Chinese snooker prodigy Ding Junhui suffered an unexpected loss
on Thursday to Scottish veteran Graeme Dott, thus failing to reach
the last 8 of the Shanghai Masters.
China's snooker prodigy
Ding Junhui reacts during his match against Graeme Dott from
Scotland at the Shanghai Masters Snooker Tournament August 9, 2007.
Ding lost 1-5 and was eliminated from top 16.
Ding Junhui, 20, lost his second-ground match 1 - 5 to
30-year-old Graeme Dott, the winner of the 2006 World Championship
and the 2007 China Open.
Ding, who claimed the title of 2005 United Kingdom Snooker
Champion, blamed his failure to the cue tip, according to the
official Xinhua News.
Ding had his own cue tip broken in the first-round game against
compatriot Yu Delu, and failed to find a satisfactory new one ahead
of Thursday's match.
He changed his cue tips a couple of times during the game, but
never seemed to conquer his increasing anxiety. In front of a
full-house of adoring fans at the Shanghai Grand Stage, he was
defeated in less than two hours.
"I was upset and out of control," Ding confessed in a post-match
press conference.
Shanghai Daily commented that the home favorite was
"weighed down by the burden of high expectations."
Dott, currently world No. 2, will face Stephen Lee in the
quarterfinals.
Graeme Dott from Scotland
plays a shot during his match against China's Ding Junhui at the
Shanghai Masters Snooker Tournament August 9, 2007. Ding lost 1-5
and was eliminated from top 16.
(CRI August 10, 2007)
