Day 5 Masters Snooker Highlights

Hello and a very good evening, welcome to Alexandra Palace and the

2016 masters, quarterfinals day here and four former champions looking to

land the coveted title once again. It is there, what a great shot, the

defending champion is knocked out by the young man from Northern Ireland.

In it goes and Barry Hawkins, it is the first time he has won a match

Masters. Judd Trump beat Stephen Maguire six frames to four. You have

to feel for Marco Fu. A nice easy evening for Neil Robinson. A

tremendous performance. He runs out a winner -- Neil Robertson. Our

fabulous match, Romeo Sullivan is back and he takes the match six

frames to five. -- Ronnie O'Sullivan. A major result for John

Higgins. Get in there! Get in. Stuart Bingham, he will be over the

moon having won his first match here at the Masters. What a line-up, Mark

Allen who made the semi-finals last year took on Barry Hawkins and

tonight we will see that much shortly. Judd Trump against Neil

Robertson pop -- promise to be a cracker. The current King Stuart

Bingham against John Higgins. We start with a real cracker between

Mark Selby and Ronnie O'Sullivan. Trust me Selby against O'Sullivan

lived up to its billing. Ronnie O'Sullivan edge unit, we join it at

the start of frame six. That is a better break from Mark but

that was a good point because Ronnie, he jumped over the black

against Mark Williams. Another tester for Ronnie

O'Sullivan. Superb. 100% from both players, that is

unusual after five frames. It was a better break off shot from Mark

Selby because he did not hit the blue. The way Ronnie is going, it

may be the only shot he plays in the spring. -- he plays in this frame.

Above the blue line. Nicely positioned to get down on this

red-macro. -- read. -- read-macro. -- red.

Might be an idea to try and get on the pink off this red. To the left

of the black. He will be left with a pack of red, he is going for the

black. -- reds. He has played a lovely cannon, a delicate little

cannon. A wonderful little shot, nicely

controlled, brushing off the pack of reds and getting onto the right side

of the blue and bringing another red interplay. He will need one more

good split on the reds to win the frame from this position.

He lost the second frame after making a 50 odd break but he bounced

straight back with a 69 and in the frame after he missed a fairly easy

shot. He was practising his back an, so... I think he would preferred to

go into this, he is contemplating potting the red. It will need to go

in macro the blue rather than the black. He has to be careful he does

not hit them too hard and send in the red. It could have finished a

little better than that, I am not sure, if one of the two reds goes,

he is OK. Yes, just about. APPLAUSE. That pink was on, you

know. The red slid off the pink. It may be in a pottable position, but

he still has the black. Just about. Gravity took over there, Dennis! We

will show you that one again. Just over four minutes to get to the

stage. We always give it a mention when he made that maximum break back

in 1997, five minutes and 20 seconds. He is the wrong side of the

blue line as you can see. He has already got a substantial lead. It

did not really matter all that much. He is 69 a head, 67. From the break

off shot, he has sat in his chair. APPLAUSE. He has made a 70 break in

over five minutes, he must be slowing down, Dennis! He has been

superb. When you think about that maximum, how did he do it in that

time? That was just out of this world. It may never be beaten, that

record. It used to take Terry Griffiths that amount of time just

to break off, didn't it? APPLAUSE. And nice little kiss on

the red, the only thing that has been missing is the century break.

That is his 805th century break in his career. A wonderful magnificent

century for O'Sullivan, securing the sixth frame. He leads by 4-2. What a

roar from the crowd in the Alexandra Palace. They shared the next two

frames and we join it in frame nine, Selby on a break of 47. A good

split. We may be looking for a four. You would think he was leading 5-3

the way he is playing at the moment. And that could be very unlucky

unless that red at the back of the bunch goes, he is very unfortunate.

You could play that same shot another ten times and you would

finish on at least one or two reds. Very unfortunate. It is hard to

believe that he did not bring more reds into play there.

Yes, that is very, very tight. And the fact he is 54 in front, if he is

not absolutely sure that he can what this red, he has to put it in

safely. He will need to play at a little touch aside. I think if he

puts it dead straight behind the red he could potter it, because he could

flip it a little bit stock Ken Pisi enough of the red? He is trying the

double-macro. -- double. He has played it in a wonderful way, look

where the cue ball has landed. He has played it very cleverly.

Once again, he has still got a pott on.

Needs good cueing this one, only a couple of pots away from getting

another frame back. At 5-4, it is game on again. He has to cue this in

and he is coming across the lab as well. This is a difficult shot, very

very tough. Played it superbly well, that was a

maximum shot. Oh, he did not quite get the cannon

and he is not safe yet, there is still enough there for Ronnie

O'Sullivan, he is a strong favourite in this frame now. If that little

cannon had of work, it was the end of the frame.

This was the one here, he just caught it at bit thinner than he

wanted. As I mentioned, those colours with the blue up there, that

is quite a good target to try and get in behind.

Well, look how the reds are now. So, Ronnie O'Sullivan is not quite out

of this frame yet, one mistake from Mark and there is a counterattack

on. There is not ball safe on the table at the moment. I think he may

be able to have a go into the left-hand corner pocket, there is a

gap between red and blacks towards the end of the table.

-- black. He needs a bit of luck here. Well, I tell you what, he has

knocked so many long balls in an because he is so far behind, he will

take this on. If this goes in, he has a bit of a chance.

APPLAUSE. What a shot that is. Just look at the case he got on the

red as well, purposefully played, freeing up the pink. That red that

has gone close to the side cushion will not be a problem for Ronnie

O'Sullivan because he is so good left-handed. Surely Mark Selby

cannot make a 70 break and lose a frame? And of course it is not only

the frame, it would be the match. You would not put it past his

opponent, Ronnie O'Sullivan relishes this sort of situation.

Did not want the kiss on the black, but he is OK. He can drop the pink

in. That is a great shot, fantastic

shot. A good angle as well. What a climax we could have two this match.

Because the red is OK, Ronnie can switch hands if he drops in behind

the last red and he has the perfect angle to do that. What a finish this

could be. Market knows that this has finished a little awkward here. --

Mark Selby. The blue, which was knocked up there

at the start of the frame could be a little awkward, this next shot.

To make sure he does not snooker himself with the blue. This has been

absolutely sublime so far. This could be one of the best frames

ever seen, having said that, he has not got on the browns as he wanted.

He has to go all what -- all the way around the table now. -- brown.

Where is the cue ball? Keep your eye on the cue ball.

Where does he play at? In the middle or up into the corner. -- play it.

It is there, but he still has a little bit to do. Another good shot

needed, Mark Selby made a 70 break. Incredible! Absolutely incredible.

Can you believe it? Ronnie O'Sullivan has pulled off one of the

finest clearances you could ever wish to see. Mark Selby made a

magnificent 70 break and it looked like he would be one frame behind

but in the end with that brilliant clearance, Ronnie O'Sullivan takes

the match, fantastic match, 6-3. My concentration and my focus,

everything that I could control was as good as it could be and I tried

to stay present and if I missed the ball did try not to get too down on

myself and waited for my next opportunity. As far as I was

concerned, it was a first-class performance. I had a couple of

chances before the interval and only missed one or two balls. When I did

have the chance, I seem to run out of position I little bit and after

the interval, Ronnie played a good frame and nicked one and after that

I played well and it was so close to being 5-4 and if that is, it is game

on again and Ronnie did well to win the match. Incredible stuff from

Ronnie O'Sullivan here at Alexandra Palace. Steve Davis said was one of

the greatest clearances of all time, some frame, match-winning

performance from Ronnie O'Sullivan who will play either John Higgins or

Stuart Bingham on Saturday evening. Now to the match between Mark Allen

who will fancy his chances this year after coming so close last year. He

took on Barry Hawkins earlier this evening. Hawkins is a Crucible

runner-up in 2013 in a Masters quarterfinal for the first time.

Mark Allen won the first, but soon found himself 3-1 down. Into frame

five, Mark Allen to play, ten points ahead. Where is the red going? Is

there a path through to that red? A little shake of the head. He cannot

get through it directly and because it is near the side of the pockets,

it is not unnatural to come off cushion first. If was right over the

centre of the pocket, easy to come cushion first. Not when it is.

He is just swerving it so he can get to the cushion first but he will

have to catch the red thin if he is going to pot at. Well played. Could

not have played it better, deserves everything he gets. This is the

super shot, he had to play the swerve to get to the side cushion so

he could hit the red then. He could not have played it any better. Big

shot, this. Well! Played it dead weight and just

managed to drop and I thought for a moment it was just a fraction wide.

This black will put him six points in front.

He has underhit that. Six points in front, he will need these four

remaining reds to win the frame at this visit. And that is not helped

in being well short. APPLAUSE. Just about run far enough

so he can get to the yellow because I do not think the brown will go.

Played for the choice of both reds in the centre. In off the side

cushion for the blue. He was just in between playing

this,. Had to take the cue ball in and out of the baulk field. Right in

the heart of the pocket. This blue will put him at 29 points in front.

With just 27 remaining. It looks like another frame has got

away from Mark Allen. He was in first with a break of 40, ball

positional shot broke down. It did not matter, that is more than

half. Great work by Barry Hawkins. Three frame advantage, he leads 4-1.

Hawkins made a pretty shaky start the match what was finding his

rhythm. Let a show you what happened in the next frame. Mark Allen up the

table on a break of 51. Got into it too much, wraps his knuckles on the

side of the table. Obviously Mark Allen been a

left-hander, that is the reason he needed an angle. He will not want to

be playing that red with the wrist. I think he has got a choice, you

either pot the pink or you can play snooker behind the pink.

He decided to try and get in and block. I suppose the only upside for

market is that the brown is reasonably safe. -- Mark Allen. 25

ahead, 35 remaining. APPLAUSE. Now, Mark Allen had a

quick look, does the blue cover the potting angle?

I think Barry can definitely get past the blue, can he see enough of

the red to pot at? I would suggest yes. He is looking at the potting

angle -- popped it. If you are going to miss them,

always a wrong side of hitting them to thin and this the result.

And this is not guaranteed to hit this and get it safe.

That is one way of playing it. Come off the right-hand side cushion and

try and hit two cushions to hit the red. If you hit the red direct, you

could go in fit. Well, he has courted thin. Barry

will have a go at this. Surely not! It has run on. Allen has

been a gift wrapped this opportunity.

In actual fact, the yellow will do. He could have made a better fist of

that. It is not going to be an easy yellow to go 28 points in front with

25 remaining. It should not be a problem.

And I would suggest it might relieve Mark Allen to get a frame on the

board. After winning the first frame with 109, Toulouse four on the trot,

it is tough. Yes, especially as Barry was in in that frame first. He

missed that tricky black. If he had got that black, you would have

thought it was definitely 5-1, the way the reds were situated. This is

a very important frame for Mark Allen to

As long as you can keep your opponent at four frames.

Well, there was a bit of venom in that. He lost four on the trot but

that is a bit more like it. He will feel a little bit better. But he is

still two behind. Allen hanging on in there but

Hawkins one frame 11 to make it 5-2. Into frame

eight, Allen to play, 14 points behind.

He did not make the best effort there, to get that safe. What has he

left? The red to the right corner is there, to get that safe. What has he

the easiest pot but position is not automatic because the cue ball is

not going to be going into the other reds. The plant to the left pocket,

he could be on the black, but I don't think he can be very close to

the black. This is not straightforward. You may have to

play some kind of hit and hope. The red in the corner, he is looking at

the gap in the middle of those five reds. He would be delighted to get

through that gap and get for the blue water pink.

He got it. He got it. Well played. And the place he played it, he

played for the gap. If you are uncertain, you play it with a little

bit more pace so that if used to kiss into the reds, you can still

get up the table. A perfect position will shop. -- positional shot.

Not sure he played for this red he is taking on year. He needs to be

careful he does not Snooker himself if he is playing for the pink. That

is why he has played a more percentage shot. That could not have

worked out better. He would love to play for the red just to the right

of the black spot. He can play it in such a way that you are always going

to have that read in the left corner.

At the moment, he does not really want to be potting the black because

that read to the right of the black will tie the black. I think he can

hold for the pink year. Straight would have been better.

It looks like he is going to play for the black.

If the pink was on its part, it would not be a problem playing the

black. If you pot the black, I think it goes on the pink spots so both of

those colours could be tied up. Looking there, the black may

actually go on its own spot if he potted.

He just has to be careful here. Sometimes when the ball is right

over the pocket, if you catch it a little bit thick, it can leave the

cue ball glued to this black cushion.

For safety, he is coming back for the blue. That was a nice little

flick to leave himself on the pink. That certainly was a bonus.

39 points, the lead now, he did not really have to play any cannons. To

get the points required. He has under Hitler that. -- underhit that.

He does not look composed to me. He looks a bit desperate to get over

the winning line. Not as composed as he was earlier in the match.

Understandable, to get to the semifinal, there is a lot of

pressure out there. He was just able to drop it in and I

think he can get through to the straight red when the paint is

re-spotted. Now he can play, if he likes, to get

on that red just to the right of the black spot. We just saw the side bar

there saying 68 points, which is another 15, on top of what he has

got now, Mark Allen will need a snooker.

Played that nicely. Played that very well. And in potting this red now,

he can bring those two reds just above the red he has just potted

into play. Should be on the pink. He has played it a lot firmer than I

would have done. But there you go. He still needs this blue and another

red and colour. I don't know why he played it so hard. If he had played

a soft screw, he would have been guaranteed to be on that pink. He

just seems desperate to get over that winning line at the moment.

This blue will put him 66 points in front but there is still 67

remaining. He has played for the double. Has he

gone too far with the cue ball? I am surprised he has played for this

red. It is one of the safe ones. This double four a place in the

semifinal. Not quite there yet. A big ask for

Mark Allen, of course. He has got no points to play with. Just 67 on and

he is 66 behind. He has left this red to the left

centre, Mark Allen. There is a bit of pressure on it

because the cue ball is going to, you would think, cannon ink into the

walls at this end of the table. But it is match ball so I don't think he

can refuse it. He is coming around to have a look

at the angle. I agree with you, it is not as if the

at the angle. I agree with you, it The two reds near the top cushion

are not give me is an Mark Allen has got to get blacks of every red.

Surely you have got to go for this. The longer he is thinking about it,

the more doubt it is putting in his head.

As I say, the problem for Mark Allen is, if he pot is a red, he has got

to get a black with it. Trying to get the red and come on

the black. That was a tough pot so here is another half chance for

Barry to clinch it. He can take this red to the far

right corner, stunned the cue ball, and that is the only ball he can

leave. It is right in the middle of the

pocket. And Barry Hawkins, who are Ben Te'o this year has not got past

the third -- first round, he is in the semifinal. Mark Allen will be

very disappointed. Started off well in the first frame, made a break of

109, but he has been making mistakes and not really showing any

consistency. And there is no way back to the table now.

What a positional shot. When you are in the position Barry is in,

everything seems to come easy. I think he has had enough. Foul?

I hit the pink. Sorry, that was my fault.

He potted the pink and the referee called foul. I don't know where he

got that one from. Anyway, it does not matter. They shake hands and he

will wish him well in the semifinal. Barry Hawkins absolutely delighted,

as well he might, because Ben Te'o this year he never got past the

first round but he runs out a comfortable winner. He wins 6-2.

I played a few loose shots am ultra critical I need to improve

that side but I need to -- I am over the moon to beat someone like Mark.

Getting to the world final was unbelievable and to get to the final

in the second biggest tournament we have got, on the BBC, will be

another great achievement for me. I am not really even thinking of

Saturday at the moment because I will have to play at the top of my

game to get through but if I did I will be delighted.

Well done, Barry Hawkins. He will play the winner of the match between

Judd Trump and Neil Robertson. Judd Trump looking to make his first

Masters final since 2012. John Higgins plays Stuart Binny in --

Stuart Bingham. We shall be back with live coverage at 1pm on BBC Two

and it is Judd Trump against Neil Robertson for us. We cannot wait.

Goodbye for now.