Pain-plagued Mark Selby reaches China Open snooker quarters

Mark Selby

Beijing, April 1 (IANS)

Neck pain plagued Mark Selby ended English star Elliot Slessor's dream of a career's first quarter-final in the 2015 World Snooker China Open here on Wednesday.

"Stay motionless too long, then it might get stiff again," said Selby who has been nursing a neck injury since 2012 when he had to withdraw from the China Open in an earlier round.

The pain came back again in the first round of the event this year. Yet Selby found his way to dent it, reports Xinhua.

"It was the same position so I assume it was the same injury."

Selby consulted his physician back home and began to practice stretching exercises he did before.

"Hopefully it was just like a muscle strain and nothing too serious," said Selby.

Selby saw off Slessor 5-0 including a 126-point clean. Slessor turned professional last season and this was his career's first second-round trip.

David Gilbert will wait for Selby in the quarter-final.