Ding Junhui was sent tumbling out of the WST Classic at the first hurdle by Xu Si, leaving his Tour Championship hopes hanging in the balance.
The Chinese superstar, who returned to the winner’s circle for the first time since 2019 with victory at the Six Red World Championship in Thailand earlier in the month, arrived at the Morningside Arena in Leicester as seventh on the one-year list for qualification for the eight-player Tour Championship .
Ad Ding’s exit has opened the door for a host of players, notably Jack Lisowski, to book a place in the field in Hull at the end of this month.
UK ChampionshipDing holds off late Ford fightback to reach UK Championship final19/11/2022 AT 16:25 He looked well placed to qualify as breaks of 133 and 59 enabled him to force a decider, but Ding was left cold in the final frame a Xu clinched the win with a fantastic 138.
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