Doherty battles to book final spot

Ken Doherty admitted he had been in a battle after moving a step closer to ending a five-year barren period by beating Graeme Dott 6-3 to reach the Malta Cup final at the Portomaso Hilton today.

Doherty has not won a ranking title since capturing the 2001 Thailand Masters and was last in a final at the Crucible in 2003, when Mark Williams beat him 18-16 to deny him a second World Championship triumph.