TWELVE months can seem like a lifetime in sport - just ask Shokat Ali.

This time last year the world number 69 caused a major upset when he beat whirlwind Jimmy White on his way to a place in the last 16 of the Snooker Grand Prix at Preston's Guild Hall.

Yet this time around he was on the receiving end as little-known Nick Dyson dished out a 5-0 hammering of his own in the first round yesterday.

From White quashed to white-washed, it's no wonder Ali looked shell-shocked.

"It was one of those days," said Ali.

"I've played Nick many times before and beat him but he played like Stephen Hendry out there.

"He had a flyer. He really played well - you only have to look at the breaks he made to see that.

"But sometimes it goes like that. I had been playing well going into this.

"I'd won seven out of seven at Blackpool and I bet there was only two or three players who managed to do that.

"But I never got a clear cut opportunity in this match and, when I did in the third frame, I got a kick off the first red I potted and straight away I was bang in trouble."

It's a cut-throat business at such an embryonic stage of a snooker tournament like this.

With the big names not set to enter proceedings until round three, some of the sport's lesser lights sense their chance of glory. And Dyson, ranked 176 in the world, revelled in taking centre stage.

That can be difficult when eight matches are going at once but all eyes were suddenly on Ali and Dyson's clash from the moment he rattled in a brilliant century break.

Ali had barely taken the first gulp from his mineral water when Dyson suddenly clicked into top gear in frame one.

Playing with alarming fluency, the young Mancunian caressed his way to a superb 137, including 13 blacks, to take the opening frame 138-0.

Then before Ali could blink, he suddenly found himself two down as Dyson banged in another brilliant break of 94.

Ali looked visibly stunned yet had the chance to get back in the game in frame three.

But he missed a relatively straight forward blue into the centre and Dyson knocked in rapid breaks of 43 and 29 to go three up.

He clinched the fourth with another sensational 81.

And after the interval, he came back to complete the job with breaks of 62 and 56 to wrap up a staggering 5-0 victory inside an hour and 24 minutes.

"He got off to a stunning start and there wasn't much I could do about it," said Ali.

"Even after he went 2-0 up it still wasn't over with.

"But if the balls don't fall for you sometimes there's not much you can do about it.

"The season has only just started, though, and I've got to put this behind me and concentrate on the next event."

That's the UK Championships at Bournemouth next month.

And Ali's opponent? A certain unknown called Nick Dyson.

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