Murphy progresses in Preston Grand Prix
World champion Shaun Murphy is through to the second of the Preston Grand Prix after a convincing 5-2 victory over Leicester’s Mark Selby.
The Rotherham right-hander, who beat Welshman Matthew Stevens 18-16 in the Embassy World Championship final at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield at the end of last season, showed he has not lost of any of his potting class with breaks of 91 and 139.
Seeded number two for this year’s event at the Guild Hall, Murphy started slowly and lost a scrappy opening frame, before knuckling down to forge 4-1 ahead.
“It’s a mad free-for-all to get over the winning line at this stage in the competition, so I’m just glad to have got through,” said Murphy, who is relishing the prospect of trying to retain his world championship crown this term.
“My competition play has been few and far between, but I’ve played a little bit of snooker in the Betfred Premier League this season.
“I’m looking to get as far as I can in Preston. I was pleased with the way I played considering I’ve not had much tournament play.”
Selby knocked in a break of 60 in the sixth frame, but Murphy kept his composure to close out the match and will now meet either Andy Hicks or Sean Storey in the next round on Tuesday afternoon.
Asked whether being world champion had put added pressure on his young shoulders, the adopted Yorkshireman added: “I can sense a change in the crowd.
“There’s an expectation being the world champion, but that hasn’t changed my approach to matches.
“I’m just going to try and do what I did last year – and that’s to play my natural game.
“I suppose they expect you to finish frames off once you’re in the balls, but it’s nice to get a ripple of applause when before I just get a little clap.”
Murphy’s coach Steve Prest was full of praise for his star pupil and believes he can make improved strides this season.
“It was a very slick performance from Shaun and I’m very pleased for him,” said Prest.
“He showed last year that his natural game came through at the World Championship. We’ve worked hard during the summer and we’re looking forward to another good season.
“The aim is to get into the top 16 this season – and winning these first round matches in vitally important because there’s lots of ranking points up for grabs.”
The shock of the first round thus far came when emerging youngster Chris Norbury defeated James Wattana 5-2 thanks to breaks of 53, 78 and 64.
The local lad, who heralds from Accrington, raced into a 3-0 lead, before Wattana snatched a scrappy fourth frame with a 49 run and then a 56 break reduced the damage to 4-2.
But Norbury kept his cool and won the seventh frame, which lasted over 40 minutes, to progress.
Other victories on the opening afternoon came from Barry Hawkins, who beat Tony Drago 5-1 with breaks of 63, 88, 54 and 123, while Gerard Greene whitewashed Stephen Lee, the 1998 Grand Prix winner, 5-0.
