Stephen Hendry was knocked out of the Masters yesterday evening in the second round of the tournament, losing a pulsating 6-4 match against Shaun Murphy at Wembley Arena.

The Scot already had six Masters titles to his name before taking to the table last night, but was bidding to make it seven with another victory this winter.

A truly dominant force in this competition at the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s, Hendry was competing for his first Masters trophy victory since 1996.

But his opponent, Murphy, looking to progress past the quarter-finals of the tournament for the first time, held his nerve in a tense duel inside Wembley to seal his place in the next round at Hendry’s expense.

It could have been an entirely different outcome had Hendry not missed a simple green in the final frame – a decisive error which the Scot would have inevitably replayed over in his head last night.

“There is no excuse for missing a green like that. It was part twitch and part changing my mind,” the world No. 10 said.

“I was down on the shot thinking, ‘Should I stun it off the cushion?’ but in the end I didn’t do what I wanted.

“It’s frustrating as I played quite well. To lose like that was hard to take because Shaun looked a bit nervous.

“If it had gone to the last frame I’d have had a good chance.”

Both competitors played their part in this match unfolding as a thrilling contest. Hendry, whose record of five consecutive Masters titles between 1989 and 1994 remains unequalled, hit a 114 in frame two to level the match, and then took the lead in the third frame after another impressive run of 79.

However, this merely spurred on Murphy, who admitted after the match that the crowd’s shouts of support for Hendry provided “free inspiration” for him.

The 2005 world champion took a 4-2 lead with an 81, but was immediately pegged back in the seventh frame following a mesmeric 104 by his opponent.

Not to be outdone, Murphy kept his cool and remained unmoved by the crowd favourite’s exploits, and then displayed his fighting spirit once again to hit a superb 106.

A tight, penultimate frame went to the Scot, which in turn set up a stirring finale. But missing that simple green in the tenth frame – with the score neatly poised at 54-32 – eventually sealed Hendry’s fate once again.

However, this wasn’t before one last kick in the teeth for the Masters legend. On what turned out to be the final shot of the match, Murphy played for safety but inadvertently ended up fluking the blue to seal his place in the quarter-finals, leaving Hendry with that all too familiar sinking feeling.

The world No. 3 will now face the winner of tonight’s match, either Ali Carter or Mark Williams, on Thursday evening, with a potential semi-final against Peter Ebdon, Ronnie O’Sullivan or Neil Robertson lined up if he can end his quarter-final hoodoo, and move a step closer to winning that first coveted Masters title.

“Any match against Stephen is a major event so I’m delighted to win,” a buoyant Murphy said.

“It was a high standard with big breaks and good safety. To win the biggest three events would be a boyhood dream come true. My record in this tournament isn’t great – I normally watch it from home so I’m not sure I want to break my routine! ”

Rob Swan