Elliott Slessor admits he was set to quit snooker for poker as Mark Williams maintains title charge
/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2015/04/22/1462335-31243733-310-310.jpg)
Updated 24/11/2017 at 23:56 GMT
Elliot Slessor emerged victorious from a turgid snooker marathon with the unheralded Li Yuan as a 5-4 win sealed his place in the semi-finals of the Northern Ireland Open in Belfast.
Elliot Slessor is through to his first ranking semi-final in Belfast.
Image credit: Eurosport
In an eminently forgettable nine frames of snooker, world number 82 Slessor kept his composure in a rancid affair with the 99th ranked Li that lasted for four hours and 39 minutes at the Belfast Waterfront with an average frame duration of 31 minutes.
Slessor, whose highest break was only 52, said he was ready to walk away from the sport because he was "skint" but picking up at least £20,000 from reaching the semi-finals boosts his prospects of remaining on the professional tour.
"I used to work in a casino as a poker deal so I assume I'd be doing the same if I'm honest. I'd rather be earning it than dealing it.
"I basically chucked it. I had 10 days off when I was near to chucking it, and found out that Barry Hearn (World Snooker chairman) had cut the entrance fees.
"That saved me about £5,000 so I thought I'd come back and give it another go. It relieves the pressure so much when you are constantly fighting tooth and nail," added Slessor, who completed a 4-1 win over tournament favourite Ronnie O'Sullivan in the last 32 on Thursday.
The Gateshead player will face Mark Williams in the last four on Saturday after the two-times world champion completed a 5-1 win over Mike Dunn, his first victory over the Englishman in 26 years on the tour.
“I’m glad to have that one off my back, I can’t go through my whole career not beating someone like Mike Dunn, it would have killed me," said Williams.
"I’ve played him (Elliot) a couple of times, he beat me last year but I think we’re 1-1 on a head-to-head as he beat me in the Welsh Open, second round I think. But they’re all tough from now on, I’m just happy that I’m playing a lot better currently.
"There have been a couple of times where the draw has opened up from the quarter-finals and then I've been knocked out. "So I don’t look it as being the favourite, if I am then it’s the first time for a long time.”
Slessor, 23, who has also reached the quarter-finals of the Indian Open.
"It was warm and a bit of a grind. It was hard," said Slessor. "It felt a while, you have to dig your heels in.
"That's the longest match of my career, but the most important one. If I lose there, I'm heartbroken. It is a dream come true.
I was close to packing it in. I started the season skint and I basically gave myself a few competitions to roll some money in. My granddad helped me out so I have to be thankful to him.
"It becomes hard work, but you are bit more comfortable in your work when you've got a little bit of money. You can play your game a bit more freely."
17-year-old Yan Bingtao completed a 5-4 win over Robert Milkins to set up an all-Chinese semi-final with Lyu Haotian on Saturday night after his 5-4 victory over Tian Pengfei.
Bingtao made breaks of 48, 95, 66, 89 and 50 with Milkins contributing 41, 105 and 73 in a high quality encounter.
SEMI-FINAL DRAW
- Mark Williams v ElliotSlessor
- Yan Bingtao v Lyu Haotian
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS
- Elliot Slessor 5-4 Li Yuan
- Mark Williams 5-1 Mike Dunn
- Yan Bingtao 5-4 Robert Milkins
- Tian Pengfei 4-5 Lyu Haotian
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement