Fail in attempt to maintain break? (2,2,3)
I believe the answer is:
go to pot
'fail' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'attempt to maintain break?' is the wordplay.
'attempt' becomes 'go' (go is a kind of attempt).
'maintain break?' becomes 'pot' (snooker).
'go'+'to'+'pot'='GO TO POT'
'in' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for go to pot that I've seen before include "as stakes do" , "If you want a cup of tea" , "run down" , "Fall into neglect" , "fail badly" .)