Scotland's Stephen Maguire beat World No.2 Neil Robertson of Australia 9-5 on Saturday to book his place in the semifinals of the Snooker Tour Championship, which is being held behind closed doors in Milton Keynes in southeastern England.

Maguire, 39, only qualified for the tournament after China's top player Ding Junhui pulled out to avoid extensive foreign travel amid the pandemic.

The Scot, winner of the 2004 UK Championship and the 2019 runner-up, is the first player to hit six centuries in a best-of-17 frame match while his eight centuries in one match over that distance is also a new record.

"I would say that's the best I've ever played," said Maguire, who also came from 5-1 behind to edge Robertson 6-5 in the Masters in January, "Maybe it's because we've had a break and there wasn't a lot of expectation there.

"I don't think anybody could expect to do that again, but you've just got to keep hammering away. If I play half as well as that again I know I will put up a fight."  

The competition, which features the top eight players on the one-year ranking list, is the first ranking tournament since the snooker season was suspended in March due to the pandemic.

The top-ranked and reigning world champion Judd Trump will play John Higgins, while the other two first round matches will feature Mark Selby against Chinese hopeful Yan Bingtao on Monday local time, and Shaun Murphy against Mark Allen.

(With input from agencies)