Day 14, Part 1 Snooker: World Championship

good morning, welcome to Crucible Theatre in Sheffield and

the 2014 World Snooker championship. We

the 2014 World Snooker championship. final, still plenty of snooker

ahead. Later this afternoon we will see Mark Selby

ahead. Later this afternoon we will Ronnie O'Sullivan looking to extend

his lead over Barry Hawkins. Ronnie O'Sullivan is the defending champion

against Barry Hawkins, a defeat of last year's final, but it was the

defending champion who got off to a flyer.

Barry Hawkins matched it with a wonderful 96 break. Barry Hawkins

edges ahead to 2-1. wonderful 96 break. Barry Hawkins

bad luck and a succession of missed easy pots from Barry Hawkins.

Ken Doherty and his assessment of yesterday's first session. Will it

be Ronnie O'Sullivan completing an incredible hat-trick. It is a

remarkable run. Ken was right in that report, a combination of bad

luck and Ronnie O'Sullivan fluency led to that 6-2 lead overnight.

Barry Hawkins has only just left the practice room. Here he is. I have to

say he looks really nervous. And when an official asked him if he

say he looks really nervous. And ready, he said, how long have I got?

I wonder if that was a little bit of pre-match jitters. Ronnie O'Sullivan

is confidently walking backstage. Hawkins needs a good start today

against Ronnie O'Sullivan. The Crucible is ready, another sell-out

crowd. Good morning,

crowd. marathon is gearing up for what we

know will be a grandstand finish. It is time once again to renew their

know will be a grandstand finish. It rivalry which bird so brightly in

last year's final. But this year there is only room for

last year's final. But this year in Sunday's showdown. -- burnt so

brightly. Please welcome a player enjoying the best results of his 18

years as a pro. It started enjoying the best results of his 18

Australian open in 2012 and his run to the final last year. Earlier this

season he won the players' championship in Preston. He has

shown his battling qualities here already coming back in the second

round and a magnificent last two frames in the quarterfinals. He is

ready to dig deep once again. Please welcome the Hawk, Barry Hawkins.

And his opponent, a magnetic talent who is simply irresistible to

watch. Winner of a magnificent 26 ranking events titles, the most

recent of which in Wales was sealed with 147. He reached his first

Crucible semifinal in 1996 and almost two decades later he is still

right on top of his game. Five times he has taken this title. He is of

course the defending champion. Blink and you will miss him. He is the

Rocket, Ronnie O'Sullivan. You have to go back to round two of

the 2002 Scottish open for Barry Hawkins' only win against Ronnie

O'Sullivan. It is a long day of snooker ahead. And no better way to

start your Friday with Ronnie O'Sullivan taking on the Hawk. Our

commentary team is John Virgo and Dennis Taylor.

Good morning Jason and good morning to everyone watching. Ronnie in the

meantime has forgotten one of the towels. Players usually have a wet

towel and a dry towel. It is his turn to break off. He did look a bit

nervous backstage, but that is quite understandable. He needs a good

session here. I think that goes without saying.

There was a bit of a hangover yesterday from that epic battle with

Dominic Dale and I was a bit concerned about Barry. He looked a

bit jaded. It is a strange thing to say, but may be a good night's

sleep, put that behind him and he will come back. His portrait was

66%. You just feel he has got to start winning one of these sessions.

When you fall four frames behind, as he has done, you cannot be losing

many more. Ronnie has had a century break and Barry has had a 96, almost

a century. He had the experience of the one table situated in last year

when he lost in the final two Ronnie. But you have to pace

yourself. When you get to the semifinal stage, you have got as

many sessions to play as you had to get there. Mentally you have to be

well prepared and there is nobody more experienced than Ronnie, going

for his hat-trick of world titles. This is the red that Ronnie missed.

The first pot of the morning. His long pot success is 67%. That is

good. REFEREE: Could you make sure that telephone is switched off. They

seem to be a lot of telephone is going off this morning. Steve Peters

is here this morning and he has been working with Ronnie for a few

seasons. Working with the Liverpool football club and also the England

squad. He certainly has worked wonders for Ronnie O'Sullivan and

his whole attitude. So, he has got a secret and it seems to work.

A chance to take the spot on. He will avoid the black. Is there a gap

through to that red if it goes over the pocket?

Ronnie likes a cup of hot water. It has just been brought into the

arena. He should get a nice tip for that, you know.

He didn't fancy the pot. Just playing it safe, keeping it tight.

It was a cup, not the towel. We have seen Ronnie do this quite a few

times. I think on the cup it said, fancy a brew? Do you fancy a brew?

You would have to put the tea bag in it to tempt me. Apparently it

improves the digester, so they say. He always puts his hand around it as

if it is a bit cold, but it is not cold in the Crucible Theatre. This

is a good safety. A straightforward run back. Particularly down the

right-hand side of the table. To fit. Surely he has left something?

He has left absolutely nothing. He has covered everything into the

right corner pocket, so he has had a bit of a result. Not a lot to go at.

He wanted a thinner contact. He would have thought, I have put him

right in here, but he didn't. Dear me, he nearly knocked that in.

Has he covered it? I am wondering if he can get round the back of the two

reds. He might be able to bend this and hit the cushion first. He is not

bothered about the white. Make sure you get the red. He is on the black

bothered about the white. Make sure if he gets this. Beautiful, well

played. To play a dead was excellent.

He does that nicely. It is tough to score from these type of

opportunities. Barry knows that. Any mistake and you will be punished.

But that is not going to help. That was approving this.

We saw that type of shot last night with Neil Robertson. He missed it of

the neo- jaw and he missed it off the top jaw as well. It shows you

how tight these pocket. I can only assume Ronnie can get

through to the red in the left middle. He has found the perfect

gap. Good shot. The pot was good, but look where he has put the white.

That is a perfect picture to show you. What a chance he has given

himself. Just those two reds to the left of the black are a little bit

awkward. He just nudged them. He sees the shot so soon. Just that one

little cannon and he has got them exactly where he wants them.

That red immediately below the black is a little bit awkward. It has gone

wrong with this. Let me put it this way, he has got pot on, but it is

not as plague. It was all because of that red below the black stopping

the natural angle of the cue ball. He is using the extension. It will

take a good shot to control this cue ball and finish nice on the black.

It is not straightforward. That is why he is coming around the table to

have a look. To try and find a gap to get round for the blue he will

have to go between the red on the cushion and the black, so there are

a few obstacles in the way. It is all about the cue ball here. Under

the circumstances he did well. Now he can cannon the red near the pink

spot. Is this a bit too thin for that? That was about the best he

could do. When you are playing that shot, the slower the screw the more

chance you have for the backspin to take effect. If he had played that

harder, he might not have got the cannon. But Ronnie is not missing a

trick when he is in the balls. He did not look to play for the red

along the top cushion. I was watching the match last night and I

agree with Willie. It was a two table situation and the pockets

seemed easier to me. Now they have got this one table they have to

looked very sharp down the cushion. Ronnie concentrating and leaving

that red where it is. Just a couple of good positional shot away from

thinking he is going to clinch the frame from this visit. It is not

straightforward. I am not sure which tables they would have used. There

is a brand-new cloth on, which will make it easier. This is not going to

be straightforward. He is two or three more parts away

from securing this frame and extending his lead. 48 ahead and 83

remaining. Another excellent positional shot

from Ronnie. Pot this read and play for the pink in the same pocket.

People say how many shots ahead do you look? This is where he will be

looking a couple shots ahead. Stan the pink in and you have got either

of those two reds to the opposite corner. After this pink one more red

is required. He had his chance, as he did in most frames. He wanted a

good start as Dennis referred to and he is not going to get it.

It has come up a little bit short to give himself a chance for a century

break. But he will be trying hard because he is closing in on Stephen

Hendry's record. Stephen's record is 775 if I am not

mistaken. That was a good effort, but he needed some sort of trick

shot or a double. The best possible start for the defending champion.

shot or a double. The best possible only needed one chance. With that

break of 83 he extends his lead. It is now 7-2. Well, that is the cup

that keeps the world champion's hands warm and Barry Hawkins, as

John alluded to, did have a chance. He put this on the neo- jaw. The

right-hand one as we look at it. As soon as he touched that, there was

no way it was going in and that was the end of the frame. The worrying

thing is you know when you get this chance is amongst the balls and you

missed the pots and leave him in, you fear the worst. Talking about

the pockets, whether they are a bit tight or not. When the six times

world champion said, they are buckets, maybe jokingly, maybe it is

Steve Davis' fault that the pockets are a bit more new P.

Even backstage, and although he has been disappointed with a few of his

performances, he looks up for it. A chance to equal Steve Davis'

modern-day six World Championships. And even Stephen Hendry's seven.

Apart from other records. He has pushed one over that left

corner pocket. But the black is a bit awkward. The rubber underneath

the cloth continues round into the pocket. Many years ago it was shaved

slightly so the ball would hit the corner of the pocket and drop in.

But that is not the case these days. On club tables, if you look at

the pocket, you will see that the rubber is slightly shaved.

Of course they have templates that fit into the pocket. That is how

they decide how big the opening pocket is. But only a fraction can

make such a difference. He is asking him to clean the cue

ball. It is giving Ronnie a little bit of thinking time. He is on this

red. Sooner rather than later he will want to bring out the reds into

play. If he is straight again, he will be

wishing he had played for the blue. He is looking to see if there is a

red on the right-hand side of the cluster. It is very straight.

No problem. It is the type of pack you would like to go into off the

blue. If he hits the reds just to the left would be ideal. He plays

this very well. It is more of a stunning shot. If he gets that with

a stand, it will open the red up. That will do very nicely. Because

they were loose, he did not have to hit it with a lot of pace.

That was his brain ticking over their, I think, thinking I have

potted -- I will pot the black. This is when he is a delight to watch.

Nice to see him enjoying the game. He brings so much pleasure, it has

got to be said. He is a joy to watch. He was disappointed with that

though. It is much thinner but he can still

get into the pink ear. And that might be a problem now. I do not

think a red goes into the corner. APPLAUSE

He put everything into the pot there and forgot about the white.

He does seem to have got his focus back. I know he played well against

Sean Murphy but there were signs he was losing his focus.

You know better than anybody, if you are not happy here, the game is as

hard as it is, if you're struggling with your form. I think that Shaun

Murphy result was a good win. Just going back to Barry Hawkins,

what he did in the last two frames against Dominic Dale was brilliant.

It would have taken quite a bit out of him.

This could be a very tough session for Barry Hawkins.

It looks an obvious canon. That was a little bit careless from Ronnie.

He will not be happy with that one. Another frame winning opportunity

and he has let it slip. He will be hoping to knock another

one onto the cushion. He might be able to take a pot on and there it

is. A classic shot to nothing there. He is hard to play against if he

starts knocking those in. Absolutely. Once you get this type

of shot, if you can get them with regularity, even if you are not on a

colour, we know what colour is next and Barry has got to get this safe

and this is not guaranteed. 66 points behind with 67 remaining.

He will need a snooker. They used to call it a

deliberateness. They changed it to the misrule. -- a deliberate miss.

Very well played! A little tap on the table from Ronnie, that is nice

to see. Ronnie needs will one read. That was a strange way of playing

it. Ronnie has had a good look at the

three reds in the middle of the table. He just needs a good cue

ball. Ronnie has got a little bit of a

problem. He only needs the red. The safety is

by no means guaranteed. It is a big shot, a big moment in

the frame. The type of frames we have seen so many times. If a player

can steal it, it can turn a session at least. A big, big shot for Barry

now. He has given himself a chance now

but he needs blacks of every red. And now he needs a snooker. 65

points behind. 59 remaining. It is not a nicely for Barry

Hawkins, along with your thoughts are not getting much table time.

Yes, you can see this semifinal slipping away frame by frame. He has

to hang in there. You have got to have that hope and

he has got the ability to do it if he gets a chance. He finished his

match with Dominic Dale with a couple of frame with in efforts. --

frame winning efforts. We know he is capable but it is not looking good.

Not quite the green but that is more than enough. One chance is sometimes

all you are going to get against Ronnie O'Sullivan. Barry Hawkins

also the behind. -- he is further behind.

Ronnie looks in superb form this morning. When he starts

Ronnie looks in superb form this the long pots, you know you are

Ronnie looks in superb form this job all. It was quite an easy read,

this one here, a nice long one up into the corner. Judged nicely. This

We can give you some of the stats as to how this matches panning out.

He lost seven frames behind Dominic Dale, you have to think if Dominic

Dale can win seven frames against me, I can possibly do it, but will

he be able to make a mini comeback? He has just got to take every

opportunity which comes his way. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen,

Barry Hawkins to break. I managed to play a frame against

this gentleman, Paul Hollywood. A delightful fellow and not a bad

snooker player. I delightful fellow and not a bad

rather better than he When things are going well for you,

that is the type of thing that happens. When they are not... And

he's on the yellow. He must have apologised. We just

didn't see it. I thought he may play for the red

that was to the right of the black. But he ever did it.

It is always difficult when you are playing into a blind pocket. You can

see the cue ball but the pocket is out of vision. It was not in his eye

line. That was very well played. When we

talk about a blind pocket, we can show you here, he is trying to cut

this into the left corner. The thing is, Ronnie has got such a

good tactical game as well. This is not the sort of shot you

would want to be taking on. Well played.

APPLAUSE If you're in the right position, you

could squeeze that and make the plant.

What a superb length of cue ball. That is the problem for Barry coming

to the table. He has played the safety. But he had

to be very, very thin. He sees it as a very difficult

safety shot for Barry. The reason I thought one in may not have it

replaced, there was a chance to pot this red.

He will get a warning now. He did have a glance at it but he has got

to hit the red otherwise he loses the frame. Ronnie can take that on.

He probably will. You can pot the loose red. Ronnie

fancies it now. A nicely controlled positional shot.

He did not want to risk everything by trying to get a nice angle on the

blue. I do love that side on shot. It shows you how long the snooker

table lives. It is 12 foot 6'. Sometimes it looks smaller on the

television. I think when people come to the

Crucible for the first time, they say, I did not realise the table was

so big. I thought he would be unlucky at

first. He might decide to save it for an

emergency. He would like more of an angle so in

but be further away from the but be further away from the

cushion. That is where he is so good, Dennis.

He did not get into that one at all. He will not be happy with that. It

is difficult now. He made that look easy. That was so

difficult from that angle. All the top spin and side on it, set it

right around the table. That is a little beauty.

There was a little smile from Ronnie. He may decide to play the

cannon here. If you got the cannon on the pink

you would have a read to the right middle.

He did not want to risk playing the cannon on the pink.

As long as he keeps control of this red, I do not think he can get

through to the one he was looking at there. He cues it so nicely.

You would not expect him to not take full advantage of this opportunity.

This looks like another frame that Barry Hawkins will not get much of a

chance in. It is hard for him at the moment.

Ronnie's tactical game can freeze people out. You would not say that

about Stephen Hendry. He was a potting machine. Ronnie has an

all-round game. Stephen Hendry's great line used to

be that he thought safety was overrated. That is why he became one

of the greatest cueists of all time. I thought he would remain the

greatest cueists of all time but I think Ronnie may have overtaken him.

He is back at his best. And he's doing what comes naturally to him.

He has made seven centuries so far here at the Crucible. This will be

his eighth. It will be 48 in total. He had 55

centuries here last year. I think the record is 80 or 81.

He looks very comfortable out there this morning. Century number 84

Ronnie O'Sullivan. Ack -- century number eight, 41 E O'Sullivan.

The Rocket is on fire at the moment and he extends his lead even

further. He looks in great form. We have a couple of shots for you here.

This one, he was playing for the red that is near the cushion.

We thought that was going to be dead straight, but he had the angle and

it was to get on the back. This was topspin with a lot of side on it. It

was absolutely superb. He had to get that cue through and that topspin.

He found himself on that awkward red. One more frame before the

mid-session interval. It has been plain sailing, it has to

be said, at the moment for Ronnie. He has not been put any pressure.

Barry's pot success of 84% will not win him this match.

That was a good safety from Barry. But Barry needs to score heavily.

Just for his own self esteem at the moment.

REFEREE: Foul and a miss. It is nice to see he has still got his sense of

humour. He is 9-2 behind. He cannot get in behind the ball. I don't know

whether he played that last shot playing ball or whether it came off

square. He may have made a mistake. He hit

it harder than he intended. This is the first chance Barry has had since

he missed the opening read in the first frame.

He wanted to be further out into the table. Hawk-eye is getting a little

bit too cocky! Going back to the first chance of Barry's, I know he

has not had any table time and you lose your touch, but if he knew he

was going to run into that, he should have played it more firm.

That in itself was a bad mistake. The only red he could play for was

the awkward one at the side of the cluster. That is where he went

wrong, from the opening red. Well, it has turned out to be quite

a good safety shot. He did not find the gap he was looking for, but it

has turned out OK. He is going through one of those times, where we

have all been through it, where you do not seem to be able to hit the

ball. It can happen when you are sitting out most of the time.

Obviously he has got no rhythm going. It is fair to say now at this

point a lot of people in the last couple of years have been saying it

depends which Ronnie O'Sullivan turned up. No one can question his

application. That is why it is very difficult for Barry at the moment.

Ronnie is not giving him any space to breathe. He hit that much too

hard. If he takes this long red into the

left corner, he will have to get it. With the reds like this, Barry might

be able to play himself into a little bit of form.

The only pottable red is the one into the right corner. Barry Hawkins

is one of the best rest players I have ever seen and he is going to

have to call on that prowess now. That tells you. I have seen him miss

very few shots with the rest. The pressure on that pot was too much.

Barry knows only too well if Ronnie gets this positional shot to start

with, he can get onto the black in the same pocket.

It will need a delicate cannon to keep the white amongst the reds. As

John alluded to in one of the earlier frames, with a screw, the

earlier you hit it, the more angle you can make.

If this goes in the right corner, he is OK. If it does not, he is out

opposition. You can put the white right in amongst the reds and you

are not on a pot. The only possible pot is the one up into the corner

and he is right on top of that. APPLAUSE

. A little bit straight on this red.

He has got to force it this side of the baulk line.

A great chance for Ronnie. The black is available into both corners.

I would suggest it is very worrying times for Barry Hawkins. He was

looking for a good start this morning and he has not got it.

I know he does a lot with Terry Griffiths. Terry will have to work

some magic. If Ronnie goes on to win this frame, it will be nine frames

in a row. Barry Hawkins has only managed to score nine points this

morning because he has had very little chance.

He let that one slip. That will annoy him slightly.

Ronnie is playing with all the freedom that he can go for anything.

Barry Hawkins has not got that luxury. If Ronnie can win this match

quite comfortably. In the other semifinal they are going to have

such a battle. He will be fresher than

such a battle. He will be fresher still a long way to go, but he is

certainly on his still a long way to go, but he is

as the defending champion. Barry had a couple of chances early

on. Before you know where you are, particularly with a talent like

Ronnie O'Sullivan, before you know where you are the first four frames

are over and you have lost them. The next red is

is reckoning the score up. It does not give you the running

is reckoning the score up. It does have to work it out yourself.

Sometimes early in the morning your brain is a little

Sometimes early in the morning your without you, Dennis. This early in

the morning I would have had problems seeing the scoreboard! Just

the red needed. There is the red John mentioned. He

is brilliant with his right hand, he is brilliant with his left hand and

he is not too shabby with the rest. There are not many weaknesses. I am

always amazed how good he is with the rest. He does not use them very

often, does he? Possible back-to-back centuries. The

Rocket is on fire. He will go ahead of Neil Robertson.

This will be his ninth century. It is an absolute pleasure to watch.

You feel for Barry Hawkins. But it is just tremendous snooker. The

potting, the break-building, the safety, that has put lots of

pressure on Barry Hawkins. The brown does not go in, but that will not

matter to Ronnie. Disappointment once again for Barry Hawkins. The

Rocket is skipping his depth. We are watching one of the great British

sports men doing what he does best. Ronnie O'Sullivan in complete

control against Barry Hawkins. It is turning out to be another nightmare

for Barry Hawkins today. Ronnie O'Sullivan looking so impressive.

There is another session this evening and scheduled for tomorrow.

Whether we get that far, it does not seem much like it. The other match

this afternoon is Neil Robertson taking on Mark Selby. It is a repeat

of the UK championship final. Is this year going to be Mark Selby's

year at the Crucible? Four cue action I would pick Shaun

Murphy. He hits the ball as good as anyone on the tour. Ding Junhui has

been a great break-builder. Neil Robertson. Ding Junhui when he makes

his breaks, the white ball is never more than three or four inches

behind the object ball. Steve Davis. Neil Robertson's temperament is

great. You never know when he is winning or losing. He always gives

it his all and his anger # hunger for the game. Shaun Murphy is very

good with the rest. We are more or less the same age and in our junior

days neither of us were that tall and we used to use it a lot. Mike

Allen in the World Championships against Ronnie O'Sullivan. It is not

easy to be Ronnie, but to beat him at the Crucible when it was only his

first or second time. Stephen Hendry, the amount of times he used

to do that when his back was against the wall. Ronnie O'Sullivan. Once he

gets in front, he starts to steam-roll a bit and he is very hard

to play. Ken Doherty gets his nickname, crafty Ken, for that

reason, because he is very good at pinching the scrappy frames because

of his awareness. Nods from Mark Selby for Neil

Robertson. We pick it up in frame five.

We did not see that coming. Look where the cue ball is. He has been

rather fortunate. That red could have landed anywhere.

That is a good shot. Watch the red. It covered everything, really. This

is going to test Mark Selby. Going for the two cushion escape to flip

off the red. Don't be surprised if he doesn't miss it on the first

attempt. He has hit it too thick. That is why I thought he might miss

it on the first attempt. Missing it is better than hitting it too thick

like that. These two reds are available into the same pocket as

the black. The fact the red has pulled up in

time makes it a little easier to get on. I am wondering if Neal thought

the blue was on its spot? Look at that to get that back spend. It is

the perfect angle on the red to get on to the black.

Can you believe it? It fooled Mark Selby early on in this match.

On the other tables they have always been going in-off

On the other tables they have always table does not accept it.

I thought Neal was going to pinch this frame.

It will be a pretty relieved Mark Selby who almost had this frame

pinched from him. He will be mightily

Selby. He looked as He will be mightily

going to take the frame quite easily, but Neil Robertson had a

chance until he missed that red. Mark Selby took the next two

frames. We go into frame eight. There is no score.

It needed to stop just about there. But we know the cube how he

possesses. -- cue power. The pace to get into that pack just shows you

the cue power. There is a very old saying, and I

love that saying, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

That is what Neil is doing. He is marching around the table at the

moment. This is a massive frame for Robertson fans.

He played that very nicely indeed. He can play for the one in the

middle pocket. He has got three options here.

He also had a glance at the two reds. He has got the angle to go

straight into them again. He has got that easy red to play on.

The only thing is, if he takes this red and decides to cannon into

them, he has got no red as a bit of insurance. Maybe the plant is on.

If he risks going into the reds here, he will have to get lots of

top spin on the White to bring them into play. He is usually pretty good

at this type of shot. Any closer and he could have pushed

that but he played it well. What a time to produce your highest break

of the match so far. He has got to give this is a bit of

care and attention. The blue will put him 65 in front.

Another red and colour after the blue would be enough.

You hit the nail right on the head when the going gets tough, the tough

get going. Just one more red needed. That is the frame safe. How many

century breaks has Neil made this season? It could be 101 in a minute.

Selby made 133 in frame for. -- friend four. To be fair, we have had

everything in this session. We have had some fantastic tactical play

that we have seen in the early part of the match. We saw that

magnificent 133 from Mark Selby and now this. It is building up nicely

and it is difficult to pick a winner from this.

He had three or four great chances before he got the won last night.

Stephen Hendry has made the most centuries at the Crucible. He made

15 one year. centuries at the Crucible. He made

Very well done, Neil Robinson. I think these boys will not have any

problems sleeping this evening. A good night's rest and back again

tomorrow afternoon. As you rightly say, Dennis, it has been a

first-class session of snooker. What a fantastic session of snooker

from these two players. They get a standing ovation for the first

session. Selby takes a lead into the second session and that is by five

frames to three. You get a feeling that one will go

all the way at the Crucible. That is our live match when we return on BBC

Two at one o'clock. For now, we are concentrating on this semifinal

between Barry Hawkins and Ronnie O'Sullivan. O Sullivan is in

complete control. Let's rejoin our commentary team of John Virgo and

Dennis Taylor. Barry Hawkins breaks off. Still

without a framing this session so far.

Early on in this match, it was getting close to 20 minutes a frame,

but Ronnie has just stepped it up a bit.

The average shot time was 15 seconds for Ronnie in his previous match. I

was in the studio and the practice area. Terry was in with Barry

Hawkins. He was pretty relaxed. He was

knocking balls than for fun in the practice area. Ronnie has been

devastating so far in this session. A nice little rub of the yellow,

leaving that cue ball tight. He has found himself a lot there, has

Barry. Maybe that bump on the middle pocket

may just have helped him. Having said that, the red on the extreme

left of the table does go to the right corner.

Well he has picked another gem out there and he has got the right angle

on the yellow and he might be able to do something about the pink and

reds or he could develop the black. He has got a couple of choices here.

He will be trying to bring something into play here.

We mentioned Steve Peters earlier. It is Doctor Steve Peters and he is

a sports psychiatrist. He has been working with Ronnie for a couple of

years. I do not think Ronnie will be bothered about missing that. He has

done wonders for the Liverpool football team as well. And he is

working with the England squad. He knows what he is about. A great man.

Ronnie can get through to this red in the right corner.

Did the referee not call a miss? They usually do. I didn't hear

anything. Interesting, I did not hear anything

called. He did call a miss. But there was no

value in putting it back. If you are playing well, the ball is

always seem to run in your favour. If you're struggling, the opposite.

Like all sports, you can have all the ability in the world, if you do

not get that little run on the ball, it is so difficult. You cannot

beat a little bit of good fortune ball, it is so difficult. You cannot

now and again. A bit like new on the old golf course!

It shouldn't be a problem, getting this safe.

Anything less than quarter ball should send this cue ball back to

green and blue. He has left a cut in. If he takes

this song, he could bring the black into play but he will have to get

the pot. The white has cannoned the red

instead up the table and not the black say. A shake of the head from

Barry. Not even close. It is tough for him out there at the moment, no

doubt about that. That is exactly what he has played

for. The pink and black out of commission.

You could see the pause at the end before he delivered the cue. That is

the key. It looks easy but far from it.

This is why I also enjoy watching Ronnie, the way he goes about this.

With the two high-value colours, it is fascinating to see how he makes a

break when they are a little awkward like this.

Most of us think it is hard to win a frame from this position but you

would not put anything past this man.

APPLAUSE Yes, justified applause. A beautiful

positioning shot. Slightly the wrong side of the blue.

I think he loves the challenge of trying to make a break from this

position. He did have half an eye on trying to

bring the pink into play but could not make contact with the pink. When

he has run out of position like this, he will drop his head and now

concentrates on the next shot. Just making it so, so difficult for

Barry Hawkins. There is a possible pot on here with

the safety shot. That has cost him four points. He

looks to the heavens. It is fraught with danger. I think

the cue ball may run into the other reds. He could plate into the left

corner but it will be close to the cushion.

He knows if he makes one more mistake in this frame it could be

his last. He tried to bring the lack into

play. It was not a bad idea but he did not get the cue ball back to the

baulk cushion as he would have liked. He was purposely trying to

run the red into the black, which he did.

He did go for the pot. Look at the cue ball once again.

A possible pot for one E to go out with the safety in mind. -- 41 E.

When you have been kept off the table, that 32 minutes and 25

seconds and counting since his last pot, he will get a great cheer if

this goes in. Well played. And he got a kick. Did you see how

the white jumped in the air? He has lost nine frames in a row. I

think everyone would love Barry to win a frame.

STUDIO: That is where we have to leave you here on BBC Two now.

Coverage carries on on connected televisions, computers and

smartphones. But don't worry, we will be back at one o'clock with

live coverage of Neil Robertson taking on Mark Selby. Goodbye.