The Sheffield potter beat Leicester’s Joe O’Connor 10-8 in a dramatic final round qualifying match at the English Institute of Sport on Tuesday night, to secure his Crucible debut.
The 27-year-old from Yorkshire produced century breaks of 112 and 107, but had to put up with a late rally from O’Connor, a regular sparring partner, before a daring brace from Black secured victory.
Earlier, Lyu Haotian, who trains alongside Hugill at Sheffield’s Victoria’s Academy, secured his own passage into the Crucible, beating veteran Dominic Dale 10-4.
Former World No. 1 Ding Junhui recovered from 7-4 to beat David Lilley 10-7 and secure his return to the Crucible.
The 35-year-old potter from Sheffield was quick off the blocks with breaks of 137 and 76, before falling behind.
But the 14-time qualifying event winner, forced into the qualifying rounds after dropping to 29th in the world rankings, made an impressive comeback to join the draw.
In 2016, Ding made it out of the qualifying rounds and made it all the way to the Crucible finals, only to lose to Mark Selby.
Michael White has become the second fan to make it to the Crucible after beating Jordan Brown in the final qualifying round.
The 30-year-old from Neath sealed a 10-8 win for a chance to emulate James Cahill, who beat Ronnie O’Sullivan in the first round in 2019.
White has made the main draw on three previous occasions, including reaching the quarter-finals on his debut in 2013, but pulled out of the tour in 2020 after a sudden loss of form.
Having negotiated four qualifying rounds, White is now guaranteed a return to the professional tour next season, admitting: “It means a lot to me.
“I have been working very hard and I feel like I deserve it. I’ve had problems off the table, but that’s behind me and I have good people around me.”
Former UK champion Stephen Maguire defeated Zhou Yuelong 10-7.
Other winners on the first of two final qualifying nights included Jamie Jones, Scott Donaldson and Thailand’s Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who beat Matthew Selt 10-7.
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Source: www.yorkshirepost.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-04-12 22:13:01
