Unusual problem for Jimmy White forces snooker legend to leave arena at key stage of match at German Masters qualifiers

Jimmy White has enjoyed a relative resurgence in his career in the current season, qualifying for the main round of four ranking tournaments so far. On Monday, he attended the German Masters qualifiers to take on Belgian opponent Julien Leclercq, but after coming back from 3-0 down to trail by a single frame, he suffered from an unusual problem that forced both players to pause the match.

Snooker legend Jimmy White suffered an unusual problem in his German Masters qualifier with Julien Leclercq on Monday afternoon.

White, who remains on the professional circuit at the age of 62, only now makes rare forays into the final stages of WST tournaments, but still attends many qualification rounds over the course of a year. He was in attendance at Ponds Forge in Sheffield as he looked to qualify for the upcoming competition in Germany.

He came up against Belgium’s Leclercq and went 3-0 down as he looked to be heading out of the tournament at the first stage.

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Despite that early setback, he rallied to take the next two frames to be back in with a chance of a win, only to suffer another problem.

His misfortune was compounded when his cue tip snapped off at 3-2 behind, forcing the two players to take a break for repairs to be carried out.

After his brief resurgence, the gap appeared to knock him off his rhythm and he lost the next frame to go 4-2 down in the best-of-nine encounter.

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Video credit: TNT Sports

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Leclercq then claimed a decisive fifth frame to knock White out.

The veteran remains a sharp player on the Seniors circuit, with four World Championship titles to his name, the most recent coming last year.

He has qualified for four ranking tournaments in the current season, going as far as the third round in the Saudi Arabian Masters.

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