Agony for Maguire as shoulder injury forces him out of Shanghai

While there may not have been any real surprises on the table so far today, the Shanghai Masters has been shocked by the withdrawal of world number 2 Stephen Maguire due to injury.

The Glaswegian was due to face Barry Hawkins in this evening’s session, but has had to concede defeat after his shoulder injury failed to respond to intensive treatment. Maguire injured his shoulder after a fall in the shower back home in Scotland last week, but still made the trip to China expecting to be able to take part in the season opener.

Unfortunately for him, treatment from the Chinese national football team’s doctor and even a course of acupuncture has been unable to alleviate the pain. After being unable to practice this morning due the the discomfort, the 2008 China Open champion took the disappointing but unavoidable decision to withdraw, handing Hawkins a bye into the last 16, where he’ll face Ken Doherty.

“It’s obviously more serious than I first thought,” said the 28 year-old to 110sport.tv. “The injury has been diagnosed as internal bleeding in a muscle. And it’s just too painful to play. I am really gutted at having travelled all this way just to go back home without hitting a ball”. The 28 year-old has around four weeks to recover ahead of the Grand Prix, and with so few ranking events on the calendar this season, he’ll be especially desperate to be back in good shape ahead of his home event.