FARAKH Ajaib believes the coronavirus-enforced closure of his snooker club is costing him progress on the table.

The Accrington player slumped to his fourth first round defeat of the season after going down 4-0 against world No.126 Ashley Hugill at the Scottish Open.

Ajaib, ranked nine places above Hugill in his first full season on the professional tour, practices at Elite Snooker Club in Lostock Hall which remains closed as the region stays in tier 3 lockdown restrictions.

The East Lancashire potter has no other practice alternatives in the North West and slammed the Milton Keynes baize being his only place to play.

“I struggled a bit – he did get off to a good start and I didn’t really get a chance until the third frame, but I didn’t really make the most of that,” said Ajaib, 29.

“It’s all going okay but at the moment I have nowhere to practice because the club’s closed. The only time I get a chance is when I come here for practice tables.

“That’s closed at the minute so I can’t get in – I try and get in the odd game here or there with someone but otherwise, I’m not playing. It’s a lack of confidence as well at the minute, just because I’m not playing properly.

"You need a bit of luck at the start, which I’m not getting any of, and I’m not playing the best like I can.”

Hugill knocked in breaks of 131 and 96 at the Marshall Arena to dash Ajaib’s hopes of reaching the second round of a ranking event for the second time season.

Ajaib toppled Rod Lawler to reach the last 64 of October’s English Open but has since slumped to early defeats at the Northern Ireland Open and prestigious UK Championship.

The former butcher will now not take to the competitive match table until the new year, when competition for all players resumes after December’s World Grand Prix.

The top 32-ranked players of the season qualify for that tournament and while Ajaib may not be one of them at the moment, he’s got eyes on the prize in the future.

“I’ll put the cue away for a few weeks now and pick it back up again in January,” he added.

“Hopefully tournaments can be staged somewhere else in January for a bit of a change of scenery. I had a target for two years which was to finish within the top 64. That’s still my main priority at the minute.”

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