Ali Carter responds to 'disappointing' Stephen Maguire comments after Welsh Open clash
02/16/2025 08:57 AM
Ali Carter described Stephen Maguire’s comments as ‘disappointing’ after the Scot said the Captain was ‘cracking up’ during their Welsh Open semi-final.
Maguire won the match 6-4 in Llandudno on Saturday night, booking his place in the final where he takes on Mark Selby on Sunday.
Carter had been 2-1 and 3-2 ahead, making a century in the second frame, but Maguire was the stronger of the two in the second half of the match.
The Englishman was showing signs of frustration as he struggled to find his best form and fell short of a return to a ranking final.
It was hardly anything outrageous from Carter, but Maguire noted that his opponent was putting the rest back aggressively and throwing the extension under the table a bit dramatically.
Asked how he kept his composure during the match, Maguire told the BBC: ‘I found it easy because I was playing him. He was cracking up. The rest was getting thrown about, the extensions were getting thrown about.
‘I was thinking, is that the way I act? I think I better change if that’s the way I act.’
Carter saw what Maguire said on social media and responded: ‘Disappointing comments really after I wished him well in the final. He isn't exactly whiter than white either.’
Maguire is well aware that he can be one of the more volatile players on tour, admitting on Eurosport: ‘Listen, going forward I don’t know, tomorrow I could wreck the place!’
It is likely that facing Selby in a best-of-17 will test Maguire’s patience at times.
The Captain did accept that the occasion got to him on Saturday, in only his second semi-final of the season.
‘I just haven’t been in the later stages of events,’ he told the BBC. ‘It was just too big for me tonight, really. Too much at stake. I should have gone 4-3 up, but missed a black.
‘It’s been a good week but it’s an opportunity missed, really. Just not good enough.’
Maguire and Selby play over two sessions at 1pm and 7pm in Sunday’s final, with the Ray Reardon Trophy and £100,000 on offer for the winner.
