Maguire concedes his days at top are over

Stephen Maguire admits he is no longer good enough to compete at the very top of the game after he was dumped out of the world championship by Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Glasgow’s Maguire, a former UK champion, is renowned as one of the most talented players on tour but he has fallen outside the top 16 in the world and had to qualify just to reach Sheffield.

A first-round draw with five-time winner O’Sullivan is as tough as it gets but Maguire had taken advantage of an under-par O’Sullivan to move 6-3 in front ahead of yesterday’s finale.

But where O’Sullivan raised his game, Maguire could not – and the righthander believes his days at the top are over.

“I have accepted now that I will be qualifying

“I have to accept the fact these boys are a step better than me”

here,” he said. “I might get lucky one year and be a seed but the odds are I will be floating about the top 32 without breaking into the top 16. I have to accept these boys are a step better than me. I think they have improved whereas I have just stayed the same.

“I need the top players to have an off-day and me to be really good.”

Former champion Graeme Dott threw away a 6-3 lead against Ali Carter, going down 10-8.

Dott, the 2006 champion, was in control at the halfway stage but failed to kick on and Carter gradually clawed his way back into it before battling through to a second-round match against O’Sullivan.

Holder Mark Selby tumbled out of the event on Saturday night when he was beaten 10-4 by Joe Perry. l Watch the snooker world championship live on Eurosport and Eurosport Player with Colin Murray and analysis from Ronnie O’Sullivan, Jimmy White and Neal Foulds.