Doherty qualified for all but two of the ranking events in the 2013–14 season, but couldn't advance beyond the second round in any of them.&lt;ref name="2013/14"&gt;&lt;/ref&gt; In April, he qualified for the World Championship after a 10–5 win against Dechawat Poomjaeng in the final qualifying round. Doherty was the oldest player in the draw in his 19th Crucible appearance and after trailing Stuart Bingham 5–4 in the opening session of their first round match, Doherty produced his best snooker to take all six frames in the next session and win a match at the Crucible for the first time since 2006. He then lost 13–8 to Alan McManus, the second oldest player in the event.