Three-time world champion, Mark Williams was stunned by Peter Devlin who got the better of him in their European Masters clash. Not many would have given the 24-year-old a chance against the Welshman. But the rookie who just turned professional a month ago, had full control of the game from start to finish.
Indeed, by the fifth frame, Devlin had established a 4-1 lead. Williams tried to stage a comeback but the resilient Devlin held his nerve to record a huge win against the world number 10. Surely, Devlin’s final push was the straw that broke the camel’s back – an impressive break of 102.
The excited youngster had this to say after the game. “What a time to make a century, in a deciding frame against someone like that. It’s unbelievable,”
Devlin might have fancied his chances of progressing but surely did not expect to do it so commandingly. He admitted that at 4-1, he thought Williams could stage a comeback. The young lad who just came through Q school said he knew players like Mark could stage such miraculous comebacks by winning subsequent frames even when their opponents didn’t do much wrong.
He said he had a bit of adrenaline rush when the scores were tied at 4-4 but managed to calm down again. The snooker professional cut rapper who owns a YouTube channel was excited about how his life has turned a new corner in the last two months. What a win it was for Devlin!
Elsewhere, Mark Allen came out tops in his battle against Ken Doherty. Battle is such a courteous word to use to describe this clash. A more befitting description would be a whitewash as Allen hammered Doherty by a 5-0 score line. In the process of killing off the game, Allen equaled the record of the most consecutive centuries in a game, hitting four in the 5-0 win over his opponent.
The Irishman hit breaks of 134, 101, 141 and 145 in the first four frames, but failed to hit another in the fifth frames. He’s isn’t tire of smashing centuries, is he? Allen also recorded three centuries in his first-round win over Florian Nuessle.
Written by: Roland Arum
