Hendry sets out plans for his snooker future after World Championship exit

The 54-year-old sensationally knocked in a century break in the opening frame of the match but couldn’t keep up that fine form as Cahill found his feet and moved ahead.

There were flashes of the old brilliance but also many mistakes from the seven-time world champion who will finish the season with four matches played and no wins.

‘Great start!’ Hendry said on his Instagram. ‘Century number 777 in the first frame. 777 is much cooler than 776 as a number.

‘I don’t know, maybe it worked against me, in a weird way, came down to earth quickly. I had loads of chances in the next two or three frames, they were very scrappy.’

He added, speaking to WST after the game: ‘There were little bits and pieces here and there, but generally there were too many unforced errors. That is something I criticise players for when I am commentating.’

On his future, Hendry has always insisted that he was not making a comeback when he accepted an invitational wildcard in 2020, but would just take the opportunity to play the odd event when he felt he could.

Without dedicated practice and only competing irregularly, results have been very difficult to come by, but he intends to mix up his practice and be involved again next season.

‘It’s Catch 22 because you have to play matches to get used to being in there again and I’m not playing many matches because I’m getting beat in the first round. That’s the only way to get that sharpness,’ he said.

‘Next season I need to start practicing with players. I had a good two or three days playing with Tian Pengfei and Xu Si and I need to do more than that next year, just to get used to playing people, that’ll be the plan.

‘I definitely want to play on. As I always stress it isn’t a comeback. I’m not going to play three or four hours a day and enter every event.

‘I will play in the events that I can, with my other commitments. I love to play and in a perverse way it is fun!’

Hendry’s aim for his return to the tour was to step down the Crucible steps one more time, a dream which he admits looks a long way off at this stage, as even if had beaten Cahill, three more qualifying rounds awaited him.

‘It is still a very distant dream in the future that one day I’ll walk out at the Crucible again,’ he said. ‘It is very doubtful and huge odds against, but that is the dream.’

MORE : Ronnie O’Sullivan: Stephen Hendry ‘can come in here and play in his underpants if he likes’

MORE : Stephen Hendry’s coach calls for ‘fire in the belly’ ahead of World Championship qualifiers

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