Stephen Hendry conjured up a spell-binding performance to mesmerise apprentice Ryan Day in the (pounds) 695,000 Benson and Hedges Masters at Wembley yesterday.
Hendry is anxious to add a seventh Benson crown in London this week to his seven world titles. On the evidence of his 6-0 victory over his 21-year-old Welsh rival, he has every chance of claiming the gold cup for the first time in six years.
Hendry achieved the highest break of the event so far in his 96-minute whitewash of Masters newcomer Day. He followed his run of 103 with further frame-winning efforts of 89, 60, 91, and 84. Day, a 6-3 winner over Dave Harold on his Benson debut on Monday, managed just 45 in frame three - which he was unlucky to lose. Hendry stole it on the black, and after that it was plain sailing.
''If I had won that frame it might have been a different match,'' said Day, who can now concentrate his efforts on qualifying next week for the final stages of the world championship.
''But after that I didn't have much of a chance. That's the first time I've played Stephen, and I hope I won't meet him too often in the future if he's going to play like that.''
Hendry is back to his best after 27 months in the wilderness, ended when the 33-year-old Scot captured the European Open title in Malta last November.
''I've always had belief in my ability and never thought I was finished in the game,'' he said. ''I am not saying I'm back and I'm going to do this and that, but I'm in a position to be competing again and getting in positions to win tournaments.'' Hendry next plays world No.1 Mark Williams or Mark King on Friday for a place in the semi-finals.
Hendry went on: ''Do I have any sympathy for Ryan? Not at all. You are here to destroy your opponent as well as you can. Ryan has got to learn the hard way, but I'm sure he will because he's a good young player.''
Meanwhile, Scotland's Graeme Dott lost a hard-fought tussle with Peter Ebdon last night. World No.7 Ebdon recovered from 4-1 down to beat the Masters debutant 6-4 and set up a last-eight meeting with defending champion Paul Hunter.
The match was played at a methodical pace, lasting three hours and 56 minutes, and contained several twists and turns before Ebdon ground out his win. Ebdon compiled a break of 124, the highest of the tournament so far, to reduce his arrears to 4-2, won a scrappy seventh, and levelled at 4-4 with a run of 84.
He then took the lead by potting brown to pink in the ninth after Dott had failed to regain the lead when he missed the brown bridging over the blue, and Ebdon wrapped up victory in four separate visits in the last to reach the quarter-finals.
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