Perfect start for Chatteris potter Joe Perry

A 6-0 whitewash marked the perfect start to his Betway UK Championship campaign but it’s all about the bigger picture for snooker star Joe Perry.

The world number 19 breezed past Alex Borg without too much trouble in Milton Keynes, reaching the second round for the eighth year in a row in one of the sport’s biggest competitions.

But having struggled to reach perfection since snooker went behind closed doors, the Fen Potter is more focused on performance than results as the end of a tumultuous year approaches.

“Alex had a bit of a struggle today, that made life a bit easier for me,” said Perry, who could qualify for the prestigious Masters if he has a good run in this tournament.

“I was focused, started well, had two good frames to start off with and then set the tone for the rest of the match.

“When I was concentrating and on it, I felt all right.

“I’m not thinking about the Masters. If I can get in there it will be a bonus but it’s more about trying to find form and get my game going again.

“It’s been really off the pace since lockdown, I haven’t really got it back together at all so this tournament is about putting the building blocks in place and getting my form back.”

Snooker is seldom a team sport but individual practice was key this year more than most, with Perry adjusting to life without regular playing partners.

The 46-year-old admitted it’s impacted him more than most and that seems to have reflected in his results, losing to lower-ranked opponents in the European Masters, English Open and Northern Ireland Open in the past few months.

Perry is keen not to make excuses but is acutely aware of just how much his sport benefits from having fans in the venues.

“Life is very different, I’m practising at home on my own and that’s something I’ve never done in my career,” he added.

“I’m always in the club playing competitive matches with people, I’m always involved in matches.

“But there’s no excuses, it’s just about getting on with it now and making the best of the situation.

“The light at the end of the tunnel has given everyone a lift but in snooker, we’ve been very lucky in that we’ve played for most of the time.

“Snooker was absolutely buzzing before lockdown, every venue was packed out and it was fantastic to be a snooker player.

“Hopefully we can get back to that once normality resumes.”

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