World Snooker Championship: Jones relieved to avoid whitewash

Jamie Jones was the youngest player to make a maximum break when he scored 147 at the age of 14, a record since broken by Judd Trump.

Qualifier Jamie Jones said he was relieved to avoid a 10-0 drubbing after his first-round World Championship defeat by 2010 champion Neil Robertson.

The 27-year-old Welshman lost the first six frames against the world number four but won the next two to go in to Monday's second session trailing 7-2.

But Robertson replicated his fine form again to ease in to the last 16.

"I was fearing the worst and that I would get whitewashed," Jones told BBC Wales Sport.

"But I won a couple of frames and if I could have got back to 6-3 that would have been perfect.

"At 7-2 I still had a glimmer of hope if I could have come out of the first session winning, but he started off with a 100 and he is a great player."

Jones, who is from Neath, reached the quarter-finals on his only previous Crucible visit in 2012 - his best performance at a ranking event.

But he was always struggling to contain the Australian Robertson, one of the favourites for the tournament.

"It was a difficult match. I had great memories from last trip here," added Jones.

"The disappointing is that I have had a couple of good tournament leading up to this and have played very well.

"I never really turned up in this match. Whether it was partly because Neil played so well and I never settled down I don't know. It's just disappointing.

"It's another year at the Crucible and you cannot buy that experience and hopefully I can get back here next year."