Semi-Final: Marco Fu v Ronnie O'Sullivan Masters Snooker

Good afternoon. What a week it's been here at Alexandra Palace. This

Dafabet Masters has given us 20 centuries, four fabulous final frame

deciders, startling one-sided matches as well, and it's also seen

the exit of the world number one, Mark Selby. And with it, the chance

of a Selby slam of snooker majors. But, what a weekend of sport it's

left us with, with all eyes on these guys in the semi-finals.

We are both under pressure in the semi-final of the Masters. I'm

really looking forward to hopefully another great match. I played every

ball as if it was so important to the end and see what the result is.

It will be difficult playing a good friend. Sometimes it creates a

scrappy game. Hopefully if I play well, it doesn't go scrappy. He

hasn't got any weaknesses. Everyone knows how good he is. I'm going to

try to be better than he is. It's going to be fantastic.

Two cracking semi-finals Steve. Let's talk about the one this

evening, Barry Hawkins against Joe Perry, what about their progress in

the tournament? Barry is in Masters winning form. He did a job on Mark

Selby. He said it was one of his best matches. He seems to be in

great form. As for Joe Perry, he's come here with the, I'm not playing

well attitude, two great results, in the semi-final? He's in Masters

winning form. He's playing fantastic form, he must fancy the job, best

form of his life. And this afternoon we've got a wonderful occasion,

atmosphere. Marco Fu at 39 playing at his best in his career. He's in

Masters winning form. LAUGHTER.

Marco Fu is in the best form of his life! He put paid to Judd Trump,

that was astonishing. The interesting thing is, all of a

sudden, you've got three players in great form, but they are not tried

and tested winners of major events. One of the players still left in the

event, even though he may not be in the best form of his life, is a

tried and tested winner and Thai got to beat the master in his backyard.

Thank you very much for that, Steve. Hazel, all yours.

The view looks good. By the way, you are in the form of your life today,

Mr Davis, I must say! We've got Joe and we have got his

best friend in the semi-final this evening. I think crowd loyalties

will be rather split between these two Englishmen this evening. You can

bet there are an awful lot of Ronnie fans in this afternoon that's for

sure, they know the rocket is on a trajectory that could land him an

outright record seventh Masters title. He owns the record at sixth

with a certain Stephen Hendry. This is the snooker where he's been at

his best. He was 19 in 1995. Ronnie is our defending champion

this year of course. But he's also been runner-up five times as well.

Today he's bidding for an extraordinary 12th final. The man

who is aiming to knock him off course today is playing some of the

best snooker of his career, Hong Kong's Marco Fu.

I've been in semisin the Masters a couple of times in the past. It's

nice to be able to do it again. I've played quite well since the UK

Championships and have good form brought here with me. It's not going

to be easy. It's nice to be able to play good snooker against the top

eight. It's a great feeling that everything seems to be working

together. I played Jimmy, Ronnie, in the past, in the Masters and

everyone knows what the atmosphere will be like. He's under pressure as

well from expectations from the crowd and I'm under pressure because

I need to play the player and Mrs Play the crowd. We are under

pressure. Doesn't get much bigger than that. I'm looking forward to

hopefully a great match. Marco's won eight out of their 22 previous

matches. It was only about five weeks ago that O'Sullivan and Fu

faced each other in the semi-final of another of snooker's majors, the

UK Championship in York. That went to a decider by the Englishman. The

Hong Kong player has since embarked on a magnificent run, winning the

Scottish Open and producing immaculate snooker here. He's the

highest ranked player at number eight at Ali pale. This is worthy of

a final itself. -- Ali Pally. Nice shirt, Denis, are

you back on Strictly Come Dancing? ! Marco Fu is 39, playing the best

snooker of his career. This is a magnificently big occasion today,

will he cope with it? It is and this crowd have taken to the man from

Hong Kong, especially the way he played against Judd Trump. That

match was incredible. He made three century breaks and a string of other

breaks. Judd played out of his skin and lost. He's got to produce that

sort of form against Ronnie if he's going to have a chance. The thing

with him is his demeanour's changed. His walking around with his chest

back and looking confident in his own ability? He's working with Terry

Griffith's son Wayne who's moved out to Hong Kong, they work together,

and that's a big help to him. Always been a really nice lad but he isn't

half producing some fabulous snooker. He'll have to do it against

Ronnie O'Sullivan. Jealous, Stephen? Of playing here, absolutely! It will

be interesting. If you go on form, Marco is favourite. But Ronnie's got

previous in this tournament. What I've been impressed with with Ronnie

is his will to win. He's not been at his best but every match he's trying

his hardest. We talk about scoring, Ronnie's highest break was still

only 68 so that's got to improve? Absolutely. We know he can turn it

on at any stage. What better stage today to do it. OK boys, interesting

to hear from you this afternoon. Rob Walker let's get it under way.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Saturday's

Snooker Masters, what an occasion and atmosphere here in this famous

old arena. We are ready to rock'n'roll this afternoon Al

Alexandra Palace. APPLAUSE.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE. Please welcome a player who, after

19 years as a pro is producing the best snooker of his career so far,

beating Higgins last month to land the Scottish Open and this week he's

beaten both Trump and Allen to earn a second Masters semi-final, will

the magic come forth once again from the man from Hong Kong, Marco Fu!

And his opponent, who first won this title in 1995. For more than two

decades, he's been snooker's box office draw, six times a Masters

champion, five times a champion of the world, the Rocket, Ronnie

O'Sullivan! Marco Fu runner-up in the Masters

event six years ago. Can he win? Can he earn his passport through to

another final? He's going to have to cope with Ronnie and a partisan

crowd today. This is Ronnie's 13th Masters final, only ever lost one

before. Best of 11. To sort it all out, Stephen and Denis, we are

waiting for you. Good afternoon! APPLAUSE.

REFEREE: First frame, Ronnie O'Sullivan to break.

Good afternoon to everyone watching. What a fabulous atmosphere and what

a thrill it must be for both players to walk into the arena to that

reception. It really was special. Can Marco start the match with a

long pot? A couple of loose reds. And he is on

a colour so an early chance. Can he continue playing in the form he

showed us throughout the week, Stephen? Since the UK Championship

when he was a green or brown with the rest away from beating Ronnie in

the semi-final of that event, since then he's Been making a couple of

tweaks. Slightly longer back swing than normal. He's starting to look

the real deal when it comes to these big events, Denis? He's always been

a fantastic player, everyone in snooker knows that, but he'd go

maybe one or two months then disappear. If he keeps playing like

this, he'll be competing at every big event. Nice, aggressive shot.

Might just be OK, you know. Caught the pink half bull instead of pull

bank but the red will go. I think the white might cannon into the pink

here which wouldn't be a bad thing. This is much more difficult the one

he's taking to stay on the black. I thought he might have taken the

other one which was a slightly easier pot. Yes. This was a very

aggressive red to take. Maybe that is his plan, take the game to

Ronnie. APPLAUSE.

Very good shot. The fact he's covered the red near the right

corner and he had the yellow and blue to use as snookering balls.

Played it well. Marco returned the compliment? No, he's playing dead

weight. He's still covered that red near the pocket.

APPLAUSE. Nicely picked out there. A bit of

pressure on the next pot. Certainly opened the reds up. If

this blue goes in, great chance. A bit of pressure on that early on

in the match. Still expected Ronnie to knock that

in, but it is the opening frame. This is a nice opportunity now for

Marco Fu. Maybe taken just a few moments just to calm down. Such a

massive entrance for both players in the semi-final. Plays at his own

pace. Marco turned professional in 1997

and based himself in Scotland. It's no longer there now in

sterling. Used to have some professionals there. He's always

been a big solo practiser. Doesn't practise a lot with others. Used to

have the odd game. He'd never miss. In Canada, he was best out there for

a while. He wants the black available to both

corner pockets. Nice angle. The red directly above the black. You want

to cannon that and play at a decent pace. There is a chance he could

snooker himself. That is why he played it a bit harder.

I've just got a feeling today that it will be a high-scoring match. So

chances like this, taking them at your first opportunity, are going to

be very important. O'Sullivan hasn't been in his best

scoring form this week. You get the feeling it's going to come out

sooner or later. I think it will have to today Denis

for him to beat Marco. Absolutely. The fact he missed that medium

length blue... Is an early worrying sign. Mar coast's going to take full

advantage. He's had two chances in this frame. -- Marco.

Hadronny knocked the long blue in - this is the blue - had he potted

that, I'm sure he will have made a sizeable break. Normally, we are

used to seeing O'Sullivan start so quickly.

So the black is the first frame. Century in the first frame.

He's on 31 centuries so far this season.

We've had 20 centuries so far in this year's Masters. The

We've had 20 centuries so far in this year's Masters. If you want to

get a crowd on your side, I'll tell you what, this is the way to do it.

Oh, he's missed it! He's missed it. Unlucky. Almost.

APPLAUSE. Ronnie missed that blue and that was

the end of the frame. Marco Fu leads 1-0.

This heavy scoring has been the hallmark of mar coast' game of late.

I was totting it up, since the start of the Championship he's knocked in

21 centuries in 17 matches on his way to winning the Scottish Open and

he was on track there for a fifth century of the week. It's

extraordinary the way he just is not missing a great deal at the moment.

He's always been an excellent scorer as you saw there as well, but

there's just something different about him. He has just Blossomed

into a top, top class player ready to win majors. To beat John Higgins

in his own backyard in Scotland is hugely impressive and he looks like

he's full of confidence. When he's amongst the balls, he's looking like

clearing up. You can't put a price on confidence. So many players down

the years have been confidence players, John Higgins on a run is

like that, there is no stopping him? Also your opponent knows you feel

confidence as well, the reality check, who is the Ronnie O'Sullivan

out there because all of a sudden Marco is getting on with it very

quickly. When you are confident, you spend so little time thinking about

the shot, you seem to be able to focus better on what shots to play.

You are not double thinking yourself and that seems to grow confidence as

well. It also puts more pressure on your

opponent. The likes of the blue Ronnie missed, that will get

magnified if Marco keeps making clearances. Back we go.

A bit short of pace with the break off shot.

Marco knocked a similar red in, slightly easier. Can Ronnie avoid

the black? He's not taking the pot on. It's a safety shot. Don't blame

him. He's one of the best tactical

players in the game. That's certainly opened the reds up.

Look at the length of the cue ball. Seem to open up nicely on the cloth.

Playing beautifully all week. Incredible. So confident at the

moment. There was no looking at the shot.

Well, there is an example. Marco Fu was never blessed, whenever that was

a power shot, that was his weakness. He's bringing the cue back a lot

further than he used to. The power he got on that cue ball was

phenomenal. If he dropped this red in, he could

get the black back on to its spot. Clash The black is still going to be

tied up because it's blocked into both corners.

Might have finished awkward for him. He's hampered slightly with the

black to force it up for the blue. Better to get up to the blue if he

can. Maybe the black goes into the left

corner because he was thinking about swerving around the black there,

maybe it does pass that red. He had to power to get to the blue

and the white. Jumped a few times which happens when you are striking

down on the cue ball like that. APPLAUSE.

Well, you can't beat a nice flick. Certainly got one there.

Can make such a difference that. It was a good shot anyway. But to catch

the yellow was a bonus. Caught the red before the pink. A

little bit surprised. He went into those dead weight. Couldn't have

left much. So he took a bit of a risk there, Marco Fu.

APPLAUSE. That kept on rolling and rolling.

APPLAUSE. He's got a decent chance.

What an atmosphere, Denis. Here Al the Alexandra Palace, it's

absolutely packed. The crowds have been fabulous all

week. They are enjoying this. How many will Ronnie make here?

Looks like a practise set up now, doesn't it. Virtually nothing to do

with the cue ball. You shouldn't see the cue ball travel very far at all

in-between shots. I think he's travelled a bit too far that time.

Change of plan, it's the blue or pink now.

Correct side of the blue. APPLAUSE.

I mean once again he travelled too far. He played two or three little

positional shots which is very unlike O'Sullivan and you can see

the frustration. Normally, the cue ball is on a sting when he's around

about the black. A couple of shots ago he had to go for the blue and

there he missed a cannon. He won't play the shot like that. It will be

a foul. You have got to have one toe on the floor. He gave that cushion a

good old rap there. I remember was it Michael Holt did that and did he

break his finger? He

has got to be so careful going between those two reds. He is going

to have to play the safety shot. He wanted really to push the boat out

there. He was so frustrated with that positional shot. I think he has

calmed down and he'll play the correct shot. Still fuming. And this

is where he has been impressive in his first two matches, Dennis. I

know he is fuming with that shot. His temperament has been excellent

this week. Ronnie O'Sullivan 41.

APPLAUSE It was as if he wanted to bite the

tip-off there. I know that was got a gim heed that

long putt from Marco Fu, it was a chance to really rub salt in the

wound if he could get in and win this frame at that visit.

I think he can get past the blue, you know, to the red to come back

down the table. He's going the other side which is a little bit more

risky. There is two reds to avoid. He might drop in behind the green.

He was playing for the cushion. APPLAUSE

It is not a snooker. He can see the one to the left, but if he takes

this pot on and he'll have to do because there is no easy safety

shot. We have seen him miss a blue in the opening frame which cost him

that first frame. Can he knock this one in?

No. I'll tell you what, Stephen said if Marco Fu can punish Ronnie, he'll

still be thinking about that poor positional shot he played when it

looked like he was going to make quite a big break. This wasn't easy.

We're only in the second frail, but this is a massive visit to the table

for Marco Fu. Such a psychological game, snooker,

at the top level. You can put one on your opponent early on.

This is where he just ran a little bit too far and was very annoyed

with himself. Yeah, I think he was trying to play the cannon on the red

to the right. Just cannon the red to the right there as the cue ball goes

past it. Very unlike O'Sullivan. He needs the black back on its spot

in a couple of shots time. The reason I say that is that red that's

on the cushion, it will be a lot easier to get on to the black if it

was sitting on its own spot. Yes, Dennis, it is so important not to

leave that red until last. Because every chance if you don't get on it

properly and then you would have to play safe. I would be playing for it

now. Screw off the side cushion. Well, he is not done. He can play

now this red he's playing now. Finish high on the black and play

for the red on the cushion. It may have travelled too far. No. He's

fine. So this is a shot for the frame, Dennis, you feel. Just has to

drop it in dead weight and give the pocket a chance. We have seen a lot

easier black than this. This is much tougher. So dead weight

will give the pocket a chance and you've got the perfect picture

there. No. No. Now that is quite a big turning point so early on in

this match. Provided Ronnie goes on and takes the frame.

Just a little awkward with the pink sitting on the yellow spot. So he

might even play for the pink this time. A big opportunity missed

though by Marco Fu. If you touch the cushion and you don't usually see

any reaction from Marco, but he knew that was a big shot that he just

missed there. Green, brown and blue will be

enough. Yeah, what it has done by Marco missing that opportunity is

given Ronnie O'Sullivan a chance to forget all about that frame because

he has won it. If Marco wins it, then he still thinks about it.

APPLAUSE Ronnie O'Sullivan just lost his cool

momentarily and he got a chance and he took it.

A A game of real tension already, you can really feel it, Steve. I

don't mind Ronnie O'Sullivan showing anger. It shows he wants to win

desperately and it was tense very early on. Both players making slight

mistakes and the last mistake is always the one that costs you the

frame and it was Marco's. Three bites at this. This is the mistake

that Marco was stewing about. Stephen mentioned on commentary, the

start of a match, those shots can be pivotal and it was one of those

shots you could miss and unfortunately for Marco he has done.

He had a long red in that frame, he nearly hit the wrong side of it.

When Marco is scoring, he a long red and he nearly hit the wrong side of

it and if he had gone 2-0 stewing in his chair, it might have made a

difference. Ronnie has to live with the pressure of expectation all the

time. Most of the time he is a favourite. Marco Fu doesn't have

that on him until he wins the first frame and it looks like he can win

the second and then he's under pressure. That's the fascination of

the game of snooker. Ronnie said having beaten Neil Robertson, he

said, "I have got to accept the fact that I'm not perhaps as clinical as

I once was four or five years ago, but as a pierce competitor, that

remains undimmed." It is difficult to square that your competitiveness

is still as sharp and you know your form won't reach those great heights

again? Especially if the thing that inspires you is playing wonderful

snooker and that's the thing that drives you forward because the

frustration of not playing to the levels that you think you want to be

can be debilitating, but that's probably as you get older that's

what you have got to suffer. There is one incident Stephen is talking

about Ronnie's cue ball control when he had the three reds on. He could

have played two or three shots and he was annoyed. Yes. He is coming

back in. There is Marco's wife and little Belle. That might be the

youngest of the Fu family with them. But they're here. They're always

there supporting their man and Ronnie is back into the arena as we

head into frame three. Thank you, frame three. Ronnie

O'Sullivan. It has been a fascinating start to

this semifinal. Oh, what was that Marco?

A long way short. Well, maybe he can see enough of that red that's just

to the right of the black to cut it in. The other red is preventing

that. The red the left-side of the table

is a little awkward for the safety shot. You have got to make sure you

don't cannon into this. He may attempt that to get on to the black

as a shot to nothing. No. Just the straightforward up and down safety

shot. APPLAUSE

An opportunity to drop this red in for the black.

That's Marco's daughter there. Isn't she beautiful?

That's your daddy out there playing. She has just seen herself on the

screen. Yes! Yes, Marco smiling up at his family,

but he has got to get his mind on the job. A semifinal of the Masters,

1-1 against Ronnie O'Sullivan. APPLAUSE

A little bit of a stalemate now that red has gone up the other end of the

table. Not a lot for Ronnie to play. Only just roll into the reds and we

might possibly get a re-rack. Well, what has he spotted here?

Just a gap to get it back to the cushion and played it well.

APPLAUSE It will just take a few shots to

resolve this situation. Yes, as long as the cue ball keeps

going up close to the cushion, there is not a lot you can do. If the cue

ball is away from the cushion you bring the reds back, but even that

shot you're sometimes frightened of knocking a red over one of the

middle pockets. It could be a while here.

It will never catch on this kind of snooker, will it Dennis? It wasn't

your type of frame this. Sometimes they run like that and you get the

balls up the other end of the table. But what does happen when a player

gets in, there is going to be plenty of reds there to score from. Now

that one to the left middle is quite a risky one, but he has had a quick

look at it and he has decided definitely against taking it on, but

that's a bit careless. He has made a complete hash of the safety there.

OK, a little bit unlucky. You never know where the reds are going to

finish, but he didn't get the white where he wanted and now the chance

is there for Marco. Marco Fu has just put himself in a

bit of trouble here. Do you know he might have to play a

safety shot and go up to the black with the cue ball. A golden chance

he let slip there. APPLAUSE

That's what I was saying earlier, when you're bringing the cue ball

back to the cushion, there is always a chance of potting them in the

mid--le pockets. Again, no guarantee where the cue ball is going to end

up. Just make sure they pot. Now, he'll settle for that.

Dle pockets. Again, no guarantee where the cue ball is going to end

up. Just make sure they pot. Now, he'll settle for that. It is not a

gimme this blue, but get this in and an opportunity.

He didn't cue that as smoothly as he did in the first frame. He didn't

get correctly on the red that's why he's having to play this around the

angles. Just overscrewed it slightly. You

want it to be straighter on this brown. It shouldn't be a problem.

He's going to have to pot an awful lot of balls here to get a sizeable

number of points because they're all low valued colours.

He has had a look just to see what's available there and he's way ahead

of himself and he feels that maybe he can drop the blue and he's back

looking at that red to the right of the pink and it looks as if it's on.

That just shows you how far ahead the player is thinking. It is

usually a couple of shots. Very rarely rumour than three shots ahead

of yourself. Four shots. You're just playing the cue ball into an area

each time, but you weigh up the table and you know that it's going

to be there and he had looked at this red about three shots ago.

Didn't get into the cue ball like he wanted. It will be much straighter.

This is now awkward. If he's playing a cannon on the red above the blue,

it will go wrong. No he has natural angle. So a little bit fortunate

there to leave that natural angle. Well, they seem to be all covering

each other the four reds around the pink. He potted seven reds, but he

has only accumulated 34 points because he had to take lower valued

colours. It must be a plant. Just going

slightly to the left-side of the pocket, but he can make that.

APPLAUSE I think it's important for Marco to,

win this frame just to forget that red that he missed along the cushion

that would have given him a 2-0 lead, but he has been blessed with a

terrific temperament also. It was a little bit of an awkward

frame at the start with the reds going up the other end of the table.

And in the end, Ronnie getting back to the black. Well, he did do, but

he left one in the middle. That's the frame now.

The best of 11. The interval still after four frames.

Daddy is clearing up. That's his wife Shirley that's there

and their daughter. Almost made a century in the opening

frame. He has got another chance here.

I just noticed that Ronnie is looking at the tup of his cue there.

I know he made a gesture as if he was going to bite the tip-off, but I

think that was a bit of frustration. So normal play resumes you would

have to say from Marco Fu. This is great stuff. Off, but I think that

was a bit of frustration. So normal play resumes you would have to say

from Marco Fu. This is great stuff. Yes, he is looking very composed

again. APPLAUSE

Absolutely terrific stuff from the man from Hong Kong.

Marco leads by 2-1. Ronnie has left the arena. I'm just

wondering if there is a problem with the tip.

Ronnie's tip of the cue has indeed split and there is now talk about

having to replace it. Paul Collier is on stand-by to do so. There was

talk about trying to take the interval early, but we're not sure

if that's going to happen. This is unfortunate from his prospective.

Marco is leaving the arena and he has been told. You get a period of

grace, how long, 15 minutes? I'm not sure. But it is a reasonable amount

of time to put another tip on and repair it and have a couple of hits

on the practise table, but the discussion seems to be around

whether the interval is taken now from the crowd's prospective or you

have one stop after three frames and then another stop after another

frame. I don't know what's going to happen. Rob Walker is making an

announcement and it looks like we are taking the break now. Has he

brought an old tip with him? What's the implication?

It's massive. It's difficult to play screw and stun shots with it. If you

have one that's already been played on, taken off a cue and put on the

end, it's basically like what you have taken off. That's the problem

he's got with it. Hopefully he's been a bit experienced enough to get

a few from the club and he'll be able to put one on. We are going to

take the interval a frame early. And John, you've discussed this, we saw

him slightly uneasy with his cue and you chatted with him? He said the

tip was hard. He said he's not happy with it. It can happen. I've had

tips on cues, you have played with them for ages and they haven't gone

hard. Sometimes you don't know what you are going to get. This was a

situation with Mark Williams at the Crucible last year. He got to the

quarter-final and it was looking for all world like he was going to do

some damage and the night before he played, the tip came off and he

wasn't the same player, it had such a fundamental impact. For anybody

that doesn't know, a tip is a piece of leather stuck on the end of cue

and with the chalk it gives the grip to the ball, otherwise it would slip

off. Leather seems to be the perfect thing, they've never invented

anything better. It's possible that the sides are vulnerable to

splitting, if you play a shot with a side spin, you are hitting the edge

of the tip, they are put under severe pressure. So a lot of the

American pool players are for ever polishing the sides of the tip to

strengthen them up as much as possible. Most of the snooker

players play with a brand of tip that's not so easy to buff up to

such levels sostrengthen it up so they are always vulnerable. How does

it impact your performance if you were to continue to play with it in

that state? Possibly it doesn't but it's in the mind. I've played

matches where I've gotten away with it, I've played where it's been near

the end and certain shots haven't got any impact. I was taught a

lesson when I had a broken tip here. Sometimes a small chunk will come

out and it's the part where you will contact the tip when playing screw

backs, so what you can do, if you are clump enough, you can take the

tip off, turn it 180 degrees and put it back on again. But it's tough

because the tip is the same size. Putting a new tip on, you are

playing with an unknown quantity. You are fiendish, Mr Davis,

fiendish! Ronnie has admitted he's ridden his luck here in the Masters

so far because obviously survived that twitchy black in the pen

ultimate frame. He had three massive slices of luck, flukes against Neil

Robertson, came through that and, as he says, he's ridden his luck but

he's such a fierce competitor. He joked about dragging everyone down

to his level. That's hard to believe. But he's still punching and

fighting and he's he'd a lot more to say to John Parrot earlier. You seem

a lot more level headed about your own level of performances at the

moment. It's easy for you to accept isn't it? Yes, I've worked hard on

that in the last five years, if there was a weakness it was the

mental side. I'm tough, I got down on myself a lot though and that's

cost me a lot of tournaments over the years. Since working with Steve

Peters, I've had to work on that and that's probably the most important

thing for me to work on, the game when it comes easy to me is easy but

I struggle like everyone else. You have to put the work in. Working on

my mental skills has been the massive turnaround in why I've

played so well in the last five years. You seem to have surrounded

yourself with good people. I've had a few undesirables there, you know,

but that's made me appreciate the really good friends that I've got

and I used to think that I had loads of friends but maybe I think now I

have about four. They're four proper, proper friends, I don't

really want any more. I used to have a dressing room full in the Crucible

because I wanted to please everybody but now I think, you know what, it

ain't happening. So I feel better for it. It's nice that you can enjoy

each other's company a bit more when it's intimate. I'm lucky. Are you

happy in your home life as well reflecting in the way you are

playing? I don't know, listen, I've just gotten so used to my life being

all over the gaff since maybe 17, 18. I now just kind of, as long as

I've got my cue, a shirt on my back and a bit of money on my debit card,

I'm all right. I'm back at my mums, I have an empty flat up the road,

there is all sorts of stuff the last ten years, but do you know what,

it's made me realise that I don't get attached to things now, I

just... It's sad in a way because I really should feel like I've got

something to play or live for but I just don't, I think as long as I've

got my cue, play snooker, go here and there, I'm a bit of a vagabond

really. Happy with your lot though? As long as I'm healthy, go to the

gym, keep fit, eat good food. I'm sure as long as I stay on the right

path, someone will always take care of me and look after me until the

day I drop dead. I hope that's not any time soon.

It's the rocket, Ronnie O'Sullivan. This tournament going back to the

Masters, must be a very special event with you being a local boy as

well? Yes, it's a tough event. If you are playing well and you have

the crowd behind you, it's amazing to feed off of them. You feel like

you are letting them down if you don't win. They know I give my best

and try my best. I'm appreciative of all the support I get, but

especially here in London, they get behind you. You know what it was

like for Jimmy when he was playing in his day. Yes. It's not easy to

have that following and try to deliver every time. The big event,

we talk about the Grand Slam, are you bothered more about your record

now or not? You would still like to win, but you are not saying, I would

like to have seven or eight? No, no, I would like to take any tournament

to be honest but the big ones, you know, the UK, the world and Masters,

they are like everybody wants their hands on those. I don't think I'm at

the stage where I could be picky and choosy and put all the eggs in one

basket. There are a few who could do that now in their prime but for me

it's about competing. I love the events, being around the snooker

crowd and the snooker family, if you like. In some ways, it's been

disappointing because I like to do some stuff with the pun didry and I

love hanging around the venue. I love to have something to do at the

venue, so I haven't been able to do that this week so I'm trying to

enjoy every day and appreciate that I'm still able to play a few

matches. Final question - you can still win this can't you?

Absolutely. I think my form would have to improve but I've won enough

tournaments where my game's up at a certain stage, something can click

and you can be flying, so I always have the game being fickle and why

shouldn't I be able to find form. I've had a great week, it would be

great if I could lift up a bit of that Waterford Tony Martin crystal.

He's going to need his patience and everything to cope with this

situation. -- Waterford Crystal. We have taken the international

early so Ronnie can get his tip fixed.

Another two Englishmen, two of snooker's hardy annuals if you like,

two best friends actually going toe-to-toe. Barry Hawkins, last

year's runner up, he's going to play 42-year-old Joe Perry who has been

in the game for 26 years and has at last made it through the last four

in this event. Maybe the writing is on the wall for Joe or on the page

for him this year. The writing here shows a good

rhythm, rhythm is about reasonable consistency without monotony and

people who have rhythm are usually able to cope in a crisis so if this

person is up and pushed into a corner, they are most times able to

cope. It's very large writing. The top of the writing to the bottom is

about 15mm and that is a sign of somebody who definitely needs

recognition. The middle zone, which is about the here and now, the

social side, is 5mm and averages close to 3mm so again, a positive

personality. You have somebody generally optimistic, friendly,

reasonably strong will power. The difficulty them is that they can

sometimes downgrade the likelihood of risk and difficulty that they are

facing, so they have to be careful not to throw themselves into the

game trusting themselves too much without assessing genuine chance of

success. When you have writing which is relatively released like this, as

opposed to tight and contracted, it's somebody who is prepared to

have a go, have a bit of a risk. So it's very important that the other

aspect of his writing comes into play, which is the close letters. If

you look at the red ah arrows, they're close to the point of even

touching. When you have close writing, it's somebody who is

worried about making a mistake and slightly pulling themselves back.

Look at this huge signature. 75mm. Absolutely vast. When you have a

very large signature in comparison to the text, it's somebody who

really does enjoy public life. So that idea of performing on public

television, they want to overshadow the competition, no doubt, but the

issue with a large signature like this is that their identity depends

on the approval of other people. So the problem could be that they might

lose their self-possession if they're criticised strongly. But

what I do like about this writing is these pyramid structures. Look at

how the letters are formed. There is a nice angled structure which is a

sign of stubbornness. Here is somebody with all these issues can

come through and fight their corner. Fascinating stuff. I think he's

probably got Joe to a fairly large degree there. Positive personality.

Willing to have a go. Dislikes criticism. Worried about a few

mistakes. Just like any of us. Covers snooker players in general.

Joe has a big match against Barry tonight. What will be fascinating is

that it could be a very big weekend for the Griffiths family. Father and

son might be pitted against one another in tomorrow's final because

Joe playing Barry who is coached by Terry Griffiths, a 1979 world

champion of course and Terry's son Wayne is the man who's been

responsible for a real leap in performance of Marco Fu. He works

out in Hong Kong with him and what a difference he's made to this man's

game. A coach can help a player to have

the best preparation for a match. When you are out playing in a match,

you are on your own. The best coach can't help you any more. But

behind-the-scenes, before you go into a match, you go through all the

practise routines and the checklists technically. The coach can actually

spot some of the things that you do right or wrong. Very, very tiny

things, but very, very important things.

We are very fortunate to have Wayne working in Hong Kong for us. He's

done a lot of good for my snooker over the years. Most importantly,

he's done a lot for snooker in Hong Kong as well. Ever since he came to

Hong Kong and started working with the squad, the results have improved

dramatically. Wayne helped me to play with more consistency. It's

paid off. I was aiming wrong. My tip was off line. The cue action helped

a lot as well. With the cue action, I used to struggle to play with any

power, now I'm not the most powerful player on the circuit but still I

can play with a little bit more freedom and shot selection-wise, I

can have a lot more choices with the cue action that I have.

Well, Marco mentioned there in that interview a few technical changes

with Wayne. The first one we'll talk about is the fact that he thought

perhaps or Wayne spotted his tip and the butt of the cue weren't on the

line. Let's take the baulk line, a guiding line, put the white on the

brown spot and OK, what Marco Fu is saying that when he lines up on the

shot, the tip of the cue may be in the middle as far as he's concerned

but this exaggerated it. The butt of the cue is not on the line of the

shot. So how on earth would you try then to hit along the baulk line if

this was the case? You would have to try and hook the shot or slice it

one way. So how do you try to actually troubleshoot this yourself

if you don't have a coach? An easy way really is, you have the baulk

line, put the white ball on the brown spot, put the tip of the cue

in line with the shot in the centre of the white ball, drop the cue down

to the edge of the cushion then put two pieces of chalk either side

tight in of the cue. Now all of a sudden get up, go back down again,

drop into the position and check whether that cue is dropping down

between those two pieces of chalk. So you can self-check whether you

are actually getting on exactly the right line or not. The next phase of

that would also be when you actually play the shot, can you deliver the

cue in a straight line without nudging one of the pieces of chalk.

That was the first thing they've been working on. The other thing.

It's a bit unclear from what Marco was saying, he's got a bit more

power. There is a few things, I'm not absolutely sure which one he's

working on, Stephen said he's pulling the cue back further for the

shot. If you have a short pull back to generate the power you have to

explode through the ball. If you give yourself more of a bridge

length and pull the cue back further, even though it's more

difficult to get back to the centre of the ball, you have more time to

accelerate through the ball. I think that's probably what Marco Fu's been

working on. Slightly longer bridge length for the power shots, pull the

cue back a bit further so he's got more time to ram the cue through

like that. Thank you Steve. Marco was always

the classic precision cherry-picker wasn't he? Yes. It was always a

criticism levelled at him albeit it was a brilliant, precise score, he

wasn't perhaps in the power mode. Do you see a difference in the way he's

approaching the game now? There is obviously slightly more shots I've

seen him play. He's potted and skewed back to the baulk area. It's

a massive thing not to have in your game. A lot of players don't have

power and, in some ways, they have to change shot selection to get

around it. To have all the shots in your armoury, what's better than

that. He's talked about the increased feeling of freedom he has.

If you have that, it increases so many options for you? They also

don't have to avoid some of the shots, simple as that. You see

something coming up and think, I fancy this one, you are not

thinking, I can't play this because I don't have the power, now he has.

He's more aggressive, getting more confidence and through that run, he

said at the Scottish Open, I'm slowly developing a winning habit.

For me, John, he's always been an immaculate man in his dress, his

manners and demeanour, but the quality of his play, shoulders back,

he really looks like he believes in himself. I think his demeanour is

one of the things I've noticed about him. Neil Robertson walks around

like a peacock, Marco is exactly that, shoulders back, given off an

aura of, I'm very confident and I'll play well. Don't worry, the other

players will be seeing that. Ronnie is up against it at the moment, not

just at the table, but with the equipment here. We are hearing that

Ronnie is having to apply a brand-new tip to the cue. Now, that

is what you thought he should be desperately trying to avoid at this

point? If he'd have had any old ones he wouldn't be putting a new one on.

He obviously hasn't. If he's good enough to new tip on and play to a

standard good enough to beat Marco Fu, he truly is a genius. As strong

as that? It's incredibly difficult to play. Let me clarify by saying,

if there's anybody that could do it it's possibly him, but 99% of the

others wouldn't be able to. Would Marco view this as a positive? He's

got to blank it, you don't want to think about that and put pressure on

yourself thinking, I'm playing against somebody who shouldn't be

potting all the balls and playing with a tip. Blank it out. There is

one fascinating thing this week, the possibility that still exists that a

new chapter is about to be written in snooker history because, if you

look at the three majors in snooker, there they are, you have got the UK

Championship, the Masters and, of course, the World Championship. The

last time there was a changing of the guard in the outright wins

column of a snooker major was 1999 when a certain Stephen Hendry won a

seventh world title to overtake Steve Davis and Ray Reardon. While

Ronnie shares the honours with Stephen at six, it could be that an

18-year-old wait for a total revision of the rule books could be

upon us. That is a milestone that we could be looking at. Very

significant for the sport? Very much so. Probably might not be seen again

in the history of the sport. You are talking about legends. For Ronnie to

be do it, incredible. Stephen who is in commentary won't be happy with

it. Nevertheless, an amazing achievement from Ronnie who's been

one of the best players, if not the best player I've ever seen. Albeit,

we talked about this last week, he has other things on his mind now,

but the overall picture here from a man who has been chasing the targets

all of his career, to be within touching distance of owning outright

the overall record in a major tournament in your sport, that's

pretty special? Yes. He will play it down and say it's one of those

things, but in the cold light of day he'll be very proud of it. When we

consider what is about to happen when they come back out here, they

are going to have to play, it's best of 11 and Ronnie coming out with

seeds of doubt potentially in the back of his mind. He has no idea.

Will he perhaps have gone for a quick knockabout in the practise

room? Hopefully once the tip is ready to go, he'll give it a few

brushes of chalk and give it a go in the practise room. We can't begin to

tell you how difficulties to come and play with a new tip. He's

probably one of the few people who could do it. Not many could put a

tip on. Joe Swayle maybe he's another one he used to play with a

soft tip. But to play well with a new tip would be some achievement.

Talked about the 16 majors that Stephen Hendry's won, or 18

Stephen's won and 16 for Ronnie. As for Marco Fu's strike rate in

majors, he's been a runner-up in the Masters and the UK, twice been a

semi-finalist at the World Championship. Is this the time that

he can break out and finally become one of the key figures in this

sport? He has always been an absolute top class professional.

Always has been. He's had the game, he's a cherry-picker, takes the odd

reds off. Break-building is phenomenal. Only nine people have

made over 400 centuries in the sport, he's one of them. He's just

been lacking the final ingredient to make the cake exactly what it should

have been. I think confidence is it and he's never played better snooker

than he is now at 39. 22 centuries is great. Since the start of the

Championships, it's an extraordinary strike rate over the last few weeks?

Heaviest scoring as anybody in the game. Nobody would have got as many

as that. Even people winning tournaments. Obviously working with

Wayne is helping him. He's got a very sound technique. The biggest

fact of the lot is the level of confidence he's got. What a

fascinating extra dimension this is to the major semi-final at the

Dafabet Masters, Ronnie Sullivan coming in, brand-new Tipton cue,

show that going to react, how is he going to react to this situation.

Marco is one up. That is the question, how will he

react to that new tip? I'm with John Parrot, if anyone can do it, Ronnie

O'Sullivan can. He seems to be able to just put a new tip on and play

straightaway. Not the sort of thing a player would want but he's pretty

good at doing it, Stephen? Yes. There's been advances in the way

they make tips these days to sort of 15-20 years ago, it used to take me

two, three, four days to knock a tip in. They're made a lot firmer. You

can get grades of how hard the tip is. I had a tip on my cue last year

and could play with it straightaway, it's the way they are made now. Not

quite the drama I think everyone is making out, but still in the

semi-final of a major event, not ideal.

Not going to be hard enough. Come up a little bit short. Difficult to

judge at the best of times. A bit of pressure on whoever put the

tip on! He thought he could take the double

on and wouldn't leave anything, only the red he was trying to double and

he has left it. A bit of a tester, a long pot. Let's see if he can knock

this in and give himself a bit of confidence with the new tip.

APPLAUSE. Judging by the sound that made, that

sounds a little bit on the softer side.

Came up a little bit short but can still plan the Kay none. -- play the

cannon. APPLAUSE.

If he wasn't happy with the tip that was on it, now he finds a tip he is

happy with, he could see a different Ronnie O'Sullivan. He could have a

massive boost of confidence. Just about OK. He can hold the red

to the right of the blue. Surely he can't make a frame-winning

break with a new tip on his cue! You wouldn't put it past him.

That got a terrible contact there. He's still on the black but not as

nicely as he would have been without the kick. Just watch this.

He certainly looks a lot happier around the table, Stephen? No doubt,

more comfortable with the tip that he has now than the one that was on

previously. They mentioned in the studio A his

last match that it was very hard, the tip that was on his cue. The tip

is a little softer, then it gives you more of a feel. That's why a

couple of his positional shots have been going awry.

APPLAUSE Quite remarkable, it has to be said.

Run a little bit too far here on the red, but you wouldn't see it being a

problem. He only made one century so far in this year's Masters.

It's not going to be easy to make a century, certainly with the red on

the left side cushion. And this frame has only been going

just over seven minutes. Everything is going.

APPLAUSE Well, I don't know if he can square

this up and play the double. No double. No century. With a brand-new

tip on his cue he has come in and knocked in a 95.

You just couldn't make it up. How would you like humble pie served?

The boy is a freak! He's a freak of nature. Nobody can do that. That

would have flattened many a lesser player that situation and yet he

seems to almost thrived upon it. More comfortable now than before.

Mentally and psychologically, it has all gone wrong. Stop that. But if it

was in a club and you put a new tip on, you can do that, but you

wouldn't expect it on one of our match tables under the conditions

which we play, but what, as John said, Ronnie O'Sullivan is a

marvellous talent. He adapts very quickly. Within a few shots he got

the feel of the tip, but as Stephen said in comment free, if that tip

beforehand was too hard, they are in my opinion, a too hard tip is worse

than a too soft a tip. He has got more grip. The two of you were

saying just listen to the sound of it. What were you hearing? It is

totally soft. He lost position on the black slightly with the kick and

there was a little shot. They are impossible with a new tip on. He

just floated it in. What happens with a new tip, it hasn't

compressed. It is like a concertino and you need to bang it in with a

few frames until it is compressed enough like he will do for the rest

of its life span. Great adjustment by Ronnie O'Sullivan. Frame five. It

is 2-2. That's a pretty good break off as

well. Can't really take this pot on and

play for the black. It is just the wrong angle for that. He might still

have a go at it. He did manage to get around the back. Good cue ball.

APPLAUSE There is the tools of the trade for

a snooker player. I'm not sure about the lighter what he's going to do

with that! Just maybe burn a few of the fibres

off. He was polishing the side of the tip

so thaw don't see it when you're looking down the cue.

Well, it looks as if he's taking this on.

He may have just held for the pink there so it was worth the risk. OK,

the red is near the pocket, but look at the cueing. He won't be potting

that one, you wouldn't think, but he has to remove it from the pocket. If

he bridges overall these reds, and knocks this in, it will be some

shot. A very tough situation there. He

might just have gotten away with it slightly. He wanted to hit it

full-ball when he hit the cushion. There is a long one. And he can get

on the black. Still a chance for Marco to get back

to work. Obviously he had that interval after the third frame which

wasn't planned. He sat and watched Ronnie win the last frame on one

visit so we will see if that's interrupted Marco's rhythm.

This has developed into quite a good opportunity here for Marco.

Just overscrewed it slightly. He wanted to be straight around that

red. It is closest to the pink. So there is a change of plan.

That's OK with the cue ball there because he has got very little to do

with it. Just drops the blue in and he has a choice of reds for the

listened corner. The left-hand corner.

Well, I think you said at the start of the match Stephen, you will see

quite a few high breaks here. I think your predictions will come

through here. He had a 95 in the previous frame. So it's building up

very nicely this semifinal. It could be a cracker.

He may have to play the second red. The one that is to the left of the

two. I don't know if he's straight enough on the bottom one to fall

through for the black. From that angle it looks like it's

OK. He has followed through. Again, a

couple inches further. He's going to have to cannon that end red. The red

furthest to the right of the bunch. Yes, perfectly played.

APPLAUSE That was the key shot to paving the

way for making a frame-winning break here.

He has judged a couple of those shots, Stephen, those little

cannons, he played them perfectly. A lovely touch. Very economical style.

He is starting to look like a machine when he gets in amongst the

balls. He's in line for the high break

prize. He made a break of 140. He has had five centuries so far this

week. Yes, I think he made 11 or 12 and winning the Scottish Open before

Christmas. He is just turning into a scoring machine. It is the biggest

attribute you can have as a top snooker player to win frames like

this on one visit on a regular basis. And from a psychological

point of view after watching Ronnie winning the last frame on the 95

break with a new tip, this is just what the doctor ordered for Marco

Fu. And also how quickly is he playing? I know it helps when you're

in perfect position every shot. Brilliant.

APPLAUSE Absolutely superb from Marco Fu.

That's the 22nd century so far this week.

You see, look at that. It's not often you see a quicker time than

ron reportings but again down to the fact that he has the cue ball on a

string. Well, it is not down to his coach, originally he was with Wayne

Griffiths. Then he was with Terry Griffiths. He

didn't get that shot selection from Terry. He could beat his own high

break by one point. What an effort. 134.

Made absolutely sure. Marco Fu has just cleared the table with a mag

nift icant break of 141 and he is back in the lead, 3-2.

What a frame of snook thremplt Ronnie got in first. He finished

very, very awkward and had to bridge over a red and just try the safety

shot and mis-hit the safety shot and that was it. Yes, as well as other

things that Marco Fu has got going for him is his temperament, the

circus that went before, finishing a frame early for the interval to do

with Ronnie's tip, Ronnie comes out and makes a 95 and he just calmly

gets down and knocks 141 in, in how long? Seven minutes, eight minutes?

Yes, I said, it was just what the doctor ordered from Marco Fu and I'm

talking about doctors, there is a doctor in the house! That's doctor

Miriam Stoppard. She is a delightful lady. I spent sometime with her. She

was a delight to be with. She has got a lovely smile. Thank you, frame

six. Marco Fu to break. A quality opening red here from

Ronnie O'Sullivan. He had to aim down slightly on the cue ball to

create that angle to get around the back of the black.

He will have enjoyed watching that break from Marco Fu and also he'll

enjoy the challenge of trying to get the better of it.

Maybe enjoy is the wrong word, appreciate, you don't enjoy sitting

in your chair watching an opponent clear up. He will have appreciated

the skill of it. The match with Judd Trump that Marco

had was quite extraordinary, but this is building up to a similar

type of match. Judd had two centuries. A few other really high

breaks, but Marco was awesome. He had three centuries in that match.

He already had two in this. But Ronnie looks a different player, it

has to be said. He certainly feels comfortable with his new tip.

A tough bunch of reds to go into from this angle, but he is one of

the best in the business at picking out the right cannon. It is so easy

to stick on these. When you see that shot again, it is hit perfectly. He

needs to hit the red, the third red, so it pushes it into the bunch. He

could not hit that any better. The three reds above the black, that

one, he has to hit on the right-hand side of it. Any other part of that

red and they don't open. A fantastic shot.

I'll tell you what, it is an absolute pleasure to be sitting and

commentating on this sort of match. It really is fabulous to watch. Look

at the pot success rate. Yes, he looks like he loves this new

tip on the cue, but he will be enjoying this challenge that's up

against him today. Playing a man at the top of his form, as Marco Fu is.

These frames are not lasting very long, are they?

Now, full concentration to see if he can respond with a century break.

You can't beat the high break, that's for certain, but well even if

he doesn't make a century, it doesn't really matter. But a great

response this. Marco can't do anything about it. And this

Alexander palace crowd they are being royally entertained here.

APPLAUSE He might be able to pot the red

that's closest to the black. If not, the cannon. No, it will go.

Well, this is stunning. Absolutely stunning snooker.

In between the yellow and brown. APPLAUSE

A straightforward game. That's another century. Ronnie's

first of the match. And he has made 858 centuries now in his career. Who

is going to bet against him getting to that magical 1,000 centuries?

Wouldn't that be something in a career?

What a response from Ronnie O'Sullivan. Marco Fu made a break of

141. The response was, that superb century, 1222. We're all square.

3-3. I can't wait for more of this! I couldn't agree more. We are

driving on towards what could be a record number of centuries. In the

current format without a wildcard round, the biggest number is 28

centuries made in 2015 and that's the 23rd of the week so far.

Ronnie's second, but what stunning stuff from the two of them and that

141 in the previous frame from Marco Fu beat his own high break of this

week of 140. It just gets better and better. Loving this. I'm still in a

state of shock that he can play with that tip because it is a

manufacturer's tip. He got hold of the cue ball and it is in perfect

position every time. What I would say, even though he is a genius,

that proves that inn a way, a great match, but in a way, you could argue

he has been a bit lucky to pick out of a box of the particular tip he's

using which is an American made tip, which is a cheap and cheerful one,

but most players preferred it and picked a good one out of the box as

opposed to one that was another hard one or a very, very soft one! A

little bit of experience by Paul or Ronnie. You test them and squeeze

them to get a feeling if it is going to be a hard or soft one. You never

really know until you cut down the sides and put it on. And as John was

saying and Stephen were saying there are some tips around that are more

expensive that are actually a lot more guaranteed that the pressure

you're going to get on them. Tipgate aside, the fact that he's respond to

go this challenge says so much about him. That's what sometimes he needs,

isn't it? When you have got as much talent as he is got, some games

comes easy, but he is playing somebody at the top of his game

today and he's enjoying this. And Marco Fu is giving as good as he

gets here. What a match. I open you're enjoying this semifinal of

the Masters. We said this is where we have a final and so it is

proving, one of them will be going through to tomorrow's final? Will it

be Ronnie or the man who has been in the final before, only to be beaten

six years ago, Marco Fu? Back we go. Ronnie O'Sullivan to break.

I'll tell you what Stephen when Marco can go back into the arena

there, he got a fabulous reception from this terrific crowd.

How much quicker can these two players get? Ronnie O'Sullivan just

equalled Marco down to the 16 seconds a shot.

Marco played that red thinking it was the only one that he could leave

possibly and missed it and how often does that happen?

Well, one red, one black, Dennis, what do you think? You are naughty,

Stephen! Well, in practise or in exhibition

you play the right-hand side of those two reds and brush off the

pack for the black. Still part of this shot. Yes, he has done.

APPLAUSE Concentrating on the frame. Yes, the

crowd... Thank you, let's have a lull, please. Ronnie, even Marco was

smiling. Ronnie, as all players, the main concern is the frame. That's

nice to see. Of course, he made that maximum

break on 13 occasions, just overtook your record, Stephen, 12 you made.

Never been in front in the semi-final. Time to take the lead?

We didn't see that coming. It was just a little bit of a distraction

with that red there having to bridge over it that caused my opinion to

miss that. That's the only reason I can think of why he missed the

black. Loose red to the right of the bunch.

Big target if you wanted to go into them and really open things up.

Another big moment in this match. So often a deciding factor in these

matches are, not the frames that you should win, it's the frames that you

shouldn't, the ones that you can pinch. Such a fine line between

winning and losing when both players are playing so well.

He's just finished a little awkward. He took the opportunity to open more

of the reds up there. Just having to stretch quite a bit here.

A little straighter on the black than he would have liked but that

shouldn't be a problem. So important, this red. This clears

everything. No excuses now not to win the frame at this visit from

Marco Fu. He doesn't want to be playing a

cannon because they are all available.

Rather than forcing that in... Next to the pink.

This would be quite a frame to pinch for Marco here.

Caught Ronnie shaking his head there. He knows at this standard he

can't afford any mistakes. We showed you the shot of Ronnie

bridging over the red a little awkwardly. This was the one.

You don't see him shake his head very often. But he knows Marco's not

going to miss. He's thinking very clearly at the moment, is Marco Fu.

So composed Marco Fu. Just blue to make absolutely certain and it's

straightforward. You just can't make a mistake in

this game the way these boys are playing. Another fabulous frame of

snooker. Ronnie O'Sullivan after 47 finished a little bit, missed the

black and that was the end of it. Marco Fu with that lead is back in

with it. Such a calm, confident air about this man. This is really one

of the great matches that we've seen isn't it? It is. The thing is, you

expected Marco to clear up. I mean, I just felt that, you know, I wasn't

looking for, where is he going to crack or feel he's under pressure.

At the moment he seems impervious to the pressure. Earlier on when his

wife and young daughter came in the room, he's confident enough and

relaxed enough to just have a chat during the game. Can you imagine

doing that? ! That is interesting. That is his elder daughter, Belle,

Amelia is outside playing, I believe and Shirley just flew in from Hong

Kong so he hasn't seen them for a while. So to be able to say hi, how

are you doing, then to carry on is great, but a tough one for Ronnie

1234 sn As Stephen said, it's winning the frames you shouldn't

win. Ronnie had a difficult shot. Missed it there, but you can't

always think all the balls are going to go after that. But Marco, I agree

with Steve, will get the balls in. His composure to think clearly when

the pressure is on? The cue ball doesn't move anywhere, he's so tight

into the next ball! It's Fu back in the lead at 4-3.

Both players are getting the breakoff pot and getting the white

close to the cushion meaning it's a difficult pot. If you are away from

the cushion, it's slightly easier. Looks quite a thin snick this, but

maybe it's OK. A bit too pacy. So he's restricted

now to what he can do with the cue ball. The red that's to the left of

the bunch of reds, he'll have to angle that and cannon the blue, then

he can concentrate on the pot and the position will take care of

itself. Just hit the blue. A bit of movement

in his body there in that shot. That wasn't his normal smooth

playing style. A little bit of movement at that

time. He normally does that. The fact he was tight on the cushion

almost, that's slightly more difficult. Finishing short on this

red so he could bring more reds into play when potting this.

Missed a similar black in the previous frame but he was bridging

over a red that time. Just managed to avoid cannoning the

red there which could have spoiled things. Judged it to perfection.

Three reds above the black, he could push through to the black one. That

is what he played. Hasn't worked out though. When he hits

Needs a special pot if he's going to continue here. Remember what

happened in the previous frame, a 47 break wasn't enough. This is a very

tough shot. Oh, what a shot! APPLAUSE.

Through the gap, redthe pink. He was always going to finish low on this

red. Just didn't quite judge it. When

you're cannoning other reds, there's always a possibility you can finish

on the cushion. Shouldn't be a problem covering that red. It's over

the right corner pocket. Has to make sure he locks the path

through to that. And the brown near the cushion for

insurance. APPLAUSE.

It's a very healthy lead, 54 points, but not a man in the form that Marco

Fu is. Will he get a chance? Very clever indeed.

APPLAUSE. Acknowledged by Ronnie tapping on

the table. OK, there is a potable red into the left middle but look

where the cue ball's tucked up. That last shot that Marco Fu played,

shows how well he's thinking to just get down and play that safety shot.

Seen it straightaway. Oh, brilliant shot. Look how

confident he played that. Look what he's leaving. Should he have missed

that red? Just floated it in. He's just seeing everything isn't he.

Oh, decelerated on that. Chose to take the most difficult red.

That's what happens when you decelerate, you miss the pot thin.

Wow, that could have been a huge turning point had he pinched that

frame after pinching the previous one.

They are just so evenly matched now in this semi-final. First sign of

weakness I've seen in Marco Fu for the first time in a long time, in

this match. APPLAUSE.

Would have been a strong favourite had he have taken the frame. But you

just sense that this could go to a deciding frame. We have had some

fabulous matches all week. Quite a few of them going the distance.

Average frame time of 12 minutes. Just shows you the quality of

snooker. Much safety play. It's been whoever gets in first here.

Finished the frame off with a break of 63. Marco Fu did have a chance,

missed that red, with the rest, and we are back all square again, 4-4.

Marco had the chance for another steal as in the previous frame, but

Ronnie on 55, was it the right shot that the rest have taken on? I think

so. I think where he landed, where he finished, he knew full well, if

he was perfect on the red, if he drops it in, it was a perfect

position. He's just missed it. Interesting what Stephen said, I

said virtually the same thing to you, is that the first sign of a

little bit of pressure showing in the match, but nevertheless the

right shot to take. You can't argue with it. On many occasions we say

take the difficult ball earlier than the last ball because it may make

the lest rest of the clearance easier. He's done that. That's not

much different to taking the red along the top cushion when there are

two left. That's what you would do. It put him under pressure, he's

playing that with the rest and in a way, he's going, if I get this in,

this could be frame ball. He's got to clear all the balls up. The

argument against that is that he's playing it with the rest and it may

have been a way of extricating that red from the side cushion in another

way. Later on, yes. He's been playing so well. He must have

fancied every ball he went for, but it was with the rest. He's been so

cool. We talked about that in the last frame. Does your opponent feed

on little signs like that, that perhaps you are under it? They have

to because there's been no mistakes, it's been that good. True. Any

little sign of weakness you can cling on to you are going to take.

They are both absolutely at each other. Ronnie O'Sullivan banged the

table earlier when he failed to get position of the ball. Marco Fu

nearly banged the table. That's qieflt of Ronnie banging the table.

Almost unheard of from his perspective. His expression actually

changed! He's deliberately cultivated that level. It's a poker

face he's done, not to show weakness so when it does crack, it takes you

aback. He's got a fabulous temperament. We have been extolling

his virtues this week and his temperament is to keep smiling.

Ronnie giving a bit of attention to the equipment there. There's Belle

with mum Shirley, just flown in from Hong Kong. Looking for her dad.

She's a real live wire that one. A couple of years ago at the UK

Championship, she was one of the stars of the show. Cheeky little

smile. She's a real sweetheart and her dad is doing fantastic things

here as he tries to go for a first major title. Best of three, Belle

Shirley everybody else on tenterhooks to see how this is going

and the pressure really on now guys? Yes, it is, what a fantastic match

and tournament we have been treated to. Probably I've said many a time

worthy of a final. They met in the semi-final. Two great players.

Remains to be seen whether Marco can keep the form up and can Ronnie - I

think he's got oaf the new tip - Ronnie is in a good mental state

now. What percentage of increase in level that we have seen over the

last couple of days from the match has he played against Liang and

Robertson now? It's chalk and cheese. I think he's really enjoying

the challenge today. He's playing against somebody at the peak of his

form and he wants to get into the final. It's ban wonderful match,

plenty more to come. 4-4, best of three, here we go.

Once again, good pace with the break-off shot.

APPLAUSE. If he's got a slight angle on this

red, he might just be tempted because he could drop on the black,

the only thing he could possibly leave would be the red. It's now

down to the best of three. Just decided against risking that.

APPLAUSE. APPLAUSE.

The crowd have been fabulous throughout this match. We don't need

a single one shouting out at the wrong time, it spoils it for both

the players. The red that's closest to the cue

ball, he could come off that the left hand side a bit thin leave the

cue ball up by the yellow pocket and hopefully bring the black into play

as well. That was a risky one to Nestle and

you are trusting that the table's going to run perfectly through. You

can always get a little deviation from the cloth and he didn't judge

it as he intended. It was the first negative shot that Marco Fu's played

in a long time because it could have gone thin and brought the cue ball

back to where it was but he obviously thought that was the one

he played was the easy one to play. REFEREE: Can you stop moving,

please... Someone on the front row was moving around having a drink,

probably brought some water in with him.

He can come off the bunch and it's not that difficult a shot to take

the cue ball back up to where he was playing from.

Not the way he's been playing so far this afternoon, that shot.

This was the one where you can see him dropping the cue. He knew it was

a great chance. Meanwhile, he knows that Ronnie hasn't finished on the

red as nicely as he would have liked. It's all about a cannon here

when he hits the black. Can he avoid that? He could. Left handed as well.

APPLAUSE. To get that sort of action on the

cue ball with your opposite hand to avoid cannoning the black was

excellent. Since the interthat will, and we had

the interval after three frames, he made breaks of 95, 122, 47, 55 and

63 in the previous frame. 141 and 83 breaks for Marco Fu.

APPLAUSE. Gone too far. A smile there, but six

inches further than he intended. This was the one he misjudged

slightly. He knew it would be too hard.

I think he can see enough of the red, but the brown is quite a

distraction. The red just nearest the blue, but very awkward cueing

along the side of the brown there. Managed to cover that red. That's a

tricky situation he was faced with there.

There is Nick Peanut Baines. He is a keyboard player with the Kaizer

Chiefs. He loves his snooker. Well, this red, to the right of the table,

there is pressure on this. If that red keeps running, he's safe

for relatively safe. He got away with that one. There is

only one pottable red. That's the one that just between the pink and

black. That's the only possible red he could pot, but he may cannon into

other reds. So it's very difficult. Just the safety shot. I don't blame

him. Well, we've had everything in this

match only bouts of safety and now we're getting that! There has been a

string of breaks. It is nice to see the tactical side of the game also.

Oh. He got a good cue ball, but if he

can get tight up behind the colour, he will gain a good advantage. We

will show you this fluke to plant. He doesn't want to get too cute and

try and get too close to the brown. Oh, that cue ball ran off. That ran

off a mile. It only moved the space of just about over a foot. Watch

this cue ball go to the right. That's shocking.

Well, nothing Marco Fu could have done about that. Sometimes you get

it along the baulk line. But instead of being snookered, if this green

goes in, it could be the end of frame, but it's not easy.

A fabulous pot. You see what he's leaving.

What a difference that would have made, Dennis. It would have stuck

Ronnie up tight behind that brown ball. It is just a little awkward

here for the good positional shot. He can't make his mind up.

Yes, sometimes you're faced with a shot and you know it's not just a

matter of potting the ball and getting nicely on the next colour.

He still can't decide which way to play it.

And in the end he made it look very, very easy with a very, very delicate

screw shot. Yes, a puff of the cheeks.

Always glad to get that one out of the way, but very unfortunate for

Marco Fu. OK, he was a long way behind, but had he of got the

snooker which he normally would have done without the ball drifting, as

we show you it again, and suddenly little things are just going in

Ronnie's favour. I mean, he has played fantastic stuff. I think that

turning point in the previous frame when Marco missed the one with the

rest that would have given him a 5-3 lead if he had of pinched that

frame. It is like the first time in the match, the enormity of the

occasion got to him and he the opportunity to go 5-3 ahead.

He won the previous frame with breaks of 55 and 63.

This is following a similar pattern. He has had breaks of 46 and now

there are. -- this. Oh, what a shot that was.

You don't see that very often. You don't see that shot played very

often. And the black is on its way. A break

of 46. He followed that up with that break of 82. The Rocket really has

lifted off and now he's just one frame away from the place in the

final. It is 5-4. A lot hinged on that roll off from

Marco earlier on. This was a bad one. He is very unlucky there. I

agree with Dennis, sometimes you get them along the slate line, but there

is no slate line there. You could see it going right. OK, it is a

little bit hard anyway, but to pull off like that is unlucky. Some

cracking stuff from Ronnie O'Sullivan again. 46 and 82 in that

frame and there was a lovely green to the middle pocket that we were

oing and ahing about. Ronnie O'Sullivan, you know, he does know

how to take a frame by the scruff of the neck and the sign of a great

champion, when needed, he seemed to have upped the pace in the whole

tournament. OK, we talk about form and playing your first round match

and winning it easily, it is about how you end up the tournament, not

how you start off. Ronnie O'Sullivan with a brand-new tip on, regardless

of how fantastic that is, all of a sudden he looks like a champion. Do

you detect any signs of tentativeness in Marco at this

point? Can that be attributed this situation to him, or is this all

about Ronnie? If he loses the match, people will look at the rest. It is

so important. In the grand scheme of things, there is not a lot wrong he

has done. Certainly not in this match. He has played as good as he

can do, but he has got a fully focussed Ronnie O'Sullivan who is

enjoying the challenge today and that's what the problem is. It has

been a challenge that's been even more magnified by the equipment

failure with the cue earlier, but somehow he has come back, he

produced his best stuff of the whole week since that technical fault if

you like at the end of frame three. He is one away from booking a place

in yet another Masters final. Both players have been breaking off

very well. They're finding that baulk cushion and they keep leaving

a half chance, but because the white is so close to the cushion, it makes

it very, very difficult. This will be interesting to see if

Ronnie is tempted by this red to left corner to drop in the black and

you can see if he misses it. He would have to be leaving Marco Fu a

chance. Well, he might be refusing it. It looks like he will leave the

cue ball on this top cushion. Or is he taking the pot on?

APPLAUSE What a fantastic pot, but that

always looked like the natural angle for the cue ball to go. A tremendous

pot. Yes, he also slid off the side of

the pack and finished on the black. He might have left a red to the

right middle pocket. I think he was playing to just land on that red.

Yeah. He has left a possible pot. But no easy colour available if he

takes that on. Yeah, it was quite clever really. It's going to take

some shot for Marco to get on the black. That was always the danger.

An element of safety as well. You can see where the cue ball is.

That's a little bit on the thick side, but I think the pace of the

table will still take him behind the yellow. He would have been trying to

get the cue ball tight on the baulk cushion, but that will do very

nicely. There is no easy route back to the

safety zone from that position. APPLAUSE

I think this Alexandra Palace crowd have taken to Marco Fu. I think the

snooker he has produced this week has been scintillating especially

against Judd Trump and when you knock the balls in and you play

great snooker, you'll get the support of the crowd. Just look at

that crowd. What an atmosphere these two players have had to play in this

afternoon. 2,000 people in the Ally Pally. Noise when it's needed.

Silence when the players are at the table.

Where is the cue ball going? It's OK.

APPLAUSE And have a look at the reds. That is

what you call an attacking safety shot.

Certainly no easy escape back down the table from that position.

You would have to be very accurate, indeed.

The white is tight on the cushion to the left of the black, he'd cover

that red that's on for the right corner, but he thought of quite a

few options. It is not often Ronnie thinks about

a shot this length of time, but it is very understandable here.

It was worth waiting on. I said he'd do well to find a path down the

table. He found a pot and he found a way back down the table and he's on

the brown to get back up to the reds. He spotted something on the

cue ball, but that is the shot, probably of the tournament, from

that position. To pot that and to fin the gap. -- find the gap.

Dennis is talking about the whole tournament. It could have been so

different in Wen had potted that black in the first round. This man

at the table was within a black ball of being knocked out. Now, he looks

odds on to be making tomorrow's final. And going for a record

seventh Masters title to overtake Stephen's six Masters.

Still at 97%. Someone in his line of sight there, "Come on, mate."

He's doing the right thing. Thank you, that's enough. He's settling

himself. He knows the importance of this visit. He really is fired up

here. He has just asked someone to keep

still. It must be a photographer. It has to be.

Well, Marco Fu has just got to sit there and hope that something can go

wrong here for Ronnie, but he looks very, very focussed does Ronnie

O'Sullivan. It has been an absolutely fabulous

semifinal match this between two players at the top of their form.

Very few mistakes have been made. The odd error that was costly

because of the way either player are playing. A little bit of misfortune

misfortune with that ball rolling off.

APPLAUSE I don't think I have ever seen

Ronnie O'Sullivan as animated as he is today. It seems every shot has

got a different facial expression. The will to win is ferocious to get

into that final. Well, this is going to finish a

little awkward. 51 in front. He is not many pots away from securing a

place in the final. It's there. He is going to play it left-handed

if he can reach it. Why not? And that is a lovely gesture from

Marco Fu there. It has been a fabulous semifinal as I mentioned.

We said Marco Fu had to play at the top of his game. He did that. He's

still applauding. That's the type of character that Marco is, but they've

treated this Alexandra Palace audience to some brilliant,

brilliant snooker. It doesn't matter.

That was lovely to see both players. It has been a fabulous semifinal. It

would have been a great final. In the end Ronnie O'Sullivan was just

brilliant and he goes on to beat Marco Fu which 6-4. He's in the

final! This Ally Pally crowd is on its

feet. That was truly awesome, gentlemen. Fabulous afternoon of

snooker. Two players at their best. I feel sorry for Marco because

nobody else but that man would have beaten him today. You see his face

when he won there? He was euphoric. We saw the fist pump and we saw

Marco applauding him. That's all you can do particularly in the final

frame when he picked the red out and got on to the brown. You can only be

admiring of that and we have seen Ronnie O'Sullivan on many occasions

produce something special, but from the add verity of having to change

his tip half-way through and being up against it against a player that

was playing so well, that was one magnificent performance. He should

be very proud of himself. Well, he is through into a 12th final.

Ronnie, fantastic. May I say, that's how you break a tip in!

Against all that adversity, how did you cope because at that point in

the match you're down. Go through that for us? It's crazy. I was

cueing really well and I just thought, I was on the practise table

and I kept getting out of position and I thought this ain't me! If I

had of been cueing bad. I've tried that. No, I knew it wasn't me. It

wasn't me. I just said to my mate, we was steaming it. I had my cue tip

over a kettle because that's meant to soften it up and it didn't have

no effect. I just went out there and I just couldn't play any shots. I

had no touch, no feel and I'm a touch and player and if I haven't

got that, I might as well go home. I need something, so hi to put a new

tip on and it was a decent tip. How do you play with a new tip? I'm not

a bad player. The tip was split though. It was completely gone. It

couldn't take no chalk. I miscued five or six times. It was chalking a

bit of slate. I said to my friend, it is like a bit of slate. I was

going to wait for the interval, but it was so gone and they said you can

take the interval now. I was like sweet.

slightly. He knew it would be too hard.

How risky going for a new tip? No risk at all, I would never have won

that. I knew that unless I raised a gear, I was going home, mate, he

would have knocked me out. It was the only decision to make. OK, 95

immediately when you came back into the arena then you throw in a 122,

but there was a moment in frame 8 where he missed with the rest when

he was up here and if he cleared that, you were on 55 weren't you.

Yes. It was at that point we maybe saw a bit of frailty and that was a

turning point? It's the Masters, 2,000 people, 50-odd behind, we are

capable of missing anything. He's got no problem with bottle, he's a

tournament winner, but anyone in the world in the history of the game

could have missed that. They'll tell you that. It's not easy. If he had

his hand on the table, I fancied clearing up. All of a sudden he

played the roll up, it seemed to perhaps hit a finger mark. Strange

situation? I don't know what happened there, I can't remember.

Listen, I mean, at the end of the day, if you don't play well, the

other guy can have luck. If you play well the other guy can have luck and

gets bits of this, but if you play well you can overcome it. I had a

lot of luck but he should have still beat me because I weren't very good.

We were discussing the level you played at today, comparing it to

your previous games. I said three years ago, I'm never taking another

tip off and I stuck with this tip and it was a terrible tip. I stuck

with it and stuck with it and I was like, you know what, it's coming

off, but that's sometimes what you have to do, make an instinctive

decision. Everyone around me was, what the hell are you doing and you

have to live by the sword, die by the sword. You looked like you

enjoyed that match? Probably one of the best I've won. I fancied the job

even with a new tip. I thought if I can get a feel of it, I'm playing

well enough to counteract that. If you are playing well, you can get

away with a new tip. If you are playing bad, you get a new tip on

and it's Overmars. You are into your 12th final. Only won six, not a very

good strike rate. You could still take this record on your own. I

wonder who you fancy tonight, Joe or Barry? I don't care, to me I've had

a Saturday afternoon out, what else would I be doing on a Saturday

afternoon, 2,000 people, unbelievable, lucky, luck you boy

and I'm lucky I have all day tomorrow. A great week so far. Last

year, I was really under pressure because I done my back in and I was

doing interviews and you thought I was losing the plot, you lot.

Nothing personal. I never thought I would play properly again because I

done my back in so bad. This year I'm so relaxed because I think, I

have perspective and Steve said, don't tell anyone you are playing

better. I've come through a lot and I feel that everything's a bonus.

I'm still twitching out there and I still want to win, don't get me

wrong. We saw the fist pump, it meant a lot to you? It meant a lot

to me. Marco is such a lovely guy but I just felt all the way through

that match, I can win this but I know I've got to play well and I

can't make many mistakes. I the new tip, a little shot was missable and

I thought, it's up against me but I can do this. When I done it I was so

relieved because I have another day to get used to the tip so I'll be

quiet now. You don't have to be quiet. Another semi-final tonight.