Stuart Bingham blames sanitised balls for struggles in Crucible opener

The former world champion, who had fashioned a 5-4 lead in the opening session in front of a handful of fans on Friday, went on to win 10-7.

Stuart Bingham blamed sanitised balls for his struggle to get over the line against qualifier Ashley Carty in an empty Crucible on Saturday.

The former world champion, who had fashioned a 5-4 lead in the opening session in front of a handful of fans on Friday, went on to win 10-7 and become the first player to wrap up victory since fans were belatedly barred from the event.