No question about it, it's a real honour
I’m currently being driven up to Manchester to record an episode of ‘Question of Sport’. It’s better than driving myself, or taking the train, and it’s a good chance to sit down for a couple of hours and do nothing, especially after a hectic few days.
I showed off my Masters trophy during half-time of Leicester City’s match against Newcastle last Saturday. They always ask me to go down when I win something and it’s always a pleasure to do so, I hope the fans like it too. Leicester played well to get a 0-0 draw after Richie Wellens was sent off in the first half, so a point at home against the league leaders was a decent result in the end. I just hope Leicester can push on and get promotion to the Premier League now.
Last night was another social occasion, and it was another one which I really enjoyed. I was the guest of honour at a ceremony at Leicester Town Hall, where the Mayor of Leicester, Councillor Roger Blackmore, presented me with an inscribed crystal bowl to celebrate my win at Wembley.
It was such a great honour and privilege for me, and I really appreciated it. Winning the Masters was good enough, so this was the icing on the cake. It’s a little overwhelming, meeting such dignitaries and having to give a speech in front of my friends and family, but it’s great to be recognised as someone who is doing well in their home town.
My speech went down okay. I’d been preparing it and practising it for days, because I wanted to get it right. I’m used to going out and playing snooker in front of hundreds of people, with millions more watching on TV, but this was a different kind of pressure. It was a bit scary with so many people listening to me, but I enjoyed it and I hope it’s something I get better at the more times I do it. I’ve just got to keep on winning titles! But occasions like this definitely inspire me to be even more of a success, and I’m really grateful to the Mayor and everyone at the Town Hall for what they did.
This will be my third time on ‘Question of Sport’ and I’m really looking forward to it. I don’t know who’s team I’m on or when it’s going to be aired, but I guess I’ll find all that out when I get there.
It’s a great laugh and a great way to unwind. It’s one of my favourite shows on TV and I do consider myself to have a decent knowledge of sport. I’ve been brushing up a bit, but I always seem to do well when I go on there. It’s just the questions on snooker I struggle with!
It’s also a great opportunity to be myself for a bit. People don’t often get to see the other side to snooker players because we’re always so focused during our matches, but this is a good way to show our more entertaining sides. And I’d love to be a captain one day! Matt Dawson and Phil Tuffnell do a great job, but you never know, one day it could be me. They do a lot of research though and are always reading up on their sporting trivia, so I know it would be hard work, but they have a laugh and a joke as well, and that’s right up my street!
It’s been a busy start to the year. After the Masters, I hardly had time to catch my breath before it was the Welsh Open. It was a little bit of “after the Lord Mayor’s show” in Newport, if you’ll pardon the pun, because it was such a comedown after everything that happened at Wembley.
I had a tough opener against Judd Trump so I was pleased to get through that. I was disappointed to lose to John Higgins in the quarter-finals, but I can’t complain too much. I played well enough but he was just that bit better than me on the day. It also gave me a boost up the rankings too. And if anyone had said to me at the start of the year that I would win the Masters and reach the quarters in Wales, I would have taken that.
I’ve got a few weeks off now before the China Open. I’ve got some exhibitions arranged, including one in Austria this weekend, but I think me and Vikki will have a few days off in Dubai, get away from it all for a bit. Then it will be all go once again!
*Picture courtesy of the Leicester Mercury