Former World Champion Doherty survived the scare of debuting Krinis to keep his dream of winning the first Mr. Las Vegas Senior World Championship title.
Doherty was one of four winners, Asian superstar Wattana, England's Watson and Brazil's Figueiredo, all of whom reached Friday's quarter-finals.
The Irish veteran came to the Crucible Theatre with the intention of completing a unique Grand Slam and in his trophy cabinet he has already won the World Professional, World Amateur and World Junior titles.
His first-round opponent was the 41-year-old Krinis, who won the Asia-Pacific Senior Championship earlier this year and made his debut on Snooker's most iconic venue.
Despite being nervous from the start and not even knowing where to go when entering the arena, the Australian got off to a competitive start.
The '97 World Championship joked after the tournament that in order to prepare as much as possible before the quarterfinals, he would "sleep under the practice table". After equalising, he breathed a sigh of relief and snatched the crucial third game in the final game of snooker.
Doherty scored 68 points to secure a place in the last eight, where he will face the winner between 2011 world champion Morgan and Thailand's Puyan.
After the game, Doherty recalled: "I was a bit rusty, I didn't have a good start at all. Tyson hit some great shots that made me nervous, but I tried to stay calm and won the third game after needing a shot of snooker. I've been here for three weeks now, commenting on the other players, giving their opinion to the other players – I'm there, they're going to be smiling when they watch me play! ”
Wattana returns to Crucible to win
Thailand's Wattana made his first appearance at the World Celebrity Championships in Las Vegas since reaching the semifinals in 2019, earning his first victory.
The three-time ranking champion quickly went 2-0 up against Irish qualifier Goggins, highlighting why he's been dubbed the "Thai Hustler" by many.
Goggins, who earned his spot at Crucible through one of four qualifiers held throughout the year, was determined to make his mark on the tournament and fought back with a 68 to close the gap, but he lost the mid-distance red ball under the intense pressure of the tiebreaker.
However, in the decider, the Thai star showed no signs of nervousness, scoring 55 points to seal the victory and face either Joe Johnson or Pinches in the quarterfinals.
"Anything can happen, but I said that if I can get away from the first game, then I can enjoy the rest of the game," Wattana said after the game. There's nothing to look forward to in the round of 8 because that's the round of 5 (meaning a win), but I hope I can make it to the final. I wish I could do what I did today. ”
Watson keeps clean sheet Knowles
Watson got off to a fantastic start as he defeated three-time World Championship semifinalist Knowles. He finished bottom of the senior race, but he replaced Egypt's Harry at the last minute and secured a place in the last eight.
Before the game, Watson described his opponent as his "growing hero", but he didn't seem to be intimidated by the situation, playing tight in the opening game and then scoring a spectacular 82 points to get match point. Game 3 was even tighter, with Watson securing the win 64-26 and he would face either Dragao or Judge.
Watson reflected after the game: "When I played the first game, I calmed down and had a good rest. I'm starting to feel good and I'm happy to win. The opponent is not only a legend, but also a great one, so it's very special to play against him here. ”
Elsewhere, Brazil's Figueiredo defeated world champion Tessa Davidson 3-1 to become the last player to advance.
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