Match Reports from the 888.com World Championship
Not So Krafty…Ken
Ken Doherty 3 – 6 Mark Allen
Mark Allen played some cracking snooker on his Crucible debut to put Ken Doherty on the back foot in their first round match.
The 21-year-old qualifier from Northern Ireland raced out of the traps with two 90-plus breaks in the first two frames. A stunned crowd watched on as he also picked up the next two to go into the interval 4-0 up.
The 1997 champion pulled himself together to win the next two frames, but he looked below par.
Allen stopped the rot with a 57 in the seventh frame to move 5-2 clear. The players shared the last two to finish with Allen 6-3 ahead.
The match resumes on day four’s morning session, and Doherty will be hoping to have cured his problems by then. The long matches at the Crucible give players a chance to recover, and a decent start for Krafty Ken could see the lead evaporate.
Allen’s performance is not entirely surprising. He has jumped up the world rankings this season, and a good tournament would see him catapulted into the top 32.
By David Pritchard
