Day 11, Part 4 Snooker: World Championship

Hello, good evening. The quarter finals of the world sugar shall be

into -- World Snooker Championship are underway and resume is evening.

It sees Mark Selby taking on Alan McManus. The last time but malice --

McManus reached the finals was 1993. He is using his experience to test

Mark Selby. The quarterfinal started this morning between Mark Selby and

Alan McManus. Mark Selby got off to a perfect start, winning the first

two frames. Excellent shot. Mark Selby takes it. He goes into a 2-0

lead. And frame three, was at a misplaced

safety shot or a cue ball that we're off-line and presented a -- that

weird off-line and presented an opportunity for McManus?

That has drifted a little bit. And that is the first frame for McManus.

Selby went 3-2 behind but got his act together in frame six with a

magnificent 110 break, his highest of the championship so far, to level

once again at three frames apiece. After some long belts of safety play

in frame seven and with time running out to finish the session in time,

Selby triumphed in the end and now leads, 4-3.

Here is the state of play after the first sessions.

Yet again we have been treated to fabulous snooker here at the

Crucible. Let's reflect on some of the matches. I am wondering why Neil

Robertson performed so badly. Was it because this century of centuries

was on his mind? It might have been about how he played against Mark

Kalin. There has been a big turnaround in his form and due to

Judd Trump. Judd Trump said he expected Neil Robertson to slow

things down and was prepared for that but it was not as fast as the

Ronnie O'Sullivan and Shaun Murphy match, so perhaps Judd Trump has got

the measure of him. Ronnie is in a good position. Stephen Hendry said

it is as good as over. You have to say that Shaun Murphy missed the

boat because he was staring it in the face but for a great snooker

from Ronnie O'Sullivan. It could have been a great story. Ronnie

showed his experience and much pay -- matchplay and it will be a big

ask for Shaun Murphy to get back in. And what a great start for Barry

Hawkins, quietly going about his business. Under his radar. Other

names have been bandied around as the big fancy for this event. This

is going nicely for Barry Hawkins. If he mined his work he will be in

the semifinals without very much problem. -- minds his work. Howdy

think Alan McManus is? From his perspective, it is great to see him

in the quarterfinals. He has got nothing to lose. He has to do well,

obviously, but he can just go out there and enjoy his normal game.

From Mark Selby's perspective, he has only got to mind his work as

well. He probably feels as if he has got the tactical awareness and

knowledge and he will not be outplayed by McManus and as long as

he keeps his nose in front he might get over the line by doing that. He

might like to pull up some trees along the way and make his case for

the event. Thank you. Good evening. Tonight, two players

on get a step closer to the single table setup. This is the second act

of drama in these two brilliantly poised encounters. Sit back, relax,

and enjoy. Please welcome first of all, a player turning back the clock

14 years to grace the last eight here on the big stage. The winner of

this season's Snooker Shoot-Out, he is one of the sport's was lovable

characters but he is fired up for tonight. Here he is, ready to walk

the walk once again in the same issues, -- my same issues, The

Spaceman, Dominic Dale. And his opponent, a player who has

found the best results of his career in the last two seasons. 2012 of the

start of a great journey. Until last year he had not been past the second

round and then came the fantastic run to the final. Winner of last

month's championship in Preston, here comes The Hawk, Barry Hawkins.

And on table two, here comes the player who first appeared at this

famous venue in 1991, 23 years on he is still going strong. Making his

first Crucible quarterfinal since 2005, he knocked out John Higgins

and Ken Doherty so far. Here he comes striding out for Scotland,

Alan McManus. And finally, his opponent - a player

who is very hard to rattle on any stage in any match. He has lifted

six major trophies since he made the final in 2007, including three

Masters' crowns and the UK Championship. He produced the

incredible 147 in York and is an ambassador for the game who plays

incredible 147 in York and is an with a smile, that is why we

incredible 147 in York and is an him The Jester From Leicester, Mark

Selby. him The Jester From Leicester, Mark

APPLAUSE. Scottish support here in the

Crucible this evening for Alan McManus. Are much this evening, Mark

Selby versus Alan McManus. On the red button, Barry Hawkins against

Dominic Dale. Here we go, the quarterfinals resume.

Very good evening to you, Jason. We are in for a very interesting

session this evening between these two fine exponent of the game.

A possible nine frames to be played this evening, Ken? I know they could

only manage seven this morning, so they will play nine this evening and

finish off tomorrow. We had three very long frames, two

of them just over 43 minutes. McManus on my clothes. The last

frame, almost 40 minutes, and Mark Selby managed to win that.

Straightaway, this could develop into an awkward frame because of the

safety area behind a black on the cushion. That red is blocking the

path of the red into the green pocket.

McManus can gain the advantage of this red on the left side of the

table. Those two are not a plant into the corner but he can get back.

He can get behind the black and tighten the commission if possible.

He has hit it a bit hard, though. There might be a plant into the left

middle pocket, also. There are two red Square -- there are two reds

there. He can get through to the one on the right of the green here and

might even come back towards the black.

Has this red covered the path? He missed the pink and wanted to hate

it full ball. -- wanted to hit. He is going to play this plant. I feel

is quite a lot of distance between the balls. He might be able to cut

the red into the middle. Awkward striking. He is back looking at the

plant. I thought that was in when he first

The headlines... It. -- when he first hit it.

The fact that it was not in a direct line with the red he was trained to

plant on made it a bit more difficult. An excellent opportunity

for McManus. He was playing into an area and he

has gone a little bit too far. He had a red to the left middle and one

to the right corner. It is OK to change your mind and just head back

towards the blue. He has got a kick. He has got a

terrible contact. This was the red he was originally

playing on. That was a good recovery shot. He

can drop this red in and he has got pink or black. It is natural to go

around the back of the black with a touch of left-hand side.

You would like to leave the red closest to the corner pocket.

But what do I know? I thought he might have left that. It was always

going to be over the pocket. You have got to keep one foot on the

floor when you are stretching like that.

I remember when I started playing, some of the shots you used to climb

on the table! If you had one foot in the date was OK! -- in the D.

He is back in prime position now. He has a good chance to take this

opening frame. He hasn't left the best angle on the

black. He wanted to be a bit higher so he could try to get the red

directly above the black. He may have to take the red on the top

cushion. He has judged the side beautifully and that was an

excellent positional shot. You do not mind losing a frame if

you have played a bad shot but Alan McManus got a bad contact and this

is the result of it. Just red and Black will be

sufficient to leave McManus in snookers.

Very unfortunate to get the bad contact, as I mentioned.

It is not going to be easy to make a century break from where they are

sitting. To make the century he would have to come back to the red

to the right of the pink. The one to the left is not all that good

either. Knowing Mark, he will do his utmost to try and clear the lot. He

has made 45 centuries this season. I think he has only had one in the

World Championship. That was this afternoon, 110. He has

not had his scoring boots on in this championship just yet.

Exhibition shot, now. That was about the best he could achieve.

Too hard for the pocket to accept that but the best possible start for

Mark Selby with a fabulous break of 86 and he opens up a two frame

advantage leading 5-3. We are just a stone's threw away

from the Crucible that here in Sheffield. Very much the perfect

start for Mr Selby? Yes, but it was helped by a kick. It doesn't matter

how skilled you are, there is no way of knowing when they are going to

happen. It is an occupational hazard and you have to deal with it. You

don't want them when you are trying to get back to level terms at the

Crucible. Only one century break for Mark Selby so far, 110 in frame six.

Are you surprised? No, any session can go scrap Belleek. It depends on

your upon it. McManus is one of the greatest players at containing any

situation. It does not matter how Mark Selby gets through, even if it

is ugly. Just get in the semifinals and let his game breeze. Have you

seen enough from Mark Selby this season to suggest he could lift the

title? He has been the bridesmaid more than the bride but even so, I

think he has shown some character in his first-round match, played

excellently in the second. I think he is bubbling away.

You don't know until the semifinal who will come to the fore. They are

playing nine frames this evening. They only managed seven this

morning. Back to our commentary team.

He would like to flick it. He has fluked it! That was a good job he

did that. Bad luck in the previous frame but

good fortune in this frame. Can he capitalise on it?

Very well cute. -- cued. That is characteristic of Alan McManus's

technique. He is trying to play a delicate

cannon on the red. He really wants a full ball cannon.

He is struggling at the moment and sometimes when you don't play the

positive shots it leaves a funny angle on the blue and you have got

to split the reds further. Pretty good safety shot. I think

when he was at the table the last time, he just didn't judge the

cannon correctly. He was trying to cannon the other one. He should have

That certainly helped the situation, there we

That certainly helped the situation, flicking the black, because the reds

are getting a bit awkward. Does not always go like this, sometimes there

is a bit of a stalemate. That is a pretty good shot there.

Yes, a pretty good shot, but he could just roll this red onto the

top cushion. Nothing will pot into the left-hand corner pocket, a

containing safety shot here. He brought up a red, he will not be

happy with that because he may have given Alan the chance of a pot. He

has been short of pace. If he can knock this in, Ken, and get himself

on the black and part the black and sort those reds out.

Every chance now of opening up the frame, use that long pot again. He

is looking at the pink, but I would be tempted by their black and cannon

into the reds. If he had an angle on the pink to get on that red, he

would have taken the pink, but it is not easy to do that. He is coming

around again to weigh up the situation. Back to the pink. The

only reason he didn't take the black and open things up...

The way he is rubbing the cloth shows he didn't get into that to

screw it back. He might have made a mess of the situation. A heavy

contact, did not get into the cue ball. He under scrutiny by at least

two and a half feet. -- he underscrewed that it. Left to chance

now from Mark Selby. He has this red just to the right of

the black spot. Doesn't need to worry about position.

He looked a bit shaky in the last couple of shots because he did not

get near that pot. Let's have a look at the pink to see

did he get a heavy contact. He might have decelerated a little bit, quit

a little bit, did not get the right reaction from the cue ball.

Let's look at this pink again from a different angle. Does it jump? It

does leave the bed of the table. Strange.

It really is an awkward table the way the reds are situated. Alan

McManus will do whatever it takes you to try to get back to one frame

behind. If he played off the red that is

closest to the right corner pocket with lots of side, he would cannon

the red to the right of the pink, so he needs to be careful here around

the angles. Playdate plain ball, he knew that red was on the way if he

played with a lot of side. -- played that plain ball.

That blackout been writer with a pocket, we really would have had a

stalemate. -- if that blackout been right over the pocket.

There is room for that red pass the black, but it is too risky. He needs

to be careful. A big target, as you said, up beyond

blue and yellow off the top cushion, side cushion. Here we go. There is

the pace, looking pretty good. He has happened to swerve this and

again, you have got to be careful, does not want to knock a red over

this left-hand corner pocket. The Black has gone closer to the pocket

and we're getting closer to a stalemate. I cannot see how we can

resolve this at the moment. There is no way that they can knock the black

in at present, so gradually, all of the reds will finish over near that

black, by the looks of things. I think half the crowd wanted that

red to be on into the corner pocket. Allen didn't wanted to be on! That

is for sure! This is a tough situation for the referee, because

there will be quite a lot of shots here, Alan is already 20 in front,

McCain will be thinking, how long will this go on for? -- Michaela

Tabb are -- will be thinking. It is almost like a trick shot, it may

just career of the two reds and going. Yes, it was on.

It was like a trick shot. He is pretty good at that type of thing.

Look at where the cue ball is going to be here! Twice across the table,

the angles will be pretty good at getting out of this if he passes the

Does this red pass the black? The one that is closest to it? If it

does, it will be a bonus. That is a bit tight. It will

definitely go in half the black if he hits the cushion first.

Just managed to avoid that red on the way back.

He needs to move that red at the left of the black spot area.

He can screw right in behind that red. All of a sudden, if he gets

good position here, he has got a clear path to cannon into these

reds. Has he hit it hard enough? I think

he has come up short. That could be the end of break if he is dead

straight. He will not be rolling this. This will go at some pace.

Was never going to be easy because of the angle left on the black. Left

it too straight, try to use all of his cue power there, but the angle

was a little bit too straight. Four. Just playing for the ball cushion,

Green was preventing from getting ever there. A pretty good shot.

That is OK. Just cost him four points, it has not left anything on.

But he can still get down behind that blew. That would be his target.

Track this cue ball. His GPS seems to be working OK this

evening! It might be OK. He will have it put

back. He wants to hit the red sin rather than thick, so better to miss

it at the first attempt. -- hit the red seven.

He played the identical shot. REFEREE: Foul and a miss. Finished

up in more or less the same spot. Unbelievable. It is like watching

the first attempt, that. Amazing. That was worth giving away eight

points, he played that extremely well. You need to be carefully, if

marketplace safe across the red to the black, he will cannon into the

other reds. That is what he is looking to see what happens. If you

try to get back down the table. He might not want to risk the safety

shot. They change of plan. It has gone slightly wrong. Does he

have a pot into this bottom right-hand corner.

Yes, he didn't fancy the safety shot Etihad first of all. Mark thought, I

will play a containing safety shot. It didn't work out for him.

That is about the best he can do to get on the pink. The black will not

go. He has got options here, he has got

a good cannon, he double-kissed it. I thought the cannon would push it

safe, then the double-kiss left it absolutely perfect. Look at this,

the cannon on the red ad, but the double-kiss, that is a beauty. --

the red out. He decided on a containing safety

rather than opening up the reds and the dreaded double-kiss causing the

problem. Who is contemplating if he will play

the cannon on the red. A bit surprised he did not play that

because this red is available, but not straightforward, because he will

be running into the other red, he needs to hit this with a little bit

of pace and possibly hope for a double-kiss, maybe. He has judged it

well and the red over the middle as an extra bonus. Does not have to do

anything with the black, just concentrate on the pot, that red

could have gone safe. Just flicked a little bit of side on

it. It could have dropped it in. Just digging down. Flicked an extra

bit of side. Could have played it more firm. Quite the margin for

error. When you have that touch of side it puts it off-line. This could

be a big turning point in the match. He had every chance of

getting back to just one behind. The green is the problem ball for Mark

Selby. Look at this shot here. Lots of

reverse side. Awkward on the yellow. A position on

the black that caused the problem. If the cue ball had slowed up and be

near the middle of the table near the green, he could have played a

straightforward snooker. He didn't go for it. I wonder if

Alan will risk this and try to get the mind the green and push the

yellow down towards the corner pocket? He needs to get it straight

on. It will be a risky one. He tried it. It was thinking, I will

snooker him, I know he can get out of the snooker, but he might push

the yellow on. He is looking at the possibility of hitting it so he can

pot the yellow, so the green is not on, so even if he does, even not get

on the green. He cannot get near the green from

this position. He has, he has played to leave the double on the green.

What a clearance this would be if he could double the green. Trouble the

green will do! We have got the travel, but not ideally on the

brown. This is not easy into a blind

pocket. As to play with pace. -- has to play.

This could be end of frame, it was the way he finished, he travelled

the green and did not get on the brown. That was the way it went.

Talking away to himself. That will definitely be three frames

the difference. Worrying times for Alan McManus.

A hugely significant shake of the head from Alan McManus, he knows he

has gifted Mark Selby another frame. To continue watching this match, it

is available online on the BBC's website, and it is currently or York

and is leading by 7-3 against Dominic Dale on the red button. We

are back tonight at 11:25pm. -- and it is currently Barry Hawkins

leading by 7-3 against Dominic Dale. It's shocking it'd happen

in a public place. I don't find it funny,

but I don't find it offensive. It really is vile.

Shock value sells. Men are even less tolerant of women

than they were before. The hatred of women.

Some people are offended. Others think women

should just man up.