Day 7, Part 1 Masters Snooker


Day 7, Part 1

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Good afternoon. If you are up to your ears in snow and you have done

:01:18.:01:23.

your sledging and Snowman making, you are probably ready for an

:01:23.:01:26.

afternoon indoors in Alexandra Palace with us at the Betfair

:01:26.:01:31.

Masters. What a week we've had. Some fantastic fight backs, no

:01:31.:01:36.

fewer than six of the 12 matches that have gone the distance to

:01:36.:01:43.

final frame deciders and now we are at the semi-final stages of this

:01:43.:01:47.

exclusive Invitational event. All four participants in the semi-

:01:47.:01:51.

finals have won at least one of snookers big major titles, the

:01:51.:01:56.

world, the UK of this Masters event. This evening we've got Mark Selby

:01:56.:02:00.

against Graeme Dott, but this afternoon in a packed arena we got

:02:00.:02:05.

a repeat of last year's final. 12 months ago it was Shaun Murphy who

:02:05.:02:12.

came off second best against Neil Robertson. By gum, the Aussie would

:02:12.:02:19.

love an action replay today. atmosphere last year was just

:02:19.:02:24.

breathtaking. I can still remember the hairs on the back of my neck

:02:24.:02:28.

standing up, my nerves were jangling. That is what we are live

:02:28.:02:32.

for as snooker players. atmosphere was absolutely

:02:32.:02:35.

incredible for the final. It matched what it was like in the

:02:35.:02:42.

He took I think I've done it -- definitely learned things in the

:02:43.:02:47.

last year. I've learned where my strengths lie and I've tried to

:02:47.:02:51.

rely more on my strengths rather than trying to go toe-to-toe with

:02:51.:02:59.

people better at things than I am. I dominated the tactical exchanges.

:02:59.:03:05.

I had to capitalise on the second session when Shaun was a little bit

:03:05.:03:10.

unfortunate, he was on 30 or 40 twice in a row and I made 70 or 80

:03:10.:03:14.

after he made a mistake. It gave me a cushion that I needed and I could

:03:14.:03:23.

I think a little bit wasn't the allowing the game to be played

:03:23.:03:30.

under his terms -- a wasn't me allowing. I'm a year older and a

:03:30.:03:36.

bit more experienced. If I sense the matches going that way again,

:03:36.:03:40.

perhaps I won't go down on a sinking ship. It is easy to get

:03:40.:03:46.

sucked into playing proper snooker. Unfortunately last year I fell for

:03:46.:03:55.

it. He is perhaps having a more consistent season this year. He has

:03:55.:04:00.

made quite a few semi-finals, he got to the final of the UK. He will

:04:00.:04:05.

be hungry to get another trophy, particularly this one, the last of

:04:06.:04:11.

the three that he needs. Revenge is a strong word. It was tough to lose

:04:11.:04:16.

this final last year. It would have been tough to lose it to anybody.

:04:16.:04:22.

But Neil is a great champion. don't get that many chances to win

:04:23.:04:28.

tournaments, let alone defend them. Defending his title would be

:04:28.:04:31.

absolutely amazing. -- this title. absolutely amazing. -- this title.

:04:31.:04:35.

Last year's final is the most significant occasion on which these

:04:35.:04:44.

two have met. The Aussie left- hander has shaded the last 14

:04:44.:04:50.

meetings. It has been over two years since Murphy last got the

:04:50.:04:56.

years since Murphy last got the better of Robertson. Neil Robertson,

:04:56.:05:00.

defending champion, one of the best break-builders in the game and now

:05:00.:05:04.

one of the best match players. He has got all that bottle. He has won

:05:04.:05:09.

the championship before and he will not let go easily. What has Shaun

:05:09.:05:13.

Murphy got to do? He has to rely on that laser-like cue action, he has

:05:13.:05:18.

to score heavily, but more importantly, he has to match up

:05:18.:05:21.

begins the Aussie tactically. If he can do that, he can reach his

:05:21.:05:25.

can do that, he can reach his second final in a row. This is how

:05:25.:05:30.

they have played so far this week. Attacking and exciting players,

:05:30.:05:38.

Robertson has been in great scoring form. His trademark long potting

:05:38.:05:43.

has been impressive. Don't expect too many long safety battles, but

:05:43.:05:51.

Shaun has proved himself pretty adept in that department. Both men

:05:51.:05:55.

have come through final frame have come through final frame

:05:55.:05:57.

deciders this week. Robinson has had two, against Ding Junhui and

:05:57.:06:01.

Mark Allen. The tour at up to it something

:06:01.:06:05.

special this afternoon. Stephen Hendry and Dennis Taylor are up for

:06:05.:06:11.

it. Dennis Taylor's birthday. We use still need me? Will you still

:06:11.:06:15.

feed me? Happy birthday. What's your take on this? Pit might be the

:06:15.:06:21.

best match of this year's Masters. It will be fascinating. Shaun

:06:21.:06:25.

Murphy want this on his CV. This is the big one he's been after and

:06:25.:06:29.

he's up against a player in tremendous form. We will have the

:06:29.:06:33.

best seat in the house. What better to do on a Saturday afternoon with

:06:33.:06:38.

the weather the way it is. Totally agree and it will get very warm in

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here. You had plenty to say about the way Shaun Murphy tackled John

:06:43.:06:46.

Higgins the other night in the tactical department. How does he

:06:46.:06:51.

have to tweak that to face Neil Robertson? The first half of that

:06:51.:06:55.

match, he seemed to out think himself, he was trying to be too

:06:55.:07:01.

clever, he refused a lot of pots. You don't change your game to other

:07:01.:07:06.

players, you played your advantages. Play his natural game, attack.

:07:06.:07:10.

Particular strengths of Neil Robertson? Both these guys are

:07:10.:07:14.

probably the most consistent long potters on the tour. It could be

:07:15.:07:19.

who get the most long pots that will win. There's a lot riding on

:07:19.:07:25.

this. Shaun Murphy needs this one for the Triple Crown. To complete

:07:25.:07:30.

that fabled s three major titles in the game. As for Neil Robertson, he

:07:30.:07:36.

could be only the fourth man in history to defend his title. He has

:07:36.:07:43.

a remarkable record, Stephen! The way Neil won his match against Mark

:07:43.:07:48.

Allen, that red. He made three centuries in that match. He will

:07:48.:07:52.

take some beating. If anybody can beat him, it is Shaun Murphy. If

:07:52.:07:57.

Shaun goes for his shots, he could make it very, very difficult for

:07:57.:08:03.

Neil Robertson. Enjoy it. I know that a coiled spring in the arena

:08:03.:08:09.

is our MC, Mr Rob Walker. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.

:08:09.:08:15.

What a way to kick-start semi-final Saturday. Co the air fare Masters.

:08:15.:08:21.

What an atmosphere we've got. 12 months ago, these players went toe-

:08:21.:08:25.

to-toe in the final, today they meet one round earlier. Both very

:08:25.:08:31.

much on top of their game. Please welcome the man who 10 years ago

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arrived from Australia with barely a penny in his pocket. Fast forward

:08:35.:08:40.

a decade and he is one of the do very best players on the circuit. A

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thrilling 6-5 win over Mark Allen in the quarter-finals, for world

:08:45.:08:50.

champion in 2010, the defending Masters champion, can you hear the

:08:50.:09:00.
:09:00.:09:19.

thunder from down under? Neil A brilliant reception and

:09:19.:09:22.

deservedly so. You're getting used to these big occasions at the

:09:22.:09:28.

Masters. Yes, I am. Last year's run was great. I am well on my way this

:09:28.:09:33.

year. It doesn't get any easier against Shaun, he is a fantastic

:09:33.:09:37.

player, one of the best in the world. I'm sure of the crowd are in

:09:37.:09:47.
:09:47.:09:49.

for a treat. Very best of luck, His opponent, a player bidding for

:09:49.:09:53.

a second successive Masters final. Here after a brilliant win over

:09:53.:10:00.

John Higgins in the quarter-finals, winner of four ranking event titles,

:10:00.:10:02.

including the 2005 World Championship. He is a class act on

:10:03.:10:12.
:10:13.:10:35.

and off the baize, he is Shaun How much confidence do you bring

:10:35.:10:39.

from that epic quarter-final? Enough to wear a pink shirt!

:10:39.:10:44.

this the lucky omen? We will find out. Ladies and gentlemen, Shaun

:10:44.:10:54.
:10:54.:10:59.

What a fabulous atmosphere for the semi-final. A packed house at the

:10:59.:11:08.

Alexandra Palace. Shaun at sporting that pink shirt. Looks as if shaun

:11:08.:11:18.
:11:18.:11:32.

Off we go. It should be a When you hear that reception to

:11:32.:11:35.

players get, Stephen, do you not miss it a little bit having

:11:35.:11:41.

retired? Yes, this is what you play snooker for. The semi-finals of

:11:41.:11:51.
:11:51.:11:55.

major events like the Masters. You All the hours and hours of practice

:11:55.:12:05.

And all the hours and hours of practice going -- go into being

:12:05.:12:09.

able to knock something like this in. What a fantastic start and

:12:09.:12:16.

perfectly on the black. It shows you the importance of the break off

:12:16.:12:26.
:12:26.:12:36.

This was that break off shot. It looked to be OK, but then it

:12:36.:12:45.

bounced off the baulk cushion and it was still a fabulous opening red.

:12:45.:12:50.

But he is one of the best pot as we've ever had in the game. --

:12:50.:13:00.
:13:00.:13:04.

A lot of people talk about single ball potting. I've never understood

:13:04.:13:11.

that saying. I believe it is who consistently get them for most an

:13:11.:13:20.

these two men are right up there. I believe the winner today will Beith

:13:20.:13:30.
:13:30.:13:34.

the guy who gets the most long pots. It is what creates opportunities

:13:34.:13:39.

like this. Obviously the safety has to be excellent to prevent the

:13:39.:13:45.

other guy potting the long balls. Absolutely. He got himself into a

:13:45.:13:55.
:13:55.:14:03.

good position, it was not easy to That was about the best positional

:14:03.:14:09.

shot he could play. The way he finished on the black, he could

:14:09.:14:19.
:14:19.:14:20.

If he tries to get the snooker behind the yellow and brown, the

:14:21.:14:30.
:14:31.:14:38.

red will go near the left corner I'm sure he was trying to cover

:14:38.:14:44.

that red with the yellow, green or brown. But it is still OK. If he

:14:44.:14:48.

sends this red around the angles, he could cannon into the green.

:14:48.:14:58.
:14:58.:15:27.

Has he left a tempter? Will he take this on? There's your answer. He

:15:27.:15:31.

has put himself in a little bit of trouble. He has given me all the

:15:31.:15:36.

advantage. But at least with this red coming back up the table, the

:15:37.:15:46.
:15:47.:15:53.

But he did give the advantage to Neil with the last shot he played,

:15:53.:15:59.

sure Murphy. There's no way back down the table here. He will have

:15:59.:16:09.
:16:09.:16:11.

That is what he is faced with. He can only go between blue and pink

:16:11.:16:21.
:16:21.:16:28.

to hit the reds, but not a lot of He is a bit frightened of playing

:16:28.:16:32.

for one cushion escape. You would think that would be his best bet.

:16:32.:16:41.

He is worried about leaving one on. That is the one-shot available to

:16:41.:16:51.
:16:51.:16:53.

him, but I don't think he is taking Well played. I don't think he can

:16:53.:16:59.

see enough of this red. Always the possibility of leaving a pot, but

:16:59.:17:09.
:17:09.:17:24.

He is well short this time with the cue ball. There's a red at the top

:17:24.:17:30.

of the pack that will pot into the left corner. He will be cannoning

:17:30.:17:40.
:17:40.:17:42.

into other reds so he needs to get Just didn't get enough action on

:17:42.:17:50.

the cue ball to make this pink easier to the middle. I still

:17:50.:18:00.
:18:00.:18:10.

expect him to get it. It is never He may have a natural angle to

:18:10.:18:14.

bring the cue ball off for two Group or three cushions behind the

:18:14.:18:24.
:18:24.:18:25.

black for a red into the right As you mentioned, Stephen, because

:18:25.:18:30.

he was so close to the pink, it is difficult to pick that angle out.

:18:30.:18:34.

He got the positional side of the shot as he intended, but when

:18:34.:18:40.

you're that close, it is difficult to judge the angle. A second chance

:18:40.:18:50.
:18:50.:19:07.

Both players had a look at a red at the back of the bunch. He has got

:19:07.:19:13.

one to the right here. Neil had a quick look at that just to see if

:19:13.:19:19.

it was available into the right corner pocket. Red, black and

:19:19.:19:22.

hopefully on to that red at the back of the bunch. It looks a

:19:22.:19:32.
:19:32.:19:40.

It will have to go because he can't really stun straight into the reds.

:19:40.:19:44.

The only possibility would be to come off two cushions and into the

:19:44.:19:54.
:19:54.:19:58.

There's your answer. It does pot. One of them will definitely go.

:19:58.:20:01.

Sometimes when they are close together, you have to pick out

:20:02.:20:11.
:20:12.:20:17.

The table would have been recovered, as it always is between the semi-

:20:17.:20:22.

final and final. It will take a few shots to get used to the pace. But

:20:22.:20:32.
:20:32.:20:42.

Yes, he played fantastic against Mark Allen, as I mentioned to Hazel.

:20:42.:20:48.

Three centuries he made. He got a bad contact there. It now means the

:20:48.:20:58.

He wanted to leave an angle to be able to split the reds. He wanted

:20:58.:21:02.

to be a bit further across the table. A key shot coming up, 37

:21:02.:21:12.
:21:12.:21:22.

shots in front if this works out. A Up the blue almost went into the

:21:22.:21:32.
:21:32.:21:37.

But he is OK. A thin cut on the black, but he has a red at the

:21:37.:21:47.
:21:47.:21:52.

He looks super focused. I did the match yesterday with Judd Trump and

:21:52.:21:57.

he was the exact opposite, he did not look focused. Neil looks bang

:21:57.:22:07.
:22:07.:22:32.

on it right from the beginning of He was made favourite for this

:22:32.:22:36.

semi-final, Neil Robertson, although he is number five in the

:22:36.:22:41.

world. Shaun Murphy is number four. But on the basis of form, they made

:22:41.:22:51.
:22:51.:22:53.

him the favourite. 4-6 means you get �6 to win �4. -- Beth �6.

:22:53.:22:55.

when you are defending champion, you don't want to give up your

:22:55.:23:01.

title. It makes you try that little bit extra. Can you feel it is

:23:01.:23:04.

something that belongs to you and you don't want anybody else taking

:23:04.:23:14.
:23:14.:23:36.

He does play that type of shot so well. You can hear the ball

:23:36.:23:42.

thundering into the pocket. He is introduced as the thunder from Down

:23:42.:23:52.
:23:52.:24:08.

He needs a couple more pots. A quick glance at the scoreboard to

:24:08.:24:15.

see how many he needs. Cred and black would be enough. Dashed red

:24:15.:24:21.

and black. If he pots this red, a possible 67 on the table. If he

:24:21.:24:31.
:24:31.:24:40.

pots red and black, he would be 68 If he rolls this red in, being a

:24:40.:24:50.
:24:50.:24:59.

left-hander, it is a bit more He will be playing this black in

:24:59.:25:03.

such a way that if he misses it, he will leave the black over the

:25:03.:25:07.

pocket. The red he is playing for at the bottom of the four will not

:25:07.:25:17.
:25:17.:25:32.

Just looking at the balls that Neil is potting, they seem to be going

:25:32.:25:37.

right in the centre of the pocket. That is always an indication that

:25:37.:25:41.

the player is cueing well. Sometimes they go in-off the jaw.

:25:41.:25:51.
:25:51.:26:21.

Everything going into the heart of It will be difficult to make a

:26:21.:26:25.

century with the red near the cushion, but he is a left-hander

:26:25.:26:31.

and he has also made five centuries this year in the Masters. He has

:26:31.:26:41.
:26:41.:26:56.

He can cannon to read out now if he Does it go past the black? That is

:26:56.:27:01.

very tight. He has just got the right side of the pocket. If you

:27:01.:27:11.
:27:11.:27:19.

were directly behind the red, it Not quite. No century, but what a

:27:19.:27:29.
:27:29.:27:29.

start for the Australian. He opens STUDIO: Earned interesting start to

:27:29.:27:33.

the semi-final. If you want to get in touch with Ken and John you are

:27:33.:27:43.
:27:43.:27:48.

There were some cracking responses yesterday when you were bunking off

:27:48.:27:54.

work and had a day off because of the snow! An interesting insight

:27:54.:27:58.

into the mind set, the tactical thinking early on of Shaun Murphy

:27:58.:28:04.

in that frame. He has to play his own game and we know he is a great

:28:04.:28:08.

scorer. I said he had to match him up. I don't think he has to turn

:28:08.:28:10.

into the world's greatest safety into the world's greatest safety

:28:11.:28:14.

player, but if somebody plays a good shot, you have to reply. He

:28:14.:28:19.

can flick off the top red of the back red. He chose to go off three

:28:19.:28:24.

cushions. He got a chance of that because Robertson played it poor

:28:24.:28:29.

safety shot. But then he missed his chance. A bar Robertson dutifully

:28:29.:28:34.

took his chance and it shows you the kind of form he has been an.

:28:34.:28:41.

made three centuries in the Mark Allen match. It is all about those

:28:41.:28:46.

pots, they are going into the centre of the pocket. He is cueing

:28:46.:28:50.

beautifully. When he gets in around the balls, he scores very, very

:28:50.:28:55.

heavily and very, very quickly. Robertson made that break from

:28:56.:29:05.
:29:06.:29:13.

He can't take on the pot because he A little bit too much pace. His

:29:13.:29:18.

safety will have to be a bit better than this. He was looking for the

:29:18.:29:24.

baulk cushion. OK, he hasn't left one this time, I don't think, but

:29:24.:29:27.

against Neil Robertson, his safety has to be a little bit better,

:29:27.:29:34.

Stephen. It has got to be as good as it can be, basically. If Neil is

:29:34.:29:40.

playing like this, he doesn't miss many long balls. As we've seen

:29:40.:29:45.

already in the first frame, when he gets in, the frame is going to be

:29:45.:29:55.
:29:55.:29:58.

over. Very impressed with that It is so important in these by

:29:58.:30:02.

eight matches to stand or authority as quickly as possible. -- these

:30:02.:30:12.
:30:12.:30:36.

You cannot pot many balls if you are in that position. Good safety.

:30:36.:30:41.

With the reds slightly open, you have got to be careful. Not a

:30:41.:30:51.
:30:51.:30:55.

straightforward escape. That is what he has faced with. There is no

:30:55.:31:00.

easy shot to just come off the side cushion nestled next to the bunch.

:31:00.:31:09.

If he landed on one beside the pinky will be OK. -- beside the

:31:10.:31:19.
:31:20.:31:48.

pink, he would be OK. Oh, what a No touching ball, but he can play

:31:48.:31:58.
:31:58.:32:13.

off this one, get twice across the This is a turnaround in the space

:32:13.:32:23.
:32:23.:32:23.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:32:23.:33:04.

of two shots. Now Shaun Murphy is This is a similar type of shot for

:33:04.:33:12.

Murphy. You can see enough ready to take the pot on. He looked to see

:33:12.:33:19.

if there was a gap. It would be risky but that is the one he can

:33:19.:33:28.

play safe off. He can swing is around the ankles if he wants. He

:33:28.:33:33.

needs more pace on it. He has purged one over the corner pocket.

:33:33.:33:38.

If he does pop this, Key Ben Knight on the cue ball, because it is

:33:38.:33:45.

going to go towards the reds. -- keep an eye on the cue ball. He

:33:45.:33:51.

would not have a great deal of idea where the cue ball is going to

:33:51.:34:01.
:34:01.:34:10.

He had to trust a little bit to lock their of with be cue ball. --

:34:10.:34:20.
:34:20.:34:59.

plus a little bit to luck with the He is sitting upright in his seat.

:34:59.:35:07.

That is an indication of a confident person. He looks very

:35:07.:35:17.
:35:17.:35:30.

focused and he is certainly up for That is not the best safety shot.

:35:30.:35:34.

There is one available to the corner, but can he find the space

:35:34.:35:38.

to get himself on the black for the same pocket? There is not much of a

:35:38.:35:48.
:35:48.:35:48.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:35:48.:36:56.

He is playing the safety shot. Very Certainly, Robertson definitely has

:36:56.:37:06.
:37:06.:37:22.

the upper hand in the tactical I think he felt the YT drifted as

:37:22.:37:32.
:37:32.:37:32.

soon as he played it. -- the white. Did it drift a little bit? You can

:37:32.:37:42.
:37:42.:37:46.

see clearly, it went off to the right. There has been a few of

:37:46.:37:56.
:37:56.:38:02.

I do not know whether the floor is not level here at the Ally Pally?

:38:02.:38:12.
:38:12.:38:14.

They should make -- not have any problems getting the tables level.

:38:14.:38:19.

They use spirit levels and there are five slates on a snooker table.

:38:19.:38:28.

They are usually top class, but that one did seem to drift a little.

:38:28.:38:33.

Very frustrating for Robertson. He is in such a positive state of mind,

:38:33.:38:39.

he would have been thinking it was a chance to win the frame. For that

:38:39.:38:49.
:38:49.:38:50.

to happen when it is not his fault Yes, but I usually put a little bit

:38:50.:38:59.

of packing underneath the frame to leaven it up. -- they usually put.

:38:59.:39:09.
:39:09.:39:14.

It was usually beer mats that they What a chance for Shaun Murphy, a

:39:14.:39:24.
:39:24.:39:26.

It also put you off the rest of the match. You do not want to play any

:39:26.:39:31.

slow shots if that is what is going to happen. You have to change your

:39:31.:39:41.
:39:41.:39:41.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:39:41.:40:34.

You do not want to get to his stage where it is like golf and you have

:40:34.:40:40.

got to start reading the table! have been informed that the table

:40:40.:40:44.

fitter has had to put packing under one side, so maybe the floor is not

:40:45.:40:54.
:40:55.:40:58.

Do you remember when used to do the exhibitions? The club floors were

:40:58.:41:05.

certainly not level. I used to like a table that was not very high. You

:41:05.:41:11.

could end up with the black around your chest. You needed a rest to

:41:11.:41:21.
:41:21.:41:32.

He is taking these well, Shaun Murphy. He has kept his progress.

:41:32.:41:39.

He did not have much chance in the first frame. He has over screed

:41:40.:41:48.

that, played a cannon on the pink, I think. -- overscrewed. He is

:41:48.:41:52.

probably one of the best players in the world, so I do not expect him

:41:52.:42:02.
:42:02.:42:15.

That is amazing, as soon as you said it! But you are absolutely

:42:15.:42:25.
:42:25.:42:46.

right, he very rarely misses. On Ever since I started commentating,

:42:46.:42:50.

and commentating on Shaun Murphy's matters, how many times he plays it

:42:51.:42:58.

careless shot and ends on the break? It is definitely a weakness

:42:58.:43:06.

of his, not finishing enough frames on one visit. That is a very good

:43:06.:43:14.

point. It is perhaps something he could work on. It is probably

:43:14.:43:22.

concentration. It does make a difference. You and Steve Davis

:43:22.:43:32.
:43:32.:43:33.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:43:33.:44:13.

were masters at finishing the frame That is a long time to think over a

:44:13.:44:17.

black off the spot, but he wants to make absolutely sure he gets on to

:44:17.:44:27.
:44:27.:44:32.

It has just finished in the worst possible position, not a good angle

:44:32.:44:36.

on the pink or the black. You would think he could manufacture

:44:36.:44:41.

something. In the end, he just rolled it in to leave this one to

:44:41.:44:48.

the left corner. You would think he would still finish on the black,

:44:48.:44:58.
:44:58.:45:11.

Now, a cannon on the triangle of reds. If he could cannon the right

:45:11.:45:17.

hand when it would open them up perfectly. -- the right hand one,

:45:17.:45:27.
:45:27.:45:31.

And after all of that, he has missed a straightforward pink. He

:45:31.:45:41.
:45:41.:45:50.

has not missed many of those in the Maybe that shot where it seemed to

:45:50.:46:00.
:46:00.:46:06.

It is amazing, when you're 100% in June, some little thing Ken just

:46:06.:46:13.

brigade and it takes you a while to get it back. -- some little thing

:46:13.:46:23.
:46:23.:46:28.

Karen just break it. He needs the If he rolls the black, I do not

:46:28.:46:33.

think he will go into the right pocket. He is playing it with a

:46:33.:46:43.
:46:43.:46:43.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:46:43.:47:32.

little bit of stun to avoid that. Shaun Murphy has settled down and

:47:32.:47:42.
:47:42.:47:48.

An interesting point in that frame, the roll-off. It cost points

:47:48.:47:55.

against Ding Junhui. I do not think the floor is level out there.

:47:55.:48:05.
:48:05.:48:10.

Gulbis. Obviously, the table at his off -- is off. Tables -- players

:48:10.:48:16.

should be able to go out and play a few shots so they know how the

:48:16.:48:20.

table is, it should not cost them frames. That is a good point. In

:48:20.:48:24.

every other sport, tennis, you are allowed to play beforehand, golf as

:48:24.:48:28.

many practice rounds is you can muster, and many other sports. At

:48:29.:48:34.

Wembley, you inspect the pitch. Should there be a chance for

:48:34.:48:39.

players, maybe even 20 minutes before, to have a look. Steadily,

:48:39.:48:49.
:48:49.:48:49.

five or 10 minutes each. It would not take a lot to just have a look

:48:49.:48:52.

and scene where the rolls are. You cannot blame the table when

:48:52.:48:57.

sometimes the floor is not level. Is it something snooker should be

:48:57.:49:07.

looking at going ahead? Absolutely, yes.

:49:07.:49:12.

One of the tournament directors and a former top 16 player, I have seen

:49:12.:49:16.

him in that the arena will link the balls up and down the table. They

:49:16.:49:21.

do check it. It is a good point, whether it should be checked before

:49:21.:49:27.

every session. I agree. There is nothing against it as long as both

:49:27.:49:30.

players are allowed to have 10 minutes from the table and the

:49:30.:49:40.
:49:40.:49:44.

wording. -- on the table in the Many years ago, there was no

:49:44.:49:54.
:49:54.:49:55.

practice table. The only practice table was the match table, so you

:49:55.:50:05.
:50:05.:50:12.

were allowed 20 minutes, half an All you would need to do would be

:50:12.:50:21.

to play some slow rolls with the cue ball. You would just need to

:50:21.:50:31.
:50:31.:50:37.

roll dead weight shot to see what Let's have a look at what happened.

:50:37.:50:44.

You can see the white leaving the line slightly. It is only a

:50:44.:50:54.
:50:54.:50:58.

fraction, but it is amazing the Both players will be reluctant to

:50:58.:51:08.
:51:08.:51:24.

He has decided against going into the pink because there is a red

:51:24.:51:34.
:51:34.:51:36.

clearly available. There are three pottable reds also. He is such an

:51:36.:51:41.

experienced player. He will have forgotten that incident. It might

:51:41.:51:51.
:51:51.:52:06.

have cost him the second frame, but If anything, the pink in the middle

:52:06.:52:09.

would have annoyed him more than the one that rolled off, because

:52:09.:52:19.
:52:19.:52:41.

Normal snooker has resumed for the Australian. He is purposely leaving

:52:41.:52:45.

himself almost read in such a way that he can break a few more reds

:52:45.:52:55.
:52:55.:53:00.

out. You would think he might Freda Payne, but he should finish under -

:53:00.:53:10.
:53:10.:53:15.

Dead straight on the blue would have been ideal. He is running away

:53:15.:53:21.

from the reds from that angle. awkward angle on the pink, taking

:53:21.:53:25.

the cue ball away from the Ritz. He could just play it into gooey

:53:25.:53:35.
:53:35.:53:57.

yellow pocket, but a more difficult Well, that looked quite easy but it

:53:57.:54:02.

was a delicate shot, bridging over the red and playing a delicate shot

:54:02.:54:12.
:54:12.:54:45.

He would have rather been the other side of the pink with this angle.

:54:45.:54:55.
:54:55.:55:08.

Screwing back, the cue ball is I wonder if he has the angle to

:55:08.:55:13.

play a delicate little screw between the reds? I am not sure if

:55:13.:55:20.

that is on. It would be nice if it was, but it might be too thin to do

:55:20.:55:30.
:55:30.:55:38.

He wasn't able to, but he got the same result by getting through the

:55:38.:55:48.
:55:48.:55:50.

gap in the raids. -- in the reds. The red closest to the pink is his

:55:50.:55:57.

problem, it is stopping him playing be easy shots. You are never 100%

:55:57.:56:01.

sure what is going to happen when you can and other red, but is why

:56:01.:56:05.

he is taking the blue in between the yellow under Brian on to

:56:05.:56:15.
:56:15.:56:22.

cushions. -- the yellow card for There at the action, he just played

:56:22.:56:26.

with a little bit of left hand side to swing at the white off to mic

:56:26.:56:36.
:56:36.:56:37.

cushions. He played it to He only needed one chance in the

:56:37.:56:45.

opening frame. He had been -- and opening break of 84. Looks like he

:56:45.:56:50.

is only going to need the one chance in this frame. He is cueing

:56:50.:56:54.

beautifully, Robertson. Just that one incident where he missed the

:56:54.:57:04.
:57:04.:57:37.

One of the reasons I like watching Neil Robertson, he wants to clear

:57:37.:57:47.
:57:47.:57:50.

the table. The other player relaxes, and a concentration slips, so he

:57:50.:57:55.

wants to clear up every time. has got one difficult red that

:57:55.:58:00.

might prevent that. He made 54 centuries last season. He has

:58:00.:58:10.
:58:10.:58:18.

Both of these players turned professional in 1998. Shaun Murphy

:58:18.:58:24.

has made 250 earned the Robertson has made 246, so they are pretty

:58:24.:58:34.
:58:34.:58:43.

Being a left-hander, if he cannot cannon the red out if he can get a

:58:43.:58:53.
:58:53.:58:55.

white in position, he can get a chance. And that is the 16th

:58:55.:59:05.
:59:05.:59:09.

century in this year's Masters. That is number 247 in his career.

:59:09.:59:19.
:59:19.:59:30.

In fact, that was his 17th century Mark Allen still holds the highest

:59:30.:59:40.

break, 138, against Neil Robertson. �8,000 for the highest break up

:59:40.:59:50.
:59:50.:59:54.

He has potted all sorts. Yellows, greens, browns, blues. He has been

:59:54.:00:04.
:00:04.:00:11.

that all over the table four That is absolutely superb from the

:00:11.:00:16.

Australian. He only needed one chance. What a magnificent break of

:00:16.:00:26.
:00:26.:00:28.

Quite brilliant, especially the way he went about that. And you've been

:00:28.:00:31.

tweeting about the situation with the table. World Snooker have

:00:31.:00:36.

assured us that they don't just come in and plonk the table down

:00:36.:00:41.

and let it stay there, there's a lot of work that goes on. Martin

:00:41.:00:46.

Clark was out there until 3am with a spirit level. He is a former

:00:47.:00:51.

player, he's been in the top 16, he works for World Snooker. He tests

:00:52.:00:57.

the table. Co t rolls the balls around the table to make sure they

:00:57.:01:05.

are not rolling off. But this floor is not unstable, but uneven. It is

:01:05.:01:10.

very, very difficult, no matter how much the table has been worked on,

:01:10.:01:15.

it is difficult. I've never played on a straight table. Any table we

:01:16.:01:20.

play on, you'll always find it... It is a tonne and-a-half and it has

:01:20.:01:26.

to settle. There's a spring floor at the Crucible. I had a match and

:01:26.:01:31.

I got Dr frame for missing a red three times. It was missing a for

:01:31.:01:37.

to it -- that and a half each time. It was like somebody had put a

:01:37.:01:43.

brick under the table. Peter put in an hour overnight. He was rolling

:01:43.:01:47.

balls everywhere. They've done as balls everywhere. They've done as

:01:47.:01:52.

much as humanly possible. They know where the potential trouble spots

:01:52.:01:56.

are on this table. They will have to compensate for the rest of this

:01:56.:02:06.

I suppose the angle... It is not the sort of place where you would

:02:06.:02:10.

roll the ball to see if it was drifting. They all settle in.

:02:10.:02:20.
:02:20.:02:23.

Especially when you get the crowd In the Crucible, you get the crowd

:02:23.:02:27.

in on a sprung floor and everybody would be level. If there were more

:02:27.:02:31.

people sitting on one side of the arena, it is amazing. It is only

:02:31.:02:36.

fractions. But it doesn't affect it that much. There's only certain

:02:36.:02:46.
:02:46.:03:13.

It is always a surprise to see Neil miss one of those. There's a chance,

:03:13.:03:19.

the first chance in this frame to Shaun Murphy. He has to try to win

:03:19.:03:29.
:03:29.:03:30.

He was a long way away. Surprising. The reason I say he has to try to

:03:30.:03:34.

win it in one visit, if your opponent doesn't believe you can

:03:34.:03:41.

win when he makes mistakes, it gives him warmth confidence as well.

:03:41.:03:48.

-- more confidence. In a couple of shots time, you will see Shaun

:03:48.:03:58.
:03:58.:04:06.

trying to get on the red next to He might have to come up for the

:04:06.:04:16.
:04:16.:04:18.

black on this occasion and then He shouldn't be a problem to stun

:04:18.:04:27.

off the cushion and leave that red. -- it shouldn't. In fact, he is

:04:27.:04:37.
:04:37.:04:38.

If he gets on the black in such a way, it is a good pack to go into.

:04:38.:04:42.

Look at the gap between the two reds. If he gets a good angle on

:04:42.:04:52.
:04:52.:04:53.

the black, he has a lovely gap to Might have got a heavy contact, but

:04:53.:04:59.

it doesn't matter, he still has the angle to cannon into the bunch.

:04:59.:05:04.

That is what he wants, with plenty of pace. He is guaranteed to be on

:05:04.:05:11.

He didn't quite get the cannon as he intended and it has finished a

:05:11.:05:17.

little awkward for him. He hit the red on the right, he wanted to

:05:17.:05:27.
:05:27.:05:55.

We said we thought this would be a great semi-final, it is building up

:05:55.:06:03.

nicely, isn't it? Neil Robertson has already had breaks of 84 and

:06:03.:06:07.

that magnificent 132. Shaun had a 48 in the second frame and he is on

:06:07.:06:17.
:06:17.:06:18.

But he has to do what Stephen Hendry was saying. He has to finish

:06:18.:06:24.

it off in one visit. Stephen mentioned at the number of times

:06:24.:06:28.

Shaun has got to 40 and 50 and then suddenly missed one you would not

:06:28.:06:38.
:06:38.:07:05.

He may choose to go up for the blue because he is dead straight on this

:07:05.:07:09.

red. If he stands for the black, the cue ball will be fairly close

:07:09.:07:15.

to the cushion. -- stuns. I don't know if he can force an angle off

:07:15.:07:25.
:07:25.:07:40.

Amazing, that is two he has missed with the rest. He hit that all

:07:40.:07:44.

wrong. It was the previous shot when he played the cannon that left

:07:44.:07:49.

him having to use the long rest. Not often you see that happen.

:07:49.:07:57.

Amazing. He hasn't killed for frame off in one visit. A little wry

:07:57.:08:02.

smile, he can't believe what he has just played. It is a big pocket

:08:02.:08:09.

here, that is what Neil is looking at. This red, if he gets anywhere

:08:09.:08:13.

near it, you think it would go in- off that red if he doesn't go

:08:13.:08:23.
:08:23.:08:36.

I don't think there's enough room to wobble the red and had it not

:08:36.:08:42.

going off the other red. If he'd just missed that red on the right

:08:42.:08:49.

as we look at it, he might wobble it in the jaws. Much better if he

:08:49.:08:59.
:08:59.:08:59.

hits the cushion first and then the He has got the one into the left

:08:59.:09:09.
:09:09.:09:12.

I wonder if he will be tempted to try this down the cushion and hold

:09:12.:09:22.
:09:22.:09:29.

for the black. Or will he play it The percentages with this shot, I

:09:29.:09:34.

would say, is that he would go in- off the other red maybe six or

:09:34.:09:44.
:09:44.:09:49.

seven out of 10. Let's see what Team minutes' thinking about this.

:09:49.:09:53.

-- two minute. Tony Drago finished a game of snooker in just over

:09:53.:10:03.
:10:03.:10:07.

Now he is going to cut the red in I just think he took so long over

:10:07.:10:12.

that, he confused himself. REFEREE: Foul, and a miss., Shaun

:10:12.:10:18.

Murphy four. He just couldn't make his mind up and in the end he

:10:18.:10:26.

missed it completely. I think the shot you were saying, down the

:10:26.:10:29.

cushion, he easily had enough cue power to play it as a safety shot

:10:29.:10:39.
:10:39.:10:44.

and screw the cue ball back to Obviously this is made slightly

:10:44.:10:50.

easier for Shaun because he at more angle. He missed it completely and

:10:50.:10:54.

he calls a miss, where do you put the white if you ask for it to be

:10:54.:11:02.

replaced? A good question. We will leave that to John and Ken. I've

:11:02.:11:11.

never thought about that before. It's the first time it has arisen.

:11:11.:11:21.
:11:21.:11:29.

Where would you replace it? We will That's OK, he's left an angle on

:11:29.:11:34.

this red so a great chance for Shaun Murphy to go on and get

:11:34.:11:41.

himself all square. He will be pleasantly pleased with 2-2 at the

:11:41.:11:51.
:11:51.:11:55.

If that red to the right of the bunch is available, not a problem.

:11:55.:12:00.

He has got an easy red available and that goes. It shouldn't be a

:12:00.:12:10.
:12:10.:12:11.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:12:11.:12:58.

He chose to play the cannon and he is just about on this red to the

:12:58.:13:04.

left corner. Although he is close to the red. There was a shot that

:13:04.:13:11.

Neil had earlier. He played to the right of the pink that time. When

:13:11.:13:15.

they are close together, it is difficult to judge. But he will put

:13:15.:13:25.
:13:25.:13:32.

everything into this pot. He has He needed that red and at least the

:13:32.:13:42.
:13:42.:14:19.

brown to leave Neil needing a Well, it looks as if he has got

:14:19.:14:29.
:14:29.:14:33.

away with that. He hit it far too Not that easy to play a good safety

:14:33.:14:43.
:14:43.:14:55.

That last shot was a good bad one, Yes, he was able to take the red he

:14:55.:14:58.

played off the shares went -- cushion and then took the other one

:14:58.:15:02.

off the cushion. Now the balls are in the open. This is not easy to

:15:02.:15:12.
:15:12.:15:16.

get safe with the cue ball close to Co that is a super pot! It really

:15:16.:15:26.
:15:26.:15:26.

Under the circumstances. He couldn't see any easy safety shot,

:15:26.:15:34.

but what a pot he has pulled out to more or less clinch this for frame.

:15:34.:15:38.

-- 4 frame. He needs the brown, that is why he is not taking the

:15:38.:15:48.
:15:48.:16:15.

Not quite safe just yet. Only one Had the red gone in, we would have

:16:15.:16:25.
:16:25.:16:43.

been off to the mid-session I think he might be able to see

:16:43.:16:48.

enough of this red to take on the pot. He would go round the back of

:16:48.:16:58.
:16:58.:17:05.

It is all OK at the moment, but Neil is looking at the two reds as

:17:05.:17:14.

if he can make a plant can somehow stay on the pink or black. He has

:17:14.:17:20.

to hit the first red as if he were just trying to pot the first red

:17:20.:17:24.

and coveted into the pocket. He is not even playing that, he can see

:17:25.:17:32.

the one to the left of the pink. All of a sudden, he could be right

:17:32.:17:37.

back in this fourth frame. We know the plant is on. The other two reds

:17:37.:17:43.

are on. This is far from over, Stephen. Shaun will be very annoyed

:17:43.:17:53.

with himself. A carelessness on that red. -- a careless miss. Not

:17:53.:17:58.

been easy shot, but he should still have potted that. Now he has given

:17:58.:18:03.

himself stressed that he didn't need! He should be having a cup of

:18:03.:18:13.
:18:13.:18:19.

A slip up from Neil, though. Not He doesn't have to stay on the

:18:19.:18:27.

black. With pinks, he would still only need one snooker. If the pink

:18:27.:18:32.

was on its spot, he would have a red in a terrific position to get

:18:32.:18:42.
:18:42.:18:45.

If he can pot the pink and take the red to the right, high-value colour,

:18:45.:18:52.

he can put Shaun in all sorts of trouble. If he pots this pink,

:18:52.:19:02.
:19:02.:19:24.

either of these reds are good for The chance is going to be there. If

:19:24.:19:28.

he can get the white tight behind that pink off that last red, it

:19:28.:19:33.

could be a very difficult snooker to escape from. Just make sure you

:19:33.:19:39.

get the cue ball where you want it. Anywhere in between the black and

:19:39.:19:47.

the cue ball at the moment would be He could have played that a lot

:19:48.:19:54.

better. He should have had the white further up the table and he

:19:54.:19:57.

could have sent the red up towards the baulk colours and got tight in

:19:57.:20:03.

behind the pink. That was a slip up. I don't understand why he chose to

:20:03.:20:09.

screw the cue ball off the cushion. He could have been perfect if he'd

:20:09.:20:19.
:20:19.:20:31.

screwed it back a for two-and-a- He has still got the snooker, but

:20:31.:20:35.

if he had had the red up the other end of the table, behind the blue

:20:35.:20:39.

and brown, what a tough escape it would have been. You would think

:20:39.:20:44.

Shaun would be able to hit this That's all from the News at One

:20:44.:20:47.

this lunchtime. On BBC One we now join the BBC's news team where you

:20:47.:20:50.

are cushion, but when the red is in the middle of the table, it is so

:20:50.:20:55.

easy to slip by it on two occasions. A few have to use side on the white

:20:55.:21:01.

ball, if it is not a natural angle, it can go wrong. He has slipped by

:21:01.:21:10.

it. If this red passes the pink, all of a sudden, Neil Robertson

:21:10.:21:19.

might have gone favourite. Looks to be just enough room. Yes, it will

:21:19.:21:29.
:21:29.:21:37.

What a steal this would be. I think he has an angle to get onto the

:21:37.:21:46.

yellow. He could screw back off the cushion. Screw back with left-hand

:21:46.:21:56.
:21:56.:22:03.

side. That is the angle he should What a terrible frame for Shaun

:22:03.:22:13.
:22:13.:22:19.

Murphy to lose. He has had three or Did he get a bad contact or did he

:22:19.:22:24.

mishit that? He is having the cue ball cleaned so we will give him

:22:24.:22:28.

the benefit of the doubt. He seemed to stun that. He was just rolling

:22:28.:22:38.
:22:38.:23:15.

it through and it did kick. It gave Neil looked at the potting angle. I

:23:15.:23:19.

don't know if he is playing for pot into the centre and coming across

:23:19.:23:28.

for the brown into the same pocket. It is a tough shot to take on.

:23:28.:23:38.
:23:38.:23:47.

A good shot in the end. He gave it plenty of thought. It was worth it.

:23:47.:23:57.
:23:57.:24:05.

A clever shot. Using the blue to He's got to be careful here, Shaun.

:24:05.:24:09.

Got to get to a little touch of side on it and go close to the

:24:09.:24:19.
:24:19.:24:21.

But this will go nearer the black, the way he is playing it.

:24:21.:24:25.

REFEREE: Foul, and a miss.. surprised he didn't go the other

:24:25.:24:35.
:24:35.:24:36.

side of the middle pocket with a little bit of right hand side. Jan

:24:36.:24:39.

Verhaas will maybe need the assistance of the monitor. But he

:24:39.:24:44.

is usually pretty good. He doesn't miss many tricks. The one of the

:24:44.:24:52.

top referees for a lot of years now. I was never the best at getting out

:24:52.:24:56.

of snookers, but I agree with you, that angle didn't look on.

:24:56.:25:03.

Sometimes you can hit it hard and square up the angle. Maybe he is

:25:03.:25:13.
:25:13.:25:15.

He first thought about going the other side of the middle pocket

:25:15.:25:19.

with a little bit of side to try to hit the green, which would be

:25:19.:25:23.

slightly easier. The way he was trying to do it was get around the

:25:23.:25:27.

back of the black to hit the green and send it up the table, but the

:25:27.:25:32.

angle didn't look right. The angle that he played, sometimes if you

:25:32.:25:42.
:25:42.:25:48.

play bottom of the cue ball, you Two or three cushions if he is

:25:48.:25:57.

going that way. That is probably even more difficult. Can he hit it?

:25:57.:26:07.
:26:07.:26:14.

Good shot! He is a little unlucky. But it's amazing, this frame should

:26:14.:26:20.

have been over seven or eight minutes ago. Now he has to sit and

:26:20.:26:30.
:26:30.:26:50.

It's best of 11, first to six. The mid-session interval is coming up.

:26:50.:27:00.
:27:00.:27:00.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:27:00.:27:40.

3-1 behind, Shaun Murphy would be It didn't seem to jump, but it

:27:40.:27:45.

certainly has pulled up the cue ball. I wonder if we will see Neil

:27:45.:27:52.

show a bit of emotion after stealing this frame. He knows what

:27:52.:28:02.
:28:02.:28:05.

Shaun Murphy had an earlier break of 45 and he should have held on,

:28:05.:28:15.
:28:15.:28:18.

but in the end Neil Robertson kept Neil just checking the roll of the

:28:18.:28:25.

bed down the left-hand side. That was an issue for him. But overall,

:28:25.:28:30.

he has to be absolutely delighted with that last frame. A bad blow

:28:30.:28:37.

for Murphy. If you were analysing players, the reason why Shaun

:28:37.:28:42.

Murphy hasn't had more trophies was encapsulated in that frame. He was

:28:42.:28:47.

so careless, beyond belief. The frame should have been done and

:28:47.:28:55.

dusted. What he has done in this frame is incredible. The red he

:28:55.:28:59.

missed at the back of the black, when he has played and he thinks he

:28:59.:29:03.

is already over the line. It doesn't matter about position,

:29:03.:29:13.

knock it in. That is unforgivable. Stephen Hendry mentioned he's had a

:29:13.:29:21.

48 break, 45 in that one, but is it a positional looseness in the

:29:21.:29:26.

middle of the break? A momentary aberration? A moment of aberration,

:29:26.:29:31.

a lack of concentration. Sometimes he gets carried away with a break

:29:31.:29:35.

and he doesn't concentrate on the initial pot. That is what happened.

:29:35.:29:40.

He loses position sometimes when he looks so good in the balls and all

:29:40.:29:45.

of a sudden he plays a loose shot. Kit is a cardinal sin. We've all

:29:45.:29:51.

done it, you think you have reached the winning line. A little lack of

:29:51.:29:54.

concentration, you take your eye off the ball and it comes back to

:29:54.:29:59.

haunt you. Can we always say the snooker gods never forgive you.

:29:59.:30:09.
:30:09.:30:12.

When you make a cardinal sin like 90 pay for it with Roberts and

:30:12.:30:17.

around. Every time you play him he is never worse, and sometimes he is

:30:17.:30:20.

better. You have always got to match him for safety and take your

:30:20.:30:26.

chances and you must not be careless. That is why the scoreline

:30:26.:30:30.

is 3-1, because Shaun Murphy has been. Neil Robertson played a

:30:30.:30:36.

terrible shock. Even then, it was not a difficult snookered hit. I

:30:36.:30:41.

said to John, if he hits this hard, the white always straightened up.

:30:41.:30:49.

When you hit it hard off straight, it always straightened up. You

:30:49.:30:54.

should never have missed that red off one cushion. It is another

:30:54.:31:00.

point of Cairness this form Shaun Murphy. -- point of carelessness

:31:00.:31:03.

from Shaun Murphy. It is the difference between winning and

:31:03.:31:06.

losing, it is the little things that make up the overall picture.

:31:06.:31:11.

It is why he has not won as much as he should. He strikes the ball as

:31:11.:31:15.

good as anyone, but he gets beaten in a tactical department time and

:31:15.:31:24.

again by people better than him. am feeling of frustration! If he

:31:24.:31:32.

just tidy it up he would be there. His cue action is so good when he

:31:32.:31:36.

is in a four-month the boss. Peace breaks it so well. Sometimes he

:31:36.:31:45.

gets into the cue ball so much, that is why he runs out of position.

:31:45.:31:53.

You get such a reaction of these cloths. It is the little things we

:31:53.:31:57.

are measured on at this level. is not over yet. There is a long

:31:57.:32:03.

way to go. A long way to go. Apart from that, he has a great

:32:03.:32:12.

temperament to go -- as well. talk about Neil Robertson. All this

:32:12.:32:16.

week, our experts have been doing their Paxman impressions, or it

:32:16.:32:26.
:32:26.:32:40.

should be Frost a mess when! -- in What does this tournament, the

:32:40.:32:46.

Masters, mean to you? It was the first tournament I ever watched on

:32:46.:32:51.

television. My dad's partner in snooker was sparred it -- Scottish.

:32:51.:32:56.

He used to always play beat Stephen Hendry and McManus final. I must

:32:57.:33:03.

have watched it about 50 times. It increased my interest in the game,

:33:03.:33:10.

watching that much. What is your most special memory of watching the

:33:10.:33:20.

Masters? Which much to do think it was superb? -- which much did you

:33:20.:33:30.
:33:30.:33:32.

think was sued her? When O'Sullivan and Higgins played. It was close to

:33:33.:33:36.

perfection. Ronnie in that final was about as perfect as any

:33:36.:33:41.

sportsman in the world could get. He was up there with Roger

:33:41.:33:45.

Federer's performances and things like that. It was not easy for you

:33:45.:33:50.

to start off here, were you homesick? Being 16 in the UK are my

:33:51.:33:55.

own, there was no place for overseas players. I would fly over

:33:55.:34:00.

to qualify for the UK Championship and I would fly over the day before

:34:00.:34:04.

it the day I was going to play. I would fly to Heathrow, work out the

:34:04.:34:10.

best way, get to the train station, ask the taxi driver to take me to a

:34:10.:34:14.

B&B and gets settled in and pay may match the next day. Looking back, I

:34:14.:34:20.

had no chance. I fell off that the tour and it was not until a couple

:34:20.:34:25.

of years after that I made progress. You had a wide part in 2004 and it

:34:25.:34:33.

was a nice baptism. You got Jimmy White in London to! Yes, that was

:34:33.:34:38.

the first time I had played on TV and in the top 16 and I played one

:34:38.:34:45.

of the legends of the game. It is something I will always remember.

:34:45.:34:54.

Was the crowd difficult to get used to? Yes, the crowd was amazing. It

:34:54.:34:58.

was the most overwhelming thing I ever experienced in my life. I will

:34:58.:35:03.

always remember it. We are going to move to 2010 and a very special

:35:03.:35:13.
:35:13.:35:14.

year for Neil Robertson, why? couple of things! Winning the World

:35:14.:35:16.

Championship when my partner was due a couple of days after the

:35:16.:35:24.

final, due to give birth to our son, Alexander. It was an amazing year

:35:25.:35:29.

for me. Chelsea won the Premier League, I won the World

:35:29.:35:35.

Championship. World No. 1 by any chance? Yes, I won the BBC event,

:35:35.:35:40.

the World Open. It was the most perfect year. I was very privileged

:35:40.:35:44.

to be a player and achieve those things in such a short space of

:35:44.:35:49.

time. You have mentioned you have got a young son. It is hard to be

:35:49.:35:57.

away from home. How do you balance it? Is the dog would? Yes, it is.

:35:57.:36:01.

Meir Alexander was born was a fantastic year for more that -- for

:36:01.:36:08.

be. The second half of 2010 was rough. Alexander was just a few

:36:08.:36:14.

months old. I was world No. 1, so I was not overly keen on going away

:36:14.:36:23.

and playing. The hardest part is juggling the PTCs. Maintaining a

:36:23.:36:30.

focus during the PTC tournaments is important and it is pretty hard.

:36:30.:36:40.
:36:40.:36:41.

You cannot think during a match. Up on her last season I had a terrible

:36:41.:36:45.

record in China because I thought, at least if I get beaten I can see

:36:45.:36:51.

my son. Going away has been tough but I think I have got it now. I

:36:51.:36:56.

have not ended everything this season and I think I have benefited.

:36:56.:36:59.

I read something about Stephen Hendry helping you. What has he

:36:59.:37:07.

said? I have had a few drinks with Matt sell than he is friends with

:37:07.:37:14.

Hendry. I thought, stuff it, I will ask him questions about snooker. I

:37:15.:37:20.

said, can I ask you as knitter question? He said, go ahead. I

:37:20.:37:27.

thought, I will not pull him down. I was talking to him about break-

:37:27.:37:31.

building and has sometimes I do not play position but just how to land

:37:31.:37:36.

on the next ball. I was talking to him about different practice

:37:36.:37:44.

routines. It was a difference. Protect -- process about break-

:37:44.:37:53.

building. There were a different teashops where I was getting lazy.

:37:53.:37:57.

Overall it was about position. When I explain my thought process he

:37:57.:38:06.

said, you sound amateurish. To hear that from him... Was that easy to

:38:06.:38:12.

take? As good a player eyes you are, if you are taught you are

:38:12.:38:18.

amateurish, were you are right with that? -- were you all right with

:38:18.:38:24.

that? He was such a great positional player, I will never be

:38:24.:38:29.

as good as that, but I can definitely improve. It is going to

:38:29.:38:33.

take time before it will become natural. The signs Senedd that it

:38:33.:38:39.

is happening. The defending champion this year, but what was

:38:39.:38:43.

last year like? Last year was amazing. I have played well in the

:38:43.:38:50.

Masters for a lot of years but not really progressed. This was the

:38:50.:38:54.

first time I had reached the semi- final. I had a fantastic match with

:38:54.:38:59.

Ronnie O'Sullivan a couple of years ago, and Maguire. If I will always

:38:59.:39:02.

run into somebody playing great snooker and that is what you get in

:39:02.:39:05.

this tournament and why it is so hard to win. Last year I played

:39:05.:39:09.

Mark Allen, who had just reached the final of the UK Championships

:39:10.:39:17.

and was one of covenants. I played Mark Williams and Judd Trump. The

:39:18.:39:23.

final was Shaun Murphy, trying to win all three. An amazing

:39:23.:39:27.

atmosphere every week, every match. Probably the best I've played from

:39:27.:39:34.

start to finish, I think. Thank you. John and the boys have been getting

:39:34.:39:39.

great stuff out of these players. There was a lot of interesting

:39:39.:39:43.

stuff about his thinking with regard to break-building and the

:39:43.:39:50.

tactical situations he finds himself in, Neil Robertson. Ken is

:39:50.:39:54.

down at the practice table. There was one shot in that last frame we

:39:55.:39:58.

were interested in with regard to potentially missing a trick by Neil

:39:58.:40:08.
:40:08.:40:11.

What was wrong with his thinking here? He had the red over the whole

:40:11.:40:17.

but also he had a red here, down the middle of the table. This is

:40:17.:40:22.

our big pocket. You do not have to head the ball directly because even

:40:22.:40:27.

if you hit because it should still going. He did have the ball-in-hand.

:40:27.:40:33.

Have a look at this. Hopefully we won't get this in one. This is

:40:33.:40:38.

called a big pocket. Try and grab the red in Office of the First

:40:38.:40:48.
:40:48.:40:56.

-- off the other red and pot the We have had plenty of e-mails and

:40:56.:41:01.

tweets. We have one, are there any routines that have tuning in a

:41:01.:41:11.
:41:11.:41:20.

pop the white straight after it. Also, players and may play a shot

:41:20.:41:26.

from here, particularly professionals. They went stun it or

:41:26.:41:31.

follow-through. You can start off by stunning it, something like that,

:41:31.:41:41.
:41:41.:41:50.

Another good routine, take your cue on the Brian and make sure -- on

:41:50.:41:54.

the brown and make sure it is covering the baulk line and if it

:41:54.:42:01.

is covering the blog line it is on a straight line. Another one, why

:42:01.:42:05.

do the majority of players have their middle finger when setting up

:42:05.:42:15.
:42:15.:42:19.

and after playing a shot by? It is they do it. We all have our own

:42:19.:42:25.

idiosyncracies. It is a nervous twitch. The Ding Junhui had his own

:42:26.:42:35.

at secrecy, he blinks. -- idiosyncrasy. Mark Selby moves like

:42:35.:42:45.
:42:45.:42:52.

We have had another interesting question from Anthony Ward. I would

:42:52.:42:56.

like to ask, has anyone ever held off three BBC Triple Crown events

:42:56.:43:02.

at once and if so, he was the first? I have the details. There

:43:02.:43:08.

are seven guys in Toll Bar who have done it. -- in total who have done

:43:08.:43:12.

it. Four of them have done it at the same time. The first was Steve

:43:12.:43:18.

Davis, 87 and a beard, Stephen Hendry did it, John Higgins Tibet

:43:18.:43:28.

and Mark Williams did it in 2002/three. Let's underwrite the

:43:28.:43:37.

pedigree of our semi-finalists. They have all won at least one of

:43:37.:43:47.
:43:47.:43:55.

them. Dott has reached three World

:43:55.:43:59.

Championship finals. They are all very well decorated men. The

:43:59.:44:04.

quality of what we are seeing is so high. But quality of the refereeing,

:44:04.:44:14.

always very high. Their man in the middle is Jan Verhaas. He is the

:44:14.:44:20.

first man from outside the UK to be in charge of a Crucible final. He

:44:20.:44:24.

has been a man in the middle for all three of the late Paul Hunter?

:44:24.:44:28.

Triumphs. This is the first time for over six months we have seen

:44:28.:44:38.
:44:38.:44:38.

him at a major event after a scary experience.

:44:38.:44:44.

I have had a bad last six months. During one of the qualifiers in

:44:44.:44:48.

June in Sheffield I slipped in the bathroom in the morning and had a

:44:48.:44:53.

scan done and it turned out that a piece of bone had broken off and

:44:53.:44:59.

started blocking my nerve system in my left leg. I had an operation in

:44:59.:45:04.

July and recently I flew out to Chengdu for the International.

:45:04.:45:12.

Coming off the plane, my right leg was just going. After advice from

:45:12.:45:17.

my colleague who is a nurse in Germany, he advised me to go to

:45:17.:45:21.

hospital and have it checked. Turned out it was the brain

:45:21.:45:31.
:45:31.:45:32.

thrombosis. -- DP being -- the bane of thrombosis. I had to have blood

:45:32.:45:37.

tests three times a week and had to invest -- inject myself with

:45:37.:45:43.

thinners. The language barrier was immense. Nobody really spoke any

:45:43.:45:47.

English, not in the hospital or anything. It is a beautiful city

:45:47.:45:50.

but when you are alone and something is wrong with you, you

:45:50.:45:59.

just want to go home. When I was young and watched

:45:59.:46:04.

snooker on TV I always looked up to Steve Davis, the ambassador for the

:46:04.:46:10.

game. Then came Hendry and his battles with Jimmy White. She I

:46:10.:46:16.

love snooker so much as a reviewer of the game. My favourite memories

:46:16.:46:26.
:46:26.:46:26.

go West the Paul Hunter finals at Wembley. He is not with us any more,

:46:26.:46:31.

so they are the memories I treasure the most. This is the first

:46:31.:46:35.

television tournament since the Crucible for me. I have had a lot

:46:35.:46:40.

of support from players and colleagues. It is a good feeling to

:46:40.:46:46.

see them again after such a long time.

:46:46.:46:56.
:46:56.:46:58.

Good to have him back. I was looking up his record, he has

:46:58.:47:01.

appeared in four Crucible finals, three UKs and eight Masters and he

:47:01.:47:07.

would not what you to remember he has been there at all. That is the

:47:07.:47:10.

beauty of a good referee. Thoroughly respected by other

:47:10.:47:18.

players. He is absolutely top-class in the game. He is just going into

:47:18.:47:28.
:47:28.:47:28.

the shadows. He will be calling the shots. This is the first a six --

:47:28.:47:38.
:47:38.:47:52.

the first of six will be going Shaun Murphy hoping to put in the

:47:52.:47:56.

back of his mind the frame from before the midsession interval. He

:47:56.:48:01.

is an experienced player, he will forget about that. Just an

:48:01.:48:11.
:48:11.:48:24.

interesting point about Jan Verhaas, earlier when there was a question

:48:24.:48:29.

about a whether he should have called a fire might, he could not

:48:29.:48:32.

have replaced the more, so be cleared up immediately. -- he

:48:32.:48:42.
:48:42.:48:42.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:48:42.:49:44.

There is not a lot of value if he rolls that red in. The other red

:49:44.:49:52.

was possible, but he was just running into a bunch. He has only

:49:52.:49:59.

made six from that opening pot. It was just a shot that he played on

:49:59.:50:03.

the blue, he didn't hit it hard enough to get the wider way from

:50:03.:50:13.
:50:13.:50:29.

the cushion. -- to get the white Good lying if it needed on his

:50:29.:50:37.

safety shot. Is he playing missing a red? Yes, looks as if he is. --

:50:37.:50:47.
:50:47.:50:54.

the single red. I thought he would He might have avoided the cannon on

:50:54.:51:04.
:51:04.:51:04.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:51:04.:51:53.

When the cue ball is on the cushion Not a great angle on the blue but

:51:53.:52:03.
:52:03.:52:11.

enough to play a cannon into the The harder you hit that type of

:52:11.:52:18.

shot the more angled you make and he just made a bit too much. It has

:52:18.:52:25.

turned into a good safety, hasn't it? The pack is intact so there is

:52:26.:52:35.
:52:36.:52:36.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:52:36.:53:17.

He could not get over behind the green so he had to concentrate on

:53:17.:53:24.

getting the cue ball close behind a cushion. You can tell that that is

:53:24.:53:34.
:53:34.:53:35.

his brother. He is not a bad player himself. Not quite as good, but not

:53:35.:53:45.
:53:45.:54:10.

That is very uncharacteristic from Robertson. He never got anywhere

:54:10.:54:19.

near that. He was hoping to be right on the blue or black. They

:54:19.:54:27.

must have been some unintentional side on the cable. -- on the cue

:54:27.:54:37.
:54:37.:54:58.

That miss that Robertson made, it will give Murphy a little bit of a

:54:58.:55:08.
:55:08.:55:30.

bruised. But he will have to play He has to find the gap. The one to

:55:30.:55:39.

the left of the three is not possible. In fact, that one does

:55:39.:55:49.
:55:49.:55:49.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:55:49.:57:31.

There are still a few more reds Once again, we get to the 40 mark

:57:31.:57:36.

on the break and Murphy has played a careless positional shot. He

:57:36.:57:46.
:57:46.:57:53.

should not have been anywhere near If he is going to play for the red

:57:53.:57:57.

back he is looking at it is nothing to do with the cue ball, just

:57:57.:58:00.

concentrate on the pot. The cue ball will automatically go on the

:58:01.:58:10.
:58:11.:58:14.

Amazing, isn't it? Breaking down in the middle of the frame, really.

:58:14.:58:21.

really is extraordinary. It can only be concentration, he has not

:58:21.:58:27.

been able to keep his concentration 100% throughout the break. It is

:58:27.:58:33.

one of those little lapses. In the UK, he did it so many times, got to

:58:33.:58:39.

40 or 50, did a careless positional shot and broke down. This standard

:58:39.:58:49.
:58:49.:58:55.

of snooker you have to win frames Maybe he will have to have a chat

:58:55.:59:05.
:59:05.:59:06.

with you. I believe Robertson was talking to you about break-building,

:59:06.:59:12.

is that correct? Yes, after he lost in the UK. That was a surprising

:59:12.:59:19.

miss, the blue. Yes, he was chatting to me after he lost to

:59:19.:59:25.

Mark Selby. He described the way his thought processes were during a

:59:25.:59:29.

break. I said that I find it amateurish. He said a lot of that

:59:29.:59:34.

time, he does not plan, he would just make sure they pot and hope to

:59:34.:59:39.

plant a bomb and nice angle. Strange, considering how well he

:59:39.:59:49.
:59:49.:59:49.

He certainly played well against Mark Allen, three century breaks.

:59:49.:59:59.
:59:59.:00:03.

Iping he got a bit of kick on the That is a bit unlucky. That is a

:00:03.:00:08.

very unlucky, he is almost over the winning line in this frame and get

:00:08.:00:18.
:00:18.:00:22.

He only needed a red and a colour, he played the cannon nicely. A bit

:00:22.:00:32.
:00:32.:00:34.

I it just what to clarify, in no way it would think he plays like an

:00:34.:00:40.

amateur, he is one of the best players in the world! Yes, the

:00:40.:00:46.

Australian has one six ranking titles, the greatest player to ever

:00:46.:00:56.
:00:56.:01:10.

Eddie Charlton held that mantle for This is a totally different player

:01:10.:01:20.
:01:20.:01:47.

He holds his hand up, just to He doesn't have to pot a colour,

:01:47.:01:52.

still would be enough points on the board, he is 54 behind. Still a

:01:52.:02:02.
:02:02.:02:07.

I was wondering if he had a chance to play the yellow on to the blue

:02:07.:02:13.

and red, to open them up, leave the cue ball somewhere near the brown.

:02:13.:02:23.
:02:23.:02:23.

It looks as if the way he is lining it up, he can get past the green to

:02:23.:02:29.

hit that red. It is a red he wouldn't have wanted to bring into

:02:29.:02:33.

play, he would have liked to have left it safe as a bit of insurance,

:02:33.:02:40.

but it is the only one he can see. When he removes that come he will

:02:40.:02:50.
:02:50.:03:02.

put them all in pottable position, He doesn't have to play that red.

:03:02.:03:06.

He could leave it there as a little bit of insurance, but it is a bit

:03:06.:03:16.
:03:16.:03:41.

risky to play off the cushion to Well, in the end it has cost him

:03:41.:03:51.
:03:51.:03:54.

five points. Jan Verhaas we just He's usually pretty good, even

:03:54.:04:00.

without a monitor, he seemed to know exactly where they are off.

:04:00.:04:10.
:04:10.:04:12.

I am not sure how much you could see of that. He's just saying, he's

:04:12.:04:17.

not sure how much Shaun could see. But the players are pretty fair.

:04:17.:04:23.

They will assist the referee as they can do. You can hold the

:04:23.:04:33.
:04:33.:04:37.

referee but you cannot touch the Deeper in the table, yes? He could

:04:37.:04:45.

see a little bit more of it than that, I feel. Was it not a bit

:04:45.:04:53.

higher up? Is the blue right, or should be higher? That is the way

:04:53.:04:59.

it was. It is only a fraction, I think he could see a little bit

:04:59.:05:09.
:05:09.:05:15.

It is only fractions, but in this case, it makes a bit of a

:05:15.:05:19.

difference. He is reluctant to move the red too far. He could play it

:05:19.:05:22.

off two cushions and back down the table but doesn't want to bring

:05:22.:05:32.
:05:32.:05:36.

Are you happy with that? I think everybody is happy. They will just

:05:36.:05:46.
:05:46.:05:55.

He is making it more awkward for himself, saying that the white was

:05:55.:06:00.

nearer the green. I think that is right. I thought he was going to

:06:00.:06:04.

play thin off it and back down the table, he didn't want to move the

:06:04.:06:14.
:06:14.:06:41.

red very much. Let's see what He is looking at the angle, but

:06:41.:06:51.
:06:51.:06:54.

surely that red doesn't pass the If you were in behind the red you

:06:54.:07:04.
:07:04.:07:23.

might be able to drop it in past There are a few shots available. He

:07:23.:07:26.

could play of the one to the right off the blue and try and get the

:07:26.:07:36.
:07:36.:07:36.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:07:36.:09:26.

There is this red to the left centre. He can play a safety to put

:09:26.:09:36.
:09:36.:10:03.

the cue ball in behind the brown Now he has the chance to steal this

:10:03.:10:13.
:10:13.:10:15.

He certainly giving some of the shots could from -- thinking time

:10:15.:10:21.

come he's putting everything into this effort. He pinched the

:10:21.:10:31.
:10:31.:11:08.

previous frame and he has got his He's back looking at that red to

:11:08.:11:11.

see big well past the blue and he is also looking at the blue to see

:11:11.:11:15.

if he can pot it and get out of the way. He can get easily on to the

:11:15.:11:25.

Get the black, the other red and then get a little bit closer to the

:11:25.:11:35.
:11:35.:11:40.

blue, you can just drop the blue in He is now looking at the red that

:11:40.:11:43.

is near the blue, I thought he would have played for the one near

:11:43.:11:48.

the pink spot. Because we know that that red will pass the blue but

:11:48.:11:58.
:11:58.:12:09.

there is only half a pocket there. Now Neil Robertson has definitely

:12:09.:12:14.

become favourite for this frame. You think brown blue is going to be

:12:14.:12:24.
:12:24.:12:40.

I don't think he has got the angle He kept looking up at the

:12:40.:12:43.

scoreboard, and he is still looking at it, sometimes it is difficult

:12:43.:12:53.
:12:53.:12:55.

work out the score when you're an Easy to get on to the black or pink

:12:55.:12:59.

here, but he was looking at the blue to see if he could get on that,

:12:59.:13:03.

it would be much more difficult than to get onto the yellow from

:13:03.:13:08.

the blue, that is the only downside to that. He is well ahead of

:13:08.:13:16.

himself. He has surveyed the whole of the table and he is certainly

:13:16.:13:26.
:13:26.:13:30.

looking a bit of leather on the old He has not come far enough to play

:13:30.:13:34.

that shot, he will have to play this blue with a bit of pace. It is

:13:34.:13:44.
:13:44.:13:45.

He will have to play with a touch of right hand side. If he hits the

:13:45.:13:48.

cushion and then out somewhere along the line anywhere, it doesn't

:13:48.:13:54.

have to be right down the line, but somewhere with a bit of right-hand

:13:54.:14:04.
:14:04.:14:08.

side will get and there. He hasn't A delicate little one needed now.

:14:08.:14:12.

That is if he's going to take the pot on and try and hold for the

:14:12.:14:22.
:14:22.:14:23.

For right handed player, this would be comfortable, but with the rest

:14:23.:14:33.
:14:33.:14:48.

come of this is much more difficult. I would suggest there will be a

:14:48.:14:53.

safety shot now. No way he can pot this green and holed for the brown.

:14:53.:14:57.

The only way you can do that will be to pot the green to the left

:14:57.:15:02.

hand corner and come all the way around the table and back up again.

:15:02.:15:05.

And there are three colours to contend with. Maybe he will not

:15:05.:15:15.
:15:15.:15:19.

even bother with the pot here, as Is he going to try and go round the

:15:19.:15:29.
:15:29.:15:46.

table or is it just a safety? Just Such a key frame, this. They all

:15:46.:15:56.
:15:56.:15:58.

our key frames but this is, but Ford one instead of three to. It is

:15:58.:16:08.
:16:08.:16:29.

a huge difference in the first to A first-class shot there from Shaun

:16:29.:16:34.

Murphy. All of a sudden, the advantage is with him again. This

:16:34.:16:41.

is much more difficult for Neil. I don't know if he can hit enough of

:16:41.:16:45.

the cushion from behind and send the green back up the table, keep

:16:45.:16:48.

the white near enough to wear the green is, there might just be

:16:48.:16:54.

enough room to do that. As long as he doesn't hit the pink with the

:16:54.:17:04.
:17:04.:17:29.

No, just a straightforward run to He just got down and he dad, and he

:17:29.:17:39.
:17:39.:17:46.

could have given it a bit more There was a natural safety shot

:17:46.:17:56.
:17:56.:18:33.

around the angles so long as he He's going to have to come off the

:18:33.:18:36.

cushion with right hand side command you can never be guaranteed

:18:36.:18:42.

to knock this stage. -- to knock this stage. And I don't think he

:18:42.:18:52.
:18:52.:18:56.

If it cuts, he can finish on the brown come he can come back down

:18:56.:19:06.
:19:06.:19:35.

It is curling! And it is in the pocket! So that is a reprieve for

:19:35.:19:39.

Shaun Murphy. Although I think Neil was trying to get down the right

:19:39.:19:49.
:19:49.:19:54.

side of the blue it as we look at Just checking the scoreboard, the

:19:55.:20:04.
:20:05.:20:44.

So a Shaun Murphy special, and we will be setting them up for the

:20:44.:20:54.
:20:54.:21:03.

Might be worth putting the brown here, because he can win with two

:21:03.:21:13.
:21:13.:21:48.

Snooker's there. Five points for a I would suggest just to roll this

:21:48.:21:58.
:21:58.:22:07.

He tried to pot it. Maybe he has But I was with you, I would have

:22:07.:22:17.
:22:17.:22:55.

rolled the blue in or over, as they Just got to be a little bit careful

:22:56.:23:01.

here, Shaun. I don't think the middle pocket is in the way of the

:23:01.:23:05.

one cushion escape. The two cushion escape, the black is likely in the

:23:05.:23:15.
:23:15.:23:20.

way. But there is a gap between the Should be OK as long as he just

:23:20.:23:30.
:23:30.:23:32.

misses the middle pocket. Looks to Just along that line or nearer the

:23:32.:23:36.

middle pocket, if he tries two cushions, he could clip the black.

:23:36.:23:44.

I think he could get it off one. He has found the gap, believe it or

:23:44.:23:54.
:23:54.:24:00.

We're at the snookers-required stage, and all of a sudden, the

:24:00.:24:08.

frame is not safe. Only one snooker needed, and the black is an acre

:24:08.:24:14.

position, if he can keep the blue safe. -- it in a good position. The

:24:14.:24:24.
:24:24.:24:29.

pink is not ideally placed above He didn't mean to pot that. He

:24:29.:24:33.

tried to just get a snooker in behind the black there. So it is

:24:33.:24:40.

much more difficult now but the reds a possibility -- there is a

:24:40.:24:43.

possibility, but he would have to be so precise to get in behind the

:24:43.:24:53.
:24:53.:25:28.

He has got to be so careful here, because as I mentioned the black

:25:28.:25:34.

isn't a perfect position to get the snooker in behind. -- he's in a

:25:34.:25:38.

perfect position. So he is trying to figure out where to put the pink

:25:38.:25:45.

that will make it difficult for Neil to attempt the snooker.

:25:45.:25:49.

these are all problems he didn't need to have. He could have

:25:49.:25:59.
:25:59.:26:12.

This is a comfortable shot just screw the cue ball in behind the

:26:12.:26:22.
:26:22.:26:24.

black, and the frame is over. Just I'm just wondering if he can come

:26:24.:26:27.

off the pink and possibly get in behind the black maid would be some

:26:27.:26:37.
:26:37.:26:47.

shot. He tried that, but he caught This time it is in or over. Ind

:26:47.:26:54.

would be better. Safely in the pocket, so he almost let it slip

:26:54.:27:04.
:27:04.:27:09.

A 39 minute frame and both men, giving it such care and attention.

:27:09.:27:13.

A very important point in the match. Shaun will be delighted to have one

:27:13.:27:20.

the frame. He is not winning in one visit, so consequently the frames

:27:20.:27:23.

are a bit more drawn out. It takes a bit more out of you, but if you

:27:23.:27:30.

win them, it is fine. That progression we talked about before

:27:30.:27:37.

the interval, breaks of 40 yet come a 45 and 41, it is all easy for us

:27:37.:27:42.

to analyse, but when you're out there, had you result for an issue

:27:42.:27:48.

like that? It is difficult, he knows he should have had that frame

:27:48.:27:56.

in the bag maybe 15 minutes ago. So it does take it out of you, and it

:27:56.:28:01.

does instil you... He will be more relieved than feeling really good

:28:01.:28:07.

about himself winning that frame. But as Stephen says, he has to

:28:07.:28:11.

concentrate harder when he is in amongst the balls, to kill the

:28:11.:28:16.

frame in one visit, because it you don't come made gives your opponent

:28:16.:28:19.

extra confidence and he can relax a bit more because he knows if you're

:28:19.:28:24.

not going to kill the frame in one visit, it will take you more visits.

:28:24.:28:28.

So you're not confident, it looked your opponent relax a bit and play

:28:28.:28:38.

more shot you wouldn't want to play. I make the point that it is worth

:28:38.:28:44.

reiterating, Stephen Hendry used to make 70, 80, 90, so the tactics

:28:44.:28:48.

with one red on the table were all over, he didn't have the 15 minutes

:28:49.:28:53.

of brain damage, if you like, it was already all over. So if you

:28:53.:28:57.

stop your opponent to be back to the table, the score line changes a

:28:57.:29:01.

lot quicker and you don't get the mental anguish. But if he starts to

:29:01.:29:06.

win the frame at one visit, that puts the pressure on your opponent.

:29:06.:29:11.

He's going to be on top of the game, he doesn't want to miss, it puts

:29:11.:29:14.

pressure on the safety shots as well. He has to be on top of his

:29:14.:29:20.

game, that is a double-edged sword. In terms of safety, to wrap this

:29:20.:29:24.

championship, Murphy has had the better of the Exchange's -- thrall

:29:24.:29:34.
:29:34.:30:02.

A little spring in his step as he knocked back in. He played

:30:02.:30:10.

perfectly. He made sure he finished on one of the baulk colours. With

:30:10.:30:20.
:30:20.:30:20.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:30:20.:32:07.

four or five reds available, it He purposely left himself short on

:32:07.:32:17.
:32:17.:32:28.

this Dobbie so that he could open The cannon on the pink worked out

:32:28.:32:37.

perfectly for him. Now, that is so careless, and that is what he has

:32:37.:32:47.
:32:47.:33:10.

And he looks as if he is up for it now. He means business. Will he

:33:10.:33:20.
:33:20.:33:29.

This time, can he finished a frame in one visit. I am going to stick

:33:29.:33:39.
:33:39.:34:03.

my neck out and say he will. Curse He has left himself straight on the

:34:03.:34:13.
:34:13.:34:13.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:34:13.:34:57.

He is going to start having a few We do not expect him to miss these.

:34:57.:35:07.
:35:07.:35:07.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:35:07.:35:56.

He might just be able to get through to this one in the middle.

:35:56.:36:06.
:36:06.:36:45.

There is a gap to screw back for When you are playing the top

:36:45.:36:50.

players, you want to put your stamp on the match as soon as possible.

:36:50.:37:00.
:37:00.:37:08.

You need to get your opponent on There is only one red that can come

:37:08.:37:18.
:37:18.:37:18.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:37:18.:38:33.

He went too far into the corner, but he was always going to have

:38:33.:38:43.
:38:43.:38:43.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:38:43.:39:24.

Just wondering if he will leave an Moving back last red will be

:39:24.:39:34.
:39:34.:39:34.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:39:34.:40:37.

He has deliberately left himself It will go up past the yellow. He

:40:37.:40:47.
:40:47.:40:47.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:40:47.:41:48.

was looking at it. This could be He just missed it and he played it

:41:48.:41:58.
:41:58.:41:58.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:41:58.:42:44.

Shaun Murphy has missed a golden He will have to keep concentrating.

:42:44.:42:54.
:42:54.:43:11.

He has been making careless He has done it again. Shaun Murphy

:43:11.:43:17.

had a chance to take the frame, but he did not do it. It was a fabulous

:43:17.:43:27.
:43:27.:43:33.

You have got to salute the instincts of nil Robertson. He has

:43:33.:43:37.

got to pot the balls after the mistakes Shaun Murphy has been

:43:37.:43:45.

making. He is good at that. That was a super clearance. A couple of

:43:45.:43:55.
:43:55.:44:02.

grape shots. Just look at this blue. Look how well he strikes it. That

:44:02.:44:09.

was a brilliant shot. He also missed the cannon on the green.

:44:09.:44:15.

That was super. Shaun Murphy is suffering from a condition that has

:44:15.:44:21.

just been brought to my condition. Every time he makes a faulty, he

:44:21.:44:31.
:44:31.:44:39.

leaves himself open. -- makes 40. He started off the break with some

:44:39.:44:46.

great shots. He split the pack a lovely, all the reds were out in

:44:46.:44:56.
:44:56.:45:00.

the open. He careless the got on to the blue. He had to drop it in,

:45:00.:45:09.

play the shot with the rest and then he misses it. He is brilliant

:45:09.:45:19.

with the rest bow. -- he is brilliant with the rest, but he has

:45:19.:45:25.

missed a couple of great shocks today. He has only got himself to

:45:25.:45:31.

blame for being behind. He is struggling out there and in the

:45:31.:45:35.

overall context of the match, you have got to see Neil Robinson

:45:35.:45:41.

getting stronger and stronger. can say that, but Shaun Murphy is

:45:41.:45:49.

still getting chances. He just needs to take it up a notch or two.

:45:49.:45:54.

He is cueing really well, but there have been some lapses. He needs to

:45:54.:46:03.

raise his game and there is plenty of life left in this match. At what

:46:03.:46:13.

point does this, semi-finals at the Masters, finally start to seek in -

:46:13.:46:23.
:46:23.:46:24.

- to sink in? It is difficult. This is a huge frame. If it's 5-2 behind,

:46:24.:46:34.
:46:34.:46:55.

Shaun Murphy could have been in front if he had converted his

:46:55.:47:05.
:47:05.:47:29.

He can see the edge of the pack, but he would have to find a gap to

:47:30.:47:39.
:47:40.:47:40.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:47:40.:49:14.

get back down to the other Ken of He might need a touching ball to

:49:14.:49:24.
:49:24.:49:49.

I think this will resolve this self without it being racked up. --

:49:49.:49:59.
:49:59.:50:00.

I can't see a way out of this, unless someone leaves a touching

:50:00.:50:10.
:50:10.:50:10.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:50:10.:50:58.

Time for the balls to be racked. We have had everything so far. He

:50:58.:51:08.
:51:08.:51:16.

would have liked to have kept it That is what they are playing for -

:51:16.:51:23.

that beautiful Waterford crystal trophy. Shaun Murphy would dearly

:51:23.:51:33.
:51:33.:51:33.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:51:33.:52:37.

A good opener. The white is a little further than he would have

:52:37.:52:47.
:52:47.:52:47.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:52:47.:54:37.

Shaun Murphy knew that was not Last time I looked, he didn't get

:54:37.:54:47.
:54:47.:54:47.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:54:47.:56:42.

any points for a safety shot, but He has got the right side of the

:56:42.:56:49.

blue. Just making sure there are no plants. There might be a

:56:50.:56:59.
:57:00.:57:16.

possibility a red off of the pink He has held his hand up to

:57:16.:57:26.
:57:26.:57:26.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:57:26.:58:34.

apologise. That is not the way he There might be a road that can

:58:34.:58:42.

flick off the pink, although it is highly unlikely. -- there might be

:58:42.:58:52.
:58:52.:59:10.

a red. He has done it again. He has It looks as if people clinch the

:59:10.:59:20.
:59:20.:59:37.

frame with one chance. He is giving He knows everything that is going

:59:37.:59:47.
:59:47.:59:57.

on. He is doing a real professional And of course, he is the defending

:59:57.:00:01.

champion, that is standing him in good stead. He doesn't want to let

:00:01.:00:08.

go of this title. That is why he's giving everything 100%, as you say.

:00:08.:00:18.
:00:18.:00:24.

He certainly hasn't played any Just slightly off straight with the

:00:24.:00:28.

black here, he is looking at the pink now, he is back looking at the

:00:28.:00:38.
:00:38.:00:40.

It is amazing on the superfine cloth this, look at the angle he

:00:40.:00:48.

was able to achieve just buy it pure power. -- has just by pure

:00:49.:00:58.
:00:59.:00:59.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:00:59.:01:49.

We're at 17 centuries in the Masters so far, and a good chance

:01:49.:01:59.
:01:59.:02:02.

He has already had five centuries, Neil Robertson. Three of them

:02:02.:02:08.

against Mark Allen in the quarter- final. This is to put stuff from

:02:08.:02:18.
:02:18.:02:31.

The crowd always love to see a century break. And there is another

:02:31.:02:41.
:02:41.:02:41.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:02:41.:03:23.

one! Absolutely superb from Neil He has only needed the one chance,

:03:23.:03:33.
:03:33.:03:38.

and what has he done? He has potted He's just one frame away from a

:03:38.:03:46.

place in this year's final. It has to be said, Shaun was in first, he

:03:46.:03:52.

potted a superb long red, got himself on to the black and he had

:03:52.:03:57.

a cannon onto the edge of the pack come he was concentrating on that,

:03:57.:04:00.

and the number of times you just take your eye off the pot, that is

:04:00.:04:09.

You're potting the black into a blind pocket so you're always are

:04:09.:04:12.

not on the pocket when you're playing the shot. It was a delicate

:04:13.:04:19.

cannon that he played. The difference between the two players

:04:19.:04:24.

is when Shaun has been missing, the frame has been over. When Neil has

:04:24.:04:28.

missed, Shaun has taken three of four chances to win the frame, so

:04:28.:04:32.

it gives Neil more confident if you know your opponent is not punishing

:04:32.:04:40.

you. There is not a great deal of difference if you think about it.

:04:40.:04:50.
:04:50.:04:58.

Neil has been kidding the frames Shaun was 5-3 down to John Higgins

:04:58.:05:04.

in the last round and came back to win, so the difference I would say

:05:04.:05:09.

it is Jamaicans was not playing as well as Neil Robertson is today --

:05:09.:05:19.
:05:19.:05:58.

John Higgins was not playing as You will hear most the players say

:05:58.:06:06.

this the second most difficult tournament to win, Neil Robertson

:06:06.:06:13.

had three quarter-finals, two last 16, got beaten in the wild card

:06:13.:06:18.

round in 2004, then all of a sudden he was the winner here last year

:06:18.:06:28.
:06:28.:06:33.

and would a defence he is putting Something has always been special

:06:33.:06:37.

about the Masters, it has always been the best 16 players in the

:06:37.:06:47.
:06:47.:07:08.

world and you always want to prove We cook about the best 16 players

:07:08.:07:12.

in the world, but the world champion is not here -- we talk

:07:12.:07:18.

about. So it does take a little bit away. I think he is on a farm, with

:07:18.:07:23.

a pitchfork, the last I heard a bit! Ronnie O'Sullivan, helping out

:07:23.:07:33.
:07:33.:07:42.

and relaxing. A bit cold to be down He has hit that much too hard. I'm

:07:42.:07:46.

not sure what he was trying, didn't look as if he could get on the

:07:46.:07:56.
:07:56.:07:56.

black. I thought he was going to He just stunned it, very unlike

:07:56.:08:01.

Shaun. Maybe the pressure has got to him. He has got a fabulous

:08:01.:08:06.

temperament, Shaun Murphy, that is why he has been a world champion

:08:06.:08:10.

and a UK champion, but maybe he just looks a little rattled by what

:08:10.:08:20.
:08:20.:08:25.

Well, there is a lifeline for Shaun! What a chance Neil Robertson

:08:25.:08:35.
:08:35.:08:35.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:08:35.:09:20.

Some of the best snooker that Shaun Murphy is ever played was when he

:09:21.:09:24.

one the world championship back in 2005. I will never forget that

:09:24.:09:30.

performance against Matthew Stevens, he just potted them from everywhere.

:09:30.:09:34.

He could do with that sort of form now to try and get back into the

:09:34.:09:44.
:09:44.:09:54.

In December, he was 8-4 down against Ali Carter, best of nine,

:09:54.:10:00.

and he won't macro five incredible frames, never missed a ball. -

:10:00.:10:10.
:10:10.:10:11.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:10:11.:11:08.

Megrahi won 5 incredible frames. So He just finished a bit awkward,

:11:08.:11:13.

sometimes that happens when you are struggling. He went into the pack.

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When you are playing well, there is always two or three easy shots, at

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the one to the right middle looks to be dead straight, the one to the

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left middle, he is hampered. The one to the right corner is the

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He should be able to hold for the When he cannoned into them, it

:12:01.:12:07.

wasn't a deal for him. He would like to play for the reds to the

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right corner, but he has too much They would clear up blacks to both

:12:17.:12:27.
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It is well played. Used the red to Played for the black this time. And

:12:40.:12:49.

day you go, careless shot again. -- there you go. Absolutely amazing.

:12:49.:12:55.

He didn't missed the pot, it was unmissable, really, but what --

:12:55.:13:05.
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that was another little lapse in If Shaun goes on to lose this match

:13:36.:13:40.

and he will look back on it and be so frustrated. It is fine when your

:13:40.:13:46.

opponent doesn't give you a chance, but he has had chances. That always

:13:46.:13:56.
:13:56.:13:58.

The plant, you can see, is not on. He has could try and make it by the

:13:58.:14:08.
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He couldn't avoid the cannon, but it was a good plant to make. He

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could never stop himself from cannoning into that red. Needed a

:14:21.:14:26.

bit of good luck, and done this occasion didn't get it. -- on this

:14:26.:14:36.
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The easy safety would be off the He would normally like to play off

:14:52.:14:59.

two cushions, behind the green somewhere. That is what Stephen was

:14:59.:15:02.

suggesting, the shot is on, the only thing is the pink would be

:15:02.:15:10.

hitting the red, you would feel. But he needed paid-up -- if he did

:15:10.:15:20.
:15:20.:15:33.

He is now thinking about that, I feel, because he was looking to see

:15:33.:15:43.
:15:43.:15:51.

They have been a few shot today when he is thought for almost two

:15:51.:16:01.
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He has got the pink nicely in play, he was always going to put Shaun in

:16:12.:16:22.
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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:16:22.:17:06.

He has got the required side, that A free shot for Shaun, the one near

:17:06.:17:14.

the pink spot, he can take that on and get back down the table. He has

:17:14.:17:24.
:17:24.:17:34.

Might have a go at it up into the corner, he could get himself on the

:17:34.:17:44.
:17:44.:17:53.

Good opening pot, but not a lot to go at. Just a couple of shots ago,

:17:53.:17:58.

all those reds were in pottable positions but then a few shots,

:17:58.:18:08.
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they were all knocked safe, most of Maybe there's two over the left-

:18:11.:18:16.

hand side of the table on, with Neil been and left hander,

:18:16.:18:26.
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shouldn't be a problem. -- being a He didn't want to have to use the

:18:41.:18:46.

rest. Did you know he's going to be in the way for enriching over the

:18:46.:18:50.

table. -- that yellow is going to be in the wake for him reaching

:18:50.:19:00.
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He just wasn't comfortable on that He wobbled the brown when he potted

:19:09.:19:12.

it and that stopped him from getting a little bit closer to the

:19:12.:19:22.
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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:19:22.:20:02.

Just looking at the score board Still a couple of reds available

:20:02.:20:08.

and he has a couple of typical won't close to the cushion. --

:20:08.:20:18.
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If he stays on high-value colours he might be able to get himself

:20:34.:20:44.
:20:44.:20:54.

That has opened a few more options. I say it has opened few more...

:20:54.:21:04.
:21:04.:21:08.

Could have worked out a little bit He needs two red Work and Pensions

:21:08.:21:15.

Select Committee colours to make absolutely sure of the frame. --

:21:15.:21:25.
:21:25.:21:59.

It should have been over again, he let the cue ball bounce off the

:21:59.:22:09.
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cushion too far. He is going to I don't know if it is the red to

:22:29.:22:37.

the right to these two, he's looking to see that pot. He can see

:22:37.:22:47.
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it clearly does. Shouldn't have Too thin. So red and any colour

:22:59.:23:09.
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will leave Neil and needing a Well, what has he done there?! He

:23:13.:23:16.

didn't have to stun it in. He could have just play it with a touch of

:23:17.:23:24.

side come he wouldn't have cannoned into the red. I think he is

:23:24.:23:34.
:23:34.:23:53.

comfortable playing that stun shot, One black available, if the red

:23:53.:24:00.

doesn't pot past the other two, he will have to come back across and

:24:01.:24:04.

leave the red for the same pocket as the black. But he has got a bit

:24:04.:24:09.

of angle, I don't know if he could even cannon the two red to made he

:24:09.:24:13.

has the angle to do that, that would open things up. Doesn't have

:24:13.:24:23.
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It does pass the two reds, so one good pot, one good positional shot

:24:29.:24:38.

on the black may could have done it does two reds. -- develop those two

:24:38.:24:48.
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He is going to have to run through off the cushion now, and he could

:24:55.:24:59.

still move them, but that is not where he intended to be, but there

:24:59.:25:09.
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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 40 seconds

:25:09.:25:56.

Looks like he got too much time on Neil, making sure he didn't leave

:25:56.:26:06.
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those touching there. He would have I don't know if he can hit this

:26:08.:26:17.

been enough. -- thin enough. He has done well, that is about as well as

:26:17.:26:27.
:26:27.:26:38.

he could do. He has played it He has blot the easiest path to the

:26:38.:26:45.

reds with the blue. -- blocked. That would be the easiest escape to

:26:45.:26:54.

come off the right-hand side As long as he plays the tip -- this

:26:54.:27:04.
:27:04.:27:10.

dead weight he is not going to He got close to the black as well

:27:11.:27:18.

Well touch, though, but I don't think he was expecting to get as

:27:18.:27:28.
:27:28.:28:00.

close to the black as he did -- Shaun Murphy, battling away to stay

:28:00.:28:10.
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He has put himself bring in trouble here. -- Bank in trouble. That

:28:19.:28:26.

wasn't the best shot he has made. He shouldn't have left that short

:28:26.:28:36.
:28:36.:28:59.

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