Doherty homes in on Welsh Open glory

Ken Doherty is on course to regain the Regal Welsh Open title after the first session.  

The Irishman built a 6-2 first session lead over Paul Hunter at Cardiff International Arena.

It means Doherty requires only three of nine possible frames on the restart to collect the £362,000 first prize.

If he succeeds it will be his first trophy since the Rothmans Malta Grand Prix in March and climb to fifth in the provisional world rankings.

By winning the first frame 63-1, Doherty scored five more points than during a 5-0 drubbing by Hunter in the last 16 of December's China Open.

A 71 break pushed him 2-1 ahead but Hunter, a Regal Welsh specialist having figured in the semi-finals in 1996 as a 17-year-old and been champion two years later, drew level at 2-2.

However frame five proved vital as Doherty potted the blue, audaciously doubled the pink to a middle pocket and added the black for 3-2.

By reaching the final, the 31-year-old was forced to withdraw from a charity football engagement in his native Dublin when former Irish defender Paul McGrath and Boyzone member Keith Duffy were to be his team-mates.

But Doherty was not complaining as he controlled a scrappy sixth frame to prise open a two-frame gap at 4-2.

Hunter had the opportunity to reduce his deficit in the next but he expensively missed an admittedly tricky last red and Doherty, growing stronger and more self-assured by the frame, cleared to the blue.

And 5-2 swiftly became 6-2 as Doherty, back to form with a vengeance after a low-key first half of the campaign, finished the afternoon in considerable style with a 125 break.

Hunter therefore enters the concluding session needing seven of nine frames to pull off a great escape.