Hamilton knocks out Drago 5-3 in Sheffield

Tony Drago bowed out of the Shanghai Masters qualifiers after losing his third qualifying round match against England’s Anthony Hamilton 5-3 in Sheffield, yesterday.

The Maltese professional found himself behind early on as Hamilton raced into a two-frame lead. But Drago regrouped and restored equilibrium by taking the third and fourth frames to make it two-all at the interval, hitting a break of 55.

But on resumption, Hamilton quickly regained control and won the opening two frames to close in on victory and take a 4-2 advantage.

Drago kept the match alive by winning the seventh frame, but Hamilton soon ended his opponent’s aspirations of a comeback when he secured the eighth frame to complete a 5-3 win.

Today, Hamilton faces fellow Englishman Ricky Walden for a place in the televised stages of the tournament to be played between September 6 and 12.