:01:00. > :01:09.Good evening. Welcome once again to the opening day of the 2016 Welsh
:01:10. > :01:17.Open. 128 players competing across 12 tables, including 12 Welshmen.
:01:18. > :01:24.Before we bring you tonight's action, let's update due on what's
:01:25. > :01:29.been happening. Ronnie O'Sullivan, fresh from his victory at the
:01:30. > :01:36.Masters made relatively light work of his encounter with the veteran
:01:37. > :01:43.Barry Pinches. Including turning down the opportunity of a maximum.
:01:44. > :01:51.It was a nice break. Sometimes it is nice to bring them a 146 instead of
:01:52. > :01:56.a 147. It is a bit cheeky. It is a nice little buzz. It could be a
:01:57. > :02:05.better ending than the next one. World number one Mark Selby who is
:02:06. > :02:12.yet to win a tournament this season had no surprises against the Welsh
:02:13. > :02:15.debutant Dwayne Jones, winning 4-0. I didn't perform fantastic and
:02:16. > :02:22.Dwayne will be disappointed with the way he played. It could have been a
:02:23. > :02:31.different scoreline. I could have been here doing an interview having
:02:32. > :02:36.lost. If you were watching our coverage this afternoon he will know
:02:37. > :02:38.that Mark Williams, the number one Welsh hope was struggling against
:02:39. > :03:02.the Chinese opponent. Willie and -- Willie Thorne and Terry Griffiths
:03:03. > :03:08.in the commentary box. A slight angle. He would like to go straight
:03:09. > :03:10.into the pack of reds. Bringing pink and black into play. He hasn't got
:03:11. > :03:22.the angle for that. We see that black after the
:03:23. > :03:42.excellent long pot. I don't know what to say about that.
:03:43. > :04:01.It was more or less unmissable for Mark William. Having said that,
:04:02. > :04:07.could be bit unfair. He had just played the perfect shot. He was
:04:08. > :04:15.probably concentrating so much on getting a good cue ball that he took
:04:16. > :04:20.his eye off the red. As Terry said, it was virtually unmissable. How can
:04:21. > :04:28.this young man hold himself together and become one of the great players?
:04:29. > :04:50.That little Cameron will help. -- that little Cameron.
:04:51. > :04:59.Well one not sure if the pink spot is free. He doesn't want to be tying
:05:00. > :05:21.up one of those colours. Not nicely on any of the three red
:05:22. > :05:49.Sea has played for. He doesn't look flustered.
:05:50. > :06:04.Whenever he has anything to do with the cue ball, he seems to hit at it.
:06:05. > :06:16.He hasn't cut away with it surely? Bite the bullet, Mark. Play into the
:06:17. > :06:19.pink. I didn't see the value at all in taking that on? No value
:06:20. > :07:44.whatsoever. It's one mistake after another hear
:07:45. > :07:47.from both the players. The type of shots, that are normally
:07:48. > :07:52.straightforward shots, more or less ten out of ten you get them. But
:07:53. > :07:58.that doesn't take the pressure into account. This will be a really tough
:07:59. > :08:04.defeat, should Mark Williams go on to lose this match. He will be
:08:05. > :08:06.strong enough. He has been through these things before and come out the
:08:07. > :08:38.other side. The problem, obviously, is that read
:08:39. > :09:06.up on the cushion. It won't go past the screen. -- past the green.
:09:07. > :09:16.Probably, that was the most important one and he missed. 20
:09:17. > :09:29.points in front, despite missing that read.
:09:30. > :09:47.He was the favourite, although he's not on the black. He may take the
:09:48. > :09:52.green. Not sure if he played for that cross double. We will give him
:09:53. > :10:05.the benefit of the doubt. It looks pretty straight.
:10:06. > :10:20.The pink is the saving ball now for Mark. 16 points behind. He would
:10:21. > :10:28.only need the pink if he takes at high value colour of this red. He
:10:29. > :10:39.has had opportunities to clinch it. I wonder if he can get over the line
:10:40. > :10:49.this time. He can play for the yellow in the opposite pocket to the
:10:50. > :11:02.blue. This is more of a pressure shot.
:11:03. > :11:12.Certainly making hard work of it at the moment but he is in the match.
:11:13. > :11:16.That is the main thing. This is the shot where we weren't sure whether
:11:17. > :11:26.he was playing a safety or a cross double. Well, young man, this is
:11:27. > :11:38.your chance. Just hold yourself together for five
:11:39. > :11:53.pots. A little bit nervous, you can tell. He has just dropped the chalk.
:11:54. > :11:59.You would think that brown and blue would be no problemo. Though dear.
:12:00. > :12:35.That is just tension. Just brown and blue needed. Even
:12:36. > :12:40.that is not his best shot. He has been a bit fortunate to finish
:12:41. > :12:45.absolutely straight on the blue. He will never play any worse than this
:12:46. > :13:02.and win a match. It looks the case now. High break of only 40. Mark
:13:03. > :13:11.Williams assured to go into the next round. A winner by 4-3. STUDIO: It
:13:12. > :13:14.was enough for Mark Williams to get past Lyu Chenwei. Not the clean
:13:15. > :13:22.sweep he would have wanted but at least he gets a rest before his
:13:23. > :13:34.match against Rod Lawler tomorrow night. I played some good stuff and
:13:35. > :13:39.then some really poor stuff. I was poor. The only good thing is that I
:13:40. > :13:46.won. I can't take any satisfaction out of winning like that. People
:13:47. > :13:51.say, you are still in the tournament, you should be happy. I
:13:52. > :13:57.am happy. My face doesn't look like I am happy but I will just see what
:13:58. > :14:04.tomorrow wins. I know 100% fact that I can't play any worse than that.
:14:05. > :14:14.Let's bring you up-to-date with a fuel other results. In particular,
:14:15. > :14:21.how the Welsh players have got on. Lee Walker is out. Good news for
:14:22. > :14:28.Michael White. Jamie Jones, a disappointing defeat. Daniel Wells
:14:29. > :14:38.is through. Smooth sailing for Ryan Day. That means that for Welshman
:14:39. > :14:42.are through to round two as it stands. Three more are playing this
:14:43. > :14:48.are through to round two as it evening. A very good evening to you.
:14:49. > :14:49.Welcome to our studio in the players practice area.
:14:50. > :15:14.Welcome to our studio in the players three glorious opportunities. He
:15:15. > :15:20.missed three of their spots. He should have gone into the next
:15:21. > :15:26.round. It will hurt. Is it really the worst you have seen him play?
:15:27. > :16:48.Without doubt. He is one of my all-time
:16:49. > :16:54.record-breaking four-time Welsh Open winner. Up against a man he has
:16:55. > :17:00.never lost two. The Andy Hicks. We are going to join Terry Griffiths
:17:01. > :17:11.and Darren Morgan in the commentary box. COMMENTATOR: You have just
:17:12. > :17:21.joined as at an intriguing part of this opening frame. Both players
:17:22. > :17:29.have had a few good shots and some easy misses. John Higgins has been
:17:30. > :17:35.relatively clinical in this frame. He is still a couple of shots away
:17:36. > :17:56.from winning this first frame. He is in a good position.
:17:57. > :18:03.He is a long, long way away from the green. This is a ball he needs to
:18:04. > :18:16.secure this first frame. He cued it perfectly. A very well
:18:17. > :18:50.struck shot. So, then, with the help of a 39
:18:51. > :18:56.break, John Higgins will be a little bit happier. He leads one frame to
:18:57. > :19:03.nil. Andy Hicks did have his chances in this frame. It has to be said,
:19:04. > :19:11.this mess we are about to see was very unexpected. He would have
:19:12. > :19:17.expected to get this. It was a funny opening game. A couple of chances
:19:18. > :19:26.here and there. Settling down a time for the players. This first frame
:19:27. > :19:32.usually is like that. A few easy balls missed but isn't there always?
:19:33. > :19:35.The first round of all these major events. Quite a lot of pressure for
:19:36. > :20:02.both players out there. Thank you. Frame to. John Higgins to
:20:03. > :21:02.break. John Higgins always looking for the
:21:03. > :21:12.most difficult spot possible to put his opponent when playing safety.
:21:13. > :21:21.What we call a negative safety there. There was no other shot on.
:21:22. > :21:31.As it has turned out, this red hood going for Andy Hicks. -- could go
:21:32. > :21:37.in. Then he would be on the black. It goes and he's on it. And at that
:21:38. > :21:55.pace, if he was going to miss it, he was going to leave it on. So, great
:21:56. > :22:04.shot. This will disturb some reds. He had to make sure of the pot. He
:22:05. > :22:15.hasn't left anything easy so he will be quite pleased he has got away
:22:16. > :22:21.with that. He expected to pot this red and so concentrated more on the
:22:22. > :23:08.cannon than the pot. That was unlucky. He thought he
:23:09. > :23:13.would get past the red and for the black. It was a brave shot to take
:23:14. > :23:26.on. Andy Hicks has always been a very aggressive player.
:23:27. > :23:37.So far, Andy Hicks has missed one or two pressure shots which is not good
:23:38. > :23:45.for him at the moment. He has not had enough matchplay to be tight,
:23:46. > :25:20.like John Higgins would be. Another very poor safety shot.
:25:21. > :25:32.It doesn't matter how they go in, as long as they do. When John is in
:25:33. > :25:38.full flow, he has a very nice pace around the table to him. Very
:25:39. > :25:45.fluent. Doesn't hang around making his mind up with shots. But at the
:25:46. > :25:57.moment he isn't too fluent. A bonus. Touching ball. Can just play safely.
:25:58. > :26:05.It is a reprieve for Andy Hicks. He would have been fearing the worst
:26:06. > :26:07.there. Just played to get past the red. Didn't impart enough side on
:26:08. > :26:51.the cue ball. He's having a go at this. Well, he
:26:52. > :27:01.deserved to be on the black. A shot like that. He could have come across
:27:02. > :27:07.and left it in the other corner. Kissed it into the right corner.
:27:08. > :27:29.Disappointing for such a good shot. That's the second safety that Andy
:27:30. > :27:39.Hicks has played in succession that he hasn't got past the baulk line.
:27:40. > :27:46.This time, John Higgins has the same opportunity. Stun through the pink
:27:47. > :28:00.into the reds and stay on the black. He has run through to the baulk a
:28:01. > :28:13.little bit. Again, he struck that to Apsley perfection. -- to absolute
:28:14. > :28:21.perfection. I don't think there is any loose red there. Just going to
:28:22. > :28:23.try and cannon the pink and the red. That is just about perfect. Very
:28:24. > :29:03.well played. He's given it a bit of time. It
:29:04. > :29:06.looks from here as if he's on three of those racks.
:29:07. > :29:12.You can see that was not dead straight. It should have been
:29:13. > :29:22.straight forward, but overrun it for the blue. Just got to miss the pink
:29:23. > :29:25.here, get enough spin on it. It's a thin cut.
:29:26. > :29:30.I can see - he's played it very well, couldn't hit it with any pace,
:29:31. > :30:18.and he's unfortunate there. APPLAUSE
:30:19. > :30:22.That's a lovely strike, wasn't it? , Higgins' delivery stroke is never
:30:23. > :30:26.too fast even on a stroke like that when he needs power, how he strokes
:30:27. > :30:28.them - he's one of the best ball strokers in the game. Not happy with
:30:29. > :30:57.that, though. John Higgins, of course, come along
:30:58. > :31:04.into the game when Stephen Hendry had started to dominate. He was
:31:05. > :31:08.winning most of the big titles but John was always a contender.
:31:09. > :31:13.Practised with Stephen Hendry, of course, up in Sterling you can but
:31:14. > :31:17.then he moved away from there to - I think he felt he was getting
:31:18. > :31:19.overpowered with Stephen Hendry, like most players would in practise
:31:20. > :31:38.those days - or in a match. John Higgins, as you say, is four
:31:39. > :31:43.times champion here in the Welsh Open, and there was - most emotional
:31:44. > :31:49.night I think I've ever seen in the final when his dad had died and he
:31:50. > :31:52.came down and defended his championships, and John Higgins hit
:31:53. > :31:55.a deuce, and he was crying, and I think everybody in the arena was
:31:56. > :33:56.crying, a very special night. next ball, takes all the pressure
:33:57. > :33:59.off. Allows him to concentrate more on the positional side of the shot
:34:00. > :34:05.rather than putting too much into the pot. 62.
:34:06. > :35:31.didn't get on to the black but Hicks is a seasoned pro. He turned pro in
:35:32. > :35:35.1991. Five times he's got to a semifinal ranking event so Andy
:35:36. > :35:38.Hicks is no mean performer by any stretch of the imagination.
:35:39. > :35:43.Obviously, having lost his tour card now he wouldn't be practissing as
:35:44. > :35:48.hard as he did before and having seen his shot selection he isn't as
:35:49. > :35:52.sharp as he was before but this match is still alive, don't get me
:35:53. > :35:57.wrong. And in terms of John Higgins, life begins at 40. At 40. Because
:35:58. > :36:01.last year the win in the Welsh Open triggered a real resurgence for him,
:36:02. > :36:05.didn't it? You always say players have to be between 25 and 35 to
:36:06. > :36:09.compete in this game. Obviously, John Higgins is doing well, Mark
:36:10. > :36:13.Davis is another one that's 40 plus. He has been playing his best snooker
:36:14. > :36:19.since he has been 40. That's how good he is. Obviously, he needs to
:36:20. > :36:25.win this frame. Going 3-0 behind you can't win. Certainly does. Might not
:36:26. > :36:31.be a long night for John Higgins. Let's go back and join our
:36:32. > :36:33.commentators. Fully agreed with Willie there, some good points made.
:36:34. > :36:50.Andy Hicks has left another red out. No John Higgins in that 74 in the
:36:51. > :37:00.last frame. He has missed a couple of long shots and a couple of easy
:37:01. > :37:13.ones, that was not expected. But it's amazing - this best-of-seven
:37:14. > :37:16.format, short stints, doesn't suit the top players. Obviously, they
:37:17. > :37:48.like it over a longer distance. You're generally playing from close
:37:49. > :38:21.in that ball cushion, and Higgins plays a safety shot.
:38:22. > :38:51.Played that well, avoided the double kiss, of course, in the red.
:38:52. > :38:55.John Higgins catching a ball colour on the way back down. Call the
:38:56. > :39:22.police! Foul and miss. That was almost thin.
:39:23. > :39:28.John Higgins, 4. Go back again possibly. Oh, can he get through to
:39:29. > :39:31.that red, the one near the left corner? If he can just get through
:39:32. > :39:40.past the pink... APPLAUSE if that pink goes, he's
:39:41. > :40:29.been blessed. Scratching his head - just lost the
:40:30. > :40:38.cue ball a little bit. He seems to think he had a big bounce off the
:40:39. > :40:49.side cushion. Whether it was or not - he's been left with a real awkward
:40:50. > :40:58.shot. He's just looking to see how much trouble he can put on him.
:40:59. > :41:05.He'll be looking at that as a chance to really establish himself in this
:41:06. > :41:24.third frame. With this shot, he has given the
:41:25. > :41:27.advantage to Andy Hicks to play a really good safety, but I don't
:41:28. > :41:32.think there was anything else on for him really with that red so close to
:41:33. > :41:36.the right corner. He does like to attack, Andy Hicks, and if he can
:41:37. > :41:38.get through to red in the right centre, I'm sure he'd go for it.
:41:39. > :41:52.It's got to be a good safety. Actually think he played the double
:41:53. > :42:12.as a shot or nothing. He's got the second part of the shot right.
:42:13. > :42:21.A bit of his own medicine here for John Higgins. This is awkward.
:42:22. > :42:30.Not quite sure if Andy Hicks played that shot. He did raise his arm to
:42:31. > :42:38.John Higgins to apologise, but I don't know why.
:42:39. > :42:47.He's playing two cushion escape - that's how difficult it is. Foul and
:42:48. > :42:52.miss. Wow. Andy Hicks, 6. Oh, referee is going to put the ball
:42:53. > :42:55.back now, as Andy Hicks has asked John Higgins to have another go at
:42:56. > :43:07.it, not easy. Some help, of course. There's a
:43:08. > :43:13.monitor underneath the commentary box here beneath the cameramen that
:43:14. > :43:23.can replace the balls in the correct place. It's never easy if three or
:43:24. > :43:26.four balls are moved during that shot with John Higgins. If it's one
:43:27. > :43:42.ball, it's quite easy, generally. I am quite surprised he's had it put
:43:43. > :43:48.back, though. It was left - left the red to the left corner. I don't
:43:49. > :43:55.think we're far away from a reshuffle.
:43:56. > :44:04.Now they've put the blue back to the right spot, but it didn't really
:44:05. > :44:09.play much of a part. I think that's a good cue ball this time, John
:44:10. > :44:14.Higgins. I think Andy Hicks may be regretting his last choice. Well,
:44:15. > :44:20.maybe not. Because it looks like he's going to get an easier starter,
:44:21. > :44:38.surely he'll play it from here. He's got the red to left centre.
:44:39. > :44:45.Always going to be awkward, that red he's just hit. It's OK, the pink,
:44:46. > :44:51.but it's the one on the left-hand side as well that could get in his
:44:52. > :44:59.path, pink or blue, but it turns out that kiss is not too bad.
:45:00. > :45:24.Andy Hicks's highest break so far in this match is just 22, so there's a
:45:25. > :45:30.good chance here of beating that and going on from there. Certainly needs
:45:31. > :45:48.this frame on the board, as Aaron mentioned earlier.
:45:49. > :45:55.Never straight forward, these. The Black's a bit awkward with that red
:45:56. > :46:03.next to it. The pink looks a bit tied up as well.
:46:04. > :46:08.The pink goes into the right corner, obviously, after he's played that
:46:09. > :47:02.shot, didn't look like it from here. Well, he's not further away from
:47:03. > :47:08.this red than he'd have liked. It's because he didn't get high enough on
:47:09. > :47:12.the blue. I think he just rolls - able to leave this red in the left
:47:13. > :47:17.corner, but he's rolled too far. He's having a look at the one below
:47:18. > :47:25.the pink, but that was a real poor shot. If he wants to continue now,
:47:26. > :48:30.he's going to have to pull a real good one off.
:48:31. > :48:39.Well, the previous red hit the left drawer and went in. The other hit
:48:40. > :48:45.the right drawer and stayed there. He'll be very disappointed.
:48:46. > :48:49.Because the red was a far superior and harder pot than that blue. He
:48:50. > :49:19.just had to make sure of the blue. Could have been worse there for John
:49:20. > :49:32.Higgins. Touching ball but of course, he's
:49:33. > :49:35.playing away. Not quite sure if you nudge the red here and stay on the
:49:36. > :49:42.pink... A gap to go through. It's a small
:49:43. > :50:09.gap, I must say. Well, he's on the red, but he might
:50:10. > :50:11.have been a little bit closer, make the pot easier on the position side
:50:12. > :50:35.also. 13. Nicely played, hitting down into
:50:36. > :50:38.the ball there, needs to - not easy to play those run-throughs on these
:50:39. > :52:41.ivory cloths. -- lively cloths. 40. Can I make this? Yes. Just
:52:42. > :53:59.checking the scoreboard there for John Higgins, seeing that he's 12
:54:00. > :54:06.checking the scoreboard there for make the blue? He can. What a great
:54:07. > :54:18.shot that is. If anything, two, three inches too far.
:54:19. > :54:38.And Andy Hicks has had a couple of chances in these early frames,
:54:39. > :54:41.didn't take them. John Higgins has had runs of 39, 74 and 60 and
:54:42. > :55:18.counting. 62. 69. Again, played to absolute
:55:19. > :55:23.perfection, hasn't got -- doesn't get any better than this.
:55:24. > :55:30.Well, he's not even going to bother with the black. There's no need, a
:55:31. > :55:34.terrific 80 break, John Higgins now leads three frames to nil. Andy
:55:35. > :55:39.Hicks has it all to do. Four to play. He's got to win them all.
:55:40. > :55:45.Well, John's going to be feeling absolutely elated at the minute this
:55:46. > :55:50.way he started, missed a couple of ones, missed a couple when he got
:55:51. > :55:56.in, missed a - a couple of mistakes. Andy Hicks had his chances, didn't
:55:57. > :56:00.take them. He'd be very disappointed, Andy, because he knows
:56:01. > :56:05.he's a much better player than this but John Higgins now is in absolute
:56:06. > :56:12.full flow. I think he's got to take a little bit of a miracle for this
:56:13. > :56:17.result now not to go John's way. What are you thinking, Terry? I
:56:18. > :56:22.think you're right, Darren, as usual. I think John Higgins, like
:56:23. > :56:25.the very best players, you know, they pounce on you if you don't take
:56:26. > :56:29.your chances, and John Higgins showed that. He's had a little bit
:56:30. > :56:34.of a rough spell here and there in this match so far, but all of a
:56:35. > :56:39.sudden you give him a glint and he's in there and clearing up, and it
:56:40. > :56:43.really hurts his opponents, that's what it does, you know?
:56:44. > :56:49.Psychologically, Andy Hicks threw that away, so you would expect him
:56:50. > :56:52.to want to win this deciding - this last frame, sorry, and win the match
:56:53. > :57:31.4-0. Well, that's the worst possible
:57:32. > :57:35.outcome for Andy Hicks. He's put that red right over the corner
:57:36. > :57:39.pocket, just right in the pocket. John will pop this direct. If not,
:57:40. > :57:43.you lose the cushion. I think it's close enough into the pocket that he
:57:44. > :57:55.can pot it half ball. Which he could. Nicely on a bold colour.
:57:56. > :58:02.There's only one loose red really, one above the black as well. And
:58:03. > :58:06.he's looking away with his cue there playing for the loose red. There is
:58:07. > :58:08.value I suppose off the green of going into the pack, trying to smash
:58:09. > :58:40.them everywhere. Well, we don't like to leave it, but
:58:41. > :58:44.the clock has beaten us I'm afraid. We will though show you how much
:58:45. > :58:49.this match finishes and round up all the day's action in the highlights
:58:50. > :58:53.show. That's at a quarter past midnight, so keep that candle
:58:54. > :58:55.burning. For now, though, a very good evening.