Mcmanus is positive after English Open loss to Tian
• Scot sure he can still mix it with best • Dott safely through with win over Dunn
Three-times World Championship semi-finalist Alan Mcmanus may be out of the 19.com English Open but insisted there were plenty of positives to take from his campaign in Crawley.
The 48-year-old progressed to the second round with an impressive 4-2 win over twotime world runner-up Ali Carter, but couldn’t follow that up against China’s Tian Pengfei, succumbing to defeat by the same scoreline.
Mcmanus raced into the lead with a break of 93 in the first frame, but found himself pegged back to 3-1 down as Tian found his form with two half-centuries in the next three.
A 96-6 score in the fifth frame gave the Glaswegian hope of a comeback win, but world No 68 Tian put the game to bed in the next.
Despite the loss, Mcmanus was upbeat about his performance in West Sussex, and believes he has proved he can still mix it with the best.
“I felt good,” he said. “I started well and it could have gone either way out there, similar to my first match against Ali.
“A shot here or there was the difference and that’s what happens in best-of-seven-frames matches. Tian’s a really good player and I’ve got no idea how he’s been outside the top 64 for so long. He plays the game properly, and he just needs to work out how to get better results at the top level which I know he is capable of. But I’m pleased overall because I feel I’m playing well and that I’m able to compete, and that’s what I’m looking for.”
Graeme dott, the 2006 world Champion, successfully made it through to the third round, the Larkhall potter cruising to a 4-0 win over world No 65 Mike Dunn.
• Watch the English Open live on Eurosport and Eurosport Player with studio analysis from Ronnie O’sullivan and Jimmy White.