Day 7

:01:14. > :01:22.Good afternoon. A major event is brewing here in north London as we

:01:23. > :01:31.prepare for a coronation at the Palace, Alexandra Palace. Three

:01:32. > :01:36.Englishmen Andy Scott are in contention. It should be a lovely

:01:37. > :01:42.couple of days for you in front of the television. We have both the

:01:43. > :01:51.semifinals live this afternoon and evening. This afternoon features

:01:52. > :01:56.Mark Selby taking on one of his best friends, "The Magician" , Shaun

:01:57. > :02:17.Murphy. Shaun is one of my closest friends

:02:18. > :02:25.on the tour. If I am not doing well, I am willing him on. It will

:02:26. > :02:31.be a great privilege for me to see him coming from the juniors, where

:02:32. > :02:35.he was with me to the top of the rankings. He has beaten me the last

:02:36. > :02:43.couple of times here, so I call him one. If you cannot get yourself up

:02:44. > :02:51.for a tournament like this, you are in the wrong business. It would be a

:02:52. > :02:56.dream come true for me to win the triple Crown. I have won the world

:02:57. > :03:02.championship and the United Kingdom championship, so this is that one I

:03:03. > :03:09.need to complete the set. There is nothing between these players, each

:03:10. > :03:23.as enjoyed eight factories over the other. Mark Selby has won the most

:03:24. > :03:26.to recent matches between the two. You may also remember him prevailing

:03:27. > :03:34.in the United Kingdom championship 14 months ago. This should be a

:03:35. > :03:39.cracking match. They have both left it all the last minute in this

:03:40. > :03:46.tournament? Yes, Mark Selby was very lucky to get through against John

:03:47. > :03:54.Higgins and also against Mark Davis in the opening round. Also, Shaun

:03:55. > :03:59.Murphy was behind 4-2 in two different matches, when it is first

:04:00. > :04:11.to six, you really do not want to be doing that. How much dish Shaun

:04:12. > :04:20.Murphy get off to a good start, how important is that? He will not be so

:04:21. > :04:27.worried about it. He said in a press conference he needs to get off to a

:04:28. > :04:31.better start. But has to be said, if Mark Selby does get his teeth into

:04:32. > :04:35.you, it could be a long day. He will want to get off to a better start,

:04:36. > :04:46.but the way that Shaun Murphy is walking round the table, he is

:04:47. > :04:51.looking very competitive. As for Mark Selby, in the elephant in the

:04:52. > :04:57.final frame decider is he has been involved in in his career, he has

:04:58. > :05:02.won everyone. It shows he has a big occasion player. The one table set

:05:03. > :05:11.up here, he does not shirk his responsibilities when it comes down

:05:12. > :05:19.to the last frame. And maybe he is an adrenaline junkie! As ever, at is

:05:20. > :05:30.a very lively London code here that Alexandra Palace. Yes, this venue

:05:31. > :05:34.has been brilliant. Yes, when we were in Wembley Arena, it did not

:05:35. > :05:41.have the same atmosphere. But I think the code is full of

:05:42. > :05:51.anticipation. I think this is one of the great sporting fixtures in the

:05:52. > :05:54.British calendar. Yes, and it is a huge game for both players, because

:05:55. > :06:04.they are desperate to get in the final. It gets the heroes on the

:06:05. > :06:12.back of the neck standing up. Yes, I remember in the old days, we would

:06:13. > :06:19.have been alive on grandstand. Yes, I think it is advantageous to be in

:06:20. > :06:23.the first semifinal, because you can then relax and see the other two

:06:24. > :06:30.players sweating it out in the evening. But we have a fantastic

:06:31. > :06:38.atmosphere. If you think it is lively here, wait until you hear Rob

:06:39. > :06:43.Walker! It is a packed house here and Alexandra Palace. We are

:06:44. > :06:54.starting the semifinal Saturday with a bang! A thrilling occasion in

:06:55. > :07:00.prospect. It features two best friends who took part in the United

:07:01. > :07:06.Kingdom championship final in 2012. Please welcome, a player who has

:07:07. > :07:12.been brilliant this week. Coming from behind twice and flourishing

:07:13. > :07:18.with new-found fitness and you walk on music for the New Year, he is to

:07:19. > :07:24.matches away from completing the snooker triple Crown. He is a class

:07:25. > :07:33.act on and off the table, he is "The Magician" , he is Shaun Murphy.

:07:34. > :08:02.MUSIC: "The Superman Theme" by John Williams.

:08:03. > :08:10.And his opponent, a player with an incredible record in this

:08:11. > :08:16.tournament. His victory over John Higgins is the 11th time he has come

:08:17. > :08:20.through a final frame decider in the Masters. That is why he is the

:08:21. > :08:25.defending champion, he is the "The Jester From Leicester" , he is Mark

:08:26. > :08:51.Selby! MUSIC: "Fast Fuse" by Kasabian.

:08:52. > :09:00.I totally out with John. This is the great occasion in British sport. The

:09:01. > :09:02.first player to have a dozen frames will guarantee themselves a place in

:09:03. > :09:11.the final. JOHN VIRGO: we have got the best

:09:12. > :09:32.seat in the house. Already, a mistake and he has left

:09:33. > :09:47.an easy starter for Mark Selby, not what he was looking for.

:09:48. > :10:02.KEN DOHERTY: Mark just coming round here to see the black wood pot into

:10:03. > :10:26.the bottom left-hand pocket. That shot tells us that it would not.

:10:27. > :10:39.I can only assume that with his opening shot, he wanted to just make

:10:40. > :10:41.sure she got the few food and did not want to be playing anything too

:10:42. > :10:58.delicate. But what good shot that is

:10:59. > :11:09.absolutely sensational with the rest. Absolutely perfect. He could

:11:10. > :11:19.not have placed that any better with his hand. He had a lovely angle to

:11:20. > :11:46.do just dislodge the red away from the blackspot.

:11:47. > :11:53.Very hard to Calderwood are of this match, but I do believe, watching

:11:54. > :12:00.both of them in this tournament, they have not really been winning

:12:01. > :12:03.frames in one visit. Shaun did it for three frames against Mark all,

:12:04. > :12:08.but they have not been doing it consistently. They will have to do

:12:09. > :12:16.that today. He cannot expect to have three chances every frame. Chelsea

:12:17. > :12:38.are to bring some more reds into play. Nicely controlled.

:12:39. > :12:49.Just get into the cue ball just a little bit much. He has caught this

:12:50. > :13:03.on the right-hand side instead of the centre and it has gone all

:13:04. > :13:19.core. He is not guaranteed to be on a colour.

:13:20. > :13:26.He has the year low to go out, but this is a nice angle, but a tough

:13:27. > :13:45.pot. He does not like it. He is bridging

:13:46. > :13:59.across the leather of the pocket. The rate in the heart of the pocket.

:14:00. > :14:30.A good shot, once again. Again, a little bit awkward. He has

:14:31. > :14:41.just lost the cue ball. He is having to work hard here.

:14:42. > :15:02.Excellent. Excellent pot. Yes, and so far, this is a dream start for

:15:03. > :15:03.Mark. There is every chance that he could win the frame without Shaun

:15:04. > :15:31.getting another shot. Here is the brake off shot. As you

:15:32. > :15:56.say, may be a slight lack of concentration.

:15:57. > :16:02.Sometimes, you see on the circuit now, that the player who is winning

:16:03. > :16:05.the toss of the coin very often puts the other player in to start the

:16:06. > :16:21.match. He has worked hard to get in this

:16:22. > :16:33.position. A fantastic start for Mark Selby. A couple more reds and

:16:34. > :16:37.high-value colours. As you say, it was imperative on both of these

:16:38. > :16:44.players that they started winning in one visit.

:16:45. > :16:54.That could have gone wrong, but he is OK. Just this and a black, to

:16:55. > :17:00.clinch the opening frame. This would put him 71 points ahead

:17:01. > :17:16.with only 67 remaining. He used all of the pocket, but it

:17:17. > :17:17.wriggled its way in. So, the poor brake off by Shaun Murphy has cost

:17:18. > :18:03.him dear. this possible. Tremendous. Using the

:18:04. > :18:13.rest and finished absolutely inch perfect. This is the start you would

:18:14. > :18:22.always hope for is a player if you are in a big semifinal. He has had

:18:23. > :18:31.to pull off some tremendous pots. The yellow into the rate centre was

:18:32. > :18:40.also an excellent pot. It is amazing how he shakes his head. He will be

:18:41. > :18:41.disappointed not to make a century. Shaun Murphy only had the opening

:18:42. > :18:57.shot. Yes, a clinical start. What are the

:18:58. > :19:01.chief factors in this? I think that Mark Selby answered one question

:19:02. > :19:11.they are. He needs to score more consistently. He needs to school and

:19:12. > :19:16.take pressure off from self, rather than having to come from behind all

:19:17. > :19:34.the time. The other thing is that Shaun Murphy needs to tighten up his

:19:35. > :19:47.safety play. Yes, there's nothing left to say! To snooker superheroes.

:19:48. > :19:53.Mark Selby is Spiderman, gets you wrapped up in his cobwebs, without

:19:54. > :20:02.Shaun Murphy is coming to save the day as Superman. If he does get

:20:03. > :20:09.behind, he needs to go into superhero mode. So as the world does

:20:10. > :20:11.start spending in the wrong direction, we know that it is the

:20:12. > :20:23.fault of Shaun Murphy! Well said, Steve. I do not quite

:20:24. > :20:28.know where he was going but never mind.

:20:29. > :20:38.I always like to listen to what players talk about after the match.

:20:39. > :20:43.Shaun Murphy said afterwards, that he could not compete tactically with

:20:44. > :20:49.the likes of new Robertson on Mark Selby, so he was going to play his

:20:50. > :20:54.natural attacking game. Obviously, we did not see any of it in that

:20:55. > :21:00.first frame because he only got the one-shot, but clearly, he does not

:21:01. > :21:09.want to get bogged down in long periods of safety. Yes, he will not

:21:10. > :21:17.want Mark Selby today date the pace of the game.

:21:18. > :21:28.This is exactly what he has to do, but he has to get the cue ball close

:21:29. > :21:37.to the baulk cushion. He is going to play these aggressive safety shots.

:21:38. > :22:06.It will force Mark Selby, forces hand slightly.

:22:07. > :22:13.Another terrific part. Not on a colour, so he will just trickle up

:22:14. > :22:24.behind this. Not tight, but he does have the

:22:25. > :22:28.snooker on all of the reds. It should be easy enough to come off

:22:29. > :22:34.the left-hand side and nestle on the one at the top cushion, but the

:22:35. > :22:39.problem is, as you see the shadow covering them all, if he does not

:22:40. > :22:43.catch this just right, he could leave careered onto the right-hand

:22:44. > :22:51.corner, which is what he is looking at now. That is a little bit

:22:52. > :22:57.disconcerting. This could be dangerous.

:22:58. > :23:08.That is the shot you are talking about. As you say, it is quite

:23:09. > :23:16.dangerous. There is the danger of leaving that one into the bottom

:23:17. > :23:22.right. He is perhaps thinking of coming down the rate at hand side.

:23:23. > :23:24.But no matter which one he chooses, he will have to be very very

:23:25. > :23:47.careful. I am not quite certain what he is

:23:48. > :23:53.thinking of. He is trying to nestle into these reds. It is not safe. He

:23:54. > :25:06.has left one into the left middle. The black may be tied up, but I

:25:07. > :25:09.think the pink goes into both of the bottom pocket some, so a decent

:25:10. > :25:36.chance here for Mark Selby. He just about held the angle for the

:25:37. > :26:17.pink into the middle. Just getting his extension because

:26:18. > :27:04.he is trying to reach over quite a few balls.

:27:05. > :27:10.Once he takes this one into the bottom right, it will clear the path

:27:11. > :27:15.for another couple into the left-hand corner pocket.

:27:16. > :27:22.He will be a little bit disappointed beer. He should have been the other

:27:23. > :27:35.side of the pink. But no problem as it turned out. He

:27:36. > :27:42.played the cannon and it has turned out nicely.

:27:43. > :27:50.As you say, the black may be tied up, but with the pink and blue on

:27:51. > :28:14.the spot, this is a very good chance.

:28:15. > :28:28.Does this not just some up snooker? He came into this tremendous

:28:29. > :28:39.atmosphere and he has had one shot in the opening frame and a couple in

:28:40. > :28:48.this one. He paid a good aggressive safety, but Mark potted it and has

:28:49. > :28:50.never looked back. It is the big stage, but he simply has not been

:28:51. > :29:28.given the chance to perform. A couple of red, a couple of

:29:29. > :29:42.colours, that is all he is away from taking this frame.

:29:43. > :29:46.Manages to get around the black. Needs to get high on the blue. Just

:29:47. > :29:54.about. This blue will put him 62 points in

:29:55. > :30:15.front with 67 remaining. A fantastic start from Mark Selby,

:30:16. > :30:17.just what people will be hoping for. When he gets in, he has that cue

:30:18. > :30:34.ball strength. This further frame, well

:30:35. > :31:03.acknowledged from this wonderful crowd out here at Alexandra Palace.

:31:04. > :31:10.He missed out on a century in the first frame, which would have

:31:11. > :31:29.disappointed and slightly, he would like to make amends for that.

:31:30. > :31:35.It doesn't look like Shaun Murphy will have a chance to pot his first

:31:36. > :31:42.ball of the match. This frame is long gone.

:31:43. > :32:12.The chance of a century now increasing.

:32:13. > :32:21.You could not think of a more perfect start, could you? No,

:32:22. > :33:06.fantastic, he has had 318th centuries, would you believe?

:33:07. > :33:15.Needs to be careful screwing off two questions, because the green is not

:33:16. > :33:23.on its spot. -- cushions. Could have done with more pace on the cue ball.

:33:24. > :33:37.He deserves a century, he has been flawless with this contribution.

:33:38. > :34:08.I think we're going to see one now. A good shot.

:34:09. > :34:15.Absolutely wonderful, it really has been, from the first pot in the

:34:16. > :34:31.first frame, he has looked majestic. He did not get the pink, but he got

:34:32. > :34:38.the century. Shaun Murphy, so to pot a ball! 2-0, Mark Selby!

:34:39. > :34:42.We saw it Waldon struggling, he only made 35 points in his match against

:34:43. > :34:47.Ronnie O'Sullivan, and Shaun Murphy is stewing in his chair now, and you

:34:48. > :34:53.watched Mark Selby putting in hours of work yesterday. Yes, I had some

:34:54. > :34:57.practice yesterday, I went into the table and I was chatting to him, and

:34:58. > :35:03.he was grafting yesterday, working on it. He is happy to be through,

:35:04. > :35:07.obviously, but worried that there was some adversity but he was

:35:08. > :35:13.playing so well, but today, years focused on a good start. So crisp,

:35:14. > :35:17.so fluid, that is his highest break of the week. We talk about horses

:35:18. > :35:24.for courses, but why is this man in love with this event? He has

:35:25. > :35:28.performed so well in it. It is hard to say, if you do have a good result

:35:29. > :35:34.at a venue, you are happy to come back year after year. It could be

:35:35. > :35:37.the case that he is naturally gifted when playing in the one-table

:35:38. > :35:42.set-up, so it is the one time when you play on one table only, and you

:35:43. > :35:46.have to get to the semifinals of the World Championships, so a big

:35:47. > :35:48.occasion player but probably loves the centre of attention. He might

:35:49. > :35:54.not be big headed, but when it comes to it, he revels in that situation.

:35:55. > :36:01.Unnerving for Shaun Murphy right now? He has got to open up the balls

:36:02. > :36:07.and play well, but he played probably as good a shot as he has

:36:08. > :36:11.done, but Mark Selby has not been off the screen after he got up. If

:36:12. > :36:12.he is playing this well, it is difficult to put the cue ball and

:36:13. > :36:26.you were. OK, back we go. You say horses for courses, the same

:36:27. > :36:33.applies to the late, great, Paul Hunter. He loved this tournament. He

:36:34. > :36:36.loved this tournament, three times. There is something about the

:36:37. > :36:46.Masters, the one-table set-up, the top 16 players in the world, it is a

:36:47. > :36:50.very special event. And it is amazing, Mark Selby's record, he has

:36:51. > :36:57.played in this tournament, he has said 11 last frame deciders and won

:36:58. > :37:03.every single one. Most players would be happy with a 50-50 split, because

:37:04. > :37:05.it can go either way, but to win every single one is an amazing

:37:06. > :37:43.record. Once again, Shaun Murphy playing an

:37:44. > :37:48.aggressive safety shot, opening up the reds. He has got a good cue

:37:49. > :37:54.ball, so he is in a little spot of bother here. But Shaun Murphy will

:37:55. > :38:29.just be glad of an opportunity to pot ball at the moment.

:38:30. > :38:35.It looks easy enough to play safe at this red, but he has to be careful

:38:36. > :38:40.of the red knew the baulk cushion. Needs to make sure the red does not

:38:41. > :38:57.run into the brown. He was an easy cue ball, tied to the cushion.

:38:58. > :39:03.He does not want the brown going in. He could have been in trouble there.

:39:04. > :39:29.Not bad. This is the view from Hawk-eye. Just

:39:30. > :39:36.coming around the bottom end of the table. Once to try to leave the cue

:39:37. > :39:47.ball down by the top cushion somewhere.

:39:48. > :39:57.He found a gap. An excellent shot. What a shot that was. Absolutely.

:39:58. > :40:04.That is what you get with Mark Selby, as he has proved in the first

:40:05. > :40:08.two frames, he scores heavily and of course, if you think you have got

:40:09. > :40:13.him in trouble, he will need more than one good safety shot to force

:40:14. > :40:19.an error. That was absolutely top drawer safety. And Shaun Murphy with

:40:20. > :40:25.a bit of a problem here. He needs to play on himself. I do not think you

:40:26. > :40:30.can risk playing a pot here. He has to try to get that cue ball in a

:40:31. > :40:52.safe position. It is not a formality.

:40:53. > :40:59.The fact that Mark is looking at the position to leave the cue ball near

:41:00. > :41:06.the baulk cushion shows there is nothing that contempt. You can pop

:41:07. > :41:10.the red above the black, but that is risky, and it is not guaranteed to

:41:11. > :41:14.be on a collar, so percentage-wise, not the type of shot to go for. --

:41:15. > :41:39.on a collar. Calling all the shots at the moment.

:41:40. > :41:41.As you can see, he can just get through to the red, but Shaun Murphy

:41:42. > :42:11.cannot play safe off of it. Excellent excellent return. A tap on

:42:12. > :42:24.the table in that management from Mark Selby. -- in acknowledgement.

:42:25. > :42:29.He might have to roll up to this red dead weight, but needs to make sure

:42:30. > :43:00.not to push it to the middle. It is almost like he is teasing

:43:01. > :43:06.Shaun Murphy into possibly taking this pot down the cushion. It is

:43:07. > :43:10.very, very difficult, and particularly, he has dominated the

:43:11. > :43:16.first two frames. Mark Selby is saying to him, Shaun Murphy is a

:43:17. > :43:19.little bit cold, obviously. He would love to have a look at this, if he

:43:20. > :43:24.was 2-0 up, there is no doubt he would have a go at this red, but if

:43:25. > :43:30.you are too- zero down and have not part of a ball, it is a bit more

:43:31. > :43:52.difficult. -- potted a ball. If he tries to screw back to the

:43:53. > :43:55.baulk and which might not be on anyway, then the pot is more

:43:56. > :44:34.miscible. -- missable. He got to the baulk end, and he will

:44:35. > :45:13.settle for that. Well, this is just unbelievable.

:45:14. > :45:23.This is unbelievable from Mark Selby. What a pot that was.

:45:24. > :45:28.Fantastic, never touched the side, it was a well worked out shots, and

:45:29. > :45:32.he has worked the cue ball, the black was always there. If you

:45:33. > :45:43.missed it, sometimes it would wobble in the jaws and go safe. A great

:45:44. > :45:47.pot. It is fair to say at the moment, he does not look like

:45:48. > :45:51.missing much. That may have gone a little bit awkward, but what was

:45:52. > :45:56.funny, just in the background, then that red went in, we saw Shaun

:45:57. > :46:02.Murphy just slumping in his seat, and he thought, no! Because that was

:46:03. > :46:07.a good safety shot from Shaun Murphy, and most players would not

:46:08. > :46:13.have taken that red on, it just shows the confidence in Mark Selby

:46:14. > :46:48.so far in this matter should. -- in this match.

:46:49. > :46:54.That was a good shot, he is letting it absolutely perfect on the green,

:46:55. > :46:58.and the reds are spread, and black is available to both corners. Do not

:46:59. > :47:50.rule out a frame-winning contribution here.

:47:51. > :48:23.Four reds above the black, all portable. -- pottable.

:48:24. > :48:29.He could play for the brown or the pink, he has a choice of three

:48:30. > :48:32.colours, if you like. He could play for the blue, but getting the brown

:48:33. > :48:37.out of the way into the left middle, it just makes that pocket

:48:38. > :48:50.available for a couple of reds. There is nothing you can do, you did

:48:51. > :48:55.not have a real chance. You just have to sit there and suffer and

:48:56. > :49:02.hope that you can get a chance. At the moment, it is looking definitely

:49:03. > :49:11.like 3-0. Four frames before the mid-session interval to be played.

:49:12. > :49:58.A bit of contact. It's just took the pace out of the cue ball.

:49:59. > :50:02.This is tremendous stuff, we saw Ronnie O'Sullivan against Ricky

:50:03. > :50:17.Walden, four frames without a reply. OK, this white not be in the same

:50:18. > :50:28.manner as Ronnie O'Sullivan, but it is just as effective. -- this might

:50:29. > :50:55.not be. Now, Shaun Murphy's first chance of

:50:56. > :50:59.the match. He has not had a chance of a pot, and now he needs to find

:51:00. > :51:03.his cue action immediately. 50 points behind a possible 83

:51:04. > :51:22.remaining. It doesn't surprise you that, can,

:51:23. > :51:29.does it? No, it was straight into a blind pocket, it could've been a

:51:30. > :52:07.easier for Shaun Murphy. -- a lot easier.

:52:08. > :52:14.Well, you looked at that red, but I am not certain that he had enough of

:52:15. > :52:18.that red to play the part. He will have to try to get the cue ball back

:52:19. > :52:27.to the baulk end, you cannot see enough of that red.

:52:28. > :52:33.He played that, such is his cue power, he has the ability to play

:52:34. > :52:37.those kind of shots. They looked dangerous, that he always has some

:52:38. > :52:48.accident to get back to the baulk cushion will stop -- has some action

:52:49. > :53:09.to get back to the baulk cushion. That was OK.

:53:10. > :53:17.Well, it has always been the way in this game, when you're not having

:53:18. > :53:29.the good chance, you never get the run here. Have a look at this kiss

:53:30. > :53:38.off the green. This is such a tough snooker, not only to hit, but to get

:53:39. > :53:46.safety on that. To me, it is long odds not leaving a pot on here. I

:53:47. > :53:52.cannot think of one red that you could nestle on and not leave a

:53:53. > :53:56.chance of a pot stop we know with the miss rule, even though it was a

:53:57. > :54:04.fluke snooker, this will still be called if he doesn't hit a red. It

:54:05. > :54:06.will be put back. Just have to hope that he can hit something and leave

:54:07. > :54:23.it safe, that is all he can do. The miss was called, but unless he

:54:24. > :54:28.is dead straight on this, if he is dead straight, I am not sure that he

:54:29. > :54:37.can get back up to the blue. There you see it. He may have it put back

:54:38. > :54:46.here. Do you think he will have a guilty conscience that he fluke that

:54:47. > :54:50.snooker? No. That tells a story. These two are good friends, but

:54:51. > :55:01.there is no friendship out on the table, that is for sure.

:55:02. > :55:25.That is the line, but I do not know if it will slide to hit that red.

:55:26. > :55:31.He is not getting the slide onto that second cushion, I do not know

:55:32. > :55:38.if that shot is on, he needs to go very close to the loo, a lot of

:55:39. > :55:50.left-hand side. -- he needs to go very close to the blue.

:55:51. > :56:01.He needs to hope for a slide on the second cushion. He needs a lot of

:56:02. > :56:02.left-hand side, he could maybe hit the baulk lines and widen the angle

:56:03. > :56:22.with the left-hand side. An expensive fluke as far as Shaun

:56:23. > :56:33.Murphy is concerned. And he could not have gotten any closer.

:56:34. > :56:41.62 points behind now, you just feel if he doesn't hit a red and get it

:56:42. > :56:52.safe, this frame is beyond him. He is closer this time. And of course,

:56:53. > :56:58.Michaela Tabb has to keep calling the miss, because it is hard to hit

:56:59. > :57:06.a red, but you would expect him to hit a red if he hit a red if he

:57:07. > :57:24.hated with more pace here. -- hit it. Do not get me on the miss rule!

:57:25. > :57:34.Well played! Better! Excellent shot. In fairness, that is about as safe

:57:35. > :57:40.as he could have got it. He has still left a pot on which I'm

:57:41. > :57:44.certain Mark Selby will go for. He has got some insurance, he can play

:57:45. > :57:48.this red into the far corner and I know that he was looking at the Bob

:57:49. > :57:54.Crow line, the baulk cushion, but I would be amazed if he doesn't play a

:57:55. > :57:57.pot here. -- he was looking at the baulk line. You cannot turn down

:57:58. > :58:13.these opportunities. But he missed it, and you can tell

:58:14. > :58:15.from the noise of the crowd that they want to see Shaun Murphy pot a

:58:16. > :58:25.ball at least. Shaun Murphy, that is the first ball

:58:26. > :59:07.he has potted this afternoon. I mentioned before, Mark Selby went

:59:08. > :59:11.for his frame-winning red with the two red on the left-hand side

:59:12. > :59:15.cushion, the wonder the top question, if Shaun Murphy can win

:59:16. > :59:22.the frame on this visit, it would be a minor miracle. But when you are at

:59:23. > :59:23.the table, you have a chance, but boy, this would be something

:59:24. > :00:07.special. He has purposely left an angle on

:00:08. > :00:10.this red into the left centre to try and disturb one of these two on the

:00:11. > :00:31.left-hand cushion. He took his eye off the pot. Yes, a

:00:32. > :00:35.schoolboy error. He was concentrating so much on bringing

:00:36. > :00:39.the red into play, he forgot about the part. Mark can pot this easily

:00:40. > :01:33.enough. He needs red, colour, red. Obviously, the green and brown make

:01:34. > :01:50.a good target. Could he get in behind these two? The pink is going

:01:51. > :02:03.to be very helpful for him. Yes, that has opened up everything.

:02:04. > :02:13.He can play this as a shot to nothing.

:02:14. > :02:28.Now, can he get through? The body language of Shaun suggest not and

:02:29. > :02:36.yes, we can see that the blue is in the way. The only pot on is the one

:02:37. > :02:38.on the left-hand cushion, but this is dangerous. He has got to get

:02:39. > :02:58.this. He had to get that. That is surely the end of the

:02:59. > :03:07.frame, because I think that the red goes to the left corner. So, the

:03:08. > :03:18.black and one more red and it is three frames to nil for Mark Selby.

:03:19. > :03:38.Yes, it was a shot he was forced into playing, he did not really have

:03:39. > :03:44.any other option. As you say, when you are playing well, you get these

:03:45. > :03:57.little breaks, like the blue covering the reds.

:03:58. > :04:49.Everything is pretty easy for Mark Selby at the moment.

:04:50. > :04:56.At least Shaun Murphy dead have a chance, missing their easy red into

:04:57. > :05:00.the middle of trying to play that can, but Mark Selby marches on. It

:05:01. > :05:06.is an afternoon stroll at the moment.

:05:07. > :05:21.It took Shaun Murphy 46 minutes to Potter ball and that was 246 points

:05:22. > :05:26.without reply from Mark Selby. Strangely enough, I actually felt

:05:27. > :05:31.more pressure when you went so long without the opponent potting a ball,

:05:32. > :05:37.because you always expected that something was about to hit you. How

:05:38. > :05:42.would you compare his performance with his other two matches this

:05:43. > :05:52.week? Totally different. Jock and cheese. Basically, Shaun Murphy has

:05:53. > :06:02.not done anything wrong. Typical, you are looking for a good chance,

:06:03. > :06:09.and when you get it, you have got three reds stuck on the left-hand

:06:10. > :06:14.session. -- cushion. Even though you think Mark Selby and Rodney Sullivan

:06:15. > :06:20.are very different in terms of stale, imagine, this is the table,

:06:21. > :06:24.they start with the cue up in the ear at the back, but when the

:06:25. > :06:33.pre-play the shot, they come through like that and drop the back quite

:06:34. > :06:39.significantly. A lot of players are told to keep the cue as parallel as

:06:40. > :06:47.possible. Mark Selby, high at the back and drops down. What is that

:06:48. > :06:52.generating? I think it can generate a lot more power. But it is not a

:06:53. > :06:58.way people are told to play, getting the elbow involved. You actually

:06:59. > :07:07.have the forearm and Ilbo both working, generating the gaming. I

:07:08. > :07:09.have never seen a Coffey star been put to better use in a television

:07:10. > :07:15.studio! Remarkable. The things that you lay in the

:07:16. > :07:34.jungle! bit like that, he used to drop the

:07:35. > :07:43.arm slightly, to generate more backspin. Not many people could

:07:44. > :07:52.screw the ball back as good as John Spencer. He was one of the debates.

:07:53. > :08:46.the blue? It does not look like it. When Mark played that part, he

:08:47. > :08:52.thought that the only one he could possibly leave was the one he was

:08:53. > :08:58.hurting. He could possibly have left it. Shaun can play safe of this, but

:08:59. > :09:18.just not quite having angle to pot it.

:09:19. > :09:27.He was looking at their plant, but that was very risky. He played it in

:09:28. > :09:36.such a way that the cue ball would go back to the baulk area. But it is

:09:37. > :10:00.very straightforward safety shot for Mark Selby.

:10:01. > :10:11.The mid-session interval coming up after this frame. What Shaun Murphy

:10:12. > :10:16.would give for this frame. What a difference, going in 3-1 behind,

:10:17. > :10:31.instead of four frames. Look at the safety success rate.

:10:32. > :10:50.100% for Mark Selby. Shaun and 77%. He has got to find a good safety

:10:51. > :10:55.here. He knows that the former Mark Selby is, he cannot afford to leave

:10:56. > :11:08.him any easy starters. There is a lot of pressure on this.

:11:09. > :11:16.Containing safety shot and looks fine, for the team being. You still

:11:17. > :11:36.feel Mark has got the initiative. Mark wants to put the cue ball down

:11:37. > :11:44.towards the side of the yellow pocket.

:11:45. > :12:20.A little bit shy of pace. But he has covered the red on the right.

:12:21. > :12:30.Applause, but not the best safety. He did not leave a pot on,

:12:31. > :12:34.certainly, nothing that would tempt it Mark, but he will be able to get

:12:35. > :13:27.his hand on the table. Good length with the cue ball, but

:13:28. > :13:37.there is a red available to the left corner.

:13:38. > :13:43.The problem is that you will run into other red and there is no

:13:44. > :13:47.guaranteed to be on a colour and equality is close to the ball

:13:48. > :14:20.cushion, it does not make this any easier.

:14:21. > :14:33.What a shot he has played there. I did not expect him to play at that

:14:34. > :14:41.slow. Well, it just shows you. Maybe he thought he had done all the hard

:14:42. > :14:46.work, the fact that he had got onto the black. You cannot lose your

:14:47. > :14:52.concentration for one second at this game. What is chance he has no

:14:53. > :14:59.handed to Shaun Murphy. Can Shaun take advantage of the situation? It

:15:00. > :15:10.would be his first frame on the scoreboard.

:15:11. > :15:20.He was looking at the lack spot a minute ago, just wanting to find out

:15:21. > :15:31.we have the black would re-spot once it is parted. If it does not go

:15:32. > :15:45.there, the pink sport is available. You really feel that Shaun has to

:15:46. > :15:57.get a sizeable lead at this visit. Immediately playing for that red new

:15:58. > :16:06.the black spot. So, it is now available into one corner pocket,

:16:07. > :16:07.the pink is only open and with the blue on its part, it is a decent

:16:08. > :16:40.chance. Thank goodness for gravity! Rate side of the blue, to just stand

:16:41. > :16:48.down, plenty of reds to choose from, but he would probably like to

:16:49. > :17:30.stay on the black, if he could. That is pretty good.

:17:31. > :17:42.That was a nice cannon, but he does not want to be straight on this. I

:17:43. > :17:52.doing, he has brought these other two red is into play. As you say, I

:17:53. > :18:00.think he may well be a bit straight on that. He is going to have to play

:18:01. > :18:08.the one he did not want to play, because he will run into this other

:18:09. > :18:23.red. It is OK. That could have gone wrong.

:18:24. > :18:33.As we keep saying, this is such a big frame. He will go to the

:18:34. > :18:39.mid-session interval not feeling too bad if he can take this one. He did

:18:40. > :18:42.not have much of a chance in the first three frames, so there is no

:18:43. > :18:53.point beating himself up about the squabbling. It looks pretty

:18:54. > :18:56.straightforward, but, as we all know, there is that little matter of

:18:57. > :19:13.pressure. I am sure he could just drop this in

:19:14. > :19:20.an old for the black, but he does not like it. Yes, I think he is

:19:21. > :19:32.thinking that this is not pertain be dropping in the things did we. He

:19:33. > :19:43.may be overdid it a bit. Such is the cue power, he could play the yellow

:19:44. > :19:46.and screw back. With his cue action, it should not be a problem to get

:19:47. > :19:59.the cue ball back to this end of the table.

:20:00. > :20:19.That needed to run on a couple of inches. This is a bit trickier.

:20:20. > :20:30.It is always the problem. Once you start running out of position, it

:20:31. > :20:38.tends to magnify. This is a lot tougher than the last one. This will

:20:39. > :20:45.be a test of his cueing. Nope, he has missed that.

:20:46. > :20:54.As you say, that is the problem. He was not good on the red which was

:20:55. > :20:59.difficult enough anti-boot all his into that and lost control of

:21:00. > :21:12.desertion, but at least he has not left anything easy. So, a 47 point

:21:13. > :21:14.lead. Mark Selby is looking at the porting angle of this, but this is a

:21:15. > :21:37.tough one to take on. Super shot. He thought it was worth

:21:38. > :22:03.taking that on and all of a sudden, a chance for a counter.

:22:04. > :22:11.This is the red that Shaun Murphy refused a few shots ago because he

:22:12. > :22:20.would be struggling to hold for the black. It mean you cost him. This is

:22:21. > :22:29.what Mark Selby is very good at, these tape of situations.

:22:30. > :22:37.The way he has been point, you might expect him to finish the frame

:22:38. > :23:00.here. It is a tall order, but all of the ball is our out in the open.

:23:01. > :23:06.The lowest one of these three, we know that that will go into the

:23:07. > :23:16.bottom left-hand corner. He just has to be slightly careful here.

:23:17. > :23:30.That is inch perfect. We know have a new favourite for the frame. Both of

:23:31. > :23:38.the red are available into the left middle, but the pink clears path for

:23:39. > :23:51.the reds into the bottom right-hand corner.

:23:52. > :24:06.It just shows you! He was just trying to hold nicely for the pink

:24:07. > :24:10.and nearly missed the red. He was more concerned about the cue ball.

:24:11. > :24:14.It was imperative that he got on that. He has played that

:24:15. > :24:45.beautifully. Shaun Murphy will be absolutely

:24:46. > :24:49.kicking himself. OK, it was a very difficult pink, cueing from

:24:50. > :25:18.underneath the cushion. Here was the shot, he was going up

:25:19. > :25:26.for the blue. And this is where he began to run out of position.

:25:27. > :25:33.Mark Selby will need up to and including the pink to take a four

:25:34. > :25:44.frame lead. As I said, if Shaun could have won

:25:45. > :25:51.this and gun in 3-1 behind, he would not covered too much to tell himself

:25:52. > :25:55.off about. On reflection, he barely had a chance in the opening three

:25:56. > :26:05.frames. But he had a chance in this one and this will really hurt.

:26:06. > :26:10.In goes the blue and he is perfect for the pink and that is all he

:26:11. > :26:24.needs. Any laws. That was not like the

:26:25. > :26:29.first three frames when Mark Selby had to make a counter attack. Shaun

:26:30. > :26:36.Murphy in first with a 48, but that they cost 62 has Mark Selby a four

:26:37. > :26:45.frame lead at the mid-session interval.

:26:46. > :26:52.I have now been joined by Stephen Hendry. He was not just to be on

:26:53. > :27:04.until this evening, but he could not stay away. To me, Mark Selby looks

:27:05. > :27:11.mentally stronger. The likes of Mark Selby, new Robertson, the seem to

:27:12. > :27:17.have overtaken Shaun mentally in the big two moments. Shaun is getting to

:27:18. > :27:21.quarterfinals and semifinals regularly, but he is not going that

:27:22. > :27:26.extra step and looks as if he's slightly getting left behind. As the

:27:27. > :27:31.guy said in court commentary, he did not have a lot to berate himself in

:27:32. > :27:40.the first three frames, but in the fourth frame he did have a chance.

:27:41. > :27:45.Yes, I have said that a few times commentating on Shaun, he has been

:27:46. > :27:50.getting to 40 and in breaking down. It is costing pencil much. I have

:27:51. > :27:58.noticed that happening many teams in the past year. He has two stop it

:27:59. > :28:03.out. You are literally for Fife pot away from winning a frame and he is

:28:04. > :28:12.not doing it. Is there any way back for him? Not against someone like

:28:13. > :28:20.Mark Selby. He has become something of a machine in the big events and I

:28:21. > :28:28.cannot see a way back. Something we talked about before the match

:28:29. > :28:31.started. Shaun said he had to counter what is sometimes a

:28:32. > :28:34.defensive style from Mark Selby and that has not happened. You have

:28:35. > :28:46.always been an exponent of getting in Delhi. Yes, but I always admired

:28:47. > :28:58.the other week Steve played in the 1980s. As I say, you can not win a

:28:59. > :29:08.match in the first session, but you can put a big marker down. Oh there,

:29:09. > :29:18.Shaun Murphy did not have a sniff for three frames. Yes, when you are

:29:19. > :29:25.at a big semifinal like that, with this standard, that is going to cost

:29:26. > :29:32.you. We saw eight yesterday, with Ricky Walden, when he scored 38 and

:29:33. > :29:37.then sat down, possibly feeling quite pleased with himself and then

:29:38. > :29:46.Bailey had another shot during the next six frames. What you think of

:29:47. > :29:54.that match? Atlas fantastic. It was just one of these days we have the

:29:55. > :29:58.pockets looked like buckets. He just controlled that match from the

:29:59. > :30:03.beginning to end beautifully. And you can see the second semifinal

:30:04. > :30:18.later tonight featuring Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen Maguire this

:30:19. > :30:23.evening. Mark Selby seems to like the high wire act, and in the last

:30:24. > :30:27.few years, he has left his comeback until later. How has he done this?

:30:28. > :30:31.We have been speaking to him about it.

:30:32. > :30:37.How do you feel about your own game at the moment? At the moment, I am

:30:38. > :30:41.winning, which is good, I do not think I'm playing as well as I did

:30:42. > :30:45.in the last few seasons, I am not as clinical as I have been in the past,

:30:46. > :30:50.but the result is all that counts, and I'm getting that at the moment.

:30:51. > :30:53.You have become a specialist at this event, you have won it three times

:30:54. > :31:01.already. What makes it so special about you? It is the one-table

:31:02. > :31:06.set-up, there is a crowd, and you feel like it is such a special

:31:07. > :31:11.tournament, this is like one of the pinnacle tournament of our sport.

:31:12. > :31:17.The single session format, you always get a result, you have to

:31:18. > :31:22.start with the first ball. Yes, I seem to be doing that, in my first

:31:23. > :31:28.matches I got off to good start is normally I am playing catch up, so I

:31:29. > :31:32.suppose at the interval, I have come out and not really played well, so

:31:33. > :31:38.I'm used to being 3-1 behind instead of in front. Do you know how many

:31:39. > :31:44.final frame decider as you have had in this tournament? I think it has

:31:45. > :31:52.been 11, and I have won them all, which is incredible. What do you put

:31:53. > :31:57.that down to? I think it is because I never give in, I never let my head

:31:58. > :32:02.go down and give in. I try to rely on the matches I have played in the

:32:03. > :32:08.past when I been deciding frames and try to get a positive. You had a

:32:09. > :32:12.very important double yesterday, and important shots, do you feel that

:32:13. > :32:19.you have to quicken your tempo to play better? I play my best when I

:32:20. > :32:24.play a bit quicker, sometimes in the safety shot you have to think a bit

:32:25. > :32:28.more, rather than just play the first shot you see, but I tempo,

:32:29. > :32:32.when I speed up, I think it is a bit better. It is hard out there, you

:32:33. > :32:38.have to tell yourself to get on with it when you know that you're not

:32:39. > :32:44.confident at times. When you are faced with adversity, you seem to

:32:45. > :32:49.produce your best. Yes, it is strange, when I was 5-3 behind

:32:50. > :32:56.against John, I probably felt as relaxed as I had felt to read the

:32:57. > :33:00.match. When I was ahead, I felt a bit nervy, but it is a big name, but

:33:01. > :33:03.5-3, it was strange. I seem to be like that for the majority of my

:33:04. > :33:07.career, when my back is against the wall, I feel relaxed, baby because

:33:08. > :33:14.you have nothing to lose, so you go and play your natural game. -- may

:33:15. > :33:21.be because. What would it mean to claim your fourth Masters title? To

:33:22. > :33:25.be up there like O'Sullivan and Hendry, to have another title under

:33:26. > :33:29.your belt, it is a fantastic achievement, but with it being the

:33:30. > :33:34.Masters, one of the three major tournaments, it would be a great

:33:35. > :33:43.feeling. Thank you for your time and good luck.

:33:44. > :33:46.He is trying to equal Ronnie O'Sullivan. Interesting to say what

:33:47. > :33:50.he said about going to sleep on a big lead, I guess the priority for

:33:51. > :33:58.him here is to avoid that scenario happening again. Yes, one of the

:33:59. > :34:01.differences between Mark Selby and Ronnie O'Sullivan, O'Sullivan is one

:34:02. > :34:07.of the best frontrunners in the game, you just steam rollers. Mark

:34:08. > :34:11.Selby, we will see what happens after the interval, he went 4-1 up

:34:12. > :34:15.on a high standard and then lost the plot after the interval, so it would

:34:16. > :34:20.be interesting what happens today. The importance of the semifinal will

:34:21. > :34:24.be different today. Why do you think that happened? E had the 3-1 lead

:34:25. > :34:32.against take on the other day, and it is the same scenario. They get so

:34:33. > :34:36.psyched up and the adrenaline and the concentration, the focus, and

:34:37. > :34:41.then you relax a bit at the interval and you speak to people, because

:34:42. > :34:44.you're not speaking to anybody out there, and your mindset changes and

:34:45. > :34:50.its take the intensity from your concentration. We look forward to

:34:51. > :34:53.seeing what happens in the next coming frames. You are on duty

:34:54. > :34:59.tonight in the commentary box is for Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen

:35:00. > :35:03.Maguire. Stephen Maguire does not like to be bullied around, he will

:35:04. > :35:09.be looking forward to that! Thank you for coming to see us, there is a

:35:10. > :35:13.masterclass going on outside their, at on the table, and now there is

:35:14. > :35:20.another masterclass outside on the practice table out in the arena in

:35:21. > :35:24.Alexandra Palace. There would be some high wire walking from Steve

:35:25. > :35:29.and John, they would be doing a live demonstration, what could possibly

:35:30. > :35:37.go wrong? ! We are here with Jungle Jim!

:35:38. > :35:43.What is going on? I will give you a good hiding! I have a tournament

:35:44. > :35:47.coming up, whilst muggins is still on the circuit, he has retired, you

:35:48. > :35:52.have to practice match play, the only thing to do is get to the

:35:53. > :35:55.events, but you can practice it to a degree, you can play against another

:35:56. > :35:59.good player in playing matches, but one part that is the practice to

:36:00. > :36:03.strongly is the equivalent of the penalty shoot out, that is the

:36:04. > :36:09.re-spotted black. You have to know what shots to play. That they best

:36:10. > :36:12.of five, practice in your club with your mates, had a best of seven, it

:36:13. > :36:25.blackballed shoot out. The most important level, top class

:36:26. > :36:30.level, play object ball safety, to try to guarantee getting be

:36:31. > :36:41.blackballed safe on the cushions. -- the black ball. What is the main

:36:42. > :36:49.advantage of that? The main way to pot that is the double, there is a

:36:50. > :36:57.risk of that. In a perfect world, you want the black slightly lower.

:36:58. > :37:00.That is more difficult. You have to chip onto the top cushion or you

:37:01. > :37:07.could be aimed at and try the double, but that will not work.

:37:08. > :37:18.There are some other ways to play it, to start off. Up and down the

:37:19. > :37:24.spot, the old-fashioned way. We put the cue ball over here, out of the

:37:25. > :37:37.way. It is difficult to get right, massed that up. Play it again.

:37:38. > :37:41.Across the face of it. Up and down, that is a difficult shot because of

:37:42. > :37:47.the fast cloth, you play it for here, look at where it finished.

:37:48. > :37:54.What about if I play on? But that black on the spot for me. This is

:37:55. > :38:05.the most important shot of the match that you will play. What is wrong

:38:06. > :38:13.with the long double? Try it. Did not get the double, but second

:38:14. > :38:17.prize, object ball safety. Object ball safety is the most important

:38:18. > :38:19.thing, we will try to send around three cushions, object ball safety

:38:20. > :38:34.put the black here. It is OK, it is all right. You

:38:35. > :38:42.cannot play that's now. What are you going to play? We will just try a

:38:43. > :38:55.three quarters ball, just chip it on the rail. Object ball safety. That

:38:56. > :38:58.is OK. What will you do off that? Play the blackballed there, leave

:38:59. > :39:11.some distance and get the black safe on the side cushion. Far too hard, I

:39:12. > :39:18.twitched. No! Where that has gone, it is quite tricky.

:39:19. > :39:25.Object ball safety, that is the priority! That is the lesson from

:39:26. > :39:29.that, unless you get a kick. Kicks are perennial problems in snooker.

:39:30. > :39:34.So many people have had their say on why they happen and because so much

:39:35. > :39:38.damage. We saw on earlier with John Higgins going for a green, he got a

:39:39. > :39:42.kick on the green when it was more or less match ball against Mark

:39:43. > :39:49.Selby and Mark Selby got a rip reef and the rest history, Mark Selby is

:39:50. > :39:55.here in this semifinal. What can you do about the kick?

:39:56. > :40:17.He has got a horrendous cake! -- kick.

:40:18. > :40:22.The kick has for decades but snooker players in dire straits, and it has

:40:23. > :40:27.always been that the cause for this is a subject of debate. In the last

:40:28. > :40:30.few months, Shaun Murphy has conducted extensive research with

:40:31. > :40:41.retired teacher and former snooker coach Bob Ledger in an invention to

:40:42. > :40:45.look at the kick. There is a massive difference between a kick and a bad

:40:46. > :40:50.contact. The bad contact can be caused by chalk and dust, a bad

:40:51. > :40:55.strike. The kick with the balls collide and leave the bed of the

:40:56. > :40:59.table which results in the loss of position, a miss, the loss of the

:41:00. > :41:07.match, all of these things, that is chemical. It is solvable. I always

:41:08. > :41:11.thought there was a logic to the kick. The three theories, the first

:41:12. > :41:19.was static, the second was chalk, and I thought this could be

:41:20. > :41:23.chemical. The oil that is present in the cloth during manufacturing, when

:41:24. > :41:28.laid on the table and subjected to the heat, which a lot of the public

:41:29. > :41:31.will not be aware of, just how hot that playing conditioners, the

:41:32. > :41:38.tables are heated from underneath, and the TV lights from above, that

:41:39. > :41:43.heat generates a reaction whereby that oil on that ball actually

:41:44. > :41:47.erodes the surface of the balls that are on the table, and when you get

:41:48. > :41:54.to balls that collide, with two exposed areas, if you like, that is

:41:55. > :41:57.a kick. If the kick is a chemical reaction rather than caused by

:41:58. > :42:01.random factors, the effect can not only be measured, but also

:42:02. > :42:05.predictors, indeed Bob has held the theory for many years that the kick

:42:06. > :42:09.is an intelligent force, so in layman 's terms, and a kick occurs,

:42:10. > :42:15.you know what will happen to both the cue ball and object ball. There

:42:16. > :42:19.is an area of the ball that has got a higher friction than the other

:42:20. > :42:23.parts of the ball, and when this area is contacted, then we have got

:42:24. > :42:27.some logic, for instance, all of the kicks, when the cue ball, that is

:42:28. > :42:32.the ball that you strike with the cue, one that has got forward

:42:33. > :42:36.rotation, then the cue ball tries to climb the object ball when a kick

:42:37. > :42:41.takes place. With reverse spin on the cue ball, it is the object ball

:42:42. > :42:44.that is thrown in the air and the cue ball follows slightly

:42:45. > :42:49.afterwards. When a shot is missed, it is missed on the side and it is

:42:50. > :42:53.predicted by a heightened friction. The governing body in its ongoing

:42:54. > :42:58.quest to improve the game is undertaking extensive research. This

:42:59. > :43:06.is with the manufacturing partners to lessen the impact of the kick.

:43:07. > :43:09.This is very useful research, and we continue to look at the materials

:43:10. > :43:15.that are used, the oils that are used, things like that, and we're

:43:16. > :43:17.doing extensive research to see how we can improve the conditions and

:43:18. > :43:22.the conditions here are already very, very good, the best in the

:43:23. > :43:26.world, actually. We are working closely with manufacturers and with

:43:27. > :43:29.our own team and our players to try to improve these conditions. Despite

:43:30. > :43:34.the shared goal of eliminating the kick from the competition, there are

:43:35. > :43:42.different ways to look at how this can happen. If we can turn off the

:43:43. > :43:47.heaters, I do not know why we have them, they are unnecessary, if we

:43:48. > :43:50.turn that off, that would slow down the chemical reaction from

:43:51. > :43:58.happening. It would not stop it, but it would slow it down. The table

:43:59. > :44:01.heaters are on to keep it dry, if the court is done, the ball feel

:44:02. > :44:06.heavy when they are being struck, and you're the player saying, it is

:44:07. > :44:11.difficult to screw back the cue ball or are, we're not getting the same

:44:12. > :44:16.reaction to applying side to the cue ball. That heat on the table is now

:44:17. > :44:21.at a constant temperature, and we monitor that throughout the events.

:44:22. > :44:23.Whilst they disagree on the role of table heaters, there is another

:44:24. > :44:31.possible solution that is agreed upon. What we are doing is getting a

:44:32. > :44:33.little bit of outside advice, Bob has been very helpful, and we have

:44:34. > :44:39.dogged with another gentleman called Ben Plummer who has been very useful

:44:40. > :44:46.about having different polishers with the ball. -- we have talked

:44:47. > :44:50.with another gentleman. It clings to the ball like a car polish, you

:44:51. > :44:55.apply it and buff it off, and spend what it does is, it restores the

:44:56. > :45:06.outer covering to how it was when it left the factory. We polish them and

:45:07. > :45:11.make them new again, so that however many frames, be it five or six or

:45:12. > :45:19.whenever you start to see a kick, you can change a new set of balls,

:45:20. > :45:23.that like they do in tennis. With a number of new remedies on the table,

:45:24. > :45:28.could we have a situation where the kick is finally given the boot.

:45:29. > :45:42.Some interesting comments there, who won the black ball challenge? It was

:45:43. > :45:48.a draw! What did you think of those assertions? I think you're barking

:45:49. > :45:52.up the wrong tree talking about the cloth of the table heaters, because

:45:53. > :45:56.the one thing that was not mentioned was the effect that the gloves of

:45:57. > :46:00.the referee place on the whole occasion. When the ball is a very

:46:01. > :46:03.dry, they grip each other more, so the natural surface of the ball as

:46:04. > :46:08.being dried out, possibly more by the cloth, because you do not have

:46:09. > :46:12.those in practice, you do not get as many kicks in practice because you

:46:13. > :46:16.do not wear gloves. I would say, if you're going to start relaxing the

:46:17. > :46:26.balls, like they do in pool in certain countries, perhaps even

:46:27. > :46:31.impregnate the clubs with some wax. It is a question of changing the

:46:32. > :46:34.balls after some sessions, which was play along with your theory, with

:46:35. > :46:39.that go down with the majority are players, they have won three frames

:46:40. > :46:45.in a row, they would not be happy with changing the balls after that?

:46:46. > :46:51.Yes, there is that, they have some weight in them also. There is

:46:52. > :46:55.carrying them all about. The funny thing is, I will place on Devils

:46:56. > :47:01.Advocate, sometimes a kick in professional snooker isn't the worst

:47:02. > :47:04.thing to watch. As a player, you hate it. Don't get me wrong, it is

:47:05. > :47:08.another anomaly that can happen in a game. As a player, I would hate it,

:47:09. > :47:16.as a spectator, we should leave it alone! I am sure you can say that

:47:17. > :47:21.because you have retired! I'm sure John Higgins is at home watching

:47:22. > :47:27.this and is livid! It is all part of the game. Let's hope that this

:47:28. > :47:33.doesn't happen here, let us hope that Mark Selby doesn't succumb to

:47:34. > :47:37.slow puncture syndrome, that is what John called it earlier, it is for-0.

:47:38. > :47:48.-- 4-0. It is funny that you mentioned about

:47:49. > :47:52.the referee's gloves, Michaela Tabb, before she comes out, she always

:47:53. > :47:56.weds her gloves, but somewhat on them just to stop them being to

:47:57. > :48:13.dry. -- put some water on them. It stops them from being slippy at

:48:14. > :48:17.times. In the last few years, we have seen times when the referee has

:48:18. > :48:24.dropped the ball when they go to put it back on the spot and it drops on

:48:25. > :48:28.the table. There have been some funny moments, yes. Anyway, there is

:48:29. > :48:34.nothing for us at the moment for Shaun Murphy. His opponent only two

:48:35. > :48:42.frames away from the final, he has got to start putting frames on the

:48:43. > :48:46.scoreboard. He has two do this to have any chance in this match. You

:48:47. > :48:48.would have to feel he would win this frame to have any chance in this

:48:49. > :49:03.match. I saw Shaun Murphy in the press room

:49:04. > :49:07.sitting on his own, and his coach came in and sat with him and was

:49:08. > :49:11.talking away to him, and he looked a bit amused, you know. It is very

:49:12. > :49:15.understandable, particularly after that last frame before the end, that

:49:16. > :49:19.would have really hurt him. Could not do too much in the first two

:49:20. > :49:23.frames, but that last frame before the interval, that would have been

:49:24. > :49:51.very disappointing for him. We have seen it on before, many

:49:52. > :50:08.players have come back from 4-0 down. Mark Selby was 51, five --

:50:09. > :50:10.5-1, 5-2 up in a previous match, so it is not the and the realms of

:50:11. > :50:36.impossibility. Trying to force the cue ball back of

:50:37. > :50:40.the table, and the way things are going, you just know that it will

:50:41. > :51:08.not run safe, so this is an easy starter for Mark Selby.

:51:09. > :51:15.A nice angle on the blue of who wishes to go into the red. He

:51:16. > :51:30.doesn't have to, but there is an opportunity.

:51:31. > :51:36.He did go into them, and he might been a little bit fortunate here.

:51:37. > :51:41.You might have one to the left middle, but those to read you the

:51:42. > :51:45.right corner, they could easily be made into a planned, you would have

:51:46. > :51:51.thought. He's good at this type of shot, but of course, a former world

:51:52. > :52:04.eight ball champion, so he is good at combination shots, as they call

:52:05. > :53:05.them in pool, we call them plan. -- plants.

:53:06. > :53:13.Dead straight on the painkiller. Would love to get to two of those

:53:14. > :53:20.reds. If you take the red he's looking at, the red is close to the

:53:21. > :53:27.pocket on the pink. Those two reds, blocking the black, he wants to try,

:53:28. > :53:30.that is exactly where he would like the cue ball there, if he could

:53:31. > :53:33.leave the cue ball Berry is positioning his cue, you would be

:53:34. > :53:36.able to get the red to the right of the black. -- where he is

:53:37. > :55:18.positioning his cue. I don't think that has worked out

:55:19. > :55:25.too good. He may not have anything to go for here. Just watching his

:55:26. > :55:31.body language, you can always tell with a player, the drooping of their

:55:32. > :55:35.shoulders, that is a tell-tale sign that he is on nothing. And now the

:55:36. > :55:39.fact she is looking at the baulk and at virtue leave the cue ball, that

:55:40. > :55:50.is end of rake. -- that were to leave. That is end of break. There

:55:51. > :56:07.is the cue ball going? There is a lot of cheering, come

:56:08. > :56:16.on, Shaun Murphy, but there is not a lot to go with here. Needs a good

:56:17. > :56:22.safety shot here. Not a bad target, particularly with the yellow not

:56:23. > :56:26.being on its spot, so, the yellow, green and brown, if he can get

:56:27. > :56:31.somewhere near the baulk Kristian and use those as the blockers. --

:56:32. > :56:47.baulk cushion. Pretty good. Excellent shot. That

:56:48. > :57:28.was a crafty shot! The perfect line. Half a chance for Shaun Murphy.

:57:29. > :57:33.Under normal circumstances you would expect him to pot this long ball,

:57:34. > :57:48.back up from the blue. That is better. Excellent.

:57:49. > :57:56.He didn't play that confident. Usually likes to stay behind the

:57:57. > :58:05.baulk line, so just stay behind the green. The red are spread, so he is

:58:06. > :58:13.not guaranteed to hit a red here, Mark Selby, and leave it safe. But

:58:14. > :58:17.if any one time, he can. His knowledge of the angles is as good

:58:18. > :58:26.as anyone in the game at the moment, escaping from sneakers and the like.

:58:27. > :58:30.Absolutely, if he can get to this left-hand cushion, well, you cannot

:58:31. > :58:32.see it, but he is trying to lay on the red as close to the left-hand

:58:33. > :58:59.pocket. He purposely came down to make sure

:59:00. > :59:03.that the red doesn't go right into the centre, that is what he could

:59:04. > :59:06.say that shot, because the red would come past the pink entity would have

:59:07. > :59:08.to play a different shot. Was very well work dead, could not play much

:59:09. > :59:39.better than that. If that had been straight, you would

:59:40. > :59:43.have played it, I can only assume the fact that he wrote up to the

:59:44. > :59:48.green, you did have a look at it, but if it had been straight, he

:59:49. > :59:53.would have played it, but he did not want to risk it. You cannot blame

:59:54. > :00:00.him, 4-0 behind, but every mistake he makes now is going to be

:00:01. > :00:03.magnified, in his own mind, apart from what happens on the table. He

:00:04. > :00:27.is really under pressure here. Could pot. Now, this needs to slow

:00:28. > :00:35.up a touch. Is that not always the way? When you always need the run of

:00:36. > :00:46.the ball when you are behind, you never seem to get it. Excellent

:00:47. > :00:54.pot, but as you say, it is Murphy 's law. When you need that little bit

:00:55. > :00:56.of luck, you do not get it. He has had to very good parts in this

:00:57. > :01:33.frame. Very unlucky to finish there. The problem with that is, he has

:01:34. > :01:36.made it awkward cueing, but not so much to play the one on the

:01:37. > :01:40.right-hand side of the cushion, which he can come off the side of.

:01:41. > :01:49.Is fairly straightforward shot for Mark.

:01:50. > :01:58.Yes, this is the one he is looking at. It is not really awkward for

:01:59. > :02:15.him. He could be in trouble here, Shaun.

:02:16. > :03:02.He left Timmy straightforward safety shot.

:03:03. > :03:11.Just looking to see if he rules this red onto the top cushion, will he

:03:12. > :03:27.leave everything safe. He does not see a way back to the baulk area.

:03:28. > :03:32.That is the only one he can hit. He cannot try and pot his way out of

:03:33. > :03:38.trouble, because this will not go past the pink. I wonder if he may

:03:39. > :03:53.try and come off two cushions and clip that couple of reds the. That

:03:54. > :03:56.is very good. That is superb. There did not look as if there was any way

:03:57. > :04:02.he could get the cue ball back to the baulk area. He does not normally

:04:03. > :04:08.take that long over a shot, but that was worth the wait. He played it

:04:09. > :04:12.with the touch of right-hand sidespin. Superb safety. Getting

:04:13. > :04:32.plenty of respect from Mark Selby. Well, excellent safety shot from

:04:33. > :04:36.Shaun Murphy, but he is in trouble once again. This time, he is in

:04:37. > :04:50.accord on all of their heads. He knows that one more mistake,

:04:51. > :04:58.given the way the ball is situated, and it could be another frame gone.

:04:59. > :05:12.Yes, a similar shot to the one I was suggesting last time. It is a very

:05:13. > :05:13.dangerous shot. Anything more than quarter ball and he is virtually

:05:14. > :05:39.guaranteed to leave one on. Well played. Excellent shot. Well

:05:40. > :05:44.done. And a good cue ball. That is to create a skit is from Shaun. --

:05:45. > :06:21.two great escapes. And another top drawer safety from

:06:22. > :06:23.Mark Selby. Both his potting and his safety plea has been of the higher

:06:24. > :06:33.standard today. Mark Selby is certainly calling the

:06:34. > :07:23.shots in this tactical exchange. He does not have far to walk when he

:07:24. > :07:34.gets out of his seat, does he Shaun?

:07:35. > :07:43.This could be very good. It just ran a fraction too far and there could

:07:44. > :07:49.be a chance of the pot on here for Mark. I think the right-hand one, if

:07:50. > :08:12.he can hit enough of it. Now he took the other one, he

:08:13. > :08:19.thought that would offer him better position and get the cue ball back

:08:20. > :08:46.to the baulk line and the green is possible.

:08:47. > :08:58.Well held for these two grades. This has been very good stuff from Mark

:08:59. > :09:00.Selby. It is his excellent safety shots which have created this

:09:01. > :09:18.opportunity. A bit straight on the blue, so he

:09:19. > :09:26.had to play for the open red. He is wanting to leave himself a thin pot

:09:27. > :09:28.on the pink, so he can come background and disturb that pack of

:09:29. > :09:46.reds. He can hit this with as much pace as

:09:47. > :10:09.you like. Could actually have hit it a lot

:10:10. > :10:10.harder than that. There are so many balls the that it was always going

:10:11. > :10:23.to cushion the cue ball. When we saw the replay, that was the

:10:24. > :10:36.last red that he actually wanted to hit. It was acting as something of a

:10:37. > :10:38.blocker. It does not look as if he can win the frame from this visit,

:10:39. > :11:24.he is looking at the safety. Well, you cannot beat a bit of

:11:25. > :11:32.luck. At the moment, Shaun could do with it. A good run of the ball is

:11:33. > :11:53.will help if he is to make a comeback.

:11:54. > :12:06.Just looking at the safety shot, but if that red that he ported had

:12:07. > :12:22.nestled up at that pocket, the frame could have been over.

:12:23. > :12:32.Yes, that is a snooker. Michaela Tabb having a close look, just in

:12:33. > :12:49.kiss she has two replace any of the balls.

:12:50. > :12:55.As I said earlier, he is very good at peacekeeping from these. --

:12:56. > :13:16.peacekeeping. on, but I think that Shaun will be

:13:17. > :13:32.quite happy to put this back. That, of course, is why she was

:13:33. > :13:39.having a good look at the situation. If the Miss gets cold, then

:13:40. > :13:54.obviously, the balls have to be replaced.

:13:55. > :14:10.He is just wanting to catch that quarter ball. You always feel with

:14:11. > :14:14.this type of shot, that you feel more comfortable playing it with the

:14:15. > :14:23.trace of sidespin, but he is not doing that.

:14:24. > :14:30.Of course, because he cannot hit anything, he can have as many goes

:14:31. > :14:40.as he wants at this. I think Shaun is just having a bit

:14:41. > :15:23.of exercise! I think Mark Selby is questioning

:15:24. > :15:54.the scoreboard. In the arena, the scoreboard is

:15:55. > :15:56.slightly different to our run. They have got an 18 point difference and

:15:57. > :16:20.we have a 31 point difference. Yes, the score should be 50-19. He

:16:21. > :16:31.is getting on the phone. Maybe he is ordering a pizza. Hello, we have got

:16:32. > :17:06.is problem with the scoreboard! It should be 50-19, that is what we

:17:07. > :17:48.have on the score. They have now reduced marks score!

:17:49. > :17:50.Rate, that is what we have got. We have got the same as they have

:17:51. > :18:00.there. It had better be right, we have got

:18:01. > :18:39.no nails to phone! -- no one else. That tape of shot, as you said, if

:18:40. > :18:40.you catch it too thick, you are virtually always going to leave it,

:18:41. > :19:14.and that is what he has done. He cannot afford to miss these have

:19:15. > :19:47.chances. He has to play no mistake snooker from now on.

:19:48. > :20:14.He could swear of it, but he would be leaving something.

:20:15. > :20:22.Being 31 points behind, he simply can leave another chance for Mark

:20:23. > :20:33.Selby. It shows you how quickly things can change. That is probably

:20:34. > :20:41.as good as he could have done, but he has still left this chance. If

:20:42. > :21:09.this goes on, you have to fancy Mark Selby taking the frame.

:21:10. > :21:20.This is class. Everything is going into the centre of the pocket from

:21:21. > :21:30.Mark Selby. His safety has been top quality.

:21:31. > :21:43.He let that one go a little bit, but he does still have this. I think he

:21:44. > :21:47.suspected that the raid that he wanted to cannon into, he was going

:21:48. > :21:56.to have a much thicker contact with it. This is as good as I have seen

:21:57. > :22:10.him playing for a while. That is virtually the first easy one

:22:11. > :22:39.he has missed in this match. He has the choice of ink or blue.

:22:40. > :22:45.The problem ball is obvious, that one on the left hand cushion.

:22:46. > :23:14.No, he missed that by a long way. That surely no means it will be

:23:15. > :23:21.5-nil. This will put 44 points in front he should have looked at the

:23:22. > :23:26.scoreboard. If he had played the pink no, wait, it is me who has made

:23:27. > :23:37.a mistake. I am getting carried away. There is only 35 remaining!

:23:38. > :24:56.Nearly. Things are just not running the way of Shaun this afternoon.

:24:57. > :25:01.Mainly due to the high standard Mark Selby has set.

:25:02. > :25:30.5-0. No, Mark Selby simply just one frame away from the final of the

:25:31. > :25:45.Dafabet Masters. Any team he has had the chance, he

:25:46. > :25:51.has not been able to take it? Yes, he had a chance in the fourth

:25:52. > :25:59.frame. I know it was difficult, but that at this level, you simply need

:26:00. > :26:06.to get these and score. When you are playing one of the best players in

:26:07. > :26:09.the game, you simply have to score. Ken was saying that he had not seen

:26:10. > :26:17.him playing so fluently as this for quite a long time. Even at the

:26:18. > :26:24.United Kingdom Championships, he was relying a lot more on his defensive

:26:25. > :26:30.skills. Yes, he looks in very clinical mode. If he gets to the

:26:31. > :26:38.final and Rodney Sullivan does beat Stephen Maguire, let alone to

:26:39. > :26:42.superheroes, it will be the irresistible force against the

:26:43. > :26:48.immovable object and it will be interesting who is going to give

:26:49. > :26:53.weight first? They're clearly bit we have a long way to go before that. I

:26:54. > :27:01.am sure Stephen Maguire will something to this day about that.

:27:02. > :27:19.Now, what can Shaun do? He simply asked to play snooker with no

:27:20. > :27:25.mistakes. He has come back before? Yes, but not in this sort of

:27:26. > :27:31.situation. If you are a 4-1 in front, you are still two away from

:27:32. > :27:36.the finishing line. When you get that first one, you are sunk in that

:27:37. > :27:47.year and it is a big hole to dig yourself out of. In the old days,

:27:48. > :27:52.when it was first to name, you still have a chance, but when it is first

:27:53. > :28:00.to only six, you are in a very difficult situation. Mark Selby has

:28:01. > :28:08.never achieved a whitewash in all of his matches at the Masters. That is

:28:09. > :28:20.strange, given his dominance. He is now looking at his first final in

:28:21. > :28:25.seven years, which is extraordinary. Yes he is a tremendous competitor. I

:28:26. > :28:48.take my hat off to him. Whenever he comes up, he really compete.

:28:49. > :28:58.Mark Selby breaks off in the frame which will put him into the final if

:28:59. > :29:02.he is victorious. It is an unexpected squabbling. Yes, I

:29:03. > :29:14.thought this would be a much closer match.

:29:15. > :29:22.So difficult when you are five behind and everything your opponent

:29:23. > :29:29.seems to it is going in in his safety is top quality. When the

:29:30. > :29:33.chances to come along, they just become much more difficult to take

:29:34. > :29:41.them. He did get a couple of chances, Shaun, . You always get

:29:42. > :29:50.chances, but in the first couple of frames, Shaun was completely frozen

:29:51. > :29:55.out. It was nothing to do with him. It was just the standard that Mark

:29:56. > :30:01.was showing. There, he has played the part, got the double kiss and

:30:02. > :30:06.look where the cue ball has finished. When you do not need the

:30:07. > :30:51.luck, you always seem to get it. That is the one thing about this

:30:52. > :30:54.match, Shaun Murphy never stopped playing the aggressive side. And I

:30:55. > :31:03.do not think he is going to stop now, 5-0 down. He needs a bit of

:31:04. > :31:12.help from his opponent, but you cannot see that coming. , because it

:31:13. > :31:22.is not as if Mark Selby is a 1-dimensional player, by any. I

:31:23. > :31:34.cannot recall anybody coming back from high five and zero behind on

:31:35. > :31:37.any event. -- 5-0 behind. I think in a final once, Stephen Hendry was 8-2

:31:38. > :31:53.behind. Well, he has misjudged that, and

:31:54. > :32:05.Shaun Murphy can get through to this red. He just has got to try and keep

:32:06. > :32:09.a positive thought in his mind here. Forget the scoreboard, forget

:32:10. > :32:14.everything else, just concentrate on one shot at a time. Easier said than

:32:15. > :33:24.done, but that is what he has got to try and do.

:33:25. > :33:32.He wants to leave an ankle after potting this red on the pinks so he

:33:33. > :33:42.can pot that other red away from the pink spot. -- leave an angle. He

:33:43. > :33:47.needs to keep the pink available into a couple of pocket. --

:33:48. > :34:12.pockets. A little bit thinner on this blue

:34:13. > :34:15.then he would have liked it. But he has controlled the cue ball nicely,

:34:16. > :34:34.and now back in good session. There was a heavy contact there in

:34:35. > :34:42.fairness to Shaun Murphy. Let's have a look at it again. Not quite sure

:34:43. > :34:46.why the red jumped, but it sounded like a heavy contact. You heard the

:34:47. > :35:01.signing from Shaun Murphy the moment he played that shot. -- sighing. It

:35:02. > :35:03.seemed to come off a bit square, the red, you would not expect to miss it

:35:04. > :35:26.under normal circumstances. I always say, the frame that takes

:35:27. > :35:28.you past the winning line is the hardest one to win, but he has paid

:35:29. > :35:46.so well, Mark Selby. -- played. There you go. He wasn't doing that

:35:47. > :35:48.early in the match. I thought it was in for a moment. It was the pace

:35:49. > :36:05.that kept it out. He does not want to risk playing

:36:06. > :36:20.cannons at the moment. An example of his cue action, just a

:36:21. > :36:37.lazy cue action through that cue ball with no effort.

:36:38. > :36:51.He will have to play the cannon this time. He needs a bit of luck.

:36:52. > :38:04.Not bad, but he would have liked to have been closer to these red.

:38:05. > :38:10.Gone are little bit strappy at the moment, just a little bit of oil. --

:38:11. > :38:20.gone a little bit scrappy. Shaun Murphy needs to take his

:38:21. > :38:48.chances. He played the blue, but just

:38:49. > :39:11.overscrewed it slightly. He has played it nicely, just run a

:39:12. > :39:25.fraction too far, would have been good...

:39:26. > :39:35.Just about. Need more paid on that link and it would not have dropped.

:39:36. > :39:50.-- more pace on that pink. Again, he has lost the cue ball, but

:39:51. > :39:51.he is OK, he has got the pink into the green pocket or the right-centre

:39:52. > :39:59.if he wishes. No, just not happening now for Shaun

:40:00. > :40:18.Murphy. Mark Selby comes to the table 41

:40:19. > :40:25.points behind with 59 remaining. He looks to drift past the blue, but he

:40:26. > :40:34.didn't. I doubt whether he would be winning the frame at this visit.

:40:35. > :40:49.He is attacking this yellow and a positive manner.

:40:50. > :40:57.He played it pretty well. If it had run down a bit further, he might

:40:58. > :41:00.been able to pot this red and hold for the black, but I do not think

:41:01. > :41:09.this is the case, you will have to go for the blue.

:41:10. > :41:20.Just caught him out. Another chance for Shaun Murphy. 38 point lead. He

:41:21. > :41:24.cannot really get on the pink. The black is not going to be available,

:41:25. > :41:33.Sophie plays blue or baulk colour, he will need more of these remaining

:41:34. > :41:46.reds. -- so if he plays. It is not a given.

:41:47. > :41:51.Just another glance at the scoreboard, the blue would put him

:41:52. > :42:10.ahead. Once new crew needed, but this could

:42:11. > :42:15.be his first frame on the scoreboard. -- on snooker needed.

:42:16. > :42:46.His first step on the ladder, possibly.

:42:47. > :42:53.He hit that all wrong, but he has got away with it. Shaun Murphy will

:42:54. > :43:04.play the double to the right middle, if this goes in, it is frame over.

:43:05. > :43:10.He has left a chance here. Red off the right-hand side cushion, cue

:43:11. > :43:12.ball in behind the black, there is enough room behind the black for the

:43:13. > :43:49.cue ball here. It needs to run. He just needs to be a little bit

:43:50. > :43:54.careful here, Shaun Murphy. Mark Selby need on snooker, but we all

:43:55. > :44:08.know how good he is at the Angles. -- needs one snooker.

:44:09. > :44:16.He tried to get back on the blue, that will not be helping his cause,

:44:17. > :44:21.because he is not on it. He should take the green, that would put 40

:44:22. > :44:30.points behind so he would need a second snooker.

:44:31. > :44:51.If he was going to play the pot on the red, he could have stunned down

:44:52. > :45:31.to the black, but now, he needs two snookers.

:45:32. > :45:45.Wo snookers is it take ask. -- two snookers is a big ask. You can

:45:46. > :46:00.always rely on Mark Selby, normally thinking of something.

:46:01. > :46:08.Nearly got behind the black. If he had have done, that would have been

:46:09. > :46:13.a really telling snooker but not quite. He does not want to bring the

:46:14. > :46:20.pink away from the baulk cushion, but I do not see how he can avoid

:46:21. > :46:28.it. He did with the double-kiss, so that is pink and brown. Two balls

:46:29. > :47:00.that Mark cannot snooker behind. A good shot. And if Mark doesn't hit

:47:01. > :47:38.this red, I think he will concede. I think you may look at Shaun

:47:39. > :47:41.Murphy. They are nodding at one another. Shaun Murphy avoids the

:47:42. > :47:46.dreaded whitewash and you can hear this reaction on this packed crowd

:47:47. > :47:50.here at Alexandra Palace, they want more, can you give them or? We will

:47:51. > :47:55.see, but he still trails by five frames to one.

:47:56. > :47:58.Having courage and, have irony from the crowd, and he will be really

:47:59. > :48:01.relieved to the crowd, and he will be really

:48:02. > :48:07.invite the whitewash, the embarrassment potential is gone.

:48:08. > :48:13.Yes, thankfully he has won a frame. He had a couple of chances on that

:48:14. > :48:17.one, but Mark Selby. Near the line and he had a look at it and thought,

:48:18. > :48:21.well, I will not get over it so easily, so he got a view lifelines,

:48:22. > :48:27.which good to see him get off the mark. Has the quality dipped a

:48:28. > :48:33.little bit for Mark Selby in that frame with the line inside?

:48:34. > :48:39.Possibly, but you should never judge a player by one frame. Generally, a

:48:40. > :48:43.day 's play is how you judge yourself, by tournament, yes, by

:48:44. > :48:48.year, yes, but on a frame, and a thing can happen. It would be

:48:49. > :48:52.understandable that if he didn't keep that up all the time, but you

:48:53. > :48:56.would expect him to win one of the frames. He is not going to be in a

:48:57. > :49:00.situation where he doesn't get chances, even though Shaun Murphy

:49:01. > :49:15.has gone off to the telephone box to get changed into the kit. The

:49:16. > :49:21.Superman on the! -- onesie! In the first few frames, he has been

:49:22. > :49:29.virtually powerless, what is he doing compare to the form he had all

:49:30. > :49:33.week? He is just up against a better quality of opponent this time. He

:49:34. > :49:38.definitely should have won frame for, but you do not win those

:49:39. > :49:44.frames, and you put yourself under or pressure. Four - zero, 5-0

:49:45. > :49:47.behind. He has not done too many things wrong today, but what he has

:49:48. > :49:54.done has been highlighted by this play on Mark Selby. You practice on

:49:55. > :50:01.the practice table before the match, but if you're sitting on your chair

:50:02. > :50:07.for two, three frames, then you have not played for about an hour or 45

:50:08. > :50:14.minutes. We have got one, will be more to come, let us find out?

:50:15. > :50:20.Shaun Murphy will be hoping that is not the last time he has broken off

:50:21. > :50:23.in this match, but he has left the chance of a pot for Mark Selby and

:50:24. > :51:00.the black is available. At first glance, it looks that he

:51:01. > :51:17.has got away with it. Quite a long way away from that pot.

:51:18. > :51:23.It is hard to understand why Shaun Murphy hasn't been on his game

:51:24. > :51:31.today. He did look quite good against Marco Fu in the previous

:51:32. > :51:37.round. Some days, I know we are nit-picking a little bit, but I

:51:38. > :51:49.think that first frame, that first framework he broke off and gave Mark

:51:50. > :52:03.Selby that... Is the door shut? We have got... This seems to be some

:52:04. > :52:29.noise. That seems to be some noise coming from the back of the arena.

:52:30. > :52:39.I think you can come into a match with a game plan, but when you break

:52:40. > :52:44.off as badly as Shaun Murphy did in the first frame, and a know it is

:52:45. > :52:48.only one frame, but that really did give Mark Selby a left, to get on

:52:49. > :52:55.the table, when the frame in one visit, and he gets a chance in the

:52:56. > :52:59.next one. Made 104, so he had gone two frames, Shaun Murphy, which

:53:00. > :53:04.lasted about 25 minutes and not patted a ball, and then the third

:53:05. > :53:09.frame, Selby got in and made 50, and all of a sudden, you feel like you

:53:10. > :53:14.are getting no table time and all that practice you have done, on the

:53:15. > :53:19.practice tables, it was just getting nothing on the match table, and it

:53:20. > :53:26.soon can start to slip away from you. Everything snowballed as well,

:53:27. > :53:30.every time you come to the table, when you have been so cold,

:53:31. > :53:37.everything looks a little bit more difficult and it usually does. I

:53:38. > :53:43.think the other thing that we must... Where is the cue ball going?

:53:44. > :53:51.That is careless, years left the red to the middle. That could be very,

:53:52. > :53:55.very costly. I was also going to say, apart from the potting and

:53:56. > :54:00.brick building from Mark Selby, his safety play, all right, it might

:54:01. > :54:04.have dropped a bit in the last frame, but prior to that, it had

:54:05. > :54:08.been excellent. He was winning the tactical exchanges and freezing Sean

:54:09. > :54:10.ad, but here is the chance to score in this frame but he needs for a

:54:11. > :55:28.place in the final. Just a wrong angle on the black. If

:55:29. > :55:32.you can get the cue ball somewhere where it is now, he will have a read

:55:33. > :55:36.up into the green pocket after potting this black. There you can

:55:37. > :55:41.see, he would love to be on that one into the same pocket as well. -- he

:55:42. > :55:49.will have a red. He played an excellent shot, that

:55:50. > :56:09.was inch perfect. It is good to have another look at

:56:10. > :56:27.that shot. Absolutely to the inch. The black is available into both

:56:28. > :56:33.corners, and actually on this red. I might be thinking about playing the

:56:34. > :56:40.middle to read this. -- two read all.

:56:41. > :56:48.Of course, potting that one opens the red beside it into that pocket

:56:49. > :56:52.as well, and he has got a lovely angle on this red if he wants to

:56:53. > :56:56.bring some order into play. Just slide off the bunch and screw back

:56:57. > :57:01.if he wishes. He will play the follow through, just playing from

:57:02. > :57:11.the red above and staying on the black. He misjudged that, I do not

:57:12. > :57:12.think he is on the black. OK, pink is second prize, but this is not

:57:13. > :57:26.what he played on. I say it wasn't a problem, he made

:57:27. > :57:31.certain of the pink, you knew it would not be perfect on the red, but

:57:32. > :57:36.with new being in the middle pocket, just do not miss the pink. And this

:57:37. > :57:45.is not too difficult a pot. Did not look too difficult, but he

:57:46. > :58:17.has missed it. A bit on the thin side. Where is

:58:18. > :58:21.this red going? Near the pocket. And it will cut in. There is a lot of

:58:22. > :58:26.distance between cue ball and object ball, but it is another half chance

:58:27. > :58:32.for Mark Selby. He already has a 43 point lead. If he can pot this red

:58:33. > :58:34.and get a position on the colour, this could be the match-winning

:58:35. > :58:46.opportunity. Ingo was the red. And it looks like

:58:47. > :58:49.he is going to line absolutely perfectly on the black. This is the

:58:50. > :59:15.chance to clinch it. He played a similar shot before, and

:59:16. > :59:30.he has played that absolutely perfect again.

:59:31. > :59:35.There is one loose red the top of the cluster, and he hasn't really

:59:36. > :59:43.got the perfect angle, so I think he will play for that one loose red. He

:59:44. > :59:45.decided to go into the cluster, it was risky, but he has got on to the

:59:46. > :00:01.left middle. Whether it is automatic is a

:00:02. > :00:04.different matter. But he obviously decided to go for the frame and the

:00:05. > :00:42.Murch. -- match. Not far enough. He really wanted it

:00:43. > :00:51.to slide past the red, so that is probably end of break. Still 83

:00:52. > :01:15.points remaining, so it is not over yet.

:01:16. > :01:28.The straightforward safety shop would be off that red he is level

:01:29. > :01:30.with on the right-hand side of the table, but he does not want to bring

:01:31. > :01:41.that one back into play. Once again, his safety play as top

:01:42. > :02:20.quality. May just roll-up to the pink here.

:02:21. > :02:32.If he can get it as state as possible.

:02:33. > :02:43.He decided to play an firm and that was a clever shot, trying to bring

:02:44. > :03:10.the other reds back into play. Well thought out and well played.

:03:11. > :03:27.Mark walking round the, complemented Shaun on that shot. Sure and it off

:03:28. > :03:29.to such a bad start that we do not know if his plan to attack would

:03:30. > :03:43.have worked it. He has got a slight problem, but

:03:44. > :03:47.when you have a lead such as 5-1, you can always take the chance of

:03:48. > :03:54.trying to pot your way out of trouble. He has tried to play the

:03:55. > :03:57.containing safety shot, but it is not a good one. He has left the red

:03:58. > :04:17.into the rate centre. -- rate. Shaun knows he cannot afford to miss

:04:18. > :04:47.any more in this frame. Well played. He held his nerve there.

:04:48. > :05:17.He is going to try and get the back black back onto its spot.

:05:18. > :05:25.The black will leave him 40 points behind, with 51 remaining, so he

:05:26. > :05:31.does not necessarily need to take a value colours. I think he was trying

:05:32. > :05:43.to just nudge one of the reds away from the cushion.

:05:44. > :05:53.It is amazing. Stephen Hendry says Shaun Murphy is one of the best rest

:05:54. > :05:58.players in the game and his percentage with it is normally very

:05:59. > :06:02.good, but it has not been in this match. Now, just a red and the

:06:03. > :06:35.colour required. There was unnatural angle to drop in

:06:36. > :06:46.behind these two, but he just made sure of the hot. -- pot.

:06:47. > :06:52.It is not looking good now for Shaun Murphy and his supporters. But you

:06:53. > :06:58.have to take your hat off to Mark Selby. OK, he has missed a few shots

:06:59. > :07:04.in the last couple of frames, but you have to expect that. But he

:07:05. > :07:16.excelled in the earlier part of the match. To snooker 's now required.

:07:17. > :07:29.Vicky will be very pleased and proud of the way that Mark has played.

:07:30. > :07:50.We spoke about his record in this tournament. This will be his fifth

:07:51. > :08:05.appearance in the final in seven years. And as Steve alluded to, he

:08:06. > :08:17.likes the one table centre stage. They call them the Jester and this

:08:18. > :08:20.Alexandra Palace arena has become very special. We have had the

:08:21. > :08:28.tremendous turnout and the atmosphere is also just tremendous.

:08:29. > :08:35.We call him the Jester from Leicester and this is centre stage,

:08:36. > :08:38.he can express himself. In the two table situation, you feel slightly

:08:39. > :08:50.inhibited sometimes. He did not want to knock the

:08:51. > :09:30.yellowing. He was not too bothered about that.

:09:31. > :09:33.He is just wanting that one chance to what the red which will result in

:09:34. > :09:45.the handshake. He could go for this. If this goes

:09:46. > :10:13.on, that will be the end. Well played, Mark Selby. That is

:10:14. > :10:17.an. Shaun Murphy will be ready to concede.

:10:18. > :10:27.This has been a marvellous all-round performance. High-scoring Everly on

:10:28. > :10:34.in the Murch, great tactical play and you always felt, the way he was

:10:35. > :10:40.playing, that once he went five frames in front, he was never going

:10:41. > :10:44.to be pegged back. Shaun comes out of this chair and congratulate Sam.

:10:45. > :10:57.They are great friends. Nothing Shaun could do about that. Mark

:10:58. > :11:02.Selby as shown his class. Getting congratulations from everyone and he

:11:03. > :11:09.is in the final, yet again. He runs out a very comfortable 6-1 winner.

:11:10. > :11:21.Yes, his fifth final in seven years. What sort of statement that he make

:11:22. > :11:29.today? Yes, he is in a very good state for the final. The real Mark

:11:30. > :11:43.Selby town. , simple as that. He always competes. Today, that was

:11:44. > :11:48.more like his 80 game. He often relies on his defensive skills, but

:11:49. > :11:54.that was more like that. A bit easier than you might have

:11:55. > :11:59.anticipated? Yes, I got off to a good start and it was really the

:12:00. > :12:04.fourth frame before Shaun really got a chance. But I built up a

:12:05. > :12:15.convincing lead and it was just a question of keeping it that way.

:12:16. > :12:21.Lately, I got to the United Kingdom championship, but as I said to John,

:12:22. > :12:27.I have not been taking my chances as much in the past. I have maybe been

:12:28. > :12:35.listening to too many people in tinkering with things. I have gone

:12:36. > :12:44.back to playing away I did which got me there. Is there a difference? I

:12:45. > :12:52.think so much of the game is mental. When I play a bit quicker,

:12:53. > :12:58.that is my natural pace, a play a lot better. But out there, it is

:12:59. > :13:02.more difficult, because if you are struggling, everything becomes more

:13:03. > :13:10.difficult. We have been talking about horses for courses and you

:13:11. > :13:17.have a fantastic record to you. I enjoyed the one table setup. Every

:13:18. > :13:22.time you go out there, it feels like a final. The code are fantastic. I

:13:23. > :13:30.seem to do that every team I come here. As a statement, whoever you

:13:31. > :13:40.face, who do you think it will be, Stephen Maguire or Ronnie

:13:41. > :13:44.O'Sullivan? I think Stephen has been struggling for a few years, he would

:13:45. > :13:49.say that himself, he has not won as much as he should of done. But not

:13:50. > :13:53.many people could stop Ronnie Sullivan on the performance he gave

:13:54. > :13:58.yesterday. It will be a great game tonight and I look forward to the

:13:59. > :14:08.final, whoever it is. Will you watch the match tonight? I have got a few

:14:09. > :14:14.friends and family down and proper just relax and go out for food and

:14:15. > :14:21.forget about it. Can you describe why you love this tournament so

:14:22. > :14:29.much? I do not know. I have had a lot in deciding frame is one

:14:30. > :14:34.everyone. It is just the venue. To do it here, I do not know. It is a

:14:35. > :14:40.prestigious tournament and it is the will to win, I never want to lose.

:14:41. > :14:47.It was a terror threat performance and we very much look forward to

:14:48. > :14:52.seeing you tomorrow. -- traffic. We will have the second semifinal at

:14:53. > :15:03.seven o'clock this evening. I match of the Day is on 10:20pm on BBC One.

:15:04. > :15:05.Seven o'clock on BBC Two this evening. See you later.