By Paddy von Behr

It is 21 years since Jimmy White lifted the UK Snooker Championship trophy and he blamed a ‘comedy of errors’ for his exit from the 2013 tournament.

White, nicknamed ‘the Whirlwind’ reached the final three times between 1987 and 1992 when he won the tournament, but has not repeated the feat since.

The wait goes on for the 51-year-old as he was knocked out of the second round at the Barbican Centre in York on Sunday by Stuart Bingham, losing 6-2.

White had seen off Michael Wasley 6-4 in the first round earlier in the week, but he couldn’t replicate that form against Bingham, who is ranked at No.10 in the world.

Bingham admitted he had not been firing on all cylinders after finding out on Saturday night that his wife Michelle had been involved in a minor traffic collision.

However, White was devastated with his own performance in York, admitting to a combination of nerves and frustration throughout the contest.

“I just got a bit angry with myself in the first frame and tried to sort of calm it down,” he said. “Then I got back but it was a comedy of errors from me.

“I was just terrible. I was nervous, I couldn’t settle and when I settled I made unforced errors. It was frustrating.

“That is why I play – to get back in the atmosphere. I don’t know, I just got very frustrated. I tried to calm myself down but I just played poor.”

White conceded the first frame to Bingham but struck back immediately, grinding out a tight second frame to draw level.

But Bingham soon took control, picking up three straight frames as ‘the Whirlwind’ failed to compose himself and find his fluent best.

White won the next but he couldn’t prevent Bingham completing the job soon after, putting together a break of 70 – the biggest of the match – in the penultimate frame.

White admitted he was frustrated from as early as the first frame, when he missed a golden opportunity to lay down a marker to last month’s Champion of Champions finalist.

“I was very poor,” he added. “I won the safety battle in the first frame to get in, potted a red and then missed the black off the spot.

“I missed so many balls in the first session and miss-position – I could easily have been 3-1 up instead of 3-1 down. I’m very disappointed – I played really bad.

“It’s weird because I’m hitting the ball OK.”

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