Parrott's wings clipped by Selby

John Parrott believes the most impressive performance of this year’s Maplin UK Championship may have occurred on the tournament’s opening day, and he was on the receiving end of it.

The 1991 world champion suffered a crushing 9-1 defeat in York at the hands of promising Leicester player Mark Selby, who knocked in breaks of 110, 104 and four half-centuries.

It was a disappointing way for Parrott, who is down to number 42 in the world rankings, to return to major tournament competition after battling bravely to edge through his qualifying match.

He departed for a few days at home before resuming his role as a television analyst, knowing the scoreline had more to do with Selby’s brilliance than his own shortcomings.

“You will be hard-pressed to see anyone play better this week,” said the Liverpudlian. “Mark was pretty much exemplary. From 4-1 to 9-1 I didn’t get a shot and the nature of this sport is that you can’t pot any balls if you don’t get to see any.”