Stephen Maguire after missing the black. (Image: BBC)
Stephen Maguire made no attempt to hide his frustration after blowing a frame against Sanderson Lam at the Welsh Open. The Scot was leading the clash 2-1, as the fourth frame came to a nail-biting conclusion.
Trailing 65-61, Maguire had what appeared a routine black to rack up a two-frame advantage.
However, he duly missed the pot, giving his shocked opponent the chance to level the match.
As Maguire made his way back to his seat, he slammed his hand down on the table. To compound matters, he was then forced to watch as his English rival made it 2-2.
The facial expression of ‘On Fire’ said it all, but to his credit he did regain his composure to again seize the initiative in the third round clash. He duly took the next frame to edge back in front.
And in the best-of-seven-frame contest, Maguire continued his renewed momentum to also win the frame that followed and seal a 4-2 win. The 43-year-old is now in the quarter-finals and appears a serious contender for the title.
Maguire banged the table before returning to his seat. (Image: BBC)
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Indeed, the missed black was a rare error from the 2004 winner this week. He had caught the eye in his opening two victories, beating Xu Si 4-2 before knocking out home favourite by the same scoreline.
During that match, Maguire won kudos with the crowd despite the majority of them backing Williams. He jokingly shouted “just sit down” after his opponent had fired the cue ball of the table, an incident which left both players laughing.
Maguire has pedigree in Wales, previously winning the ranking event in 2013 in what proved a thrilling final. He came back from 5–7 down against Stuart Bingham, eventuallty making a composed 82 break in the decider to triumph 9–8.
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He also made the semi-final stage in 2021, and is chasing the seventh professional tournament win of his career. The world No.29 now awaits the winner of the clash between Matthew Selt and Jack Lisowski.
Maguire is yet to play in a semi-final in the 2024/25 season. And his resurgence in Llandudno has come as a surprise following his first-round exit in his last event at the German Masters.