Stephen Maguire holds off Zhao Xintong fightback to seal quarter-final spot

Stephen Maguire booked his place in the quarter-finals of the World Snooker Championship with a borrowed cue after withstanding a fightback from Zhao Xintong in Sheffield.

The 41-year-old Scot resumed the final session of their match two frames from victory but lost four of the first five frames on Saturday before a break of 59 saw him seal a 13-9 win over the Chinese seventh seed.

Maguire, a two-time semi-finalist who has plummeted to 40 in the current world rankings, revealed he took drastic measures after being distinctly unimpressed with his form during a gruelling first-round win over Shaun Murphy.

Maguire, who is guaranteed at least £50,000 by reaching the last eight, said: “When I played Shaun I was rubbish and Shaun was even worse, so I went back up to Glasgow and made my mind up that I wasn’t coming back with that cue because I felt like I had no chance.

“I borrowed my mate’s cue and had a couple of days of practice with it and liked it, and it has seemed to pay off. I’ll ask my mate how much he wants for it – hopefully not a lot.”

Zhao had threatened to launch a stirring comeback after making a good start to their final session, and could have heaped more pressure on Maguire in the 22nd frame, only for a missed pink to the middle to effectively end his chances.

“I think I can learn from this experience and next year I will be better,” said Zhao, for whom defeat rounds off a breakthrough season that saw him clinch the UK and German Masters crowns. “I have confidence that one day I will win this tournament.”