Career
His best career performance so far was when he reached the final of the European Open in 2001. He first reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship in 2004, beating then defending champion Mark Williams 13–11 along the way, also making the tournament's highest break. He repeated this run in 2008 when he defeated Graeme Dott and Stuart Bingham, and bettered it by going on to beat Stephen Maguire 13–12 and earn his place in the semi-finals. Previously, he had also reached the last 16 on his Crucible debut in 1999, beating Steve Davis on the final black in the last 32.
He reached the semi-finals of the UK Championship in both 2004 and 2005 seasons, losing the 2004 match after leaving opponent and eventual runner-up David Gray requiring snookers in the penultimate frame to remain in it. This run left him provisionally fifth in the world, but he failed to win a match in the remaining five tournaments and dropped to 14th at the end of the season as a result. In 2005, he lost at the same stage to eventual champion Ding Junhui.
In the 2007/08 season, he reached two quarter-finals: in the Grand Prix (losing 5–3 to Gerard Greene) and the Welsh Open (with victories over John Parrott 5–2, Peter Ebdon 5–1 and Stuart Bingham 5–2 before Shaun Murphy beat him 5–0), as well as the last 16 of the UK Championship, where he beat Neil Robertson 9–6 after being 5–3 down, before losing 9–2 to Marco Fu. He followed that up by reaching the semi-finals of the world championship, where he was knocked out by Ali Carter 17–15. These results ensured him a return to the prestigious top 16 of the rankings (at #12, his highest ranking ever), meaning automatic qualification for major tournaments. He also finished the 2007/2008 season on another high, by winning the Championship League, to qualify for the Betfred Premier League for 2008. He has expressed that he feels that he is learning to cope with the high pressure of major tournaments, having had more experience over the last season.
Perry opened 2008/2009 with three last-sixteen runs, leaving him inside the top eight of the provisional rankings. However he went one better in the UK Championship beating Ronnie O'Sullivan 9–5 having trailed by 5–3, in one of the best victories of his career. However, he lost 9–7 to Marco Fu in the quarter-finals. In the new year he lost very narrowly (6–5) to O'Sullivan in the Masters, the rest of the season was unspectacular as he failed to win a match in a ranking event. He was unable to repeat his 2008 run in the World Championship losing 10–6 to an in-form Jamie Cope in the first round. This meant that he finished the season ranked at number #12.
In 2009/2010 he only reached one quarter-final and consequently slid to 19th in the rankings. In the World Championship he beat Michael Holt 10–4 and trailed Ali Carter 10–6 before winning five frames on a row to lead 11–10 but lost 13–11.
Perry was a losing finalist in Event 1 (Ronnie O'Sullivan won 4–0) and Event 12 (Stephen Maguire won 4–2) during the minor-ranking 2011/2012 Players Tour Championship series. These results helped him qualify for the Finals as he finished 11th on the Order of Merit. It was at the Finals where Perry had his best run in a ranking event during the 2011/2012 season as he beat Fergal O'Brien and Graeme Dott, before being defeated by Neil Robertson 1–4 in the quarter-finals. In the other ranking events during the year he reached the second round three times, culminating in a 7–13 defeat to Maguire in the World Championship. Perry finished the season ranked world number 24.
Read more about this topic: Joe Perry (snooker Player)
Famous quotes containing the word career:
“From a hasty glance through the various tests I figure it out that I would be classified in Group B, indicating “Low Average Ability,” reserved usually for those just learning to speak the English Language and preparing for a career of holding a spike while another man hits it.”
—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)
“He was at a starting point which makes many a man’s career a fine subject for betting, if there were any gentlemen given to that amusement who could appreciate the complicated probabilities of an arduous purpose, with all the possible thwartings and furtherings of circumstance, all the niceties of inward balance, by which a man swings and makes his point or else is carried headlong.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“In time your relatives will come to accept the idea that a career is as important to you as your family. Of course, in time the polar ice cap will melt.”
—Barbara Dale (b. 1940)