Day 3 Snooker: Welsh Open Highlights

Good evening. We started with 32 players, now we are down to 16. The

second round got under way in Newport this evening with a four of

Two fascinating, but very different matches coming up. Before that, let

me bring you up to date with the last batch of first round games.

Ronnie O'Sullivan sent out a warning to his rivals with a fluent

first-round performance. He beat Marco Fu by a 4-1. I am delighted

to still be playing. To get to the first round is probably the

toughest match. You don't want to go out early. It is great to win my

first match and I am pleased to still be here. It has been a great

week for the veterans, but there was a whitewash of the former world

champion at. My finger did not affect me too much today. A few

shots were painful, but it was OK. I am quietly confident. Matthew

Stevens was the victor in probably the best first round match of the

tournament. There is added pressure playing in front of your friends

and family, the Welsh crowd. I was very pleased how I played. The

match could have gone either way in, but overall, it is great to get off

to a good start. And Stephen Maguire is looking comfortable

again this year. He led from start to finish against Adam Wicheard.

have been competing well after the New Year and putting in a bit more

work. It is starting to come together. Now, John Higgins has not

lost a match at the Welsh Open at since 2009. In the second round the

defending champion faced Ding Junhui. We will pick it up now in

the sixth frames. Rikuzentakata is What kind of a shot was that that

John Higgins played last to give That was not as nice as he would

have liked. If he had played with a bit more spin to pushed the white

You would expect Ding Junhui to score heavily and take the match in

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That shot was OK. They can He will have to take eight long

brick macro into the yellow pocket. -- take along a Tuareg into the

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Three more will guarantee him One thing is for certain, both of

these players will have to play Whoever wins this match will be the

Another miss. We have seen a more missed tonight than we have done in

Not sure if that was a bad contact. He picked the wrong angle and took

He will need every think if he wants to win this frame. --

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He should have been a lot closer to It is an art when you can play

poorly and still win. Steve Davis had that down to eight fine art

form. -- a fine art form. He That was a better shots. He got

into the cue ball that time. It is all about the red ball on the left-

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That was a good guess. No where He has left himself a lot longer on

And like all great players, when he has needed to pull the best out, he

has. Their only chance Ding Junhui has of staying in the match is

He has come a little too far to make the pink a certainty. It is

He might try to get the white to come across and cover with the

black. He has missed it. He hit it John Higgins has missed a great

chance to win frame and match. He was trying to concentrate on the

So, it all came down to a deciding frame. Higgins is at the table and

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He went for it and has left this The pink needs to be in line with

the spots. There are three reds out It is all about the next couple of

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He will have to play this very pacy He could not have played that any

better. He has hit that just about perfect. That is the absolute

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Excellent pot. This is now a chance No real damage done. But that did

John Higgins is wondering if he can somehow get back to the table. He

has to hope Ding plays a bad positional shot. He was only one

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There is a bit of work to do here. Again, well controlled. Nicely on

To be fair, John Higgins would be the first to say he has played

It is looking like it is going to be all over for him. Unless Ding do

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something silly. They are looking There does not look to be a problem

now. Two more reds and colours will take Ding into the next round. John

Higgins can only sit and hope that something goes drastically wrong in

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John Higgins did well to hang on to his coat tail, mud but Ding Junhui

goes into the next round a 4-3 victory. Yes, I played very good in

the final frame. It was a big pressure. I feel good. The safety

was very good today. And he scored very highly. He took his chances.

So I had to do my best. Tonight's other match pitted two

former world champions against each other. Shaun Murphy faced Steve

We pick up the action in the fourth frame. Davis is trailing by 37

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That was a good example of the way to have Steve's cue. He did not hit

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it very hard, and the reds split Steve is taking a lot of care,

walking around the table more This 3-1 could easily become 3-2,

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and then there would be pressure on At least he has the blue on into

This is a tester for him. I am sure I thought it was in. Goodness me.

Unlucky, Steve. That may be your last shot in this year's

championships. I would be surprised if Shaun did not run out a victor

He could have played that one He has a lovely strike off the cue

His smooth and fluent. That is how he gets tremendous been out of the

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Steve is looking completely fed up. A ginormous kick! Goodness me, what

else is going to happen here? Shaun is not looking too impressed.

Amazing that he still potted the yellow. That could normally spell

the end of anybody's break. They are just enjoying a little joke.

That cue ball would have run through another eight or nine

inches without the kick. Only Oh, dear. Some players, in a

situation like that, would hit the green as hard as they could, hoping

to get away with it and also to knock a colour on the cushion or

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something. Because Stephen now, on He is content to leave a difficult

Can Shaun knock this in for a 4-0 Well played, Shaun Murphy.

Interesting match, full of missed opportunities from Steve Davis. But

Shaun Murphy goes in. Not as clinical as I would have liked. I

missed a couple here and there and did not get the score I would have

wanted. But sometimes the game just goes that way. 4-0 is 4-0. Very

difficult. He was my boyhood idol. I had his post on my wall. I chased

after him in Sheffield one year for his autograph. To shake his hand

and be in the same arena is a privilege. To try and beat him is

hard work. There is a fantastic day in prospect tomorrow as the second

round continues. Some mouth- watering afternoon matches. In

particular, world No. 2 Mark Williams leading the Welsh charge