:00:36. > :00:43.Hello and good evening. Welcome back to The Crucible Theatre in
:00:44. > :00:47.Sheffield. They number four of the better Fred World Snooker
:00:48. > :00:52.Championship. Our first glimpse of Judd Trump, he is taking on Rory
:00:53. > :00:56.McLeod. Before we show you that match, let's bring you up today with
:00:57. > :01:04.the early finishes. John Higgins saw of the challenge of
:01:05. > :01:09.Martin Gould. Higgins resumed overnight 7-2 in front and made the
:01:10. > :01:17.last 16 by beating Martin Gould ten frames to six. Delighted to beat
:01:18. > :01:22.Martin. Everyone comes in the and sits and says, you beat the hires
:01:23. > :01:28.qualify you could have got. For the last few years, Martin has been
:01:29. > :01:33.bouncing around the 16. One year he is in, one year he is out. I knew I
:01:34. > :01:40.would enjoy it because Martin likes to go for his shots and can be
:01:41. > :01:46.pretty quick. So it was enjoyable beating the player. And Ding Junhui
:01:47. > :01:51.also led 7-2 overnight against 19-year-old Zhou Yuelong. But he was
:01:52. > :02:03.pegged back 7-4 but eventually won it -- five. I am happy with my form.
:02:04. > :02:15.Happy to play, everything is good. It is hard to play somebody from the
:02:16. > :02:20.same country, China. And Rory McLeod has had an incredible day at the
:02:21. > :02:26.Crucible against Judd Trump. MacLeod was 4-0 down but grew in confidence
:02:27. > :02:32.winning four frames in a row to draw level. We join the action with Judd
:02:33. > :02:46.Trump to play. COMMENTATOR: He has just lost a
:02:47. > :02:53.little bit of discipline. He scattered them all over the table.
:02:54. > :02:54.Bit of concentration and a bit of discipline, but goodness me, they
:02:55. > :03:15.have gone everywhere. Have a look at this. Never seen
:03:16. > :03:28.balls fly around the table quite like that.
:03:29. > :03:41.He has got to keep his concentration. He has his man on the
:03:42. > :03:46.rack at the moment. He could have hit that one bit better. Just had to
:03:47. > :03:48.make sure he was the other side of the blue coming down towards The
:03:49. > :04:25.reds. Poor shots, really. Wow! What a beauty. Looked like he
:04:26. > :04:34.could have lost position completely, but to finish there.
:04:35. > :04:42.And now, he should be back in position. I am saying that, he could
:04:43. > :04:48.have done with a little bit extra to get on the blue. It is hard work,
:04:49. > :04:59.this break at the minute. He cannot get the cue ball where he wants it.
:05:00. > :05:06.That jumped a little bit, but he is OK. It definitely took the pace out
:05:07. > :05:16.of the cue ball. Have a look at this. This time, it was the green
:05:17. > :05:23.that leapt off the bed of the table. Will
:05:24. > :05:31.it wasn't the worst kick, if you can say such a thing, because it left
:05:32. > :05:35.him on that angle for the red. John, when he gets the pink back on its
:05:36. > :05:39.spot, he doesn't have to worry about the black. The way the reds are
:05:40. > :06:01.situated, he can score on the pink and the blue if needed.
:06:02. > :06:07.I haven't seen Rory play for quite some time, but he certainly seems to
:06:08. > :06:14.have picked the pace up with his game. He is a much better player for
:06:15. > :06:51.it. He has done so well here, this afternoon.
:06:52. > :07:02.I was about to say, he will be, his heart will be pumping because he
:07:03. > :07:07.knows this is a brilliant chance to take the lead in this much. It is
:07:08. > :07:14.difficult to just control your emotions sometimes. As for his
:07:15. > :07:21.opponents, Judd, he cannot believe the scoreline. 3-0 and comfortable,
:07:22. > :07:30.then looks like going behind. The tournament favourites.
:07:31. > :07:37.Not that many pots away from securing this frame in this session.
:07:38. > :08:09.Getting more difficult now. He could just drop this in and play
:08:10. > :08:19.for the red on the question. That is the best shot to go for. Once again,
:08:20. > :08:32.this needs a little bit of respect. If he knocks this red in and a high
:08:33. > :08:40.value colour... He will have enough points to take the frame. You can
:08:41. > :08:44.see him swinging his backhand. Little bit of tension creeping in.
:08:45. > :08:50.He knows the importance of this pink. This will leave Judd needing a
:08:51. > :08:57.snooker. What a performance from Rory McLeod. 4-0 down against one of
:08:58. > :09:01.the favourites, John and he has won five frames in a row, almost.
:09:02. > :10:05.Outstanding performance, Dennis. I don't think anyone in the Crucible
:10:06. > :10:08.Theatre or anyone watching at home was expecting this from Rory McLeod.
:10:09. > :10:21.He was, he knew he was capable of doing this. And when you cannot
:10:22. > :10:33.balls like that in... That is the reason why Judd Trump, highest break
:10:34. > :10:36.55. But he was knocking some unbelievable pots in. But the
:10:37. > :10:51.mid-session interval has turned this match on its head. Wow! Good shot.
:10:52. > :10:57.Just reiterating, so pleased for him, he has been a good player for a
:10:58. > :11:00.long time. Now everybody can see how good he is. His results in the
:11:01. > :11:06.qualifiers, things were good, scores. Now you can see for yourself
:11:07. > :11:13.here at The Crucible, where it matters, how good a player he really
:11:14. > :11:17.is. Been very good today. Can he somehow missed the brown and bring
:11:18. > :11:22.that yellow into play when he pots the blue? He has got too much action
:11:23. > :11:29.onto it. That is just adrenaline pumping through his body at the
:11:30. > :11:33.moment. Will have to double the yellow to get a possible century,
:11:34. > :11:38.but has pulled off a few cracking doubles. He has played it down the
:11:39. > :11:42.question. It doesn't matter. Judd Trump will come forward to shake the
:11:43. > :11:48.hand of Rory McLeod. He will be totally shocked because he was 4-0
:11:49. > :11:49.up, come out after the interval and it was all Rory McLeod and he takes
:11:50. > :12:04.an overnight lead, 5-4. That finishes at 10am tomorrow and
:12:05. > :12:09.Rory has been in practising and is looking good. Judd Trump has a
:12:10. > :12:15.mighty match on his hands tomorrow. This next match sees Liang Wenbo
:12:16. > :12:19.taking on Stuart Carrington. The man from Grimsby making only his second
:12:20. > :12:22.appearance here at The Crucible, looking to get into the second round
:12:23. > :12:32.for the very first time. Stuart Carrington led 5-4. But Liang won
:12:33. > :12:39.the next two. Liang Wenbo getting a little bit frustrated. Take a look
:12:40. > :12:44.at this. Banging his head on the snooker table, leaving a red mark on
:12:45. > :12:49.his forehead. Here it comes again. Very strange. You can see the red
:12:50. > :12:56.mark. Carrington was looking to stamp his authority on the match. At
:12:57. > :12:59.7-7, no splitting them. In the frame 15, Liang to play. Commentary from
:13:00. > :13:18.Willie Thorne and Ken Doherty. COMMENTATOR: Chance for Stuart
:13:19. > :13:24.Carrington. Get a few points on the board, get his arm going again. Even
:13:25. > :13:31.say it is a chance to win the frame from here because he is 26 points
:13:32. > :13:34.behind. Those three reds on the left-hand side of the table, a bit
:13:35. > :13:51.awkward for him. He has choices now. Can play the
:13:52. > :13:55.stun into the two reds and bring them into play or go round the back
:13:56. > :14:00.and bring the three reds into play. Looks like he will play the still
:14:01. > :14:35.into the two reds. Pretty good, well done.
:14:36. > :14:44.It straight on the pink. Looking to see if he runs through with the cue
:14:45. > :14:47.ball. What angle he needs for those reds on the left-hand side of the
:14:48. > :14:58.table. He must be pretty confident with the
:14:59. > :15:10.rest. Could have left an angle on this red. Decided to leave it
:15:11. > :15:29.straight with the rest and screw it back up for blue or pink again.
:15:30. > :15:53.You play that in practice 20 times, you will pot it 19. Just shows what
:15:54. > :16:13.happens when you are under pressure. Good pot. The pink is still
:16:14. > :16:48.possible, but he has to be very careful doesn't play a push shot.
:16:49. > :16:54.22 points ahead. Two reds and pinks will put in 36 ahead with 25 on the
:16:55. > :17:15.table. He can pot this pink and screw onto
:17:16. > :17:39.the side cushion. Getting the cue ball cleaned. Been a
:17:40. > :18:08.few kicks tonight. Just making sure he doesn't get another one here.
:18:09. > :18:31.That is better, that is butter. He will be very relieved. -- better.
:18:32. > :19:01.Didn't use too much pace. Stuart Carrington stays in his
:19:02. > :19:09.chair. He goes into the lead once more. He needs two more frames for a
:19:10. > :19:14.place in the last 16. STUDIO: Liang Wenbo getting closer
:19:15. > :19:18.to the line. He won the next and is looking to win it in the next frame.
:19:19. > :19:29.He is at the table leading by 46 points.
:19:30. > :19:55.COMMENTATOR: Liang Wenbo saw the winning post.
:19:56. > :20:04.Might as well clear up and keep this much going. What he wouldn't give
:20:05. > :20:33.for a 50 odd break now. He has got to pour all his
:20:34. > :20:35.concentration and all the hours of practice he has done, the three
:20:36. > :20:40.qualifiers he came through, the last one against Mark Williams, will
:20:41. > :20:47.stand him in good stead. Needs to hold it together and get back into
:20:48. > :20:52.this frame. If it was the early part of the match, you could say he could
:20:53. > :20:55.win the frame from here. But this is not the early part of the match,
:20:56. > :21:13.this is all the pressure in the world.
:21:14. > :21:22.He has gone too far. Gone too far for the lower red. The one in the
:21:23. > :21:31.middle of the bunch and not far enough for the loose red. He can
:21:32. > :21:41.still pot this, but a lot more difficult than it should have been.
:21:42. > :21:56.Better. That was a brave shots, playing with that pays. Knowing if
:21:57. > :22:00.he missed it it would have been over the pocket. He knows this is a great
:22:01. > :22:09.chance to pinch this frame and get to within one.
:22:10. > :22:15.This would be an incredible clearance, should he go on and win
:22:16. > :22:28.the frame from this position. Wanted to be a little bit straighter
:22:29. > :22:34.on this red so he can run it through without having to play any cannons.
:22:35. > :22:45.Still should be OK. Just brush off the red, just below it. Well... Try
:22:46. > :22:56.to stun it, went beyond the pink, but it has gone wrong. It is amazing
:22:57. > :23:00.what pressure does. It was the correct shot, because it couldn't go
:23:01. > :23:11.wrong. Playing it the way he did, it could go wrong.
:23:12. > :23:20.The reds will be flying around all over the place if he takes this pink
:23:21. > :23:25.on. Has got to try and concentrate on the pot, not to worry about the
:23:26. > :23:39.reds. This is a tough pot. Well played. Well played. He judged it
:23:40. > :23:49.very well. Went all out for it. Played a couple of lovely recovery
:23:50. > :23:51.shots. If he holds himself together now, it is definitely going to be
:23:52. > :24:32.9-8. That's not where he needed the cue
:24:33. > :24:39.ball. He needs a good positional shot here. Normally these blues are
:24:40. > :25:00.a certainty, but this is not normal. This is not normal, you could see
:25:01. > :25:15.that happening. Purely pressure. Purely pressure.
:25:16. > :25:24.Will that be his last shot in this year's World Championship? At the
:25:25. > :25:52.moment, he believes so. Judge that cannon nicely. Can just
:25:53. > :26:01.drop the pink into the left centre. Nicely on the yellow.
:26:02. > :26:14.Now, 24 points ahead, just the yellow required. You may see a bit
:26:15. > :26:20.of reaction from Liang Wenbo. We saw when he won the English open. You
:26:21. > :26:30.have got to feel sorry for Stuart Carrington. Will he get a little bit
:26:31. > :26:48.animated? It remains to be seen. Stuart Carrington, created history.
:26:49. > :26:56.Three centuries in a row. He shakes his hand and says well played the
:26:57. > :27:00.Liang Wenbo. Liang Wenbo goes through into the last 16. Well
:27:01. > :27:07.played Stuart Carrington. Liang Wenbo into the last 16 to play his
:27:08. > :27:14.fellow countrymen, Ding Junhui. What a match that will be. He beat Stuart
:27:15. > :27:24.Carrington by ten frames to seven. I had played horrible.
:27:25. > :27:36.I just played hard. I came from China here for about ten days. This
:27:37. > :27:40.feeling, not well, no power. I get some medicine, drink a lot of water.
:27:41. > :27:46.Very hot. I try to concentrate on every shot. Congratulations to Liang
:27:47. > :27:52.Wenbo. Not a The Crucible classic, but he will not care, he is through
:27:53. > :27:56.to the next round where he will play Ding Junhui. Let's hope Ali Carter
:27:57. > :28:07.versus Graeme Dott is a better prospect. The Scot took the first
:28:08. > :28:11.frame. We will join the action in frame two. Dott is leading by 12
:28:12. > :28:22.points. Commentary from John Virgo and Terry Griffiths.
:28:23. > :28:31.COMMENTATOR: He has missed it completely. Decision time. Do you
:28:32. > :28:37.have it put back or do you make your opponent play from where it lies
:28:38. > :28:41.now, or do you play it yourself? I wouldn't play it myself. Do you have
:28:42. > :28:44.it put back or ask him to play from there? That is the decision. He is
:28:45. > :29:05.saying, play it from there. Yellow going towards the corner. He
:29:06. > :29:19.has not got the cue ball behind the pink. I think Ali can get to the
:29:20. > :29:30.angle, but it is not easy. Six points behind. It is one of these,
:29:31. > :29:40.if you get close and you miss it, you almost certain leave it.
:29:41. > :29:45.He is not knocking in the long one. Where is the yellow ball going?
:29:46. > :29:59.Would you believe it! If it doesn't drop, it is over the
:30:00. > :30:12.pocket for Graeme Dott. What a result.
:30:13. > :30:18.Well, decided to go for the double. And he's been fortunate, he's missed
:30:19. > :30:31.the double and got the snooker! Graeme wanted to get right in behind
:30:32. > :30:36.that. Now, is he going to be helped by the blue? He certainly is.
:30:37. > :30:40.Anything you can do, I can do better!
:30:41. > :30:56.Well, I can sing better than that... CHUCKLES
:30:57. > :31:04.Where's the cue ball going? He doesn't want it in. Oh! He's gone
:31:05. > :31:25.in. And that will probably cost him the frame.
:31:26. > :31:42.Well, he wasn't going to miss that chance.
:31:43. > :32:02.20 points in front now, so even if he misses the pink, he's still a
:32:03. > :32:06.fair heavy favourite. And he hasn't missed the pink! Both players played
:32:07. > :32:08.quite well out there but a fewer errors creeping in on both sides.
:32:09. > :32:11.White STUDIO
:32:12. > :32:15.Ali Carter visibly angry with his performance, and so he should be as
:32:16. > :32:20.well. 4-0 down at the mid-session interval and he did manage to get on
:32:21. > :32:25.the board, winning two frames. Graeme Dott winning by 5-2, when we
:32:26. > :32:36.join it in the eighth. COMMENTATOR: At all pockets! He's on
:32:37. > :32:39.the black! Perfect. -- attention all pockets!
:32:40. > :32:52.That will be maddening for Graeme Dott. He thought he was OK there,
:32:53. > :32:56.and next thing, the plant. I thought that was slightly risky, I did,
:32:57. > :33:05.because the White was going straight into the pack of reds, you could be
:33:06. > :33:11.on... Or miss the plant. So despite losing the last frame, he's still
:33:12. > :33:32.got his positive hat on, good to see that.
:33:33. > :33:44.He knew no matter what angle he had on the blue, there are the two reds.
:33:45. > :34:00.Not a great chance yet, but there's a few easy reds on. As usual,
:34:01. > :34:08.there's always a time when you've got to go into a pack of reds. In
:34:09. > :34:11.one frame, you're guaranteed to go into them once. He'll be
:34:12. > :34:18.disappointed with that positional shot. It was just a case of rolling
:34:19. > :34:23.the red in, he should have been perfect on this blue. He's not now.
:34:24. > :34:27.A bit of work to do with the cue ball.
:34:28. > :34:36.He's played that well, you know. When you look at it, the yellow was
:34:37. > :34:40.straightforward for him. If you remember, in the previous frame,
:34:41. > :34:45.he's taken on a long yellow instead of the pink. Now he had an easier
:34:46. > :34:47.yellow with guaranteed position and he went for the blue! Never try to
:34:48. > :36:26.get inside a snooker player's mind! Not the type of cannon he was
:36:27. > :36:34.expecting, but there must be something on here. The one I can see
:36:35. > :36:41.is the one below the black, that one, but you've got to be very
:36:42. > :36:47.accurate, the first few days the pockets were accepting these even if
:36:48. > :36:57.they were just a little bit wide of the mark. He's going to play it with
:36:58. > :37:04.pace, by the look of it. Very nice. You can see why he did that, because
:37:05. > :37:10.he was not leaving any reds on, as long as that red wobbled and went
:37:11. > :37:14.away from the pocket he would have been OK. To be fair, that would have
:37:15. > :37:22.gone in on any pocket, he hit it so well. He took that opportunity just
:37:23. > :37:30.to cannon into that little cluster of three, always knew he would be on
:37:31. > :37:32.this red into the same pocket as the black. Chance now, he has already
:37:33. > :38:00.got a 41 point lead. Of course, he had a plan to start
:38:01. > :38:14.this break -- plant to start this break. A bit dangerous, but he got
:38:15. > :38:18.it. Now he's in a good position now. Where the balls are set, really he
:38:19. > :38:25.should be winning the frame from here. Here is the plant. It looks
:38:26. > :38:30.straight enough to the pocket, there but there was a bit of space between
:38:31. > :38:34.the two balls. He had to get on a colour and he is still on the table
:38:35. > :38:38.now and looking good. The thing that impressed me about when he played
:38:39. > :38:43.the plant, he played it with back spin so that when it hit the second
:38:44. > :38:47.red, it would hold the cue ball in the middle of the table. That's why
:38:48. > :38:53.he finished up on the black. Normally you would just play that
:38:54. > :38:56.claim ball. Every credit for the way he played it. -- normally you would
:38:57. > :39:10.play if claim ball. -- you would play it plain ball. 64
:39:11. > :39:20.ahead. Read and a colour needed. Once he puts this red, there will
:39:21. > :39:28.only be 67 available. So a red and a colour. And then we will prepare for
:39:29. > :39:34.a big last frame of the evening. 6-3 or 5-4. A big difference.
:39:35. > :39:41.The frame is well and truly in the bank now and he can just make
:39:42. > :40:05.certain of this red, no way that Graeme will come back to the table.
:40:06. > :40:19.He is concentrating on the high value colours. That is five blues,
:40:20. > :40:25.two pinks, four blacks. Well, pity. But as I say, I don't think Graeme
:40:26. > :40:28.will be coming back. No, he's conceded. So, Ali Carter has won
:40:29. > :40:35.three frames now since the mid-session interval. From 4-0 down,
:40:36. > :40:37.he is now 5-3 down. One more to play.
:40:38. > :40:41.STUDIO Let's show you what happened in the
:40:42. > :40:50.final frame of the session, Carter to play but trailing by 12. Well,
:40:51. > :40:53.hitting it that hard, you don't give time for the side to take effect.
:40:54. > :40:58.He's hit it with plenty of right-hand side but hit it too firm
:40:59. > :41:03.and pushed into the red, that is why he caught it too thick. He didn't
:41:04. > :41:07.hit that well at all. As you say, it's getting a bit tense out there.
:41:08. > :41:22.A big frame, this, in the context of the match. In this first session.
:41:23. > :41:33.Clever one. How did that go in off the blue at that pace? Amazing. I do
:41:34. > :41:42.not know. That's unbelievable. But at this! The pace of that, it's just
:41:43. > :41:49.gone in off the blue. Amazing. Ali Carter will be devastated if he
:41:50. > :41:54.loses the frame from here. Yes, he's had chances, OK, but I don't think
:41:55. > :42:02.it is straightforward, this one. A few reds available. When you're
:42:03. > :42:05.tense, everything is missable. Absolutely. And it's only the
:42:06. > :42:11.Crucible that creates that type of atmosphere. There we see, playing it
:42:12. > :42:13.with right-hand side, you can't hit it that hard. You've got to give
:42:14. > :42:24.time for the side to take effect. He'll settle for that. He'll settle
:42:25. > :42:50.for that. Well, this is an excellent chance,
:42:51. > :42:52.it really is, to take a three frame advantage overnight. The red
:42:53. > :42:57.immediately above the black is available. That will put him nicely
:42:58. > :43:08.on the black and also released the red just above it. There you see it.
:43:09. > :43:41.Pot this and bring the other one into play.
:43:42. > :43:45.Well, once again, a little bit further away from the black than he
:43:46. > :44:01.would have liked. Now then, there's one in the middle,
:44:02. > :44:04.but the one at the bottom of the pack, he would be running into the
:44:05. > :44:06.pack. You don't want to do that, because those reds are pretty well
:44:07. > :44:17.set. I'm just looking at the situation.
:44:18. > :44:23.Maybe the pink doesn't spot and would go up on the brown spot. Maybe
:44:24. > :44:27.the red near the red spot is available -- the pink spot is
:44:28. > :44:53.available to the opposite corner. He hasn't made it any easier, with
:44:54. > :44:59.the pink going back up the table. He's not happy with that one. He
:45:00. > :45:04.didn't have to get that close to the red. He could have hit it a little
:45:05. > :45:07.higher up on the white and the White would have gone further down he
:45:08. > :45:13.would have had an easy shot to the middle. Where he went wrong first of
:45:14. > :45:16.all there, when he stand up for the blue, why didn't he just rolled back
:45:17. > :45:22.down for the black? He's only looking for one more red and a
:45:23. > :45:27.colour. But it's getting... It is short and sometimes quick, Graeme's
:45:28. > :45:33.cue action, and under pressure, that will be accentuated, won't it? Yes,
:45:34. > :45:43.the old grip comes on a bit too soon and too tight and gets pace on the
:45:44. > :45:46.cue ball. He still potted it! And that think we'll put him 63 points
:45:47. > :46:07.in front with just 59 remaining. At the moment, he is 57 points in
:46:08. > :46:09.front with 59 remaining. But the pink, if it goes in, it winds in the
:46:10. > :46:19.frame. -- it winds him the frame. He didn't
:46:20. > :46:23.play for the red, he just concentrated all-out to pot the
:46:24. > :46:34.pink, and having done that, I'm surprised he missed it. Really it
:46:35. > :46:39.was a against the grain, you see. So used to playing that sort of shot
:46:40. > :46:40.and rolling down for the red, but he looked at the scoreboard and because
:46:41. > :46:57.of that I think you missed the pink. Needs to miss the middle pocket!
:46:58. > :47:06.Just about. If he had caught the bump, that would definitely have
:47:07. > :47:11.been frame over. Left to chance -- he has left a chance here, for
:47:12. > :47:20.Graeme, this fourth 6-3 overnight, and there it goes! That never
:47:21. > :47:25.touched the sides. And Ali Carter is going to be three frames behind
:47:26. > :47:36.coming into the second session, tomorrow afternoon. There was a
:47:37. > :47:40.chance of getting out with something, having lost the first
:47:41. > :47:47.four frames, but it doesn't look likely now and definitely not now
:47:48. > :47:52.that that red has dropped. So Ali will be getting his gear together
:47:53. > :47:54.and hoping that tomorrow, come the second session, he gets a better
:47:55. > :48:07.start than he did tonight. No problem with the red. There will
:48:08. > :48:13.be a handshake as both players go off and try and get a good night's
:48:14. > :48:17.sleep. They will be back tomorrow afternoon, at 2:30pm. But it's
:48:18. > :48:22.Graeme Dott who has an advantage, and it's quite a big one, really.
:48:23. > :48:24.Three frames. He leads Ali Carter by six frames to three.
:48:25. > :48:30.STUDIO Yes, a lot of work for Ali Carter to
:48:31. > :48:37.do. Graeme Dott, the 2006 Crucible champion, looking very good. That's
:48:38. > :48:42.it for now but Snooker Extra is up next with extended highlights of
:48:43. > :48:47.John Higgins against Martin Gould. Hazel is back tomorrow from 10am,
:48:48. > :48:53.can Rory McLeod cause a massive upset and knock out Judd Trump?
:48:54. > :48:56.Thank you very much for watching. Goodbye for now.