New Delhi: Ace India cueist Aditya Mehta rode on his safety play to beat England's Hammad Miah 4-1 and enter the pre-quarterfinals of the Indian Open world snooker ranking tournament on Wednesday.
Cali World Games gold medallist Mehta, who had beaten former World champion Peter Ebdon in the previous round, was better at safety play that marked the contest and it helped him especially in the fifth frame when he made up a 40-point deficit before clearing the table after Miah missed the yellow.
Although Mehta's victory was expected, the 27-year-old from Mumbai, ranked 72nd, was made to fight in every frame by the World No.107 Miah, who is playing in his first season on the pro tour.
The 20-year-old Miah had his chances when he constructed a break of 97 in the first frame that underlined his potential but his inexperience on the pro circuit cost him dear.
Mehta took the second frame on runs of 28 and 42 after conceding the first frame 20-97 to Miah, who had lost against the Indian 0-5 in their previous meeting.
Mehta then had the next three frames with a high break of 67 in the fourth, followed by the 27 in the fifth.
Bangladesh-origin Miah, who was born in England, let go a 40-point lead in the fifth and misjudged a yellow to leave Mehta in position to clear the table.
After the match, Mehta, who had beaten Miah 5-0 in the Shanghai Masters qualifying tournament, said, "I played better safety today and forced a few mistakes from my opponent. In the first frame, I missed an easy pink and he made a 97. My mindset was not to get negative and go for my shots when there was an opportunity.
"It was not an open game and I thought I played solid. My break of 67 in the fourth was crucial as it helped me control the match better. The fifth was a bit scrappy, but I was happy with the 27 clearance under pressure," he added.
Last of the Indian qualifiers in contention, Dharminder Lilly looked a novice playing seasoned pro Mark Selby, the third frame being the worst, where he could not pot a single red, ending the qualifiers dream of Pro circuit.
Earlier, Anthony McGill from Scotland continued his good run in the tournament when he defeated Ireland's Fergal O'Brien 4-1, while compatriot and World No.5 Stephen Maguire won a hard-fought 4-3 contest against England's Tom Ford.
Also through to the round of 16 was World No.4 Ding Junhui of China, who defeated England's Mark Joyce 4-3.
Results (Second round):
Mark Williams bt Mark Selby 4-1 (79-39, 76-0, 69-64, 0-105, 100-0); Aditya Mehta (IND) bt Hammad Miah (ENG) 4-1 (20-97, 74-02, 69-27, 68-00, 69-60); Ding Junhui (CHN) bt Mark Joyce (ENG) 4-3 (07-75, 68-44, 70-09, 22-70, 22-60, 70-19, 89-07); Stephen Maguire (SCO) bt Tom Ford (ENG) 4-3 (85-00, 52-71, 59-79, 60-52, 01-70, 93-00, 54-46); Robbie Williams (ENG) bt Andrew Higginson (ENG) 4-1 (62-18, 75-13, 60-05, 11-73, 103-00); Michael White (ENG) bt Zhang Anda (CHN) 4-3 (08-92, 00-133, 69-23, 55-21, 41-66, 76-40, 79-26); Liang Wenbo (CHN) bt Dechawat Poomjaeng (THA) 4-2 (01-71, 100-01, 87-00, 75-11, 47-63, 84-50); Anthony McGill (SCO) bt Fergal O?Brien (IRE) 4-1 (63-65, 77-25, 75-0, 62-44, 60-49); Mark Davis (ENG) bt Michael Holt (ENG) 4-1 (01-71, 83-1, 58-38, 60-11, 75-00).
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