Hendry takes control at the Crucible
Sunday, 29 April 2001 18:51Stephen Hendry took an early grip of his Embassy World Championship second-round clash with rising star Paul Hunter in Sheffield today. Far from impressive in his opening match against Mark Davis, third seed Hendry had been short of confidence but looked much more like his old self as he claimed a 6-2 first-session lead against Hunter.
The 32-year-old Scot was also helped by some careless play from an opponent touted as a leading contender for the crown following an impressive second half of the campaign. Hunter started well, knocking in a break of 92 in the opening frame to draw first blood.
But the Yorkshireman found himself 3-1 down at the mid-session interval as Hendry bounced back with breaks of 49, 71 and a superb 129 - his first century of the tournament. The 14th seed from Leeds pulled one back straight after the resumption but from then on it was vintage Hendry as he punished every Hunter mistake.
Runs of 51, 100 and 95 followed as the most successful player in the history of the sport showed he is not yet ready to be put in his place by one of the emerging upstarts. This was one of the last two second-round matches to get under way and in the other Patrick Wallace gained an early edge in the battle of the qualifiers against Mark King.
Seeking a quarter-final against his lifelong friend Joe Swail, the Ulsterman showed his 10-2 trouncing of Alan McManus was no fluke by grabbing a 5-3 advantage over the world number 22 from Romford. Wallace, in his first year at the Crucible, started quicker than his opponent and played solidly throughout the first session, registering three half-century breaks in addition to the highlight, a splendid 104. (PA)
Filed by Sinéad Kissane
