JIMMY WHITE’s Crucible dreams remain alive after he won his opening qualifying match at 1.22am on Wednesday morning.
The Whirlwind – a cult hero in the sport – is attempting to reach the main draw of the for the first time since 2006.
The first session of the 62-year-old’s began at 10am on Tuesday at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.
And more than nine hours of table time later, prevailed 10-9 in session two, sinking the final yellow, green, brown and blue in the decider to settle a gruelling, marathon encounter.
There were only a handful of people left in the arena when the match concluded, to wrap up day two of the qualifying phase.
White – a six-time world championship finalist and 10-time ranking tournament winner – led 3-2 but then unranked Kazakov won the next five frames to go 7-3 in front.
The South Londoner, who plays on the tour while also working for TNT Sports, won the next six frames to move 9-7 ahead, hitting a vintage 126 break in frame 12.
Yet Kazakov, a 20-year-old amateur, took it all the way to a 19th frame as the clock ticked past midnight.
You would have thought that White, 42 YEARS the senior, might struggle with the late finish and waiver in the closing shots.
But the Tooting potter – who spent many nights out dancing and drinking in the Steel City during the 1980s and 1990s – managed to succeed by 69 points to 43.
Kazakov could have played on with the pink and black on the table and a deficit of 26 points but conceded defeat and shook White’s hand.
It would be one of the stories of the year if White, a professional since 1980, could win the next three qualifiers to make it all the way to the Crucible once more, especially with doubts over its long-term future being in South Yorkshire.
It is now all about rest and recovery as he prepares to face Ashley Carty, the world No.71, on Friday morning over the best of 19 frames in round two.
White is a determined soul and has tried 18 times on the trot to make it to the flagship event before being eliminated in qualifying.
will begin the defence of his title on Easter Saturday while seven-time world champion or not.
