First Round: Trump v Maguire

:00:36. > :00:40.Hello, just before and just after Christmas is a very special time for

:00:41. > :00:46.the sport of snooker because two of the three biggest events in the

:00:47. > :00:51.calendar will be staged. We have just had the UK Championship in York

:00:52. > :00:55.and this is the Alexandra Palace in North London for the Masters. You

:00:56. > :00:59.get a great view from London over here, it is the highest point in

:01:00. > :01:04.London. You can see the gherkin, the city of London, Canary Wharf. It is

:01:05. > :01:10.what is happening inside Ally Pally we are more interested in. London is

:01:11. > :01:15.the traditional home for this event since the first staging in 1975. We

:01:16. > :01:21.have been at Ally Pally five years and it has gone well with players

:01:22. > :01:28.and families. The man many have come to see today is the fancy shoot

:01:29. > :01:37.talent that is Judd Trump. The Masters is fun, no ranking

:01:38. > :01:41.points, just go and enjoy it. The Masters is probably my

:01:42. > :01:47.favourite, you do not get another atmosphere like the Masters.

:01:48. > :01:54.I feel like it spurs me on and makes me want to play a little bit better.

:01:55. > :01:59.I want to win every time I go into it, that is the main expectation for

:02:00. > :02:04.me. Flashy, flamboyant and lightning

:02:05. > :02:08.fast, the hallmarks of Judd Trump's game on form. You might use

:02:09. > :02:15.different adjectives to describe our guest presenter Mr Peter Ebdon. A

:02:16. > :02:21.slow burn but a burden on the less! I think so and I sometimes go for

:02:22. > :02:23.crazy shots by Trump game has improved so much, but still trying.

:02:24. > :02:27.Wait to have you with us and I improved so much, but still trying.

:02:28. > :02:31.enjoyed your first commentary stint last night, how was it? It was

:02:32. > :02:36.great, it was an absorbing and intense match and it was nice to see

:02:37. > :02:41.the two great players also human and they really felt the pressure and

:02:42. > :02:50.made a lot of mistakes and I think especially Ding is struggling. We

:02:51. > :02:54.were talking about Stuart Bingham against Ding. Did you begin to think

:02:55. > :02:59.about those shots sleeping? Yes, it was strange but they and you try to

:03:00. > :03:04.go to sleep after winning a close match, you go through the shots you

:03:05. > :03:07.have missed and the shot you could have played in your mind. Last night

:03:08. > :03:11.when I was trying to sleep, I went through the shots both players had

:03:12. > :03:16.missed! That was a complete nightmare. Commentary is a poisoned

:03:17. > :03:19.chalice, you have found that out. In the match today featuring Judd

:03:20. > :03:23.chalice, you have found that out. In Trump, he is only 26, how important

:03:24. > :03:26.is this Masters because he has not won anything so far? A good

:03:27. > :03:30.performance in the Championship last week but as he gets older, how does

:03:31. > :03:37.he feel about the big three events like this? Judd is past it now at

:03:38. > :03:41.the age of 26! He has no chance. He is a great player and he will go to

:03:42. > :03:45.the World Championship with every chance of becoming world champion

:03:46. > :03:48.this year. This tournament, the Masters, will be very high on his

:03:49. > :03:52.priority and he would love to win this tournament as would all the

:03:53. > :03:57.players and it is a question of his preparation, how hard he has worked

:03:58. > :04:02.over Christmas and New Year and the same to Stephen Maguire. He has yet

:04:03. > :04:07.to make a Masters final like you, still time, Peter! Today he faces

:04:08. > :04:10.Stephen Maguire and this will be an interesting match because he might

:04:11. > :04:15.approach that with a degree of trepidation. Stephen Maguire bundled

:04:16. > :04:25.him out of the Masters at the same stage 12 months ago.

:04:26. > :04:29.Stephen Maguire 2004 UK champion coming he had not won much until

:04:30. > :04:35.recently that he converted the China Open of 2013. He is back in the

:04:36. > :04:43.frame and he has produced decent stuff recently. Yes, she is one of

:04:44. > :04:50.those players, on his game, with the best in the world. He has always

:04:51. > :04:54.been very consistent. A tough match player, a lot of bottle, never

:04:55. > :04:59.afraid of the big shot. Goes for it and takes his chances. When the key

:05:00. > :05:03.killer shot comes up, Stephen always goes for it and never worries about

:05:04. > :05:09.the consequences, he sees the shot to win and he goes for it. Another

:05:10. > :05:13.player of the and my generation who came through as a junior, he was

:05:14. > :05:18.always the same. He stood out from Scotland and everybody thought he

:05:19. > :05:24.would be a world champion, multiple champion, a dominant force in the

:05:25. > :05:29.game. And on form, he is on fire. He is as determined as anybody, he is

:05:30. > :05:33.like a tiger and in those situations, match tough situations,

:05:34. > :05:37.he never shirks an opportunity and he has tremendous bottle. He was

:05:38. > :05:42.always very precise, a precise positional player. Watching Stephen

:05:43. > :05:48.Hendry and Higgins up close, you would learn how to control the cue

:05:49. > :05:51.ball and he is very dangerous. He has complete control of his

:05:52. > :05:57.backswing. Some players when the cue back to fast because you have two

:05:58. > :06:01.movements. Ring get back and push it forwards. You can be as good

:06:02. > :06:05.technically as you want. But it back in the wrong position and you miss

:06:06. > :06:12.the shot, his backswing is one of the best. And he has a lovely pause,

:06:13. > :06:18.a delay to give himself time. Just to see the cue. I think with some

:06:19. > :06:22.people in other sports and professions, you might think they

:06:23. > :06:27.need that bit of extra fire. And with Stephen, I am not convinced it

:06:28. > :06:31.helps him. When he does wrap the table and stamp his cue and gives

:06:32. > :06:35.off that emotion, it is more detrimental to him than he thinks.

:06:36. > :06:42.If there was a team acquire on his case every day making him go to bed

:06:43. > :06:45.at night, whatever, sports psychologist, and he was playing for

:06:46. > :06:50.himself and the team, I think he would be even more dangerous --

:06:51. > :06:55.Maguire. I would be a brave man to tell him to go to bed early! I would

:06:56. > :07:03.not like to say to him, I know that! I don't want that job, thanks very

:07:04. > :07:06.much! Invitations are shoot at the Masters

:07:07. > :07:12.to the world's top 16 players and Stephen Maguire is number 17 but he

:07:13. > :07:17.was 16 when those invitations were made before Christmas. And he is at

:07:18. > :07:22.his lowest world ranking for five years, how do you see his form? It

:07:23. > :07:24.goes to prove how tough it is now, with so many good players and

:07:25. > :07:30.especially in the tournaments we have to play prior to qualifying.

:07:31. > :07:35.Those players even ranked outside the top 64 can all play and often

:07:36. > :07:40.play like top 16 and top eight so it is really tough. He has been

:07:41. > :07:47.something of a bogeyman for Judd Trump if you look at their record,

:07:48. > :07:53.13 wins to six to Judd, and I wonder what Judd finds so difficult to cope

:07:54. > :07:57.with in his game? I think Judd is used to being very aggressive in

:07:58. > :08:00.terms of his play against his opponents. Stephen Maguire is quite

:08:01. > :08:05.capable of being just as aggressive and if not more than anybody else so

:08:06. > :08:09.I think that could be one reason why psychologically he has a very good

:08:10. > :08:14.record against Judd so it would be a fascinating encounter. The stakes

:08:15. > :08:17.are different as Judd is trying to continue the upward curve of his

:08:18. > :08:30.career and you feel Stephen Maguire is trying to arrest declining

:08:31. > :08:30.momentum. The thing is with Stephen, he has got the class, he is a former

:08:31. > :08:31.momentum. The thing is with Stephen, UK champion and can win any

:08:32. > :08:34.tournament. I would love to see him win a World Championship because he

:08:35. > :08:38.is good enough. It will be interesting to follow his progress

:08:39. > :08:42.over the next couple of seasons. He is a very popular player. But ahead

:08:43. > :08:48.of any curve is a certain Steve Davis. Where are you?

:08:49. > :08:54.In the commentary box with two legends, Dennis Taylor and John

:08:55. > :08:59.Parrott. Stephen Maguire's records, 13-6 against Judd Trump. Snooker is

:09:00. > :09:03.played on the table and the ball is the enemy, how can style, into the

:09:04. > :09:09.equation? You set your stall out, like back in the 1980s. Weighing

:09:10. > :09:14.against Jimmy White, Alex Higgins, totally different matches --

:09:15. > :09:17.playing. And Judd is that an attacking player and everybody loves

:09:18. > :09:22.to watch him but you will get chances, especially if he pushes it

:09:23. > :09:26.too much. So Stephen Maguire likes to pick of an aggressive player so

:09:27. > :09:29.does that say more about Stephen Maguire? I don't think he will

:09:30. > :09:34.change his game but you know you will get more chances but if Judd is

:09:35. > :09:37.on fire, you will not get many transistor it will be a fascinating

:09:38. > :09:43.battle and interesting to see who is the winner after the winner of

:09:44. > :09:47.Stephen last year. From the perspective of Judd, should he be

:09:48. > :09:51.concerned he has a poor record against another player? More to be

:09:52. > :09:58.concerned about is the level of his concentration. He let one get away

:09:59. > :10:02.in the UK, he had Liang Wenbo beaten and he let that go. You should now

:10:03. > :10:10.be at his peak and the next years of very important these tournaments and

:10:11. > :10:14.he is a big occasion player. We saw him in the UK looking at the other

:10:15. > :10:20.table and you cannot do that here, there is nothing else to look at,

:10:21. > :10:23.just your table. We are not saying Stephen Maguire is a subpar

:10:24. > :10:28.standard, but if Judd is going on coming he has to beat the likes of

:10:29. > :10:33.Stephen Maguire and that is such a tough thing to guarantee. It has

:10:34. > :10:40.proven how tough it is, the boys last night, Stuart Bingham and Ding

:10:41. > :10:43.Junhui. They are struggling. Stephen has won his first match in the

:10:44. > :10:48.Masters in all the years he has played. He has had four semifinals

:10:49. > :10:52.and Judd has not produced the CPU needs to win. This is one of the

:10:53. > :10:57.toughest to win, without doubt. Judd is the favourite to win, is that if

:10:58. > :11:00.their reflection? Making people a favourite is difficult, you have the

:11:01. > :11:05.green of the crop and you do not know. We saw yesterday an amazing

:11:06. > :11:10.performance with Shaun Murphy missing the red three times and

:11:11. > :11:13.missing a frame, you put the best players in and anything can happen.

:11:14. > :11:18.The players are ready, over to Rob Walker.

:11:19. > :11:22.This 2016 Masters has already started in style. The defending

:11:23. > :11:27.Campion was knocked out on day one and the reigning world champion

:11:28. > :11:32.agonisingly close to a 147. We are set for another great session of

:11:33. > :11:35.snooker right here at the atmospheric Ally Pally.

:11:36. > :11:53.APPLAUSE. Please welcome one of the best

:11:54. > :11:59.aggressive break-builders in the sport. This is his 12th consecutive

:12:00. > :12:02.appearance at the Masters, twice a semifinalist. Winner of five ranking

:12:03. > :12:08.events titles including the UK semifinalist. Winner of five ranking

:12:09. > :12:09.Championship in 2004, when he is good, he is on fire, he comes

:12:10. > :12:40.Stephen Maguire! And his opponent, one of the

:12:41. > :12:45.brightest stars of the modern game. He is a UK champion, the reigning

:12:46. > :12:49.World Open champion and master semifinalist back in 2012. Here he

:12:50. > :12:51.is with his own brand of naughty snooker, the ace in the pack, he is

:12:52. > :13:22.Judd Trump! Both men know how to win one of the

:13:23. > :13:27.big events, both former UK champions. It is the best of 11

:13:28. > :13:33.frames and ready and waiting, John and Dennis, or yours.

:13:34. > :13:41.Thank you and good afternoon to everyone. It is Judd Trump he gets

:13:42. > :13:45.this first frame under way with a good length with his break shot.

:13:46. > :14:06.APPLAUSE. No value in having a go at that red

:14:07. > :14:14.because the black tied up at the moment. Pete Godwin, the table

:14:15. > :14:19.fitter, did look at the table and we talked about it possibly drifting

:14:20. > :14:22.off, Shaun Murphy missed red three times down the left-hand side. A

:14:23. > :14:27.slight adjustment but little was wrong with the table. I think the

:14:28. > :14:34.players were just getting a bit of side on it. This cloth in particular

:14:35. > :14:41.is so lively. Yes, and the fact they are shaven and taken right down,

:14:42. > :14:46.virtually nothing on them. So they very slippy and any unwanted is

:14:47. > :14:50.exaggerated. This is a fascinating match and not many players will have

:14:51. > :14:55.such a good record against Judd but Stephen Maguire has got one. Andy

:14:56. > :15:02.looks like he was coming into really good form at the UK Championships --

:15:03. > :15:05.and he looked like. But he came against the juggernaut that was Neil

:15:06. > :15:10.Robertson and made a century first shot and had to sit in his chair at

:15:11. > :15:13.the rest of the afternoon, the Australian was truly great that

:15:14. > :15:15.afternoon. Sometimes you just have to hold your hand up and say, well

:15:16. > :15:33.done. That is a possible plant. It is a

:15:34. > :15:40.bit risky, you would not know what was happening with the cue ball. He

:15:41. > :15:48.did not have the correct angle to go at it anyway. I just wonder because

:15:49. > :15:51.he has played the safety away, the yellow, he may have left this full

:15:52. > :15:57.Stephen Maguire because there is a path back to the baulk area, just

:15:58. > :16:03.slightly off but it can be made and if Stephen Maguire can play the cue

:16:04. > :16:25.ball into the baulk without getting a cannon, he will be taking it on.

:16:26. > :16:34.Another bad kiss on the brown. He put everything into the plant and

:16:35. > :16:38.was not quite sure what would happen with the cue ball. That is what he

:16:39. > :16:43.was looking at and he was playing the first red to the right of the

:16:44. > :16:47.pocket and he could not hit it any better. One of those situations

:16:48. > :16:54.where Judd is probably wishing he had taken it on although he did not

:16:55. > :16:59.have the natural position back into the six /6 macro area for safety but

:17:00. > :17:10.unfortunately the safety, the plant was still there. -- baulk.

:17:11. > :17:18.Now he has got a bit of an angle on this red and that depends on whether

:17:19. > :17:23.he can develop the black, it is not going to be straightforward. The red

:17:24. > :17:27.in the middle of the three, but that is not a good angle to knock the

:17:28. > :17:45.other red out of the way. I can understand that. He knew if he

:17:46. > :17:50.did not get that absolutely flush, he would get a cannon with the cue

:17:51. > :17:54.ball coming back and he tried to pinch a bit to the left hand side of

:17:55. > :18:09.the pocket and because of that, he missed it. The key power Judd has is

:18:10. > :18:13.quite incredible, look at the white. He used another ball but he hardly

:18:14. > :18:22.hit it and look where the white has finished. The screw takes effect and

:18:23. > :18:27.the reverse side... It is effortless for him to screw back. As he has

:18:28. > :18:38.proved again with the shot with the reverse side. He certainly has got

:18:39. > :18:42.some shot in his armour, this boy. Yes, he is just slightly struggling

:18:43. > :18:59.for the perfect position at the moment. Once again, a little bit

:19:00. > :19:06.short. Blue is not a hindrance, a red to the left of the pink is

:19:07. > :19:08.available. He has a choice of reds. Not totally ideal with the cue ball

:19:09. > :19:43.so close to the cushion. As quickly as possible, he would

:19:44. > :19:48.love to get the red as close to the black spot out of the way, get

:19:49. > :19:53.position and it would become a lot easier for him. And that was

:19:54. > :20:00.beautifully played. Good shot, that, Dennis. First frame on the table. It

:20:01. > :20:15.is a good indication of how well you are cueing. That seemed to kick. He

:20:16. > :20:19.is still on the blue and he would want to get on the red you

:20:20. > :20:27.mentioned. It just jumped slightly. He still can take the blue and get

:20:28. > :20:34.on the red John mentioned. That was a funny situation where it worked

:20:35. > :20:38.out all right. He would have had an easier shot on the other side but it

:20:39. > :20:43.was natural to come back down, wood shot all the same. -- wood shot. If

:20:44. > :21:04.anything, it was too good. He certainly comes into this event

:21:05. > :21:08.in good form, Judd. He was able to win his group in the Championship, a

:21:09. > :21:12.lot of short matches over the best of five and he beat Mark Williams in

:21:13. > :21:17.the group final. Ronnie O'Sullivan won his group and Judd Trump was the

:21:18. > :21:25.second person to get through so he is in good form. Yes, I think Ronnie

:21:26. > :21:34.reached a milestone, 800 century breaks in his career, quite

:21:35. > :21:41.incredible. He has overtaken Stephen Hendry's record by over 50 centuries

:21:42. > :21:48.now. Just a flick off and he was looking from behind but I think he

:21:49. > :22:03.can get through. Yes, he just played that by flicking the red out.

:22:04. > :22:16.Not bad. It is all right. I think it is all right. He may have to take

:22:17. > :22:22.the one with the extension on the rest. I think it is an angle he can

:22:23. > :22:33.get over the line. The black. It all depends. If he cannot hold it

:22:34. > :22:42.directly, he will have to come off two questions we will see shortly.

:22:43. > :22:54.A little bit of noise in the arena. Quickly disappeared. It is back

:22:55. > :23:05.again! It has gone! Can he play that shot I mentioned or does he have to

:23:06. > :23:11.use a couple? He could hold it. A slightly better shot than it looked

:23:12. > :23:15.with AQ extension, it changes the weight and sometimes you do not get

:23:16. > :23:24.the shot right. That was well judged. And he looks in fine Vettel.

:23:25. > :23:27.Taking these very well. Not an easy start to the break, slightly out of

:23:28. > :23:33.position. Since then, very good indeed.

:23:34. > :23:40.I think he has finished rather straight on the black here. Which

:23:41. > :23:50.means he has got a little bit more to do, as you can see. Just slightly

:23:51. > :23:55.off. Not sure about this one. He is out of position. Getting straight on

:23:56. > :24:00.the black caused a problem. I still thought he would get nicely on a red

:24:01. > :24:02.and he is at the stage where a couple more and he wins the opening

:24:03. > :24:28.frame with one visit. That is all he could do. Quite a

:24:29. > :24:32.clever shot. Five reds in the Open, this is rife for a counter clearance

:24:33. > :25:01.so try to get a ball safe which he nearly did with the pink.

:25:02. > :25:10.He did have a go at the plant and it was quite tough. This red you can

:25:11. > :25:18.clearly see, it still needs accurate cueing. Where is this red going and

:25:19. > :25:23.where is the other going heading up the table? That is more important.

:25:24. > :25:32.He is a little bit fortunate because it looks to be dead straight. Had

:25:33. > :25:37.that red come off the cushion and he had a good chance for a counter

:25:38. > :25:42.attack. He is very fortunate if he has left this straight. A long way

:25:43. > :25:43.away with that pot, it is mid-range. I do not see what Stephen Maguire

:25:44. > :26:03.can do with this. He played that well! That was far

:26:04. > :26:06.from easy! He did that beautifully, he always had a bit more angle than

:26:07. > :26:12.we thought but he still played it very well. And I mentioned this

:26:13. > :26:16.frame was rife for a counter clearance and that was the shot

:26:17. > :26:24.Stephen Plaid Cymru punched it in with a bit of sight, let's see if he

:26:25. > :26:25.can mix a counter clearance. -- Stephen played that and he punched

:26:26. > :26:37.it. He has actually got a chance here if

:26:38. > :26:41.the screws of this black, he can play of the cushion and flick the

:26:42. > :26:43.pink into the middle of the table so there is a chance to get the pink of

:26:44. > :26:58.the cushion. Yes, played exactly as you

:26:59. > :27:04.predicted, John. It has put the pink in a better position. Still not

:27:05. > :27:09.ideal. You can see the cannon here. He was looking to hit it full and it

:27:10. > :27:22.would have gone into the middle of the table. And this would be some

:27:23. > :27:27.frame to pinch. Because Judd looked odds-on to take it with one visit.

:27:28. > :27:36.Until he ran out of position on the straight black.

:27:37. > :27:42.Or I will say, Dennis, I hope the rest of the matches like this first

:27:43. > :27:49.frame because this is good stuff. Or those diva Maguire will not be

:27:50. > :27:52.enamoured with that shot, and self hampered with both balls, he would

:27:53. > :27:58.love to have that again -- Stephen Maguire. Yes, a lot of margin for

:27:59. > :28:03.error and he overdid it slightly. And now with the spider as we show

:28:04. > :28:13.you where the white finished. This is tough. He has very little to do

:28:14. > :28:17.for position. In fact, he is not putting it in the middle of the

:28:18. > :28:27.spider for some reason. He just uses the end. He is so close to the blue.

:28:28. > :28:42.A super shot! It really is. I mean, just to roll it in would have been a

:28:43. > :28:52.good shot, but to play it like this off spider, ten out of ten for that.

:28:53. > :28:56.And as you said, the way this man has started, we could eat in for an

:28:57. > :29:01.absolute cracker here this afternoon -- match. No surprise Stephen

:29:02. > :29:12.Maguire slightly underhit that, he did not want to go close to the blue

:29:13. > :29:20.again so slightly uncut. Go up for a colour would be my advice, make it

:29:21. > :29:25.easier. One of those frames that will really hurt the opponent, this,

:29:26. > :29:31.he should have won it. In fairness, he had two chances to win it and he

:29:32. > :29:37.was position, the first time, Judd. Then he had the mid-range red and it

:29:38. > :29:46.was quite a big pocket but he did not do it. We'll Stephen Maguire's

:29:47. > :29:49.shot move the pink out into the Open and is it going to be the shot to

:29:50. > :30:10.win the frame? He is just deciding now where he

:30:11. > :30:14.wants to put the cue ball for the pink so he is already three shots

:30:15. > :30:15.ahead. Does he do it from that corner, from the middle or the

:30:16. > :30:28.opposite corner? You would think he would just screw

:30:29. > :30:32.back about 12 inches and leave it for the corner, that is what he was

:30:33. > :30:38.cueing up at earlier and now he is thinking whether he will leave it to

:30:39. > :30:42.the middle. I think he has got too much angle. He would love that cue

:30:43. > :30:43.ball to be straighter for that shot. He has got to negotiate something

:30:44. > :30:55.else now. To be spot-on and that is not going

:30:56. > :31:00.to be spot on. He is too close to the pink. He has finished dead

:31:01. > :31:08.straight into the corner, he did not want to be that close to the pink.

:31:09. > :31:12.Slightly awkward, these shots, so close, difficult to work out the

:31:13. > :31:16.angle the good news is the cue ball is going towards the black so

:31:17. > :31:17.concentrate as hard as you can on knocking the pink in and you have

:31:18. > :31:37.got her position. What an opening frame! He is going

:31:38. > :31:42.to win it in one visit and broke down his position, but what a cue

:31:43. > :31:46.from Stephen Maguire, he pitches the opening frame and Leeds 1-0. If that

:31:47. > :31:53.is what we are in forward will take it every Day of the week. Blistering

:31:54. > :31:57.start that sends me strong message. Fantastic clearance under pressure.

:31:58. > :32:04.Absolutely brilliant. Played a lovely shot on the black to flick

:32:05. > :32:08.the pink into the open, brilliant clearance, wonderful. There was the

:32:09. > :32:11.great tent in the bottom corner and the difficult shot with the spider

:32:12. > :32:15.bridging over the blue. The spider was one you did not want to be

:32:16. > :32:20.played but he played positively and cleverly. With a run through it make

:32:21. > :32:25.the shot harder but took out the equation of sticking the other read

:32:26. > :32:31.on. Clever shot in itself. I'm surprised Judd went for a long red

:32:32. > :32:35.with top spin. He could have gone to the top of the table, which would

:32:36. > :32:40.have been safe, but we get into is all the time. I'm talking about a

:32:41. > :32:45.message, you wonder how much that is likely to unsettle a player into's

:32:46. > :32:51.case, who has not won a match here since 2013. He has gone out Love --

:32:52. > :32:54.out in the first round the last couple of years, surely that plays

:32:55. > :33:02.on your mind? It will, but he seems to be doing very well, he is well

:33:03. > :33:23.prepared and it is a fascinating encounter. It sure is.

:33:24. > :33:34.Excellent break off, Stephen Maguire there. Sometimes after a frame where

:33:35. > :33:39.you have a great clearance and won a friend, you don't break off

:33:40. > :33:42.particularly well, you could see it in his face when he broke off there,

:33:43. > :34:06.he is fully focused. Foul. Miss. Long way short with his

:34:07. > :34:12.first attempt. He has so much side on this to make the angle. The brown

:34:13. > :34:25.is anyway and the middle pocket is in the way, so he has to hit the

:34:26. > :34:40.Christian below the middle pocket with so much side. Cutting would

:34:41. > :34:47.help. -- cushion. That is a big advantage for Stephen Maguire in

:34:48. > :34:50.touching. It is amazing of the break of shock the number of times you see

:34:51. > :34:57.that red go next to the black and British out of commission. With

:34:58. > :35:11.certain players, it's whatever red they head off the break-off shot.

:35:12. > :35:35.A chance for Stephen to bring that red away from the black, play a

:35:36. > :35:42.safety shot and bring the black interplay. Neither Blair wants the

:35:43. > :35:49.black tied up. He is not doing that. I'm surprised. Maybe that is a bit

:35:50. > :35:55.of tactics early on, going to make it hard work for you, we're going to

:35:56. > :35:59.play proper matchplay. I am like you, I would like to have seen the

:36:00. > :36:29.black interplay myself. Interesting choice of shot.

:36:30. > :36:38.Unfortunate again. That red that has gone in the Balkan area has caused a

:36:39. > :36:54.headache for Stephen, cannot get back down for the safety shot. --

:36:55. > :37:09.baulk. That has brought the black interplay now. -- into play. A bit

:37:10. > :37:25.of a stalemate with the red at the other end of the table.

:37:26. > :37:35.Just felt that was worth the risk because if he potted it it could

:37:36. > :37:44.have been on the Greene or brown or red. He could make it safe, that's

:37:45. > :37:50.why he had a go at the tough pot. Quite useful on the left, Stephen

:37:51. > :37:58.Maguire would just go and leave the ball but he knows the replay will be

:37:59. > :38:09.for the other red. He played a clever little shot. He is a very

:38:10. > :38:21.competent match there, Stephen Maguire, has been for a long time.

:38:22. > :38:29.He had a go at that pot with safety in mind, but look where he has the

:38:30. > :38:33.cue ball. That was intentional. His cue power is quite amazing. With

:38:34. > :38:38.that type of shot on these class, it is so easy to miss the attempted pot

:38:39. > :38:42.by a long way because if you get a little trace of unwanted side, it

:38:43. > :38:49.did try to put that but almost hit it on the wrong side. -- did try to

:38:50. > :38:59.pot that. Gradually this frame is getting back

:39:00. > :39:09.to normal, a chance to knock another redback of the table -- another red

:39:10. > :39:23.back up. It is going close to the corner pocket.

:39:24. > :39:35.Yes, he has grown up practising with John Higgins and players of that

:39:36. > :39:41.ilk. He knows how to play the game. Probably underachieved for the level

:39:42. > :39:46.of his abilities, in my eyes he is a magnificent player, good matchplay,

:39:47. > :39:51.good scorer. Shows you the standard in the game that he has not done as

:39:52. > :40:10.well as he should have done, because he has got the lot.

:40:11. > :40:15.Yes, Stephen always looks a little angry at the snooker table, way from

:40:16. > :40:24.the table you could not meet a nice lad. He tries so hard and put

:40:25. > :40:40.everything into being a very aggressive player. -- meet a nicer.

:40:41. > :40:56.That cue ball. It is OK. Not easy to play ace and occur here -- to play

:40:57. > :41:04.That cue ball. It is OK. Not easy to at snooker. The Greene is risky, a

:41:05. > :41:07.little smile from Stephen. It is the brown, will he try and role in

:41:08. > :41:14.behind the blue of the brown? Even that is tough.

:41:15. > :41:27.Judged it very well. Twice across the table and into the left side of

:41:28. > :41:36.the reds, as we look at it. It seems to be on. Has just got to guard

:41:37. > :41:38.against this shot. Not too much side on and it drops. That is what he is

:41:39. > :42:13.looking at. Well played. Already from the opening exchanges

:42:14. > :42:17.it looks like Stephen Maguire is fully focused and will say, you have

:42:18. > :42:20.to earn your opportunities today. My matchplay will be tough. I will not

:42:21. > :42:35.give you anything. When you have played attacking

:42:36. > :42:39.players in the past, that is what it is always like noes yes come got to

:42:40. > :42:44.be able to mix it with the best if they want to play attacking snooker

:42:45. > :42:50.you can do that as well, but with a player like this, you can keep him

:42:51. > :42:55.quiet and away from the table and then when you get your chance, score

:42:56. > :43:01.enough to win a frame, that is exactly what Stephen did in the

:43:02. > :43:05.opening frame, but to be fair judge should have won the opening frame

:43:06. > :43:16.when he was on 60, he ran out of position.

:43:17. > :43:27.Not quite. It is a good target. The Greene, brown and blue. He has found

:43:28. > :43:34.the gap there. We know he is chewing well -- tuning well -- cueing well.

:43:35. > :43:50.Doesn't half boost your confidence. He has the perfect angle on the

:43:51. > :43:52.black to stun out and leave another red. The black goes in, it is an

:43:53. > :44:10.early chance on this second frame. That was a terrific opening read.

:44:11. > :44:14.Beautifully played. Lots of players would have stunned that over but he

:44:15. > :44:19.just dropped it in. Never touch the sides.

:44:20. > :44:57.Just having a look to see if the red Google at the back -- could go at

:44:58. > :44:58.the back. He is looking to see if the other one could go into the

:44:59. > :45:11.corner if he gets this. But he is a bit straight on the

:45:12. > :45:13.back, still OK, has a couple of reds, one either side of the pink he

:45:14. > :45:28.can screw out. Just overcooked that slightly. He

:45:29. > :45:34.wanted to be finishing somewhere around where the paint is. It is a

:45:35. > :45:39.delicate shot he is looking at. He played a very good one with the

:45:40. > :45:45.spider but I don't know if he can find the gap for this. I don't know

:45:46. > :45:53.if he can roll it in or if he will have to stun between the reds and

:45:54. > :46:01.black, it just depends. He could just stunning behind it, great

:46:02. > :46:05.result. Does that red go, I wonder? If it doesn't, he has certainly got

:46:06. > :46:08.a very good second prize because where he is finished on the black he

:46:09. > :46:13.could certainly get into the pack. Really tight and where the camera

:46:14. > :46:17.is, you can always make the balls look like they will go from behind

:46:18. > :46:22.the pockets, but where Stephen is is the important one. That is really

:46:23. > :46:29.tight. He can play into the pack if he wants to. He can get a nice

:46:30. > :46:30.cannon on the red just to the right of the bottom one and that should

:46:31. > :46:48.open a few out. He may have one to the medal, the

:46:49. > :47:13.one closest to the pain. If he is on that, he is OK. -- to the middle.

:47:14. > :47:31.Perfect example of seeing the poll was before he delivers the cue on

:47:32. > :47:37.that last shot. -- the pause. Watch this shot as he feathers it a few

:47:38. > :47:42.times and then stops, bang, straight through. It just gives the player

:47:43. > :47:51.time to get his eyes focused on the ball before the strike. The final

:47:52. > :47:58.mechanism before you deliver the cue. One or two players in the top

:47:59. > :48:10.16 over the years have done it the other way around, but most unusual

:48:11. > :48:16.to do that, take the cue back, pause, and then I is on the object

:48:17. > :48:19.ball. Yes, I reverse and torrents used to look at the cue ball and

:48:20. > :48:32.tried looking at the object ball and could not pot at ball. Yes, Mogra

:48:33. > :48:35.watching and keeping well! -- hope you are. Definitely would have made

:48:36. > :49:05.under a break if he had stuck at it. Just enough on the black to reach

:49:06. > :49:15.and drop it in. He has taken this very well. Slightly hampered in his

:49:16. > :49:19.cueing. To reds near the side cushion. Everything he has paced --

:49:20. > :49:27.faced so far, nothing has been a problem.

:49:28. > :49:36.One good cannon on the reds and he could clinch this second frame. Very

:49:37. > :50:11.impressive. Looking at Stephen's body language,

:50:12. > :50:21.they are all covering each other. Yes. You can see it. So importance

:50:22. > :50:26.to get the correct cannon. Just wanted a slightly thicker contact on

:50:27. > :50:34.the red. Just snakes the outside of one. He will play of the two reds on

:50:35. > :50:39.the outside cushion because 65 ahead with 75 remaining, he will not move

:50:40. > :50:41.them. What about a little cannon and knock the black on the cushion? It

:50:42. > :51:06.would not be the worst shot. He tries to knock the black safe,

:51:07. > :51:09.but just clipped it. He has got to be careful that the same thing does

:51:10. > :51:21.not happen to him that has happened to Judd in the opening frame. He got

:51:22. > :51:27.lucky, didn't want the double-kiss. Stephen Maguire is tapping the table

:51:28. > :51:31.but maybe he did not see that. It just kicked it, centres on to the

:51:32. > :51:39.line behind the yellow. Stephen Maguire might have to move one of

:51:40. > :51:45.the reds the side cushion. I'm pretty sure he did not see the

:51:46. > :52:30.double-kiss. I would not have been tapping the table.

:52:31. > :52:37.That was a cracking plot, but he has just gone a little further with the

:52:38. > :52:47.cue ball than he wanted. Still a chance to get up to the three reds.

:52:48. > :52:52.The chance is there. One red safe, as was the pink in the previous

:52:53. > :52:59.frame. One ball was out of commission, what can judge the of

:53:00. > :53:05.this chance -- Judd. Interesting to see how he goes about removing that

:53:06. > :53:10.red. The pink would be the ball he would be trying to move it off

:53:11. > :53:14.normally, if he can get to the right-hand side and get the pink and

:53:15. > :53:19.play a cannon, let's see how he goes about it. He has got himself back in

:53:20. > :53:20.the frame and is at the table, but claimants will be difficult with the

:53:21. > :53:33.red there. -- clearance. He was glancing at these core board

:53:34. > :53:40.to see what colour he could take, maybe of the final red. I think he

:53:41. > :53:45.has a few to play with without staying on the pink or black all the

:53:46. > :53:49.way through. I just wondered whether he would try and come through a bit

:53:50. > :53:59.further, part the red and flick the other one out. He had a chance to do

:54:00. > :54:03.that. -- pot. Has got to make sure, he has a chance to stun the red by

:54:04. > :54:08.the yellow, but this has got to go absolutely right.

:54:09. > :54:16.I think he missed a trick a couple of shots at goal, should have played

:54:17. > :54:21.on the red, potted it and flicked the other red of the cushion. Or to

:54:22. > :54:25.go with the double? Know, playing behind the black and he has got the

:54:26. > :54:38.snooker. 39 is the difference, but Stephen

:54:39. > :54:46.looking around at the scoreboard and the way the balls are. That 39 is a

:54:47. > :54:53.very vulnerable. Yes, and as ever with any snooker, it is not hitting

:54:54. > :54:59.it, it is what you leave, or in this case it is not hitting it. They will

:55:00. > :55:05.be going back when the blue is finished. He only moved to balls,

:55:06. > :55:12.luckily, so the blue was on the brown spot. Add the killer was on

:55:13. > :55:33.its spot. An easy replacing job. Foul. He needs this race to finish

:55:34. > :55:41.tied on the cushion, but it's not going to. I think the one behind the

:55:42. > :55:44.yellow definitely parts. What a chance for this. In a frame he did

:55:45. > :55:57.not look like winning, he could return a favour. What a frame this

:55:58. > :56:02.is. For all money come to look like a Stephen Maguire was going to go

:56:03. > :56:16.2-0 ahead, now it looks like he has got to sit and suffer.

:56:17. > :56:30.Has got to make sure 100% concentration is acquired, it looks

:56:31. > :56:36.straightforward. Just slightly different with the blue on the brown

:56:37. > :56:40.spot and the brown on the blue spot, should not cause a problem. Already

:56:41. > :56:45.it is early days, but this is looking like a really good matchup.

:56:46. > :56:52.Both players in very good form, one little slip or mistake is costing

:56:53. > :56:55.frames. This is the standard of the game these days. These boys are very

:56:56. > :57:19.proficient and it is showing. Cue balls on a string, taking these

:57:20. > :57:47.are very well. We have had to absolutely

:57:48. > :57:51.fascinating frames. I think I can get away with saying that it could

:57:52. > :58:01.have been one each the other way. It could indeed. Larceny is rife in top

:58:02. > :58:07.snooker. Quick comparison. Stephen is eight years older than Judd and

:58:08. > :58:11.has won five world ranking titles. The last of those was the Welsh in

:58:12. > :58:17.the winter months in 2013. He's trying to get back to his brilliant

:58:18. > :58:20.best and ranking title so far is for, but it is a fascinating

:58:21. > :58:28.encounter and the shape of this match, it shows you, there is no

:58:29. > :58:31.safe place to be, even if you put 60 points on the board, you can always

:58:32. > :58:36.guarantee someone will try and go back at you. Back in the 80s, if we

:58:37. > :58:39.talk by the old-fashioned snooker, if you got is it full-bodied and

:58:40. > :58:42.started putting bolts if you would probably get over the line, such as

:58:43. > :58:46.the standard of players these days come out to be so careful to keep

:58:47. > :58:50.your point under wraps. You need some luck under the weight and Peter

:58:51. > :58:56.spotted something earlier that perhaps help judge out a bit. Judd

:58:57. > :59:00.was trying to play this safety shot and get a double-kiss. It reflects

:59:01. > :59:04.again and leaves Stephen in all sorts of trouble when he probably

:59:05. > :59:08.would have had a shot to nothing or the opportunity to play a good

:59:09. > :59:11.safety shot had the cue ball not flicked the red race against time.

:59:12. > :59:15.That made a massive impact on the outcome of the frame because Stephen

:59:16. > :59:20.then had to bring one of the save reds on the left side from the

:59:21. > :59:25.Christian and Judd got the opportunity and ended up making of

:59:26. > :59:29.the dusty break. -- away from the cushion. Is there any point in a

:59:30. > :59:33.frame that you do feel safe? Any number for you or the line, any

:59:34. > :59:43.break size you think is adequate now? Not against these top players.

:59:44. > :59:46.No. Short and sharp. Back we go. To make the frame safe these days you

:59:47. > :00:03.got to make enough to leave your opponent leaving snookers. Not

:00:04. > :00:07.always that easy. You were saying that, even with two worst three

:00:08. > :00:15.snooker is you never felt safe with Steve Davis. 80 plus is the way to

:00:16. > :00:21.do it. Foul. The first one he has cued a cross. You can see it down

:00:22. > :00:27.the line. I think he got a bit of unwanted side. Peter Ebdon in the

:00:28. > :00:31.commentary box last night, when players were forcing a shop and got

:00:32. > :00:40.a little bit of unwanted side they were missing the pot by a long way.

:00:41. > :00:45.Judd gave a big sigh as soon as he made contact with that. He is

:00:46. > :00:52.usually very proficient with that type of pot and that was a good

:00:53. > :00:56.chance for him. Dead straight. And he did not push the cue through

:00:57. > :01:16.absolutely in a straight line. I think that was a kick. I am

:01:17. > :01:19.looking at the cue ball and where it has finished and he definitely got

:01:20. > :01:26.heavy contact, John. No doubt about it and Judd was quite fortunate. If

:01:27. > :01:30.that came of the table and went into an awkward spot, he could have left

:01:31. > :01:34.it into the middle and into the corner. Stephen takes it on and he

:01:35. > :01:41.gets the kick. Not a rocky passage for him. -- not an easy passage for

:01:42. > :02:19.him. That is not a good bunch of reds to

:02:20. > :02:27.go into. But Judd is probably the best in the game and playing it. --

:02:28. > :02:34.at playing it. Watch the action he gets on this. A stone shot may be

:02:35. > :02:37.better so he does not stick it into the back of the red and that is

:02:38. > :02:44.where he is hitting the cue ball, slightly below centre so that is an

:02:45. > :02:49.indication he will stun it. Is he going to change his mind? No, he

:02:50. > :02:56.still going to do it. That is a great shot. The amount of players

:02:57. > :03:06.use the playing the shot, hitting this is two -- the reds and bringing

:03:07. > :03:10.it back to the cushion. That is the way he to play it and he deserves

:03:11. > :03:15.everything for this contribution because that is the correct way to

:03:16. > :03:20.play, and beautifully played. It is just being able to recognise the

:03:21. > :03:22.shape of the pack sometimes going into it, what is going to happen. He

:03:23. > :03:39.could not have hit that any better. He is all right, he can play pink or

:03:40. > :03:50.black. Snookered on the black but all right on the pink.

:03:51. > :03:59.I thought he nearly missed that. He certainly potted in the right side

:04:00. > :04:06.of the pocket. A slightly anxious moment.

:04:07. > :04:20.Playing very well today, Judd. It is his concentration that looks a lot

:04:21. > :04:24.better than last week. At the UK, so many tables were going on and so

:04:25. > :04:27.many distractions in the earlier rounds and in one chair, it was

:04:28. > :04:32.looking at the other because his friend was playing. In between

:04:33. > :04:37.frames, he was looking around and watching that and not completely

:04:38. > :04:43.focused on his own match. A game away against Liang Wenbo and he

:04:44. > :04:51.looked like he had won that. Nowhere else to look today, it is about the

:04:52. > :04:54.one table, Dennis. Yes, this is why you turn

:04:55. > :04:58.professional, to try and get yourself into a situation where you

:04:59. > :05:11.play in an arena like this, with a great crowd again. On the second

:05:12. > :05:13.day's play. No distractions. Judd is the type of player that relishes

:05:14. > :05:34.this atmosphere. Yes, a slightly tricky situation,

:05:35. > :05:40.playing the cannon. I do not know whether he is going to run off a

:05:41. > :05:44.ball and went wrong but if he finishes on the back red, he has had

:05:45. > :05:50.a result because that is too tight, surely. Possibly with a bit of side,

:05:51. > :05:56.Dennis. He has to be careful if he is playing a little side. I don't

:05:57. > :06:01.think it goes. He is better taking the one to the left of the pink, why

:06:02. > :06:06.risk it if you are not sure? This is more difficult but if you can pot

:06:07. > :06:19.the way he does, don't risk trying to pot a ball as tight as that. No.

:06:20. > :06:24.It is kicked. Throwing the red to the left. And another frame whether

:06:25. > :06:32.player is getting to almost 60 points. -- where the player. On that

:06:33. > :06:37.occasion, it was not Judd's fault. All three frames panning out the

:06:38. > :06:40.same. Yes, that red completely straightened on impact. Nearly going

:06:41. > :06:48.into the Jaws. Really tough shot is Stephen Maguire

:06:49. > :07:13.takes the red in the corner. For a moment, I thought he had not

:07:14. > :07:19.in the blue as well! He might have to take the blue. Let's look at

:07:20. > :07:26.this, he put everything into the pot and he almost knocked in the blue.

:07:27. > :07:32.He just looked to see if it was yellow or green and if it was

:07:33. > :07:37.yellow, he is hampered by the pink and the reds so a good shot required

:07:38. > :07:41.again on the blue, it is far from easy. It is right in the middle of

:07:42. > :07:55.everything here. It is just slightly awkward.

:07:56. > :08:22.No. Yes, he knew that was a must get pot because he was handing the frame

:08:23. > :08:31.to Judd. If that blue goes on, every chance of a counter attack. 59 in

:08:32. > :08:41.front already so he just needs a colour and one more red to secure

:08:42. > :08:52.this third frame. That was played perfectly. So much work. Just

:08:53. > :08:57.incredible. It seems to be so much work but the economy of it. I must

:08:58. > :09:01.try that sometime, that will be fun playing with all those balls out

:09:02. > :09:35.there, they would be all over the place.

:09:36. > :09:47.Fascinating tussle between these two great players.

:09:48. > :09:56.I think they had a close encounter last year, 6-4, Stephen Maguire. You

:09:57. > :10:06.would say it would go very close, the way both of them are playing

:10:07. > :10:11.here. Just so little between them will stop you get the top 16 playing

:10:12. > :10:18.together and it is sometimes a run of the ball here and there somebody

:10:19. > :10:22.in slightly better form. As you say, they are all capable of scoring and

:10:23. > :10:31.playing good matchplay. You don't know what you are going to get here.

:10:32. > :10:35.I wonder, will he give us a bit of naughty snooker here? Clearing up.

:10:36. > :10:41.He sometimes likes to play exhibition shots. At the moment,

:10:42. > :10:48.keeping it straightforward. Go on, played the brown and right around

:10:49. > :10:52.the table. Give us one of your specials here, Judd. There we go! He

:10:53. > :11:30.missed the middle pocket and the pink.

:11:31. > :11:39.The blue was never going to go in the pocket at that speed! Great play

:11:40. > :11:44.from Judd and the frame could have gone either way. A great clearance

:11:45. > :11:48.from Judd Trump and he now leads Stephen Maguire 2-1.

:11:49. > :11:55.He is just warming up and so we! Good quality stuff and a beautiful

:11:56. > :12:00.shot leading to the start of the break early that you spotters,

:12:01. > :12:01.Peter. Judd played a fantastic black and not many players would play the

:12:02. > :12:10.shot with this much power. A lot of right-hand side and with

:12:11. > :12:13.perfect spin and he got what he deserved, it was a fantastic shot

:12:14. > :12:19.and he won the frame. Is the tale going up for Judd? They both look

:12:20. > :12:22.like they are cueing well but Judd got away with it. He was the first

:12:23. > :12:28.frame by giving the chance for Stephen. At 2-1, it looks better.

:12:29. > :12:34.Back to that shot, for club players playing a black, the tendency is to

:12:35. > :12:38.look to the pack to see how they open up and you take your eye away

:12:39. > :12:43.from the black. If you want to smash into the back, concentrate on

:12:44. > :12:48.potting the ball and do not worry about the white.

:12:49. > :12:53.When do you trust yourself to know if you do that, things will go your

:12:54. > :12:58.way? Is there an adjustment period before you do that? Hitting it hard.

:12:59. > :13:02.It is difficult on these tables. When you play with this much power,

:13:03. > :13:07.you give yourself much more chance of missing the black. It is the

:13:08. > :13:10.confidence of knowing you can strike the ball hard and accurately and

:13:11. > :13:15.that is one of the greatest strengths of Judd.

:13:16. > :13:21.Will we be seeing more of this? Is that a moth? It looks like it Hazel.

:13:22. > :13:36.Moth gate this afternoon. Hopefully, they have not run off to

:13:37. > :13:42.catch another one. So a very important frame, this. A big lead

:13:43. > :13:46.for Stephen Maguire, you would think, and he has hit the ball well

:13:47. > :13:49.this afternoon. If he goes into the mid-session interval 3-1 behind, he

:13:50. > :14:02.will have it all to do. Yes, he had a go at the pot. He cued

:14:03. > :14:21.across it. That red is all right. It may come

:14:22. > :14:27.back across over the pocket but he is all right. Clever shot because he

:14:28. > :14:31.was nicely on the blue and he could only lead with the one he was having

:14:32. > :14:44.a go at. It is funny when you play those clever shots, you never seem

:14:45. > :14:53.to pot the ball! Very good stuff this match. Great to watch. Two good

:14:54. > :14:58.players, in very good form. Really focused today, Judd. And white would

:14:59. > :15:06.he not? This is a massive tournament. -- wife. He has done a

:15:07. > :15:11.couple of semifinals but never been in a final at the Masters so he

:15:12. > :15:15.would like to put that right. Stephen Maguire has had four

:15:16. > :15:26.semifinals. He has played in it on 12 occasions. Every match is a final

:15:27. > :15:31.virtually, you have the top 16 players in the world. That is why it

:15:32. > :15:36.is probably next a the World Championships the toughest to win.

:15:37. > :15:49.You talk about the three majors, the UK and the Masters. It used to be

:15:50. > :15:57.the Grand Prix was the fourth. But so many tournaments now all over the

:15:58. > :16:04.world. A lot of them just the best seven. Which is a short sprint.

:16:05. > :16:20.Compared to the best of 11, players would prefer this.

:16:21. > :16:31.He is having a look to see if there is any plant available. It does not

:16:32. > :16:36.look like there is any, to me. He has to be guarding the safety shot

:16:37. > :16:40.here. Putting the red towards the corner pocket. Judd has made it more

:16:41. > :16:53.difficult, a good length of the cue ball that he had. Very good reply

:16:54. > :17:01.from Stephen Maguire. Excellent. If you cannot see any red, he may have

:17:02. > :17:06.to play the screw back down off that. He is looking to see if he can

:17:07. > :17:10.get down the gap to flick that red. That is tight and he would have to

:17:11. > :17:22.go very close to the blue. To get that one. He is looking at the side

:17:23. > :17:34.cushion. That is not straightforward. He has got to get

:17:35. > :17:38.this with a bit of swerve. That is not bad. It has cost him four points

:17:39. > :17:43.but he has the cue ball back down the table and that is not an easy

:17:44. > :17:48.pot. Much better going end than rattling it in the Jaws. They come

:17:49. > :17:55.back out into open play and you would be in trouble. Stephen is just

:17:56. > :18:01.seeing if he can have a shot, he tries to swerve it. That does not go

:18:02. > :18:08.as much as he would like, he gets it too thick. Stephen thinks he has

:18:09. > :18:20.found a shot to nothing here. And he has. Well played.

:18:21. > :18:27.Not a worst-case either. Yes. A little bonus whenever that happens,

:18:28. > :18:31.you know that you have overhit it slightly. Very good pot and the

:18:32. > :18:36.white could easily have slipped past the brown. But with the nudge, it

:18:37. > :18:49.finished perfectly for him. You cannot beat a good nudge. And that

:18:50. > :18:56.is not a good nudge. No, not ideal. I think the red goes... You want it

:18:57. > :19:00.to tight into the middle. Closest does go past the yellow. I would

:19:01. > :19:46.expect him to negotiate this. He was playing into an area where he

:19:47. > :19:50.had a choice of reds. That looks a bit tight to me. Further up the

:19:51. > :19:57.table, you have the choice of three reds into the left corner. Does the

:19:58. > :20:02.black goat, Dennis? Does it go near the corner, is that why he is

:20:03. > :20:06.playing it? -- go. He would have to play with a trace of sites to make

:20:07. > :20:11.the angle. The black goes, as you can see. He would have loved to have

:20:12. > :20:19.taken that on but he can get whacked to it in a couple of shots. -- back.

:20:20. > :20:25.The table looks like it is beautifully, he hardly hit that. A

:20:26. > :20:58.load of pace on it. Not the best, that one. The black is

:20:59. > :21:00.only available into one pocket. So he still has a bit of work to do

:21:01. > :21:14.here. He needs to keep ongoing, he does

:21:15. > :21:19.not want to be dead straight on the blue. He has to take the pink if he

:21:20. > :21:26.is straight on the blue. He is slightly scrapping for position.

:21:27. > :21:33.Just being a bit off. Slightly off two or three shots. He was almost

:21:34. > :21:38.straight so he did well to manufacture that. From the blue

:21:39. > :22:16.almost being straight. A key shot coming up, if he can pot

:22:17. > :22:25.the pink and get on the red so he can run through and leave the black

:22:26. > :22:29.and he can really open things up. What angle has he got? I don't think

:22:30. > :22:34.he has gone far enough. It is amazing how that inch or so can make

:22:35. > :22:42.such a difference. Yes, it comes down the table a tiny bit further,

:22:43. > :22:46.half a ball, perfect. You play a cannon off the black to split them

:22:47. > :22:50.and it is a frame and an opportunity. He just comes short.

:22:51. > :23:00.Still in play but it would have been so much easier. The referee having

:23:01. > :23:11.to get the pink is near to its own spot. The spots occupied. Maybe he

:23:12. > :23:17.can do. Guests. He knows he has to nudge the other red and thought he

:23:18. > :23:29.could still flick it for the black -- yes.

:23:30. > :23:36.That was the problem. He has covered it. Or has he? It does not look as

:23:37. > :23:43.though it goes from here but maybe he can pot the black. If he is on

:23:44. > :23:48.that, that is the right result. He did not intend to get the cannon

:23:49. > :23:54.like that. That will pot with a bit of side. Looking at the way he is

:23:55. > :24:02.setting up, it will pot straightaway. That is amazing. I was

:24:03. > :24:18.thinking he would have to screw out to be on a colour. He was on it.

:24:19. > :24:28.If the pink pots at the bottom, that is worth taking gone. And open up

:24:29. > :24:33.the four reds. Try and leave it slightly low, which he has done. So

:24:34. > :24:48.now it is all about how these split. We have had three great frames. Now

:24:49. > :25:01.the players have clinched it with one visit. Can do it here? -- can do

:25:02. > :25:04.it here? A couple of red into play but still not straightforward. --

:25:05. > :25:24.reds. That is an excellent break, it

:25:25. > :25:30.really is. He has not been perfect for most of this break. He has just

:25:31. > :25:36.managed to keep it going. Probably had a bit of luck with that of the

:25:37. > :25:38.cannon. The rest of it has been great hard match play snooker and he

:25:39. > :26:02.has just kept the break going. Just picking the loose one off. Will

:26:03. > :26:10.he desires. He has looked at the school board, he is 52 ahead. --

:26:11. > :26:21.before he decides. He needs a difficult one of the five reds. And

:26:22. > :26:29.he has got an angle now. And if he does cannon, the pink... Not quite a

:26:30. > :26:38.full ball, you need to bring the two city -- reds into play. 53 has,

:26:39. > :26:45.working out what he needs. If the get the blue, 58. He still has to

:26:46. > :26:51.play the cannon here. This is trickier than it looks, it is not

:26:52. > :26:56.ideal. You could play the cannon and slip and leave the cue ball near the

:26:57. > :27:01.top cushion. You have to hope this goes right. We have not looked to

:27:02. > :27:06.see if the red would go into the middle or we will find out shortly

:27:07. > :27:12.if it is available. He has played the cannon and how is your look,

:27:13. > :27:19.Stephen? It could have been better. He decided to play a lot firmer than

:27:20. > :27:24.I thought. I do not blame him, you could play it soft and slip up. He

:27:25. > :27:29.took his chances and has not been very fortunate. He could certainly

:27:30. > :27:43.have hoped for something better but that was a chance he had to take.

:27:44. > :27:52.Stephen Maguire, 54. Applause. Yet again, another frame

:27:53. > :27:57.identical to the three previous. That is quite amazing. All of them

:27:58. > :28:05.fascinating, it in their own right. The first thing Judd will do is what

:28:06. > :28:13.he has been able to do in one shot. He has got two cushions off. As he

:28:14. > :28:19.left Stephen Maguire a chance? It is not easy. We get used to seeing

:28:20. > :28:34.these players not in these long pots but they are tough.

:28:35. > :28:48.Where is this red going to finish? That is a chance for a counterattack

:28:49. > :28:58.for Judd Trump. And could he somehow steal this fourth frame? An awful

:28:59. > :29:05.lot to do. You would not put it past him. Yes. Not only did he leave the

:29:06. > :29:11.red, he stuck the pink in a lovely spot. Judd get onto the red, that is

:29:12. > :29:20.near the black. He has the red on the top cushion that is a problem.

:29:21. > :29:25.We saw yesterday on the new table, it was not bad yesterday. Sliding in

:29:26. > :29:27.a little bit. So maybe it might not be as difficult as it might be

:29:28. > :29:37.normally. Just making sure he has enough room

:29:38. > :29:54.for the red to pass, no problem. He does not want to be straight. And

:29:55. > :30:03.that is just about perfect, he is well past it. The position that

:30:04. > :30:09.would be straight. I am not sure if the red closest to the black goes

:30:10. > :30:16.into the corner, that would be a bonus because if that goes, he can

:30:17. > :30:20.pot that and flick the other to the right of the black away. We will

:30:21. > :30:27.find out shortly if that is available to him.

:30:28. > :30:37.There is the pink I mentioned earlier. If the red does go, the

:30:38. > :30:41.pink was virtually perfect for it. In a perfect world he would leave

:30:42. > :30:52.himself high on that, part it and flick the other red out. -- pot it.

:30:53. > :30:57.I think he has come up short to do that. Quite a way short to pop that

:30:58. > :31:07.and flick the other red away. Slightly more difficult now. That

:31:08. > :31:11.looks to be a pretty good angle, but when you play this cannon, he could

:31:12. > :31:21.do with coming into the middle of the red and black and make sure he

:31:22. > :31:26.puts this red on. And he didn't, he hit it full ball, he wanted to play

:31:27. > :31:30.the cannon. It is amazing, 12 shots ago he was coming up for the red,

:31:31. > :31:34.all he had to do was be slightly high and that would have been much

:31:35. > :31:35.easier, just did not get that position. Consequently it has gone

:31:36. > :31:53.awry. Surely even Judd would not take that

:31:54. > :32:08.on. Safe you acquired, you would think. -- safety required. It is not

:32:09. > :32:11.straight forward off the red to the right. He cannot really get in

:32:12. > :32:16.behind the green or close to the cushion and guarantees to leave the

:32:17. > :32:21.red safe. I think the middle pocket is in play, that is ideally you

:32:22. > :32:25.would like to be that if you play of the Reddit would have to be thin and

:32:26. > :32:27.then you would not get it safe. I don't blame him taking some time

:32:28. > :32:42.here. It is not straightforward. That was a risk. He has put himself

:32:43. > :32:45.bang in trouble. It will not be a straightforward safety shot but if

:32:46. > :32:51.Stephen Maguire judges this correctly, that is it also works of

:32:52. > :33:03.trouble. He will be snooker is, he has the blue, pink and black to get

:33:04. > :33:09.the snooker behind. Yes, it might have been good if it had come off,

:33:10. > :33:15.but the shot Judd played put him in trouble and he knows it. Still feels

:33:16. > :33:19.as if he should have played off the red on the right-hand side some way.

:33:20. > :33:37.He will do well to get out of this. He has quite a bit of distance

:33:38. > :33:43.between the red and the cue ball, so that is one good thing. One good

:33:44. > :33:47.pot, and I don't think he will go into the middle pocket with the cue

:33:48. > :33:52.ball, it will come back round the table towards the black if he gets

:33:53. > :34:02.it. If he gets that angle. A bit of a free shot really.

:34:03. > :34:12.Just the snooker now. It would have been a bonus to drop on the black,

:34:13. > :34:20.but he is so good at that type of shot, Stephen Maguire. He has a

:34:21. > :34:25.choice. You got to make sure you get him is no good rather than get it,

:34:26. > :34:34.safe -- you get him snookered rather. He will need a good forming

:34:35. > :34:39.here of the side cushion I hope he cannot can say. The only thing with

:34:40. > :34:42.that shot is that he left them the chance to do it. I would have

:34:43. > :34:51.thought he would try and get behind and block it. He did not make the

:34:52. > :34:58.snooker difficult. Judd stopped in his tracks to see if this red will

:34:59. > :35:13.cut in. He smiled tells you it is a very thin one. It will not cut in.

:35:14. > :35:20.Although it is the best of 11, if you have a 3-1 lead at the end you

:35:21. > :35:24.will be delighted and he maybe has a three shot. Part the red, missed the

:35:25. > :35:33.yellow and brown and come back towards the black. He has cannons,

:35:34. > :35:44.it is wrong, has he got away with it? He has. Goodness, he has a run

:35:45. > :35:50.of the balls at times, doesn't he? I think Judd thought, if I hit this

:35:51. > :35:53.right, he hit it two thing, which was why he canned the brown or

:35:54. > :35:56.yellow, I was thinking that shot Stephen played with the spider

:35:57. > :36:01.before was cracking, but this is more difficult. And usually

:36:02. > :36:17.circumstances, much more pressure, 2-1 down.

:36:18. > :36:21.Does not have to take it on, but when you see in there, you think to

:36:22. > :36:42.yourself, it is a game ball. I think it was more difficult than

:36:43. > :36:51.the previous one. That was a good choice. Only needs the red, as John

:36:52. > :36:57.said, to leave Jed -- and Judd leading snookers. It was too risky

:36:58. > :37:02.because it was so close to the blue. If he could miss the double case he

:37:03. > :37:05.could get even in trouble. He just played up and down, did not think it

:37:06. > :37:15.was possible to do that. Good cue ball.

:37:16. > :37:27.This is a bit awkward. You would not risk just trying to get a snooker

:37:28. > :37:34.behind the yellow and brown, it could roll off. Well he has tried

:37:35. > :37:44.it. Now, that was very difficult. He has put himself in a spot of bother.

:37:45. > :37:52.There is actually a shot if Judd wants to move the yellow of the

:37:53. > :37:56.cushion. He had a few ways of playing it as I think there is other

:37:57. > :38:00.ways to do it. Could have hit that much fervour is trying to get the

:38:01. > :38:02.snooker behind pink or black and move the yellow out. But he did not

:38:03. > :38:10.do it. Just having a little chat. I'm not

:38:11. > :38:46.sure what he was saying. Yes, very dangerous frame for

:38:47. > :38:49.Stephen Maguire just now. All of the balls are portable. Yellow has gone

:38:50. > :39:15.from a unpromising position. It is all about trying to keep that

:39:16. > :39:36.red safe. And he hasn't. This is a chance for

:39:37. > :39:44.Judd Trump. I don't know if he can pass this red without moving the

:39:45. > :39:49.yellow. He would love to be able to. If he pots this red he might have to

:39:50. > :39:53.go into the yellow and hope he does not knock it safe somewhere. He has

:39:54. > :40:01.to get up for a high value colour, doesn't he? That is the problem. I'm

:40:02. > :40:06.struggling to see how he can get on one. If he was to get a red and blue

:40:07. > :40:25.he would only be able to tie. Look at this shot. Unbelievable. I

:40:26. > :40:30.think he thought he was going to clip the yellow as well and get much

:40:31. > :40:34.more screw, and would have come right up towards the pink and black,

:40:35. > :40:39.believe it or not. To get there without touching the yellow was

:40:40. > :40:43.quite amazing. He will be disappointed not to get the pink or

:40:44. > :40:46.black, it would have been some shot, but he can still win the frame in

:40:47. > :40:50.this situation on a re-spotted black. It is difficult to get back

:40:51. > :40:59.to the yellow, but get the blue and make sure you knock the blue then.

:41:00. > :41:29.You still have a chance to at least tidy frame -- tie the frame.

:41:30. > :41:39.It has been a fascinating for frames. Interval coming after this.

:41:40. > :41:49.Will it be 2-2 or 3-1. We will know in a few minutes.

:41:50. > :41:59.Both players, Judd has had breaks of 55 and 50 in the previous frame. 60

:42:00. > :42:03.frame one. Stephen Maguire has had breaks of 50 word, 51 and 60.

:42:04. > :42:08.Slightly bigger target for just a mat. Blue and green in that area, a

:42:09. > :42:13.little too much side on it. At the chance to get behind blue. That

:42:14. > :42:36.would have caused some trouble. But not quite.

:42:37. > :42:44.Just wondering. At first I thought he might have been able to get past

:42:45. > :42:51.the brown and hit the yellow from behind, but can he do that? I think

:42:52. > :42:56.it is too close to the cushion to get the amount of side he would

:42:57. > :42:58.need. That last shot of Stephen Maguire's was superb because he

:42:59. > :43:04.brought the brown into a better position. You never know where they

:43:05. > :43:11.are going to vanish when they play that type of shot -- finish. He had

:43:12. > :43:17.played with a lot of side and a little touch of swerve to make the

:43:18. > :43:25.angle. You can see he had to swerve around the black, that was a

:43:26. > :43:35.terrific escape. Has got a couple of choices. He could go for the pot.

:43:36. > :43:37.Which he has tried. And the blue has gone in the middle pocket, would you

:43:38. > :43:51.believe it? Free ball, blue in the pocket, and

:43:52. > :44:02.if the brown goes past the yellow, everything has gone wrong.

:44:03. > :44:09.Can you believe that? The things that happen are snooker table? The

:44:10. > :44:15.blue into the pocket is a good shot. Stephen cannot help himself from

:44:16. > :44:21.smiling. The scenario is that Stephen Maguire has had breaks of

:44:22. > :44:25.5461, 60, and he will be 3-1 behind as we show you that attempt at cut.

:44:26. > :44:31.Bit of a risky one, but how the blue has gone in there. And then he got

:44:32. > :44:39.the ultimate, Judd, everything you could hope for, free ball, five

:44:40. > :44:44.points and a pot available. Being left-handed, the pinks are the wrong

:44:45. > :44:49.side of the table, but Judd is so good with his right hand as well,

:44:50. > :44:54.interesting to see whether he gets the rest out or a few pots it

:44:55. > :45:03.right-handed. He is 11 behind, so he needs all three colours. Now he will

:45:04. > :45:12.leave it with the rest. He has an angle to get over to the black. One

:45:13. > :45:16.wore a good shot. Tricky little pot. Not certain, it looks easy on the

:45:17. > :45:19.screen but we know at the front on these tables, they don't have,

:45:20. > :45:56.there's still some to be done. One long straight pot on the black.

:45:57. > :46:04.He will go to the midsection interval -- we will go to it -- he

:46:05. > :46:10.will go to the midsection interval a very happy boy. Write down the cue

:46:11. > :46:13.and it is there. He will be delighted! It has been a fascinating

:46:14. > :46:18.tussle so far, the sort of match that had been 2-2 and could have

:46:19. > :46:27.been 4-0, but in the end it is Judd Trump who leads 3-1. When you look

:46:28. > :46:33.at the stat it is a tale of six plus 50 breaks but it is telling entirely

:46:34. > :46:39.different story, isn't it? There was always luck involved in snooker. So

:46:40. > :46:42.many times it is not obvious luck, but when the blue goes in the middle

:46:43. > :46:48.pocket at that acute angle, as a player you sometimes go, well, the

:46:49. > :46:51.writing was like it's on the wall for the Day. It will be tough to

:46:52. > :46:56.turn it around. When Stephen Maguire not seen the blue that effectively

:46:57. > :47:00.puts Judd over the line, you will lamenting his luck. He sat a pretty

:47:01. > :47:04.bad run of the balls. Desperate luck and he will be devastated to be 3-1

:47:05. > :47:08.down because he has played really well. Just the one of the balls has

:47:09. > :47:12.not gone with him at all today apart from getting a really good long red

:47:13. > :47:16.at the start of the previous frame and getting a nice cannon on the

:47:17. > :47:20.brown, has gone wrong for him. He got to feel frame. He will be really

:47:21. > :47:24.devastated. There is times when you get lucky or unlucky and your

:47:25. > :47:29.opponents does not punish you, you forget about the luck, but when a

:47:30. > :47:33.player, Judd Trump cleared up when he got the chance that Amedy look

:47:34. > :47:37.easy at the end, it was very missable, that seems to magnify your

:47:38. > :47:42.luck. Use it and two. Another Day the worst thing is the world can

:47:43. > :47:45.happen and other guy misses a shot, totally forgotten. Exactly the

:47:46. > :47:49.stoppage amid the point before that fourth frame that that frame was so

:47:50. > :47:53.important Stephen Maguire because you could see the shackles coming

:47:54. > :47:57.off Judd in frame three. Yes, the momentum is very much with Judd now

:47:58. > :48:04.and in lots of matches Stephen would be 3-1 up instead of down by now. It

:48:05. > :48:11.has been interesting. Absolutely. Especially the muggings in the first

:48:12. > :48:15.part of the match. Yes. Since the first Masters, 1975, there is only

:48:16. > :48:18.three guys that have come back the next year to successfully defend

:48:19. > :48:24.their title. Cliff Thorburn and Stephen Hendry on a number of

:48:25. > :48:27.occasions and most recently Paul Hunter, 2002. Yesterday the

:48:28. > :48:32.defending champion, Shaun Murphy, from this year walked into the arena

:48:33. > :48:39.hoping to join that gang. First job to beat world number 11, Mark Allen,

:48:40. > :48:43.they squared up hearing the semis last year, Allen in dead on

:48:44. > :48:49.rewriting the story this time and it was a half-century from the Northern

:48:50. > :48:54.Irishman that security first frame. Murphy responded with a 68 to level

:48:55. > :49:02.the match before a fantastic clearance of 137 saw Alan take a 2-1

:49:03. > :49:06.advantage. Frames four and five were shared before the pivotal moment of

:49:07. > :49:10.the match in frame six. Shone, fitting a tricky safety shot, twice

:49:11. > :49:13.missed a thin attempt on the red and because he was not snooker, one more

:49:14. > :49:29.foul and the frame would be automatically forfeited.

:49:30. > :49:36.The miss and the frame. Such a harsh real! Normally you can find an

:49:37. > :49:41.option somewhere, a way out you don't always want to play. But I

:49:42. > :49:45.looked and every option I could see guaranteed to leave Mark Alpert

:49:46. > :49:49.integer when the frame, me it was take a deep breath, remember your

:49:50. > :49:53.routine, site the ball well, missed it completely and lose the frame.

:49:54. > :49:57.It's crazy to think what he did, but you got to take it as it comes,

:49:58. > :50:01.yielded many easy friends on tour and that is one of it. From the

:50:02. > :50:05.other side, if it's me I don't clear if I leave everything on, I make

:50:06. > :50:09.sure I hit something third time. If today for rising to advantage then

:50:10. > :50:15.made a break of 104 get one frame of the wind. But every fighter, Sean

:50:16. > :50:20.battled back to 5-4, making is first century of the match in the ninth.

:50:21. > :50:24.Mark eventually got over the line to dig a scrappy ten frame and, more

:50:25. > :50:35.importantly, a blaze in the quarterfinals. He is -- his sixth in

:50:36. > :50:39.eight Masters appearances. I'm glad to come through, of easily have lost

:50:40. > :50:44.a few close ones to Sean in recent years. To finally get one over him

:50:45. > :50:48.is a bit of a feather in the cap. More please with the way I place. I

:50:49. > :50:52.scored heavily from the first frame on words and got edgy in the last

:50:53. > :50:56.frame, both missed a couple, but all in old played really good. That is

:50:57. > :50:59.the level of snooker these days was 12 months quite plays that losing

:51:00. > :51:03.and won the tournament. 12 months later and here was a great match, we

:51:04. > :51:07.both played well and I have lost. That is the thing that makes the

:51:08. > :51:10.master is so special. Every match could be a final, every single

:51:11. > :51:15.player could win the tournament and it is really great to be involved,

:51:16. > :51:20.just a shame and not involve any more. It is Mark Allen Huget is

:51:21. > :51:26.6/4-final in eight appearances. Pretty decent record. What was your

:51:27. > :51:29.view of events and fridge -- in frame six? It was incredible and I

:51:30. > :51:33.just noticed on the final attempt that Sean was putting a lot of

:51:34. > :51:37.right-hand side on that. He is probably good at it is because it is

:51:38. > :51:41.striking is so hard. He has pulled its to the right. Mark Allen made

:51:42. > :51:44.the point that if he had been in this iteration before, just make

:51:45. > :51:47.sure you hit something, it doesn't matter where you leave everything.

:51:48. > :51:53.That is his view but how difficult is it to go through with that?

:51:54. > :51:56.Obviously a top-class player that is with three attempts he will get the

:51:57. > :52:01.ball to go on the right path on one of the occasions. He might have seen

:52:02. > :52:04.no other option, but there is obviously the possibility that even

:52:05. > :52:08.if he had stuck Mark amongst the balls he was not guaranteed to clear

:52:09. > :52:11.them up. Mark's view would be to make it awkward and hope the

:52:12. > :52:15.opponent misses. I tend to agree with Mark but we have all been there

:52:16. > :52:19.and I have missed three attempts if the table is not level, sometimes

:52:20. > :52:23.that can come into the equation. I've got to say, if that happens to

:52:24. > :52:28.me in the Masters I would have struggled to go in the press --

:52:29. > :52:32.press conference and talk. What a great ambassador. How can you be

:52:33. > :52:36.that good a loser? You're not, are you? He is a brilliant professional

:52:37. > :52:41.and to take losing like that, it really takes a man and a true

:52:42. > :52:44.professional sportsman. There is no doubt he is hurting, he has come

:52:45. > :52:48.back to trying to defend that, that must be so frame yesterday. He would

:52:49. > :52:53.have been really well prepared for this tournament. John is the type of

:52:54. > :52:56.player that will be cutting back on the Christmas celebrations, New

:52:57. > :53:00.Year, he will put a series of out of work in on the table. -- shone. He

:53:01. > :53:04.will beast devastated and it shows what a brilliant professional years

:53:05. > :53:07.to take it like that. Do you think that will fire him up for the rest

:53:08. > :53:16.of the season? Properties the man of how he went out? In one respect I

:53:17. > :53:19.would say that it's like is doesn't hurt enough but a few think OK, you

:53:20. > :53:23.play the next tournament the same way he prepares, very professional,

:53:24. > :53:29.but Stephen Hendry, losing like that, what straight at the door, it

:53:30. > :53:33.might fire a player like that up. Sean is the same animal, total

:53:34. > :53:38.professional, great player and budget every match in the same way

:53:39. > :53:40.and one of the most gracious learners -- losers and gracious

:53:41. > :53:46.winners, different for different people. Great to see him. Wonderful

:53:47. > :53:49.filed last year, the 10th man to achieve the triple Crown and I know

:53:50. > :53:54.that was a really big moment for him, as it would be for anyone. Last

:53:55. > :53:56.night our first session involved the current world champion, Stewart

:53:57. > :54:01.Bingham, he attended the bald eagle where he had never gone before

:54:02. > :54:07.injury quarterfinal of the Masters. His seventh attempt. Stewart

:54:08. > :54:12.Bingham, 2015, current world champion. Idiot question to start

:54:13. > :54:19.that might sound silly, but has it sunk in yet? Eight deep. I don't

:54:20. > :54:28.know. It is important for the rest of the season, in a way. I have

:54:29. > :54:34.tried to forget it. Just get on with snooker, sounds stupid, but it is

:54:35. > :54:39.like it's a hindrance. 20 years of trying to get there and pick up the

:54:40. > :54:45.trophy, now I have the trophy, the pressure of it is immense more than

:54:46. > :54:52.anything. You would rather have not won it? Of course not, but it feels

:54:53. > :54:55.that way. That pressure and now to turn up to tournament and try not

:54:56. > :54:59.forget it and get on with the job in hand. The pressure is only from

:55:00. > :55:03.within. Nobody else is really putting the pressure on, it is your

:55:04. > :55:09.own expectations. If the first couple of tournaments after, every

:55:10. > :55:14.ball I missed I can see people saying he is world champion, he's

:55:15. > :55:17.got to be the world champion ever. Stupid pressures like that.

:55:18. > :55:23.Understandable that every pro-Blair has a reaction to something so big.

:55:24. > :55:29.Some beagle go on but it's understandable if you drop down a

:55:30. > :55:38.because of that. -- some people. I don't feel like I've had a bad

:55:39. > :55:43.season with results but I have lost 4-5, 4-3, 5-4, to people like

:55:44. > :55:49.Higgins, Fergal O'Brien, zoo long and good players, I've lost out in

:55:50. > :55:52.deciders but because of the results it looks like I've had a bad season.

:55:53. > :55:58.Not much breathing space, all players are good these days. Have

:55:59. > :56:02.they raised their game a fraction? I thought that coming into this season

:56:03. > :56:06.people would raise their game to play me. I remember when John

:56:07. > :56:11.Higgins was world champion, Shaun Murphy, even yourself, I knew I was

:56:12. > :56:17.playing a top player and you cannot help but raise your game. Obviously

:56:18. > :56:21.I have that now. It has been a big learning curve. Obviously will not

:56:22. > :56:24.forget about it, so let's talk about the World Championship. How do you

:56:25. > :56:33.approach a quarterfinal match with Ronnie O'Sullivan? Not sure, really.

:56:34. > :56:36.All of the eyes on him, I was watching the previous matches

:56:37. > :56:41.against Matthew Stevens and his first match against Craig Steadman.

:56:42. > :56:47.You could see he was not happy. There was obviously the issue

:56:48. > :56:52.scenario that make the shoe scenario. It looked like a little

:56:53. > :56:58.excuse. If he didn't perform didn't play well. I just thought that I'd

:56:59. > :57:02.obviously when we played the referee was getting on his nerves and I

:57:03. > :57:13.could see that, he is not on his game. I used that as a positive for

:57:14. > :57:19.me. He said to me, the referee as I marathon, he is walking round

:57:20. > :57:23.everywhere. I said yes, shut it off straightaway because I knew I had a

:57:24. > :57:29.great chance of winning and knew I was playing well and he was on 60 or

:57:30. > :57:32.70% of his game. It was a good performance but suddenly there is no

:57:33. > :57:36.letting up and you're straight back into the semifinals. The one-table

:57:37. > :57:41.set-up against Judd Trump. The night after beating Ronnie I will, 6am and

:57:42. > :57:45.the first thing in my head was a winner's speech. Really? Yes. And

:57:46. > :57:50.I've had that throughout my career and that is maybe been a let down.

:57:51. > :57:55.Straightaway I knocked on the head, don't think that far ahead come of

:57:56. > :58:00.Judd Trump in the semifinal and you got to play just as well or better

:58:01. > :58:05.to have a chance and I will remember that the rest of my life. Suddenly

:58:06. > :58:13.you are in the final. What was that my's sleep like? Probably the same

:58:14. > :58:17.at the -- as the previous four nights, three Zebre four or five

:58:18. > :58:21.hours sleep. It's something I've been striving for the last 25 years,

:58:22. > :58:26.to be in a world final, and it's in front of me and I'm doing it. It is

:58:27. > :58:31.unbelievable. -- three, four or five. Great player and a great

:58:32. > :58:37.friend. That helped. If I was going out against giant or Ronnie or

:58:38. > :58:42.someone like that in the final, it would have been different, I knew I

:58:43. > :58:47.could go out and enjoy if I was not in the final I would watch to win

:58:48. > :58:51.and hopefully the same frame for me. -- same for him for me. We had that

:58:52. > :58:57.respect for each other and that helped massively. Give us an

:58:58. > :59:02.overview of the final? Is to me a few frames to settle down once I

:59:03. > :59:10.made that first frame, the 100 break, I went, I don't care if I get

:59:11. > :59:13.beat. 18-1, 18-2. You don't think that will happen, but I made a 100

:59:14. > :59:17.in the world final. I don't care what happens. Then suddenly you

:59:18. > :59:23.start picking your game up and playing well and then I was just

:59:24. > :59:27.enjoying the moment. A couple of instances where I am in the break

:59:28. > :59:35.and actually cost to a certain number in a break and a gag came out

:59:36. > :59:40.like you do in an exhibition. I'm thinking, what are you doing? You're

:59:41. > :59:45.in a world final. The otherwise, you get the trophy, a marvellous moment.

:59:46. > :59:49.Once the dust has settled, what was it like afterwards? Not just that

:59:50. > :59:55.night, but for the next few days? Friends and family and well-wishers?

:59:56. > :00:01.It was just a mad roller-coaster ride. I think it took me three weeks

:00:02. > :00:09.to get back to normality. Just totally drained. From two weeks of

:00:10. > :00:13.play. Everyone wanted a bit of the interviews and the TV work, things

:00:14. > :00:15.like that. I did not really have time to sit back and enjoy it. I was

:00:16. > :00:31.everywhere. It is still in a box, the trophy. I

:00:32. > :00:40.do not want to get it out in case I damage it. It is in a box and nicely

:00:41. > :00:44.protected from my son. The first half of the season, no silverware.

:00:45. > :00:50.What is a success story for the rest of the year? One tournament?

:00:51. > :00:56.Crucible curse. You have that to come. Exciting, but you still manage

:00:57. > :01:02.to get your name on the trophy before then. Definitely. It was the

:01:03. > :01:07.same as every other year. If you can win one trophy a year and you have

:01:08. > :01:12.had a good year. I have got to two semi-finals and been pretty close. I

:01:13. > :01:17.feel like my game is picking up the last couple of months. That is my

:01:18. > :01:23.goal between now and the end of the year. What better way to celebrate

:01:24. > :01:29.your rise as a legend within the game than winning this tournament?

:01:30. > :01:35.Yes. It would be massive. It is not as high as the Crucible but it is

:01:36. > :01:40.close. Watching it over the years it has so much history. My record here

:01:41. > :01:46.is not great. I have looked in the programme and my highest rate is 91

:01:47. > :01:51.in seven attempts. It has not been great. I will be looking to change

:01:52. > :01:55.that. I have been trying a few different things coming into this

:01:56. > :02:01.tournament. I stayed in a hotel last night. I normally commute from home.

:02:02. > :02:05.I came up the night before to try to prepare for the tournament, like I

:02:06. > :02:09.normally do. Good luck for the rest of the season.

:02:10. > :02:14.It was great to year him admitting that after that victory over Ronnie

:02:15. > :02:17.he had written his winner's speech in his head. It underlines the

:02:18. > :02:25.difficulties of adjustment to your new status. When you won in 2002

:02:26. > :02:30.what was the next season like? Not particularly good. I was conscious

:02:31. > :02:32.that I wanted to be a good while champion and I did all the

:02:33. > :02:36.exhibitions and all the public engagements and everything and it

:02:37. > :02:41.takes away from your preparation for other tournaments. I spoke to

:02:42. > :02:47.Stewart about it earlier in the season and my advice was to get on

:02:48. > :02:51.the table and practice. Is it because there are more commitments

:02:52. > :02:58.and more things to fulfil or is it being world champion? That you have

:02:59. > :03:03.to live up to it? It's definitely changes you and it should change for

:03:04. > :03:08.the best it brings a certain type of pressure as well. I was interested

:03:09. > :03:12.in a couple of things that he said, that he almost wants to forget that

:03:13. > :03:16.he is world champion and he does not want to see has trophy. I would be

:03:17. > :03:22.reminding myself every day I was world champion. Everybody is

:03:23. > :03:27.different. You have to get used to it with six world titles. Did it get

:03:28. > :03:33.easier bearing the mantle? Yes. If you do it more than once. The year

:03:34. > :03:38.after the first year is a strange year. I started to feel the heat in

:03:39. > :03:43.the build-up to the following World Championship. I did OK in the early

:03:44. > :03:49.part of walking out as world champion. It affects everybody in

:03:50. > :03:52.different ways. It is not so much that you work out as world champion

:03:53. > :03:57.and people are having a go at you rather than the other way round.

:03:58. > :04:03.Your levels of expectation are hard to control and on anyone shot if you

:04:04. > :04:08.are thinking I am world champion, I should get this, or putting more

:04:09. > :04:13.pressure on yourself, the game can become from one minutes being a

:04:14. > :04:17.great player and the next struggling and that is when you can come apart

:04:18. > :04:23.at the seams and everybody is having a piece of you. He has not played

:04:24. > :04:27.terribly, winning is most important, and it may be luck. You might win

:04:28. > :04:32.the first tournament offices and with luck. If you get off to a bad

:04:33. > :04:36.start then you are struggling. It did not happen at the UK

:04:37. > :04:46.championship. Would it happen at the Masters last night? Let us find out.

:04:47. > :04:52.After a scrappy start the match kicked off in frame three. Then got

:04:53. > :05:04.a century for the first time ever at the Masters. A much prized maximum

:05:05. > :05:16.looked on. Get in now. The next ball he had a tricky yellow. He has hit

:05:17. > :05:28.it big. Did he get a thick or -- kick or did he hit it big? Email 3-1

:05:29. > :05:35.in front. That will do nicely. The next four frame so sure that both

:05:36. > :05:45.players struggled. Then the scores were level at 4-4. Ding has never

:05:46. > :05:53.won at Alexandra Palace and he needed this yellow for a crucial

:05:54. > :05:57.advantage. I thought that was in. The Essex man took that three-month

:05:58. > :06:03.tearfully engineered a winning position in frame ten, edging over

:06:04. > :06:14.the line 6-4, his first appearance in a quarterfinal year. Amazing. It

:06:15. > :06:20.was a pretty breathtaking opening day. Shaun Murphy the defending

:06:21. > :06:26.champion is gone. Mark Allen will face the winner of this match, Barry

:06:27. > :06:32.Hawkins against Joe Perry. Judd Trump and Stephen Maguire were

:06:33. > :06:37.enjoying this afternoon. Neil Robertson and Marco Fu will be on

:06:38. > :06:41.Wednesday. Mark Selby is a three time when. The winner of that will

:06:42. > :06:51.play the winner of Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Williams. Stuart Bingham

:06:52. > :06:58.goes through. It is all very eventful, is specially in this

:06:59. > :07:05.match. It is the moment, the young man, Judd Trump with a 3-1 advantage

:07:06. > :07:10.with a very eventful few opening frames. It is back to the commentary

:07:11. > :07:20.box. Thank you. It has been one of those

:07:21. > :07:27.matches were Mike the scoreline could have read anything. It could

:07:28. > :07:36.have been 3-1 Stephen Maguire. It looked odds-on that we were going to

:07:37. > :07:41.be two frames all. It is 3-1 to the juggernaut. The best of 11. 3-1 is

:07:42. > :07:55.not that bad. Looking to see of this red will pass

:07:56. > :08:13.the blue. That looks tight. If it does not go

:08:14. > :08:21.there he would have to take it to the middle. He feels he has a kick,

:08:22. > :08:29.but it still might go in. It was tight, but the kick did not help. So

:08:30. > :08:33.close to the pocket. There is a good shot we can show you. You can see

:08:34. > :08:46.the red jumping. Otherwise he would have potted that.

:08:47. > :08:50.Good shot from Stephen Maguire to make sure that he did not make

:08:51. > :09:23.contact with the box colour. That is a poor shot from Stephen. He

:09:24. > :09:32.was playing for the red to the left of the bunch of red and pink. He is

:09:33. > :09:44.only going to score four points from that chance. Yes, just got too low

:09:45. > :09:49.into the cue ball. Such is the level they card-playing that he would have

:09:50. > :09:51.considered that a decent opportunity. You do not get too many

:09:52. > :10:45.at this level. Good shot. Excellent. He hit that all wrong. He was just

:10:46. > :10:48.trying to swing it rained. It was a tough shot they was attempting and

:10:49. > :10:57.he just hit it completely the wrong way. He was trying to swing it round

:10:58. > :11:04.the back. It was OK until the red he played cannoned into it and spoiled

:11:05. > :11:10.it. Good example of playing a proper safety shot. Judd played a cracking

:11:11. > :11:16.shot. It may did much more difficult for him to get back and because of

:11:17. > :11:20.that he has got his opportunity. That is where his game has improved,

:11:21. > :11:26.he has been working on his tactical game. He is not going to play the

:11:27. > :11:30.way he plays the game -- change the way he plays the game, but if you

:11:31. > :11:43.can do the business it is a tough format to beat. You have to create

:11:44. > :11:47.the chances for yourself and he certainly did that with that

:11:48. > :11:54.excellent safety that he played. It is worth another look. Lots of run

:11:55. > :12:03.inside the angles and Ronnie could not have put it in a better spot. It

:12:04. > :12:07.is what has been a little bit surprising when he has not won a

:12:08. > :12:11.tournament last season. You thought when he was getting closer all the

:12:12. > :12:15.time to Ronnie Sullivan and he eventually beat him in the final you

:12:16. > :12:19.were waiting for him to kick on, that was the confidence he needed to

:12:20. > :12:24.regularly be at the business end, but it has not happened for him.

:12:25. > :12:34.Hopefully this week at the Masters it will kick-start him.

:12:35. > :12:43.That has certainly opened things up. If you can get the cannon correctly

:12:44. > :12:57.we will show you the split of the reds. Has to be a little bit careful

:12:58. > :13:08.here. Just about OK. It is quite a thin one. The blue and pink are a

:13:09. > :13:16.little awkward. Concentrate on the box colours. He is OK. If he lands

:13:17. > :13:27.on the Brunei think he can still get to the green. I am checking to see

:13:28. > :13:31.if it is touching. -- the referee. He looks pretty good with his

:13:32. > :13:41.opposite hand, but he decides to make absolutely sure. Get the rest

:13:42. > :13:46.out. It is one of those shots that is a little bit awkward for using

:13:47. > :13:50.the rest. I do not blame him going back to playing best right-handed.

:13:51. > :14:02.He is pretty proficient at it. Just awkward. That would not have been

:14:03. > :14:12.any problem to you, Dennis. Look where the white has landed. Can you

:14:13. > :14:21.get your breath? Wow. Anywhere except there. Yes, I used to hit

:14:22. > :14:27.using the rest. I used to prefer switching hands. I was OK on certain

:14:28. > :14:38.shots. Not the way some of these boys, they looks the same when they

:14:39. > :14:41.switch hands. A letter I got from a gentleman at the World Championship

:14:42. > :14:49.who said I love you switching hands, he said I would give my right arm to

:14:50. > :14:55.be ambidextrous. You would have to be from Liverpool to make a remark

:14:56. > :15:08.like that! So disappointed where that cue ball finished.

:15:09. > :15:18.You feel as if it is a massive frame in the match. It is the first to 6,

:15:19. > :15:22.so 4-1 is not the end of the world, but it would certainly be far less

:15:23. > :15:46.of a task if Stephen Maguire could win this frame.

:15:47. > :15:53.These are really tough shots. I would be surprised if Judd can get

:15:54. > :16:00.this. It needs a delicate touch to get right tight behind the green. It

:16:01. > :16:06.is one of those shots you do not want to leave it short and leave

:16:07. > :16:15.yourself in trouble. It looks like Stephen Maguire can get through to

:16:16. > :16:27.this red. Screw back into the baulk area. Where are the reds going to

:16:28. > :16:31.finish? Got the good cue ball but you are never sure what is going to

:16:32. > :16:41.happen when you have to hit it at that pace.

:16:42. > :16:55.Good pot. Nicely controlled. Played the cannon onto the pink. It looks

:16:56. > :16:58.like he is getting into the ascendancy. The scoreline will tell

:16:59. > :17:06.you that, but that does not always pink the correct picture. It looks

:17:07. > :17:18.as if he has started to motor a little bit. That has just finished

:17:19. > :17:31.very awkward. He is looking at the blue.

:17:32. > :17:43.Even that jumped. Terrible contact on that. He will be pleased to see

:17:44. > :17:53.it go in with that jump. It left the bed of the cloth, but it went in. If

:17:54. > :17:56.he is straight on the blue it could be the end of the break. He is going

:17:57. > :18:03.to have to look at the more difficult pink. That looks dead

:18:04. > :18:19.straight. Pink to keep the break going. A couple of reds available

:18:20. > :18:26.into the corner if this goes in. Still not straightforward just yet.

:18:27. > :18:34.I am with you. It looks as if he is starting to take control of this

:18:35. > :18:39.match, Judd. I think that frame before the mid-session interval was

:18:40. > :18:53.a big boost to him. It really was. He is pushing on from there.

:18:54. > :19:03.Just trying to hold the sport so he can retain position, which he has

:19:04. > :19:09.done. The outside red is pottable. I think he can bring the back into

:19:10. > :19:15.play -- black. If he was dead straight he would roll it in for the

:19:16. > :19:21.pink. You can see the angle. He is in pretty good shape. Good job he

:19:22. > :19:49.did not hit it any harder. It is interesting how he switches

:19:50. > :19:52.hands when he plays with the rest. A lot of the left-handed players seem

:19:53. > :20:04.to do that, using their right hand with the rest.

:20:05. > :20:19.Where is the red? The red has to pool up, and it has. He is starting

:20:20. > :20:25.to look very good. That frame before the interval was absolutely massive.

:20:26. > :20:28.He is carrying it on. It is going to take a big effort from Stephen

:20:29. > :20:39.Maguire. He has been around long enough to know if you knuckle down

:20:40. > :20:41.your still involved in the match. This man is starting to look very

:20:42. > :21:06.good indeed. Yes, just sheer natural talent and

:21:07. > :21:11.ability we are looking at here. He is one of those players that was

:21:12. > :21:21.born to play the game of snooker. Complete natural. A little

:21:22. > :21:31.exhibition shot. Look at that shot to get on the yellow.

:21:32. > :21:40.We call it round the houses. He went round the houses twice to get to the

:21:41. > :21:48.yellow. Yes, some shot. There is another one. Yes, no disrespect to

:21:49. > :21:58.his opponent, he just likes to entertain. You cannot pot them all.

:21:59. > :22:02.A fabulous effort from Judd Trump. That break of 69 expenses lead. He

:22:03. > :23:16.leads 4-1. -- extends his lead. Looks very comfortable at the

:23:17. > :23:20.moment, Judd. He knows he is up against one of the toughest match

:23:21. > :23:26.players in the game. Stephen Maguire wants to get his hand on that

:23:27. > :23:27.trophy. Judd Trump would love to get his hand on that beautiful crystal

:23:28. > :24:03.trophy. Has he got away with that? I am not

:24:04. > :24:12.sure if that red goes into the right corner. No. He has had a result. He

:24:13. > :24:15.was playing that long pot in such a way that he would go round the back

:24:16. > :25:08.of the red and he actually headed too thick. -- hit it.

:25:09. > :25:16.This is a must win frame for Stephen Maguire. At 5-1 you would not give

:25:17. > :25:20.him much of a chance. He will be giving this everything he has got to

:25:21. > :26:26.try to keep themselves in this year's Masters. -- himself.

:26:27. > :26:56.Not a good chance by any means. The pink is tied up and the like is a

:26:57. > :27:47.bit awkward at the moment. -- black. Quite a bit of work to do here.

:27:48. > :27:53.It is far from easy, this. I do not know whether he can risk playing for

:27:54. > :28:07.the black here. Played it well. As long as he got a

:28:08. > :28:12.tan and he was going to be OK. He took a long time on the shot, and

:28:13. > :28:17.that was the reason. Played that very nicely. You feel that if he is

:28:18. > :28:22.going to get back into this match this is exactly what he needs, a

:28:23. > :28:28.decent chance to win a frame in one visit. Try to change the scoreline

:28:29. > :28:33.quickly. You do not want to be embroiled in long hard frames. If

:28:34. > :28:36.you can get back into the match quicker all the better. This is a

:28:37. > :29:00.good chance. Situations like this where you have

:29:01. > :29:05.to keep your belief. From what we have seen today we know he is

:29:06. > :29:09.hitting the ball pretty well. As Peter said, there's not much wrong

:29:10. > :29:15.with how is hitting it. A couple of frames could have gone the other

:29:16. > :29:19.way. You have to believe when the opportunities come you can take

:29:20. > :29:37.them. He has played well for being 3-1 down.

:29:38. > :29:43.That red to the right of the black has been a little bit of a bug bail

:29:44. > :29:49.in this effort. He might be able to screw back and get onto it. I am not

:29:50. > :30:02.sure if he has the right angle to do that. Not quite. He had to play the

:30:03. > :30:07.cannon. Even if he is straight I think he will be OK. He can screw

:30:08. > :30:10.back with a little bit of reverse side of the cushion. He is straight.

:30:11. > :30:31.He can screw back. Going along very nicely here.

:30:32. > :30:35.He would love to win the frame with one visit. It sends a little message

:30:36. > :30:56.out to Judd that he is far from finished here.

:30:57. > :31:04.He has to be a little careful here v obviously that loose red row can see

:31:05. > :31:09.below the cluster is available. If you play this, make sure you don't

:31:10. > :31:14.stun up too far. Notice the way he played that stun

:31:15. > :31:19.shot with a bit of side, just widen the angle to guarantee to be on

:31:20. > :31:26.this. He is looking pretty good here.

:31:27. > :31:29.Nice little cannon, and he should be on the red to the left-hand side

:31:30. > :31:53.that we can see, that is available now.

:31:54. > :32:00.Just checking to see if there is anything available in the middle

:32:01. > :32:06.pocket but it doesn't look like it. He needs to get an angle to leave

:32:07. > :32:10.himself the possibility of a cannon. Maybe the bottom one, he is just

:32:11. > :32:16.looking at it now, maybe than will go.

:32:17. > :32:27.He doesn't need to play the cannon. Can see that one up first. This has

:32:28. > :32:54.been very good. Very good indeed. This is a sign of a true champion,

:32:55. > :32:59.he is producing this, 4-1 behind. Fabulous break-builder Stephen

:33:00. > :33:05.Maguire. He has made 312 centuries in his career.

:33:06. > :33:10.The cue ball has been hardly out of place through this break. When it

:33:11. > :33:14.looks simple it is very good. It is exactly what he has made this break

:33:15. > :33:39.look. Nice little prize of ?10,000 in this

:33:40. > :33:48.year's Masters for the highest break.

:33:49. > :33:52.Mark Allen had a magnificent 137 against Shaun Murphy yesterday.

:33:53. > :33:57.Stuart Bingham almost making a maximum break when he broke down on

:33:58. > :34:10.the yellow. But no extra prize for the maximum, you still just get the

:34:11. > :34:14.high break prize. No century break but I don't think

:34:15. > :34:18.he will be be too disappointed by that. He would have loved to have

:34:19. > :34:23.cleared up, but the more important part was he took the frame and he is

:34:24. > :34:28.now just two behind, 4-2 to Judd Trump. HAZEL IRVINE: Reminding

:34:29. > :34:32.everyone why he is still a major force in this game and so important

:34:33. > :34:37.that frame from Steve. Yes, and to get it done and dusted in one go,

:34:38. > :34:40.get on with the next and try and keep the momentum going, and the

:34:41. > :34:45.difference between the best of nine and 11 is big. Got a birth more

:34:46. > :34:50.breathing space, 4-1 behind in the best of nine is tough. When you have

:34:51. > :34:55.played Stephen in the past, what are the hallmarks in of what makes him

:34:56. > :35:00.so tough out there? I think the fact that he is very aggressive. He is

:35:01. > :35:03.not afraid to take his shots on, no matter who he plays makes his

:35:04. > :35:09.dangerous. I was very impressed there with the level of his

:35:10. > :35:12.concentration, during that break. He was focussed, wonderfully well, so

:35:13. > :35:16.this match is is a long way from being over, if he can maintain that

:35:17. > :35:22.level of focus and concentration. The longer cheeps Judd off the table

:35:23. > :35:26.the more hopeful will be of dampening down that enthusiasm he is

:35:27. > :35:30.starting to show. You are aware you don't want to leave your opponent

:35:31. > :35:36.with just that one frame to win. So the longer he can keep him on form,

:35:37. > :35:41.the more the panic may set in. Judd Trump is an experienced player

:35:42. > :35:52.himself, he will have his work cut out. Frame seven, here we go.

:35:53. > :35:58.This would be a nice one to knock in, let us see if he can keep that

:35:59. > :36:02.momentum going, as the boys were talking about in the studio.

:36:03. > :36:09.Fabulous break in the last frame. Can he knock a long one in? Not

:36:10. > :36:18.quite. Where is the red going to finish? Is it goes to finish over

:36:19. > :36:27.that middle pocket? No, it is safe. So... Well, I think it is safe. He

:36:28. > :36:32.has been due a bit of luck in this match. Not had a particularly good

:36:33. > :36:56.run of the balls this afternoon. That is one he did get away.

:36:57. > :37:02.Good shot there. Taken very quick of course, and there we have another

:37:03. > :37:06.innovation as you can see on the left we have the table hearts

:37:07. > :37:09.monitoring the temperature. The one on the right is apparently a new

:37:10. > :37:13.inknow vairks it is a probe that is being used. It is inserted into one

:37:14. > :37:17.of the cushions to see the temperatures of the cushionings 6789

:37:18. > :37:20.sometimes the balls have been bouncing high and the table fitter

:37:21. > :37:26.has come up with this, to try and keep an eye on that and see if the

:37:27. > :37:30.conditions worsen, he will know what the they worsened at, so it is an

:37:31. > :37:47.ongoing experiment and something worth looking at.

:37:48. > :37:52.At, so it is an ongoing experiment and something worth looking at.

:37:53. > :37:56.Amazing the innovations in snooker, in the '70s you went to play at the

:37:57. > :38:01.holiday camp, giving exhibition, there was no table heart there's. In

:38:02. > :38:02.fact the cushions used to be on the table to stop the ball from dropping

:38:03. > :38:22.on the floor. Ball from dropping on the floor.

:38:23. > :38:27.I bet you didn't have a bucket on the end of the table at your club

:38:28. > :38:32.like they did at mine. Someone nicked the led off the roof. He has

:38:33. > :38:40.played some good safety play has Judd, and there is another one

:38:41. > :38:44.there. There you can see Judd at 90% with

:38:45. > :39:24.his safety success rate, that is impressive.

:39:25. > :39:33.Not as straight forward for Stephen the play the return safety shot.

:39:34. > :39:39.-- to play the return safety shot. I don't know if he can squeeze through

:39:40. > :39:49.a gap there, to get the side of the reds. He did but he caught it thick.

:39:50. > :39:53.Yes, it is one of those shots that you have to get absolutely perfectly

:39:54. > :39:57.right, because if you don't, and you get it a touch on the thick side you

:39:58. > :40:01.know you will leave the cue ball down the table and not reach the

:40:02. > :40:14.baulk area. That is what he did there.

:40:15. > :40:20.Well, it wasn't completely easy that, he has to play with a bit of

:40:21. > :40:24.drag to come back for the black, but I didn't expect him missing it. We

:40:25. > :40:30.will show you the shot again but he has got away with it. When you do

:40:31. > :40:53.miss, you can quite easily stick one up so a safety shot available.

:40:54. > :41:04.They played 16 shots between them with the rest, that is the first one

:41:05. > :41:07.that has been missed. Gone a bit scrappy this frame, but

:41:08. > :41:12.it is just how it pans out. You never know how it is going to go.

:41:13. > :41:18.Look at the reds behind the black spot area, green off its spot, blue

:41:19. > :41:20.off it spot. Black off its spot. It is one of those frames that could be

:41:21. > :41:35.One side of the table with that awkward but just as important.

:41:36. > :41:42.One side of the table with that green being knocked off its spot, it

:41:43. > :41:48.is no good for snookering behind anything, so... Makes it a bit more

:41:49. > :41:59.awkward for the players to get the opponent in trouble.

:42:00. > :42:05.Now then. A chance here, but if you are going to take this on it is not

:42:06. > :42:11.easy and you have to be fully committed. You will be cannoning

:42:12. > :42:14.into other ball, I think. Yes, I think if he pots this red he

:42:15. > :42:17.will cannon the red nearest the cushion. If he doesn't the white

:42:18. > :42:22.will go dangerously close to the right middle pocket. It is a natural

:42:23. > :42:27.angle for the white to go over towards the right middle pocket. All

:42:28. > :42:34.depends what pace he plays it at. But if he doesn't see an easy safety

:42:35. > :42:40.shot he may have to take that on. What he is thinking about there, is

:42:41. > :42:56.do I take the risk? And the answer is, yes, but keep an eye on that cue

:42:57. > :43:00.ball. Couldn't avoid the cannon on that red, and it is a bit lucky, he

:43:01. > :43:05.has the pink but there is no value in it. He is running up towards the

:43:06. > :43:11.yellow if he took the pot on the pink on. But as ever he got the

:43:12. > :43:14.priority right. Potted the ball, and sometimes you have to do that to get

:43:15. > :43:25.yourself out of trouble. Couldn't avoid that cannon on the

:43:26. > :44:00.red. Excellent shot from Judd. Well, can

:44:01. > :44:05.he get past the... Well he can, but I tell you what, it is tough with

:44:06. > :44:15.being close to the cushion. You have to cue this perfectly.

:44:16. > :44:37.That wasn't as easy as it looked. Let us have a look. There is only a

:44:38. > :44:46.couple of reds available, believe it or not, at the moment. One either

:44:47. > :44:50.side of the black spot. He needs to keep travelling, otherwise he has

:44:51. > :44:54.snookered himself on that one I mentioned. So that could be end of

:44:55. > :45:00.break already, so that is a little careless. He has a lot of margin for

:45:01. > :45:06.error there, John. He certainly did. He needed to be wider, he had more

:45:07. > :45:15.of an area to play into that tight to the pink. He having a look at it.

:45:16. > :45:19.That is a play at the side. Couldn't control the cue ball, and that is

:45:20. > :45:25.end of break. Amazing that fraction, because if he

:45:26. > :45:30.can see enough of it Yousaf Raza Gilaniing the side, he is -- on the

:45:31. > :45:35.side. He has himself in all sorts of trouble. Can he see enough of the

:45:36. > :45:44.side cushion here? In fact he is playing for the brown off two

:45:45. > :45:52.cushions. Not a bad effort. Come off a bit

:45:53. > :45:56.square there. He hasn't got the angle to play for

:45:57. > :46:07.the green, otherwise he would play to land on that.

:46:08. > :46:10.A bad effort. Come off a bit square there.

:46:11. > :46:12.He hasn't got the angle to play for the green, otherwise he would play

:46:13. > :46:15.to land on that. I think it needs to be moved

:46:16. > :46:18.slightly. He could see the two cushions.

:46:19. > :46:20.It has to be the brown, because the red is stopping him from going for

:46:21. > :46:39.the green. Yes, that is what he is trying to do

:46:40. > :47:32.there. Maybe just to the right Not often you see ten reds almost

:47:33. > :47:42.behind the black spot area. That cue ball, close to the pocket.

:47:43. > :48:14.Just cost him four points because there is nothing available.

:48:15. > :48:22.It looked like he was struggling to make a decision there, the thing,

:48:23. > :48:30.whatever decision you make, at least play it 100 percent, he is angry

:48:31. > :48:31.because he has mis-hit that. Although Judd won't be too happy

:48:32. > :48:43.with that shot. Yes, it is so easy to lose rhythm

:48:44. > :48:50.when the balls finish up like this and you have having to play Shaun

:48:51. > :48:55.Murphyty shots. You just lose that bit of rhythm. -- play safety shots.

:48:56. > :49:00.I mentioned about this table possibly drifting off a bit. I know

:49:01. > :49:04.Pete has looked at it, the table fitter, and it seems to be running

:49:05. > :49:08.spot on today, mine that shot there is an indication of how well the

:49:09. > :49:22.table and how true it is running, and that ran perfectly.

:49:23. > :49:32.A little Judd Trump special here. A smile from Stephen. He has had a few

:49:33. > :49:39.poor safety shots. The last two. I mean that wasn't easy where he was,

:49:40. > :49:45.but to leave him a chance like this was disappointing from his point of

:49:46. > :49:49.view. It locks as if he has enough angle

:49:50. > :49:54.to run it through rather than play a deep screw. If he can come off the

:49:55. > :49:59.two angles for the pin, he has a look for the pink in the centre, he

:50:00. > :50:05.is going to hit this good because it is nearly straight.

:50:06. > :50:10.So he did your shot. Goodness me. How well did he hit

:50:11. > :50:14.that. I love watching him play that type of shot. I mean I have never

:50:15. > :50:16.known anybody in the frame, in the game, that can hit it so easy and

:50:17. > :50:41.still get that action on it. Can hit it so easy and still get

:50:42. > :50:44.that action on it. I don't know whether he is on a ball

:50:45. > :50:52.here. No. I think that last little cannon

:50:53. > :50:56.just undid him. A little cannon on the green would help here. Bit of

:50:57. > :51:32.side. That will do OK. He could be in for a little bout of

:51:33. > :51:37.safety t way those reds are. -- safety, the way those reds are.

:51:38. > :51:44.We have seen that deep screw shot he played. I mean effortless. Right

:51:45. > :51:48.down at the bottom, as if you were hitting the ball at 6.00. There we

:51:49. > :51:54.can show you right at the bottom, and that black-and-white ball stops

:51:55. > :51:59.and then all of a sudden just keeps spinning back. But Judd was a lot

:52:00. > :52:04.further away from that indication, we show you there is another four

:52:05. > :52:08.points. It doesn't really matter. What an awkward frame of snooker,

:52:09. > :52:12.the brown is the only colour that is on its spot, even the pink is

:52:13. > :52:16.slightly off its spot. Yes, those set of balls look like when you

:52:17. > :52:20.first put them on the table, took them out of the box. I have never

:52:21. > :52:25.seen so many of them packed like that.

:52:26. > :52:29.Even you wouldn't clear up from here. Couldn't clear up from there

:52:30. > :52:39.with a Dyson, it is absolutely impossible.

:52:40. > :53:18.And other Hoovers are available of course!

:53:19. > :53:25.That is going to take a little bit of sorting out, this, because there

:53:26. > :53:32.is not a lot moving because they are all so bunched up.

:53:33. > :53:38.But gradually, the reds are moving towards the right side of the table.

:53:39. > :53:46.Here we go, 4-ball plant, in-off the black.

:53:47. > :54:00.With a bit of safety in mind. That would be some shot.

:54:01. > :54:16.Just didn't catch the black, but, still a pretty good shot.

:54:17. > :54:51.Just wanted to flick off. I wonder, could we have a possible rerack? Not

:54:52. > :54:56.surely from the way the balls are, but if they keep nudging at them, he

:54:57. > :55:00.is looking at... He is is looking at Judd.

:55:01. > :55:05.Think as well, there is only three points between them. It is not like

:55:06. > :55:10.somebody is 30, 40 points ahead. If they wanted to have one both players

:55:11. > :55:16.could say yes. Yes. I am pleased about that. Oh no, he is putting it

:55:17. > :55:20.back, I thought we had a rerack. I am getting ahead of myself. You are

:55:21. > :55:26.getting excited there! But they did sort of have a little

:55:27. > :55:41.chat with each other, about a possible starting end to this frame.

:55:42. > :55:52.Surely not two days on the trot Eden necessary.

:55:53. > :55:59.Well, he is going to be warned now. It is drifting, maybe he has a tough

:56:00. > :56:06.of side on it. It either drifted or he got a touch of side on. Tell you

:56:07. > :56:10.one thing, he won't be missing it. I said that when Shaun Murphy was

:56:11. > :56:15.playing. REFEREE: If you play a miss again,

:56:16. > :56:36.Judd, you will forfeit the frame. As long as you hit a red first. What

:56:37. > :56:45.was he asking him The answer was as long as you hit a red first. I don't

:56:46. > :56:49.know. He will hit the red. And now that is every chance of a

:56:50. > :56:52.rerack now with the black right over the pocket.

:56:53. > :56:56.I know what he was say, he was saying to him if I knock the black

:56:57. > :57:04.in there, because I think he was certain that that was going to go

:57:05. > :57:09.close. That wouldn't be classed as a miss. But I am waiting for day,

:57:10. > :57:15.John, when the third attempt somebody miscue, because you could

:57:16. > :57:21.lose the frame with a miscue. They are having a chat again, you know.

:57:22. > :57:25.Yes, why not boys? Everybody is pleased to hear that.

:57:26. > :57:33.Because it was such an awkward frame, and we were going nowhere,

:57:34. > :57:38.now, the fact that the black was right over the pocket. The good news

:57:39. > :57:42.about this is he couldn't doesn't have to walk far for the reds, does

:57:43. > :57:46.he. Yes, I am pleased about that, and

:57:47. > :57:50.the whole crowd are, because it has been such a fantastic first six

:57:51. > :57:54.frames, and, the beginning of that, the balls just got more and more

:57:55. > :58:01.awkward, and, yes, we were going nowhere once the black was knocked

:58:02. > :58:05.over the pocket, so, but, as you say, what he was asking the referee,

:58:06. > :58:09.if I play the cannon, hit the black and knock the black in, but that is

:58:10. > :58:12.not classed as a three misses in a row, but always worth checking He

:58:13. > :58:18.was saying, this may very well happen, with the shot I am having to

:58:19. > :58:29.play. I am o not playing it on purpose but it could happen.

:58:30. > :59:00.Any way Judd gets the seventh frame under way for the second time.

:59:01. > :59:07.Ity he might settle for that. Now he missed it, he could have scattered

:59:08. > :59:13.the reds all over the table. Another look, he was playing round the back

:59:14. > :59:22.of the red and black, which he did do, but he double-kissed the red and

:59:23. > :59:28.it wasn't the worst outcome, was it? Not often you get a rerack after 23

:59:29. > :59:31.minute, I did once many moons ago against Gary Wilkinson who works

:59:32. > :59:33.with the association here, and it was after 40 minute, we had a

:59:34. > :59:56.rerack. Just the way the frame went. Bet you that was fun to watch! You

:59:57. > :00:01.would have loved it, John. I don't think you can see enough of

:00:02. > :00:13.this to take the pot on. Just a safety.

:00:14. > :00:16.He has been very fortunate he did not play to leave the red behind the

:00:17. > :00:30.other one. Just checking that there is nothing

:00:31. > :00:32.going to get knocked over the corner pocket. He has to play over the side

:00:33. > :00:48.of the pack. In the end, he changes his mind. A

:00:49. > :01:04.bit of a loose one. Played it very well.

:01:05. > :01:18.He could possibly play the plant with the safety shot in mind. He

:01:19. > :01:22.thought he would have a safety shot on if he attempted the plant but he

:01:23. > :01:55.did not hit it as he intended. The black and pink are tied up. He

:01:56. > :02:02.is on the blue. If he hits the pink full balky cute bring the black into

:02:03. > :02:12.play. Key shot coming up. Needs a bit of luck. It could have finished

:02:13. > :02:19.better for him. He could not have played it any better. Maybe full on

:02:20. > :02:24.the pink would have been better, but it was still a very good effort and

:02:25. > :02:30.a bit unlucky not to have an easier pot than this. Yes, that one he is

:02:31. > :02:35.closest to is not a particularly appealing angle. It would take a lot

:02:36. > :02:42.of force to bring it round and even then, how do you get onto the

:02:43. > :02:52.colour? He is going to take it on. This is not straightforward. Yes.

:02:53. > :02:57.Very easy to play those shots and bounce the cue ball. The cue ball

:02:58. > :03:11.bounces off the cloth. You missed the potting angle. See the way the

:03:12. > :03:14.cue ball went in the air. It is the type of shot and if you were just

:03:15. > :04:12.dropping it would be OK, but having to play at with any force...

:04:13. > :04:27.Good pot. I am pretty sure when Stephen Maguire was playing that

:04:28. > :04:35.safety shot it could have been that red.

:04:36. > :04:42.He has to become for with his next position or shot. Looking to see if

:04:43. > :04:53.he can get on the black. If you play this red and screw back it is easy

:04:54. > :05:20.to lose the cue ball. Hit that nicely.

:05:21. > :05:27.Might have gone too far. Let us see what goes into this right corner.

:05:28. > :05:42.Does the red go between the black and the other red? Just about. No.

:05:43. > :05:47.It was a bit of a distraction. There was plenty of room. It was as if he

:05:48. > :05:51.just put a little quick one in. It was probably because he did not have

:05:52. > :06:02.that much room past the red, he just overcooked it. This is a very big

:06:03. > :06:07.part of this match. After that mistake, if Stephen Maguire can win

:06:08. > :07:00.the frame from it it could turn this match around.

:07:01. > :07:10.In the previous frame he made a beautiful 92 break. Every chance he

:07:11. > :07:27.could knock quite a few in here. I think both players lost just a

:07:28. > :07:36.little bit of rhythm was what happened before the re-rack. Balls

:07:37. > :07:40.went very awkward. 20 minutes play where they hardly went for a pot, so

:07:41. > :07:50.you do get out of your rhythm somewhat. He is starting to look

:07:51. > :07:53.good again here. Yes. What will encourage him even more is the fact

:07:54. > :08:07.his opponent is hurting to miss a few. -- starting. No greater

:08:08. > :08:14.encouragement than that. You playing well and your opponent missing a few

:08:15. > :08:15.balls. Yes, Judd was up at 93% with his pot success rate not so long

:08:16. > :09:01.ago. Potted seven out of seven with the

:09:02. > :09:27.rest so far. Make that eight out of eight. No

:09:28. > :09:32.need to play any cannons. Both rents near the pink spot. All are

:09:33. > :09:44.available because they will clear each other.

:09:45. > :09:52.Just come up a little bit short of where he wanted it. A slight change

:09:53. > :10:00.of plan. He will have to head up towards the blue. If he is too far

:10:01. > :10:11.towards the blue he has the pink on the spot, so he is OK. The brown is

:10:12. > :10:24.the one that will get him to the two reds near the pink. Yes. He is doing

:10:25. > :10:33.exactly what is required. Judd made a mistake and missed a pot he should

:10:34. > :10:38.have got and he is punishing him. A match that was looking like it was

:10:39. > :10:48.slipping away at 4-1 is all of a sudden back on.

:10:49. > :11:38.Judd has had a couple of 50s, a 60 and a 69.

:11:39. > :11:45.Judd has been kept away from the table. Stephen made that 92 break

:11:46. > :11:51.and he really has not had any chances. After 20 minutes with the

:11:52. > :11:56.re-rack. I know he missed the red, but he has lost a bit of rhythm,

:11:57. > :12:02.Judd, simply because of the way this man has played, and that awkward

:12:03. > :12:10.frame, it does not matter about that. Stephen Maguire continues the

:12:11. > :12:14.comeback. He is just one behind. You guys called it. You said the

:12:15. > :12:18.longer he can keep him of that scoresheet the greater the chance he

:12:19. > :12:23.is going to have. What was your impression of the way Stephen

:12:24. > :12:28.Maguire went about his business? He is very focused and determined.

:12:29. > :12:32.Every credit to him. He should really have been 3-1 up in this

:12:33. > :12:39.match and a lot of the time many players will drop their head and

:12:40. > :12:44.think this is not my day, and you have to have every respect for

:12:45. > :12:48.Stephen the way he has hung in there. It has been a top-class

:12:49. > :12:53.professional performance and he is then with every chance. We were

:12:54. > :12:58.talking about his levels of intensity and how much that takes

:12:59. > :13:02.out of you during a match. Do you agree it is physically draining to

:13:03. > :13:07.be on the front foot for most of the match? It can be but over the years

:13:08. > :13:11.that is what he has got used to so he prepares mentally for that. If

:13:12. > :13:17.you swapped bodies, if Judd had to try to concentrate like Stephen

:13:18. > :13:22.Maguire has perhaps he would go at the end of it, what a day. Stephen

:13:23. > :13:28.Maguire would think he had not played one frame. He is certainly

:13:29. > :13:40.still in this. Maguire beat Trump 6-4 at this stage six months ago --

:13:41. > :13:47.a year ago. It is lovely to hear the boys

:13:48. > :13:51.talking about focus. Two of the most focused snooker players there has

:13:52. > :13:55.ever been. Peter Ebdon gives every shot 100% and very rarely plays a

:13:56. > :14:10.careless shot. Better get back to work soon, Judd.

:14:11. > :14:14.I know that was not easy, but his opponent will start to get

:14:15. > :14:21.encouraged. I know that was far from easy. That is a really difficult

:14:22. > :14:23.shot, but his next opportunity, as soon as he gets one, he needs to

:14:24. > :14:42.start scoring again. Yes. He knew he always had the green

:14:43. > :14:45.over the pocket so that is why he played that shot in the way he did,

:14:46. > :14:52.but this is even tougher than the previous attempt. It is almost

:14:53. > :14:56.straight and not very inviting. If there is no easy safety shot and he

:14:57. > :15:09.may have to take it on because the green is right over the corner

:15:10. > :15:14.pocket. No. When you are playing them at that pace they are so

:15:15. > :15:20.difficult. Why play it at that kiss if the green is over the pocket?

:15:21. > :15:25.Give yourself a better chance and give the pocket a chance by nearly

:15:26. > :15:32.trying to drop it in. If you do not get in, the green is there. Made the

:15:33. > :15:49.shot so much more difficult. One or two worrying signs.

:15:50. > :15:56.Especially the form that Stephen Maguire is in at the moment. Breaks

:15:57. > :16:01.of 92 and 74, you cannot leave him in amongst the balls like this.

:16:02. > :16:05.Judge should have tried to roll that red in, the green was over the

:16:06. > :16:16.pocket and maybe just the wrong choice of shot. -- Judd. It is still

:16:17. > :17:42.anyone's match. He will leave himself nicely on the

:17:43. > :17:50.red at the back of the pack in such a way that he can open up some reds.

:17:51. > :17:54.He has played for the one to the left of the pink on this occasion

:17:55. > :17:58.but we know that that one at the back of the bunch is on, and

:17:59. > :18:12.eventually if he gets on that he can pop it and bring a few more into

:18:13. > :18:14.play. He is looking to find his way to 71 points to secure the frame.

:18:15. > :18:29.Can he do it at this visit? He cannot go into the bunch because

:18:30. > :18:37.the pink is so far away from the reds. That is not an option. That

:18:38. > :18:49.red, the one I mentioned at the back of the bunch, is available.

:18:50. > :18:59.This looks to be pretty good to me. He can maybe just not a couple into

:19:00. > :19:10.play, or is he too straight? He The headlines: That well. A difficult

:19:11. > :19:11.position now shot. Not ideal, but nevertheless it was played really

:19:12. > :20:09.well. You can hear a pin drop in the arena

:20:10. > :20:26.at the moment. The crowd absorbed in this match. He is going along very

:20:27. > :20:31.nicely, and tell that cannon has not quite worked out. He is using the

:20:32. > :20:45.green over the pocket, always a bit of insurance. Not bad. If he is

:20:46. > :20:48.straight on this red he can leave himself on brown or green and then

:20:49. > :21:00.come off the side cushion and into the pack.

:21:01. > :21:57.That is the first one I think he has missed with the rest.

:21:58. > :22:09.A bit reluctance to open the reds up, Stephen. Judd will play the shot

:22:10. > :22:14.if he has the chance. This might develop some of the reds. As long as

:22:15. > :22:20.he gets a good cue ball he can bring quite a few of these reds into play,

:22:21. > :22:30.but he is also playing the single red which might go close to the

:22:31. > :22:31.left-hand pocket. That has just put the black out of commission at the

:22:32. > :22:48.moment. That really have tied the black up,

:22:49. > :22:54.which is good from Stephen Maguire's point of view with a 48 point

:22:55. > :22:57.advantage. Are we going to see a Judd Trump special year? He could do

:22:58. > :23:13.with pulling this long pot out. No. It is amazing. He might just have

:23:14. > :23:21.got away with that, and he has brought the black into play, though

:23:22. > :23:29.he has got a bit of a result. He is usually pretty good at this type of

:23:30. > :23:32.shot, Judd. He did not quite hit it as he intended but bringing the

:23:33. > :23:40.black into play and getting it safe was a good second prize. Yes. I am

:23:41. > :23:45.wondering if Stephen can play the red in the baulk area and send it

:23:46. > :23:49.round the angles. It is probably the only shot he has got. Played it very

:23:50. > :24:07.well. The cue ball. Actually quite tricky this, the

:24:08. > :24:12.reply from Judd, because the red on the cushion or close to it is

:24:13. > :24:16.blocking the natural path down to the baulk area so he could quite

:24:17. > :24:23.easily cannon that if he plays of the reds to the left of the pink. He

:24:24. > :24:30.did pretty well to miss that red on the left-hand side. It is the only

:24:31. > :24:48.one he has got, one in the middle, he can play thin of that.

:24:49. > :24:55.That is how he played the shot. Maybe it looked reckless but he did

:24:56. > :25:00.not have an easy safety and he played that with so much top spin.

:25:01. > :25:04.He was taking the pot one but he made sure he got the cue ball back

:25:05. > :25:08.up the table, though it was quite a decent effort. There is not that

:25:09. > :25:16.much room for the red to pass the black.

:25:17. > :25:36.That had to be so precise. Only just past the black.

:25:37. > :25:45.Tough enough if you are right in behind them, but from that angle it

:25:46. > :25:50.was a great shot. Fabulous. A little bit unlucky to finish dry he has

:25:51. > :26:03.done. Not great on the brown or the green. -- finish where he has done.

:26:04. > :26:10.So much so he decided to play the safety and put the brown on the side

:26:11. > :26:28.cushion. It seemed like a really good pot for one point.

:26:29. > :26:36.That has handed the frame to Stephen Maguire. He hit that too thick. He

:26:37. > :26:40.thought he could cannon on the black but he did not. He has given Stephen

:26:41. > :26:55.Maguire a late Christmas present in this frame. Yes. This match is on

:26:56. > :27:00.the turn. Judd Trump was looking good and Stephen Maguire looked as

:27:01. > :27:05.if he was in trouble and got a 92 and 74 break, and a little bit of

:27:06. > :27:13.focus gone from Judd in the last frame or so. He got beat in the UK

:27:14. > :27:19.before Christmas when he was leading pre-0 and 4-1. He ended up losing

:27:20. > :27:20.6-4. Is it going to happen again? At the moment Stephen Maguire looks

:27:21. > :27:39.favourite to me. Just the simplest of reds to secure

:27:40. > :28:31.the frame. Started out at the best of 11 and we

:28:32. > :28:36.are down to the best of three. He will want to clear these up. Judd

:28:37. > :28:45.has not scored a point in this frame.

:28:46. > :28:53.Yes. He has only actually scored 14 points in the last three frames. All

:28:54. > :29:06.the table claim has been going to Stephen Maguire. He has looked very

:29:07. > :29:11.good doing it. -- time. I suppose you can expect that. When you have

:29:12. > :29:14.the best players in the world being a there is going to be spells in the

:29:15. > :29:20.match when you are not going to see balls for a while, but it chose you

:29:21. > :29:23.how high the standard is. But has not dropped that much but it is

:29:24. > :29:42.enough -- Judd. Well ahead in the long pot success

:29:43. > :29:57.as well, Stephen. An uncharacteristic mistake with the

:29:58. > :30:07.score. It does not matter about the brown. 48 earlier and that lovely

:30:08. > :30:10.56. The comeback continues. All of a sudden the flying Scot is all square

:30:11. > :30:21.at 4-4. Suddenly Judd Trump is under

:30:22. > :30:26.pressure. Stephen Maguire has fashioned his way back in to great

:30:27. > :30:30.breaks. Wonderful stuff from Stephen

:30:31. > :30:34.Maguire, for me, this is the Stephen Maguire that is capable of winning a

:30:35. > :30:39.World Championship. He retains his intensity, yet he is not blown up

:30:40. > :30:43.today when things have gone against him. Make no mistakes he has had a

:30:44. > :30:46.lot go against him. The performance he is putting up is first class.

:30:47. > :30:51.That is a good point you make, so often we have talked about Stephen

:30:52. > :30:55.and we have said he is combustible. He has shown a lot of calmness, not

:30:56. > :31:02.just here but at the UK Championship to get to the semis there too. He is

:31:03. > :31:07.tactically perhaps better than Judd. He kept the pressure on Judd and got

:31:08. > :31:12.the reward from it. Let us take Judd, one thing we have noticed any

:31:13. > :31:16.splayers will have notice you will see his cue doesn't go through

:31:17. > :31:21.straight. Before we start to run it, OK, he is lined up now for the left

:31:22. > :31:25.of the red. As you see the cue starts to go forward. All of a

:31:26. > :31:28.sudden the cue is pointing to the right of the red, across the face of

:31:29. > :31:36.the cue ball. That is so tough to do, and keep the ball under control.

:31:37. > :31:40.Most he pots. He is very strong right eye sited. He be cueing up at

:31:41. > :31:45.the left. He comes across as you see, he comes across are the right,

:31:46. > :31:49.over to the left, and as Steve pointed out there, where the cue

:31:50. > :31:54.starts off to where it finishes it is a good sight or eight inches

:31:55. > :31:57.difference, so difficult to do that consistently under pressure and pot

:31:58. > :32:01.ball, he probably does it better than anybody else in the world. It

:32:02. > :32:04.goes to show if you have a flaw like that it can catch you out,

:32:05. > :32:08.especially when you hit the top of the white 6789 Ideally the way to

:32:09. > :32:13.play the game is when you put your tip to the cue ball, it is in the

:32:14. > :32:17.middle, you pull it back, on line, and you go forwards, which is when

:32:18. > :32:21.you put the effort in to the same point you started aiming but Judd

:32:22. > :32:25.Trump is off to the right. As he pulls the cue back, the effort of

:32:26. > :32:28.going forwards over the years he has been playing, he starts to drift

:32:29. > :32:32.over to the left around he has to try and catch it right to hit the

:32:33. > :32:38.centre of the ball. If he doesn't, from an off position to start with

:32:39. > :32:42.he goes too far, he puts an accidental left hand spin on and

:32:43. > :32:46.that is hard. We have seen him miss, and he has been tempted into the

:32:47. > :32:53.balls and it seems to have allowed Stephen Maguire to get back in the

:32:54. > :32:58.last few frames. As Steve mentioned there, Stephen Maguire's tactical

:32:59. > :33:02.nouse is first class, we know how classy Judd s he is more than

:33:03. > :33:10.capable of coming back and making two centuries no win this match. Let

:33:11. > :33:15.us sort it all out, best of three. Wouldn't that be something for Judd

:33:16. > :33:20.Trump fans if he could make two centuries, will get the chance? He

:33:21. > :33:24.is capable of it. I am sure Stephen Maguire has other thoughts about

:33:25. > :33:31.leaving it in among the balls. But yes, he is an experienced player

:33:32. > :33:47.now, as Judd Trump, so he has to forget the last three frames.

:33:48. > :34:02.Half chance for Judd on the red, if he can get to that.

:34:03. > :34:06.That is OK, even though he finished close to the cushion, he can drop

:34:07. > :34:09.the blue, in there is a red that is available to the left corner make

:34:10. > :34:16.sure of the pot, the white will take care of itself. Oh, he has miscued.

:34:17. > :34:28.Very unusual to see that. Let us have a look.

:34:29. > :34:38.Just hit the top of the white, and, miscued.

:34:39. > :34:42.You could see the chalk mark on the cushion there, but... Doesn't happen

:34:43. > :34:45.very often. Very rare you see that Denis, isn't it. Certainly from

:34:46. > :35:04.players of this standard. You will see a lot of those matches

:35:05. > :35:12.this week. Already we have seen closent counter, 6-44, 6-4. -- close

:35:13. > :35:13.encounters. Put two God players out on the match table, that is what you

:35:14. > :35:53.get. A good match. DWHITE -- good.

:35:54. > :35:56.You can see from Stephen Maguire there, his initial thought, he was

:35:57. > :36:06.thinking this doesn't pot. He is taking it on.

:36:07. > :37:05.And he would be happy with that. Neither of the two reds are pottable

:37:06. > :37:09.but there is a nice target between green and brow, he will put his

:37:10. > :37:10.focus into the safety shot. It's a big area there, if you can get

:37:11. > :37:23.behind it. Oh, that is the difference it made

:37:24. > :37:27.it nearly had him in all sorts there. Still not an easy safety shot

:37:28. > :37:48.this. It cut off the left side of the

:37:49. > :37:55.table. The pink is stopping him seeing the red that is on the top

:37:56. > :37:58.cushion. Just one red potted and he only have the yellow and green on

:37:59. > :38:02.the spots. So a bit of an awkward frame.

:38:03. > :38:09.Developing here. Bit of a shot to nothing.

:38:10. > :38:21.Oh, he has misjudged that badly. He thought he could take the pot on,

:38:22. > :38:30.and... Has he got away with that? Not quite, but not straightforward,

:38:31. > :38:38.to get good position. The first loose shot he has played in a few

:38:39. > :38:41.frame, Stephen Maguire. Pretty good stuff in the last few

:38:42. > :39:01.frames from him. It is difficult to get out if he

:39:02. > :39:05.plays the red. If you lieu accuse the black and think, screw back to

:39:06. > :39:08.there, but it continue be straightforward or he would have

:39:09. > :39:12.played it already. It look like the black is the only possible one to

:39:13. > :39:16.play from, if he screws it any harder, there is all sorts of reds

:39:17. > :39:20.in the way, getting past them. I mean the pinks is available into the

:39:21. > :39:24.left corner, look at those, there is five reds in the way there. So let

:39:25. > :39:34.us see if he can manufacture something here.

:39:35. > :39:45.Just tried to develop thing, mine the pink is a tough shot with the

:39:46. > :39:49.rest, it really is. You just knew he was cannoning into reds, he thought

:39:50. > :39:56.maybe, if he hadn't hit it as hard he would have been perfect on the

:39:57. > :40:04.pink. Well, it is one of those, there is

:40:05. > :40:08.no easy safety shot on, take the pink on. He has a shot off the blue

:40:09. > :40:12.if he wants it. Play-off the blood down to the baulk end, try and get

:40:13. > :40:18.the cue ball down between green and brown, you would have to make sure

:40:19. > :40:23.you miss the yellow playing that. Well, he has thought long and hard,

:40:24. > :40:26.he is back looking at the pink now, and I think that is going to be his

:40:27. > :40:30.choice, but probably better to play it straightaway, but the more you

:40:31. > :40:36.think about it, the, the more difficult the shot becomes. Usually

:40:37. > :40:40.the first shot you see is the correct choice. That is what he is

:40:41. > :40:46.looking at, so he would have to hit it with respect that little dot is,

:40:47. > :40:50.to get the correct angle to pot it, so big shot coming up. Yes. Could be

:40:51. > :41:00.a big turning point in the match this.

:41:01. > :41:05.Played nicely. Wow! Look where the red has

:41:06. > :41:11.finished. How close was that to potting both

:41:12. > :41:14.pink and red. A brilliant shot though, particularly with what has

:41:15. > :41:29.happened in the match since 6-1. Took a lot of nerve to take that on

:41:30. > :41:32.and pot it. And now this is like a practise routine, many a time you

:41:33. > :41:37.would play in the club and take the black off the pot and just have the

:41:38. > :41:42.pink there, a loads of reds scattered round and try and win a

:41:43. > :41:54.frame off the pink. As I mentioned before, he hasn't had

:41:55. > :41:58.much table time. 92, 72, 56, so he will have to use all his experience

:41:59. > :42:04.here, the chances there. Just to make sure he can get that

:42:05. > :42:09.rhythm back. He has to go up for the brown ball here, because obviously

:42:10. > :42:12.the red to the corner pocket is not helping the situation.

:42:13. > :42:19.He would like to get rid of that fairly quickly. Not easy to go and

:42:20. > :42:58.get on a colour, so it certainly isn't plain sailing.

:42:59. > :43:13.He came plum on the brown so he thought he would drop that in and

:43:14. > :43:18.get on this red instead. So far, so good. Once again, red

:43:19. > :43:29.being on the corner is a bit of a problem.

:43:30. > :43:36.Played that nicely. If he is straight on the one in the middle,

:43:37. > :43:43.it is ideal. Yes, he can win this frame with reds

:43:44. > :43:52.and pinks. Forget about the black-and-blue. And the great

:43:53. > :43:57.players in the game have the knack of being kept off the table for long

:43:58. > :44:10.periods of time, which he has been, and then they can respond like this.

:44:11. > :44:14.He deserves everything he gets for that opening pink. The, with the

:44:15. > :44:18.rest, it was a fantastic shot. He knew he would have been leaving

:44:19. > :44:29.these for his opponent if he had missed it.

:44:30. > :44:36.The ebbs and flows of high tournament match play. Stephen

:44:37. > :44:42.Maguire hasn't put a wrong foot for three or four frames. Played one bad

:44:43. > :44:46.shot in this one, it is a potential shot to nothing this. Now the

:44:47. > :45:03.pendulum has swung back in Judd's favour. Hasn't he taken these well.

:45:04. > :45:11.Temperature points are going to be almost identical, well they will be

:45:12. > :45:15.in two shots time. -- the points. It has been a fabulous match, it

:45:16. > :45:22.really has, over a 50 break in every frame.

:45:23. > :45:25.Y has, over a 50 break in every frame.

:45:26. > :45:28.Frames where one player would make a 60 break, the other would clear up

:45:29. > :45:40.and pinch the frame. We have had a little bit of everything in this

:45:41. > :45:45.match. Could have done with a slightly

:45:46. > :45:49.better position. OK, 60 ahead with 59 remaining he is a strong

:45:50. > :45:59.favourite. Just one more red could completely get him over the line in

:46:00. > :46:04.this. And it is there. This has been a brilliant break. It

:46:05. > :46:08.is not always about making maximums and century, it is about making

:46:09. > :46:14.frame-winning contributions in the heat of battle.

:46:15. > :46:18.Doesn't matter about the pink, Stephen nods and concedes the frame

:46:19. > :46:23.and that is a terrific performance from Judd Trump. He lost three

:46:24. > :46:32.frames in a row without a chance, he has come back and gets himself back

:46:33. > :46:36.in to the lead at 5-4. Superb match so far, and the one

:46:37. > :46:39.shot in that match where he was in an awkward spot here, we will show

:46:40. > :46:44.you, he was thinking how am I going to get on a colour. He couldn't get

:46:45. > :46:47.on to the black, I thought I am going to screw back and hopefully

:46:48. > :46:54.finish on the pink to the left corner. He got into this so well.

:46:55. > :46:57.Watch the white stop and spin back. He fought and fought and he picked

:46:58. > :47:05.the correct shot in the end, it was a tough shot, it was a brave shot

:47:06. > :47:09.and he deserved the frame from that, John 4-1. 4-4. No way you are going

:47:10. > :47:12.to be leaving this opportunity for your point, he couldn't have played

:47:13. > :47:17.it better, as the red was going to the corner I bet his heart was

:47:18. > :47:23.Sinning there, a truly fantastic break. I thought he was second

:47:24. > :47:31.favour it when Stephen Maguire went 4-4. -- favour Ritz.

:47:32. > :48:02.-- favour Ritz. -- favourite.

:48:03. > :48:10.Just needs one more frame to get himself through to the quarterfinal

:48:11. > :48:13.and reverse last year's score line where he lost at this stage 6-4 to

:48:14. > :48:34.Stephen Maguire. Had no shot back to the baulk area

:48:35. > :48:41.there, so drop the red on to top cushion: Stephen looked at the pack

:48:42. > :49:14.there to see if there is any plants available, but I doubt it.

:49:15. > :49:24.He is taking this one on. I think he has been rather

:49:25. > :49:29.fortunate. There was an easy I safety shot the other side of the

:49:30. > :49:33.table but he has his confidence up. He knows if he can get one chance,

:49:34. > :49:35.Judd, he could maybe clinch the match but very fortunate with the

:49:36. > :50:00.double-kiss. S.

:50:01. > :50:03.Shot tap the table there. He has played a pretty good shot, Stephen

:50:04. > :50:11.Maguire, there. Got the red covered on that side S might have to play a

:50:12. > :50:19.little swerve. So much so he has missed the red

:50:20. > :50:27.completely. Just never came back, the white, didn't react, didn't get

:50:28. > :50:37.enough swerve on it. Shows yet again, just stayed there, hadn't got

:50:38. > :50:43.enough on it. He is putting him back in from where it finished. Doesn't

:50:44. > :50:48.have to have it replaced. Stephen feels this is just as tough

:50:49. > :50:54.a safety shot as the previous one, that he attempted.

:50:55. > :51:08.And he made the right choice, to let him play from where it finished.

:51:09. > :51:13.He got what he call the old dreaded double-kiss.

:51:14. > :51:16.It is not a good chance though. Pinks out of commission, black also

:51:17. > :51:38.out of commission at the moment. Terrific shot there with the

:51:39. > :51:43.extension. Can you imagine trying that shot back in the '70s, two the

:51:44. > :51:48.stuff they used to keep at the side of the table. The long tackle. You

:51:49. > :51:56.couldn't screw the ball back an inch with the stuff. I couldn't in 1970,

:51:57. > :52:07.I was six! I said 70s!

:52:08. > :52:23.Maybe you still had the same hair style then as well...! One red goes,

:52:24. > :52:38.but, as say, so difficult with the pink and black out of commission.

:52:39. > :52:46.Don't quite know what Steve was looking at there, as you mentioned

:52:47. > :52:51.before, Denis, not a brilliant chance this. Two reds on the top

:52:52. > :52:58.cushion, towards the top cushion are available for later on in the break

:52:59. > :52:59.if he can get there, but, he is obviously thinking of something

:53:00. > :53:19.here. Well maybe he thought too much about

:53:20. > :53:24.it. Did he feel that the pink, the pink doesn't look as if it pots he

:53:25. > :53:28.he must have thought it did. But what a poor shot. He cued right

:53:29. > :53:36.across that, that was more a lapse in concentration than anything else

:53:37. > :53:41.there. Boy, that pink looks tight. Judd is

:53:42. > :53:46.looking at it now. Let us see if he plays for it.

:53:47. > :53:52.Now, he has played for the blue. He doesn't feel that the pink was

:53:53. > :53:59.available. It might look as if it goes from

:54:00. > :54:03.there, but it certainly didn't look on the real picture that it would

:54:04. > :54:06.go. I think it is one of those that goes with the cue ball may be if it

:54:07. > :54:13.lower D'oh down the table. If you take it on the cue ball is run away

:54:14. > :54:19.so there is no value in it. We won't know now. Once again, not

:54:20. > :54:27.straightforward the Blake. -- the break.

:54:28. > :54:31.I don't know whether he is on a red. Oh, he might be able to get through

:54:32. > :54:48.the gap. And he can.

:54:49. > :54:55.Gradually it is turning into a half chance but it is still very

:54:56. > :54:59.difficult the way the balls are situated here. Denis, that red that

:55:00. > :55:03.is to the left of the black is causing all the trouble. Judd is

:55:04. > :55:07.looking at the two reds, they definitely pot that are Klose to the

:55:08. > :55:11.cushion. The red, if he could get on that in a way and play a little

:55:12. > :55:20.cannon he could nudge that red out of the way, can he get the cue ball

:55:21. > :55:25.down on to the cushion? If he has land on a red there, that

:55:26. > :55:30.is unbelievable. Well, he held his hand up to

:55:31. > :55:39.apologise, and Stephen smiling away, in his seat, that was amazing.

:55:40. > :55:44.And that could be a great wit of good good fortune at this stage. --

:55:45. > :55:47.a great bit of good fortune at that stage, to drop on to that red.

:55:48. > :55:57.Suddenly the game has opened up a little bit.

:55:58. > :56:00.You can have all the talent in the world but you can't beat a little

:56:01. > :56:07.bit of luck, that was amazing he endeded up on that red.

:56:08. > :56:13.-- endeded up on that red. He is looking to see if he pots the

:56:14. > :56:19.pink. Will the pink go on to its spot? All the other spots are tied

:56:20. > :56:22.up so it will will have to go directly behind the red. It might

:56:23. > :56:53.put the pink back out of commission. The red. It might put the pink back

:56:54. > :56:54.out of commission. Close to as possible without

:56:55. > :57:14.touching. A good nerve for that one. That is going to require a good shot

:57:15. > :57:18.here, this. It wasn't the pot that was difficult

:57:19. > :57:24.enough, it is what you were going to do with the cue ball.

:57:25. > :57:56.It was likely to flick off that other red.

:57:57. > :58:02.Purposely left the cue ball short there so he could cover the red in

:58:03. > :58:07.the baulk area, no value in playing down there because you know your

:58:08. > :58:37.opponent is going to put you back in trouble.

:58:38. > :58:44.Chance to get this red back up the table and get the frame back to

:58:45. > :58:51.normal. Oh, he screwed in-off, has he? Good

:58:52. > :59:01.shot in the end. I don't think he was wanting to be

:59:02. > :59:05.that close to the pocket. Just looking at the green slightly

:59:06. > :59:09.in the way of come canning off the side cushion and nestling into the

:59:10. > :59:13.reds there, but he has just checked to see if the red to the left of

:59:14. > :59:23.black would be on if he plays that escape route.

:59:24. > :59:37.The green seems to be slightly in the way of the natural angle to play

:59:38. > :59:43.op those. To play that shot he would have to get lots of side on it. That

:59:44. > :59:54.is awkward. That is why he is having to think long and hard about it.

:59:55. > :00:02.He is having to swerve round the green to make this angle, and he has

:00:03. > :00:09.got into it straightaway and he may have to have another go at this.

:00:10. > :00:15.So the swerve took a bit too soon there and hit the green, but, I

:00:16. > :00:25.can't see another shot available to him, so he will probably attempt it

:00:26. > :00:29.again. That is the only shot I can see

:00:30. > :00:33.available for him, but he has to get the swerve right. It is so difficult

:00:34. > :00:46.to judge. He is still not sure if he would leave a pot on.

:00:47. > :00:56.He is trying to figure out another escape route but he may have to

:00:57. > :01:09.attack the same shot again. You can see that the angle is not as he

:01:10. > :01:30.wants. Second attempt coming up. Can he judge it this time?

:01:31. > :01:37.He did not get the reds that he intended. The pink and black are

:01:38. > :01:45.still awkward but there is still a pot on. With the cube power Judd

:01:46. > :01:54.Trump has come watch this shot. He made that look so easy. Yes. He hit

:01:55. > :02:19.that lovely. He really did hit that nice. Where is the cue ball going?

:02:20. > :02:37.Stephen Maguire has had one or two robs this afternoon, raising his

:02:38. > :02:45.eyebrows, look where the cue ball has finished. Make the shot so much

:02:46. > :02:53.more difficult. When it is like that. I think it was the one before

:02:54. > :02:58.the mid-session interval when he led by 33 was one red and he needed the

:02:59. > :03:12.spider. That was the reason that it was 3-1

:03:13. > :03:21.rather than 2-2 at the mid-session interval. Some very good tactical

:03:22. > :03:22.play going on. There is nothing else available to the players. The pink

:03:23. > :03:40.and black are still tied up. That is pretty well played. Just

:03:41. > :03:49.come up a little bit short. He can get to the one behind the black. He

:03:50. > :03:54.just has to be careful. I do not know how much of this he can

:03:55. > :03:57.actually see, but play the safety shot and you do not want to be

:03:58. > :04:06.chipping the red across to the other corner pocket. He has played that

:04:07. > :04:25.very well. Very well indeed. Good shot.

:04:26. > :04:34.Another cracking safety from Judd Trump. I am just wondering if that

:04:35. > :04:38.one to the right of the pink goes into the left corner and he could

:04:39. > :04:43.take it on in such a way that he could play the safety shot. It will

:04:44. > :04:48.go but the problem for that shot is the red that is near the right side

:04:49. > :04:58.cushion. The other thing would be to cannon into that.

:04:59. > :05:09.He decided to make sure he did not cannon that red and just played this

:05:10. > :05:13.safety shot. It is always nice to see the big breaks. I think the

:05:14. > :05:22.crowd enjoy a battle like this when it is so important. Yes. When the

:05:23. > :05:28.tension is that its highest as well. Missing a few pots here and there is

:05:29. > :05:35.always exciting as well. You do not see it very often. Excellent safety

:05:36. > :05:39.from Judd. This frame is gradually opening up. One mistake could be

:05:40. > :05:55.very costly. The red on the side cushion closest

:05:56. > :05:59.to the pocket is the one he is looking at but you have to make sure

:06:00. > :06:04.you avoid a double kiss with that one. This is what it looks like from

:06:05. > :06:16.Stephen's point of view. Nothing down the right-hand side that is any

:06:17. > :06:22.good. He could play a safety shot of the red glut of higher up the table.

:06:23. > :06:33.Have to make sure you get good contact on that one. No double kiss.

:06:34. > :06:39.So much so he did not play it. What a chance for Judd Trump. He hit back

:06:40. > :06:44.that too thin. He was hoping to leave the white behind the cushion

:06:45. > :06:51.near the black spot area. He has opened up all game up for Judd

:06:52. > :07:03.Trump. What a chance. That might possibly be Stephen Maguire 's last

:07:04. > :07:10.shot in this year's Dafabet Masters. He defeated Judd 6-4 last year. I

:07:11. > :07:17.think he decided to have a go at the pot. He knew he would be on the pink

:07:18. > :07:18.but he hit it too then. He has to sit and hope that somehow Judd can

:07:19. > :07:34.slip up. Just taking his time. Not rushing

:07:35. > :07:40.anything. I do not blame him. Yes. He knows the importance. This is

:07:41. > :07:45.potentially the chance to win the frame and the match. Sometimes you

:07:46. > :07:49.can get yourself thinking too much because you are trying to be

:07:50. > :07:52.perfect, trying not to make a mistake, as opposed to what you have

:07:53. > :07:57.been doing in the rest of the match. We have all been there. You can

:07:58. > :08:04.start to overthink things. We all know how important it is. It has

:08:05. > :08:10.been a fabulous match. A little bit of everything. Aside from a century,

:08:11. > :08:16.92 from Stephen Maguire. The standard has been good, cracking

:08:17. > :08:27.match play, it has ebbed and flowed. It is not over yet. Did not matter

:08:28. > :08:28.what side of the blue he finished on with the red next to the yellow

:08:29. > :08:48.available. XP one, 74, those are some of

:08:49. > :08:55.Stephen Maguire's breaks, and he could lose the match 6-4. You can

:08:56. > :09:01.play a lot worse than this and win matches. Played Neil Robertson and

:09:02. > :09:07.had a century and then just watched for the rest of it. He certainly has

:09:08. > :09:13.not played badly today. It is just the nature of the beast. You are

:09:14. > :09:20.playing at the upper echelons of the game and they are all good. At the

:09:21. > :09:27.moment he is running into good players. Just need the simplest of

:09:28. > :09:38.reds to leave Stephen needing a snigger. -- snooker. Every credit to

:09:39. > :09:44.this man here to the way he has come back in the last couple of frames.

:09:45. > :09:50.He had to sit in his seat and watch Stephen Maguire win three frames in

:09:51. > :09:55.a row in virtually one visit. It is the sign of a champion when you can

:09:56. > :10:01.do that and come back with a break of 60 and this. Back to that shot on

:10:02. > :10:08.the pink with the rest, he showed his mettle. In the heat of battle

:10:09. > :10:18.when he needed it most he found a brilliant shot. He was 7-4 behind in

:10:19. > :10:22.the head to heads. He is closing the gap on Stephen Maguire. There is no

:10:23. > :10:28.better feeling inside when you're walking round the table and you have

:10:29. > :10:30.just clinched a match. It is a great feeling for a snooker player no

:10:31. > :10:39.matter how many times you have done it. It does not matter about the

:10:40. > :10:44.boy. It has been a fantastic match to commentate on and I am sure a

:10:45. > :10:56.fantastic match to watch. Judd Trump reverses last year's result and

:10:57. > :11:01.beads Stephen Maguire 6-4. Yes, a very valiant effort from

:11:02. > :11:06.Stephen Maguire, having been 4-1 behind, to get back to 4-4. Great

:11:07. > :11:13.play from Judd Trump particularly in the closing frames. What was your

:11:14. > :11:19.view of the break made around the pink and then crossing the line with

:11:20. > :11:26.that 49? Commend us performance. You have to feel for Stephen Maguire. He

:11:27. > :11:29.has played really well. If it now is what for the bad run of the balls

:11:30. > :11:34.that he got and the good run of the balls that Judd Trump got, that made

:11:35. > :11:41.a difference. But he's stepped up like champions do. It is his first

:11:42. > :11:48.for a couple of years here. Stephen Maguire missed a very important red

:11:49. > :11:53.in the ninth frame. You cannot argue. Congratulations, Judd. And

:11:54. > :11:59.gradually and is. It has been a couple of years since you had a

:12:00. > :12:02.victory at the Masters. Yes. I feel like I am playing well but

:12:03. > :12:06.everything I seem to do I seem to get a big lead and then I seem to be

:12:07. > :12:12.collapsing and looking back too much. I was really pleased to get

:12:13. > :12:20.over the line. In the UK Championship I completely collapsed.

:12:21. > :12:25.4-1, you lost there. It came back to 4-4 today. How did you change things

:12:26. > :12:32.when you remember what happened at the UK? What did you say to

:12:33. > :12:37.yourself? I just tried to be calm. I was very nervous at 4-4 because I

:12:38. > :12:43.have not had a good couple of tournaments and my confidence is

:12:44. > :12:54.very low. It was an amazing win to dig in. I had a cauliflower I had to

:12:55. > :12:58.play safe or take on a very risky pink and everything in my head

:12:59. > :13:03.wanted to be negative. I thought you are not going to get this chance

:13:04. > :13:09.again. We were talking about that break of 60 and it was a big risk. I

:13:10. > :13:15.wonder how proud you are of that. Yes. It probably looked easy but

:13:16. > :13:19.with my lack of form it puts so much pressure on yourself. I'd used to

:13:20. > :13:27.going out and knowing I am going play well. It puts so much pressure

:13:28. > :13:30.on yourself. This is the crisis of confidence that perhaps not going

:13:31. > :13:36.all the way in tournament springs. All snooker players go through it. I

:13:37. > :13:43.wonder what advice and encouragement you can give. I think that was a

:13:44. > :13:50.tremendously three and you potted some good balls under pressure. Your

:13:51. > :13:55.game is there. It is one match at a time. You have this mat under your

:13:56. > :14:00.belt. That was such high quality and Stephen has been fantastic. A really

:14:01. > :14:06.high quality match. It was tremendous. I am sure you will get a

:14:07. > :14:12.lot of confidence and who is to say you will not be lifting the title?

:14:13. > :14:18.How much work have you pretend over Christmas? You played well last

:14:19. > :14:23.week. I played every day. I did not take a day off. That is the first

:14:24. > :14:28.time I have done that. Normally I go back to Bristol and see my family

:14:29. > :14:34.for six or seven days. This year I did not have any holidays and I

:14:35. > :14:38.think that is what got me through. At the start of the match I was

:14:39. > :14:43.asking the commentators what they thought about the possibilities and

:14:44. > :14:49.John said that the age you are at it is time to move on. Do you feel

:14:50. > :14:55.that? It is the time to try to separate yourself from the pack?

:14:56. > :15:00.Yes. That is exactly what I am thinking. I have always enjoyed

:15:01. > :15:05.myself off the table and dedicated myself to snooker but I am at an H

:15:06. > :15:11.where I am not enjoying going out as much and I am in my prime, so I can

:15:12. > :15:14.dedicate myself to snooker and get it for my core five years of

:15:15. > :15:21.dedication and not going out anymore. When you said perhaps the

:15:22. > :15:26.confidence started to go down this season, what effect did the Shanghai

:15:27. > :15:30.final have on you? It looked as if you had a couple of unsettled

:15:31. > :15:36.results thereafter. Did that play a part? I was not playing that well in

:15:37. > :15:40.Shanghai and I managed to get to the final which was good. I thought I

:15:41. > :15:46.was going to get my chances. They did not come. From the first frame

:15:47. > :15:52.is long potting was excellent and it made it so hard for me. He made an

:15:53. > :15:56.excellent clearance. I played an amateur in the next round and he

:15:57. > :16:02.played the best probably anyone has played against me. Then you keep

:16:03. > :16:09.losing. I lost a game I should have won. It all builds up. For Christmas

:16:10. > :16:13.I decided to play every day. I know it pleased if I have done the work

:16:14. > :16:22.whatever happens I cant it that way. Against a man, Stephen, who has a

:16:23. > :16:28.very solid record against you. What do you find hard to play against in

:16:29. > :16:34.Stephen's game? He very rarely misses an easy ball. He was seems to

:16:35. > :16:38.get to 50 or 60. The only fault I would pick and I probably cannot

:16:39. > :16:44.pick a fault is I think he goes into the pack a little bit late. At that

:16:45. > :16:48.point he has to be so precise with where he is hitting. A lot of the

:16:49. > :16:54.time he leaves the chance to get back in the frame and if you can

:16:55. > :17:06.make those frames against them you can build a lead. Carry on. You

:17:07. > :17:12.played a brilliant shot with a lot of right-hand side and opened the

:17:13. > :17:17.ball is everywhere. Brilliant shot. Not many players can execute that

:17:18. > :17:22.because you have to be so accurate with that much power and that is

:17:23. > :17:26.what makes Judd so dangerous. Here is the shot you are talking about.

:17:27. > :17:31.When you see stuff like this, you are talking about trying to get

:17:32. > :17:37.confidence back, when you know you are capable of executing these, the

:17:38. > :17:43.next match is going to be Neil Robertson or Marco Fu, can you put a

:17:44. > :17:47.game up to these guys as well? Yes. My game is there. It is just under

:17:48. > :17:53.pressure at the moment it is a bit twitchy. I need that confidence to

:17:54. > :17:59.keep winning and I have the belief in myself. When I get under pressure

:18:00. > :18:03.I am starting to flick my wrist and be bit twitchy. I need to keep

:18:04. > :18:09.practising. I know if I am working hard it will come back. It is back

:18:10. > :18:16.to the practice table. It is all you can do. You can only play yourself

:18:17. > :18:21.out, you cannot think yourself out. It is harder for the modern-day

:18:22. > :18:26.players than when the game was first shown on television in the 80s. You

:18:27. > :18:31.do not get as much breathing space to get yourself into a tournament.

:18:32. > :18:35.The Masters is perhaps different but the World Championship your first

:18:36. > :18:42.couple of rounds you were supposed to win through and then you got

:18:43. > :18:46.going. You are on offer even to an amateur. Every match is a potential

:18:47. > :18:50.banana skin and sometimes you do not get the chance to get your cueing

:18:51. > :18:54.going and you are waiting to fly home waiting for the next tournament

:18:55. > :19:03.and it is easy for your confidence to go and evaporate. Do you feel

:19:04. > :19:08.more relaxed after that? Yes. I feel my game is there but it is so hard.

:19:09. > :19:14.The World Championship is the only tournament you can relax from the

:19:15. > :19:20.start. The rest I did not do a lot wrong. I could have been 3-0 down. I

:19:21. > :19:24.made a good clearance in the second. It is so hard against these top

:19:25. > :19:30.players especially when you are struggling, so hard to beat them. It

:19:31. > :19:38.is short work and you have to be on it from the start. Everyone in the

:19:39. > :19:44.top ranks can beat you 6-0. Everyone can literally make century after

:19:45. > :19:50.century every frame. We will see much more from you in the

:19:51. > :19:54.quarterfinals. Congratulations. With this new practice regime there will

:19:55. > :20:00.be no money spent around your area in north London. There will be

:20:01. > :20:08.bankrupt say. We have another match this evening at 7pm. Barry Hawkins

:20:09. > :20:14.and Joe Perry. Their respective records are not much to write home

:20:15. > :20:20.about. Between them they have won two matches, one each, in 12

:20:21. > :20:25.attempts. Joe's first win came last year and he lost in the quarterfinal

:20:26. > :20:32.to Mark Allen. This is one of their most high-profile meetings ever.

:20:33. > :20:42.Hawkins claimed the most recent. Perry has had a better time overall.

:20:43. > :20:52.7-3. Let us talk about Joe Perry. What do our experts have in terms of

:20:53. > :20:56.projections about his game just now? Joe Perry, 2015 Players'

:20:57. > :21:01.Championship champion, on the winners' rostrum, been around for

:21:02. > :21:04.what seems like an eternity. Even I remember playing him at the World

:21:05. > :21:13.Championship. A good solid match player. Yes. He has come to the fore

:21:14. > :21:20.later in his career. He has had more success in his late 30s and early

:21:21. > :21:25.40s than in his 20s. It is quite an amazing statistic. He is like Barry

:21:26. > :21:31.Hawkins and Mark Davis, probably benefited a lot from a lot of the

:21:32. > :21:36.matches and match play. More matches won has given him that bit of

:21:37. > :21:41.confidence. His game has come on leaps and bounds. He has always been

:21:42. > :21:46.very consistent. I remember being told about him when I was a child.

:21:47. > :21:52.The guy I played around the club always thought very highly of Joel

:21:53. > :21:55.and the way he struck the ball. He had a really nice backswing and from

:21:56. > :22:00.a technical point of view he was very good. All of a sudden he has

:22:01. > :22:05.become a winner. He must have had something wrong with his game at one

:22:06. > :22:14.stage. Did not have enough confidence? I would say so. As you

:22:15. > :22:18.win more matches and you are putting yourself in those positions at the

:22:19. > :22:23.end of tournaments, you build up confidence. I think that is what is

:22:24. > :22:29.happening. He has broke his duck. He does not really fear anybody. If we

:22:30. > :22:33.talk about Joe, Barry Hawkins and Mark Davis, they all had one thing

:22:34. > :22:40.in common, Terry Griffiths. They worked with Terry quite a lot at the

:22:41. > :22:45.Southwest snaggle academy and Terry has done a lot of work with these

:22:46. > :22:52.guys because their game has come on a lot. It is not there snooker that

:22:53. > :22:58.has improved. It is between their ears that they have come stronger.

:22:59. > :23:05.Not the strongest grip in the world. Does not have the biggest power

:23:06. > :23:13.game. Yes. He will not smack the pack open. He perhaps is a little

:23:14. > :23:17.bit limited with new power. He would admit that himself. What he does do

:23:18. > :23:24.he does well. He does not make enough centuries. He does not make

:23:25. > :23:30.enough frame-winning breaks. His other part of his game is top

:23:31. > :23:36.polity. Do you think he believes he can beat the top players? Or is he

:23:37. > :23:41.trying to play for his place? Not sure. Only he can answer that. It

:23:42. > :23:48.will be interesting to see how the next couple of years pan out.

:23:49. > :23:51.At least he has been to a quarterfinal at the Masters which is

:23:52. > :24:04.more than can be said for Barry Hawkins. Let us get the opinion on

:24:05. > :24:10.him. He is my buddy. He is my good pal. It is great to see him getting

:24:11. > :24:20.out of the snooker what he should do. So tight. That is what makes him

:24:21. > :24:24.such a good snooker player. He was always one that everyone said he

:24:25. > :24:28.would go on to do better things and I think everyone was surprised it

:24:29. > :24:31.took him longer than everyone thought to progress up the

:24:32. > :24:38.professional ladder. Very underrated. He probably does not get

:24:39. > :24:43.the credit he deserves. He is such a tough competitor. You would not know

:24:44. > :24:49.whether he has won or lost. He is such a laid-back character. Great

:24:50. > :24:59.record at the Crucible. Great at cueing. Hits the ball beautifully. I

:25:00. > :25:05.love the way he strokes the ball. Reliable and consistent, very solid.

:25:06. > :25:09.Of the table a real genuine guy. He comes across he would do anything

:25:10. > :25:15.for you. He does not have a bad bone in his body. A few of the lads can

:25:16. > :25:20.be quite spiteful, but he is not one of those people. I have seen the

:25:21. > :25:25.other side of him, but I am not prepared to let that out, we will

:25:26. > :25:30.leave it that he is a nice guy! He is a really nice guy. We will be

:25:31. > :25:35.seeing them in action this evening. You can watch it on the red button

:25:36. > :25:43.or any connected device on the BBC Sport app. It is intriguing. They

:25:44. > :25:47.have played each other a number of times but this would appear to be

:25:48. > :25:53.the most high-profile meeting of the 41-year-old and the 36-year-old.

:25:54. > :26:01.Yes, and good friends, and sometimes as Stuart Bingham said against Shaun

:26:02. > :26:06.Murphy, that settled him down, sometimes it is difficult to play a

:26:07. > :26:09.good friend. Perhaps the occasion is bigger than the friendship and both

:26:10. > :26:14.will be their individual cells and one of them is going to have a

:26:15. > :26:20.better record at the Masters by the end of the match. Barry Hawkins is a

:26:21. > :26:26.Londoner. I do not know if it is the pressure of being in his home City.

:26:27. > :26:33.He has never been past the last 16 since 2007. It is strange. I felt

:26:34. > :26:37.that being a Londoner. Whenever it came to the Masters there was that

:26:38. > :26:44.extra bit of pressure, maybe you are trying too card. Really nice lad.

:26:45. > :26:48.What a great player. Of all of the top players he strokes the ball so

:26:49. > :26:53.beautifully when he is playing well. He makes the pockets even bit bigger

:26:54. > :27:05.by doing that. The ball is arriving at the pocket with less pace. Who do

:27:06. > :27:10.be fancy tonight? The only two big matches, 2005 Perry won and 2000 and

:27:11. > :27:17.6p won. Is he going to have the edge? I like to take the longer

:27:18. > :27:24.view. Peter should be taking himself of the fence. I am only here today

:27:25. > :27:29.because Steve was very kind to have a word with me after I lost in the

:27:30. > :27:38.UK Championship and he said you were rubbish. It is over. Forget it. You

:27:39. > :27:43.have done a brilliant job. Can I get your opinion on one man who left the

:27:44. > :27:49.competition last night? Some people have been saying on social media

:27:50. > :27:57.that perhaps he has given the spot his best and perhaps there might not

:27:58. > :28:02.be more to give? If he has a very easy out in China and he is a

:28:03. > :28:06.superhero and he does not have to graft there is a possibility the bit

:28:07. > :28:12.in the middle has gone soft. I would not necessarily think that is the

:28:13. > :28:20.case with Ding Junhui. Perhaps he is lacking confidence. Yes. It was a

:28:21. > :28:23.very interesting interview. A slight vulnerability shown by Judd Trump

:28:24. > :28:31.but relief he is through to the quarterfinals. Jason will be here

:28:32. > :29:03.with the highlights. In the meantime, thank you and goodbye.

:29:04. > :29:07.So, no-one pays tax here? No-one pays taxes.