
"I'm really disappointed. You never want to lose but I suppose it's a little easier to accept when you play reasonably well. I just came up against a very strong opponent," said O'Brien, whose season is now over after failing to qualify for the World Championship at the Crucible.
- Phil Yates
