Day 14, Part 2 Snooker: World Championship

Good afternoon. We are getting closer to the final of the 20 14th

world Snooker Championships. Four players are dreaming of lifting

snooker's most coveted prize. This is the story so far.

Ronnie O'Sullivan against Barry Hawkins. It was oh Sullivan who got

off to a flyer. But Barry Hawkins matched it.

Very well played indeed. Hawkins edges ahead 2-1. A horrendous kick

could have been turning point in this match. Ronnie O'Sullivan did

what he did best to level it. After the interval, it was a continuation

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

which allowed his opponent to gain lots of momentum. And from then on,

it was the Ronnie O'Sullivan show as he took the four remaining frames of

the session for a win. What a second semifinal we have in

prospect. Mark Selby took the first frame with a break of 65. He really

is one of the best match players in the game. As you would expect, the

world number one came back to win the next two frames, albeit looking

slightly out of sorts. Can you believe it? Then Selby reeled off

the next four friends including a magnificent break of 133. He wants

to pot the lot. It was essential for Robertson to stay close in this

match and boy did he do it, with a century of his own. Exhibition time!

Mark Selby goes into the second session of this match leading by

five games to free. Barry Hawkins got off to an

excellent start but then he got a couple of horrible kicks? Yes, this

was in the third frame. The most hurtful one was the second kick to

the middle pocket. This was a terrible blow. Later on in the

session, most probably the most hurtful shot from a mistake point of

view. I think Barry's head was a bit scrambled after the match

previously. The Neil Robertson Mark Selby match got off to a great

start. Neil went on to make a fantastic clearance to win the

frame. Mark Selby really showed he was on form. He looks really

determined. A really tough call this match. Mark

Selby won in 2013. Robertson is the current UK champion. He beat Mark

Selby in York. A very busy programme for you this afternoon. This is what

is coming up. He is looking to complete a

hat-trick. We will have the best of the action from Ronnie O'Sullivan's

semifinal match with Barry Hawkins. But the Hawk has only beaten the

Rocket once and that was in 2002 and he is struggling.

World number one, Australian, record-breaker Neil Robertson

resumes his match against Mark Selby. We will see that at 2:30pm.

Selby out for revenge after losing the UK Championship final.

We will have some mind-boggling trick shots. And stand-by for

Richard Osman and today's populous question. We would like you to get

involved. But we start with a match between Barry Hawkins and Ronnie

O'Sullivan. This is a repeat of last year's final at the Crucible which

Ronnie O'Sullivan won. Some key stats to show you. Look at the pot

success. When Barry Hawkins had back kick in frame six, it had an effect

on his game. His pot success has gone down whereas Ronnie O'Sullivan

maintains his. And everything was happening to Barry Hawkins between

frames nine and ten. We will show you what happened in frame 11.

Ronnie O'Sullivan to play, nine points ahead.

Ronnie has left a pop to the right corner. A superb length of cue ball.

That is the problem for Barry coming to the table.

He has played the safety. He had to be very, very thin. Ronnie may not

have it replaced. He is doing. He sees it as a very difficult safety

shot for Barry. He will get a warning now. I would

come around and have a look at the possible plant. He did have a glance

at it but he has got to hit a red otherwise he loses the frame. Ronnie

could take that on. There is a path around the back of the black. You

would have to hit the first red on the right-hand side as the player

looks at it, to push the second red to the left.

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

is. It is 12 foot six foot. Sometimes it looks smaller on the

television. It shows you how big the table is in comparison with the

player. I think when people come to the Crucible for the first time,

they say, I did not realise the table was so big.

Look at this shot. He can get out on the black. I thought he would be

unlucky at first. He went to the cushion but bounced

out. He has got the perfect angle. He could definitely think about

playing this plant. That is where he is so good. He

makes it look so easy. You have got to have a good touch to play them.

What a shot this is. He made that look easy. That was so difficult

from that angle. All my top spin and side on it sent

it right around the table. That was a little beauty.

Sometimes the little fivers, you can see it when you look down the cue.

-- little fibres. He may decide to play the cannon

here. He has got a red to the right

corner. He will be slightly hampered cueing. He did not want to risk

playing the cannon on the pink. He cues it so nicely. No problem.

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

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

chance on. It is hard for him at the moment. Ronnie's tactical game can

freeze players out. You say that about Steve Davis. You would never

have said that about Stephen Hendry at his safety play would freeze a

player out. Stephen was a potting machine, a break building machine

but Ronnie has got an all-round game that you felt, even if he was not at

his best, he could win matches. 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 of all time but I think Ronnie may have overtaken him.

He is cueing so well here. He is back at his best. He is doing what

comes naturally to him. He has made seven centuries so far

this year at the Crucible. This will be his eighth.

I think the record is 80 or 81. This has been flawless.

He looks very comfortable out there this morning.

And that is Ronnie's eighth century in this year's world Championship.

The Rocket is on fire at the moment. He extends his lead even further. He

now leads nine frames to two. STUDIO: Sheer brilliance. Let's show

you what happens next. I have seen him this very few shots

with the rest but it is the situation that caused that. He knows

the way the reds are. It is not easy to get onto a colour. The pressure

on that pot was too much. He didn't play to cannon the red but

he will take that. He was playing to miss that and get nicely on the

black but the cannon has worked out OK. It will need a delicate little

cannon here. It is amazing, you can put the white

amongst the reds and you are not on a pot. The only possible pot is the

one into the corner. He would love to get on that red

left of the Black sooner rather than later. Then that clears path from

both sides of the table to get on the black.

Very worrying times for Barry Hawkins. There will be a mid-session

interval after this frame. 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. I think Barry Hawkins has only

managed to score nine points this morning because he had very little

chance. It is there. That is the difference,

Ronnie playing with all the freedom that you can go for anything. Barry

Hawkins has not got that luxury. If you can go on to win this match

quite comfortably, and it looks like he will do that, the other

semifinal, Mark Selby and Neil Robertson, they will have such a

battle. He is certainly going to be fresher than his opponent will be.

A quick glance at the scoreboard. Balls pot of this session, 101 now,

Ronnie. Barry had a couple of chances early

on. He was not able to make them count. Before you know it,

particularly with a talent might Ronnie O'Sullivan, before you know

where you are, the first four frames are over and you have lost them.

The next red is not a certainty. He is just reckoning the score up. You

have got to work it out yourself. Sometimes, especially early in the

morning, sometimes your brain is a little bit scrambled. I don't know

about you, this early in the morning, I had a problem seeing the

scoreboard! Is brilliant with his right hand and

his left hand. I am always amazed how good he is with the rest. He

does not use it that often. Possible back-to-back centuries. He

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

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

really is. You feel for Barry Hawkins.

The brown doesn't go in but that won't matter to Ronnie.

Disappointment once again for Barry Hawkins. The Rocket has got a skip

in his step. He now leads by ten frames to two.

The Rocket is definitely in one of those moods. Somebody who was

watching in the Crucible earlier this morning is this man, Paul

watching in the Crucible earlier Hollywood. Welcome to our studio

here. You were in the audience. Yes, I thought

here. You were in the audience. Yes, been a bit stubborn starting but he

is still hugely in front. I can see Barry coming back. It is one of the

great British sites in sport when you see Ronnie in full flow. I had

no idea, all the time I had watched on television, but when you are

there, how small the reds are in comparison. They look huge on the

television. And the speed of this cloth is just incredible. Dennis

Taylor was saying in commentary when they put up a shot of you that you

were a big snooker fan. Do you play? Are used to. Most of the hotels I

worked in had a snooker table so I had a break I would play. I used to

play pool a lot. But the angles were so different. It totally freaked me

out. After a while of playing, you start to get it. It was something I

really enjoyed. I will probably do it again, I must get back into it.

We are calling this part of the programme the great British Break

Off. Did you see what I did there? What are you doing? Are you in

Sheffield just here to see us? I am on tour. I am travelling around the

country, thoroughly enjoying myself. Is it a cue and A or are you

doing life were? It is a demonstration. I am setting people a

challenge on stage. The audience have to judge them. It is bury

interactive but we have a giggle. So you pick people from the audience.

That must be pretty nerve wracking. I am with Alex Altman, a warm up guy

who is the comedian. I say, go out there and find four people. So you

are in Wolverhampton tonight. That means you cannot go to the afternoon

session. No, unfortunately. I saw as much as I could this morning. I will

take division wake of the frames I saw this morning. The highlights are

on tonight on BBC Two. I will be there. We have a treat for you, the

one and only legend Steve Davis coming in. Ladies and gentlemen, a

round of applause. Usual when you say what is your high highest break,

they say, oh, I made a 70 once. It is very refreshing. It is only fair

and the tradition that any guests who come into the studio, they must

do a shot. I have one in the oven they prepared earlier! See what I

done. Your opponent snookered you behind the yellow. The reds are all

scattered but you can only see the one red, really. What you have to do

is to pot a red in one shot. I'm not going to say any more than that,

other than perhaps that little tip I gave you earlier, so a full, strong

whack at that centre red there and at the middle pocket.

Congratulations! Thank you! Maybe I should take it up again! Very good.

Who'll win the world World Championship? I think Selby will do

quite well. I can see a Selby v Ronnie O'Sullivan final. I think

Ronnie will take it again. Good luck in Wolverhampton. Have a

great weekend. Barry Hawkins taking on Ronnie O'Sullivan into frame 13.

O'Sullivan to play. Oh, a rare miss hit from Ronnie. Has

he got away with it? It's amazing. It a east a half chance, but -- it's

a half chance, but once he played the poor shot, you would have

thought he'd have something easier than this to go at. This red passes

the blue up into the corner, but under the circumstances, when you've

been kept off the table for 32 minute minutes since his last pot,

he'll 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 there? Come on, Barry, let's see if he can

knock a few in! He'll be trying so hard here.

He's lost nine frames in a row. Everyone would love Barry to win a

frame. He's playing the far right corner.

Needs every due care and attention this. Well played.

APPLAUSE As you can see the way the reds are

situationed, particularly that one tight to the right-hand side cushion

- it's not going to be an easy opportunity to clinch the frame at

this visit, by any means. He could bring the pink into play. I

wouldn't risk that myself. He's not going to. What he wants no u is a

good position on the blue. He's trying to force an angle. That

is the problem, as we see so many times. Watch the cue ball leave the

table. That takes all the pace out of it.

OK, this is a tough red to the middle pocket if it goes in.

That was very difficult and the cue ball is closer.

Barry can cut this into the left middle pocket, but slightly awkward

cueing. Well done!

APPLAUSE He's hit it too hard. As we keep

saying, when you don't get a lot of table time, you don't necessarily

get the pace of the table. He's had many opportunities this morning.

Can just about cut this red in, but he needs to control the cue ball to

be either op yellow or brown here. Maybe not too bad. Can pot the blue.

He may have the angle to come up for this remaining red.

This looks pretty good to me. He's given himself a chance now. 10

points t lead. He won't need the awkward pink or

the black. A quick glance around at the score

board. He would have worked out what he needs.

Nicely played. Deserves it, you would have to say.

He's showing a lot of character here because he's lost nine frames in a

row. Well, he could have been better on

the brown. He only needs the brown. He would have loved to have just had

a nice straightforward pot. Well played, Barry Hawkins!

APPLAUSE That was lovely to see that. He's

one of the nicest lads. He encouraged the crowd to applaud

more. Ronnie is in his seat and Barry Hawkins had stopped the ruck.

Great to see Barry Hawkins smiling. Let's show you what happened in

frame 14. Frame 14 and this one and two more

to complete this second session. Barry Hawkins will be feeling that

bit better having won the last frame. He needed a few

opportunities. Whether he's going to get that every time or not - I

wouldn't think so. Any way, the frame is on the score board.

If he hits the green full ball, he's OK, he's on the brown. A good, long

pot. Maybe he's feeling a little better and he's got the distance. If

he can pot this, he can go right into them.

He needs a bit of good fortune and he's not had it. That is so unlucky,

to stick on that red and not finish with a pot is so unlucky.

He couldn't hit this any better. That is rather unfortunate.

For a split second he was on a red and the cue ball just drifted.

. If Ronnie cannot get to the red on the left-hand side of the table,

coming down the right-hand side of the table, he's got to be a little

careful of this red, near the right-hand curbingtion.

-- cushion. Oh, much too thin! And that was a

kiss on the green. Otherwise that cue ball would have come down to

this half of the table. A big mistake. Got the safety all

wrong. Sits down with an air of resignation.

This was the safety area. Just hit it far too thin.

Found a nice gap there to be on the pink. It is quite interesting when

he played the red just below the pink, a few shots ago, he went for

the blue. You would have thought he could have run off the side cushion.

the blue. You would have thought he Ronnie knows, we talk about these

bounces, in you can play position without coming off the cushion -

just these little stuns and cues, it feels like you have more control of

the cue ball. It is a little bit careless to not

leave himself - he was playing to the red for the left corner, but he

should is a run through another couple of inches, so if he's not any

good, he would not have been hampered from this left to the

middle. Just got an angle on the blue.

The black is out of commission at the moment. A nice angle. Maybe drop

off the cushion for that red on the right-hand side of the table. It is

the most obvious red to play on. You see what happens when you use the

cushion - you can just bounce off that little bit more than you

expect. Didn't want to be using the extension on his cue here.

He's playing the next shot pretty quick. That is usually a sign that

he's happy with the potting angle on the pin took get on to the next red.

-- pink, to get on to the next red. He didn't make the best job of that

one. He didn't really - a little rye

smile there. He didn't get any - squared it up and it went towards

the blue, just for safety. Once again he gets down, plays the

right shot and doesn't woirp about playing out of position. -- worry.

APPLAUSE Ronnie has a 35-point lead, but this

is a tough safety. He's looking for the comfortable

cueing, but can he get past the blue to hit this thin enough? He could!

OK, not the best length, but believe me, when you are hampered like that

you are pleased to get back to the ball.

Look where the cue ball finish sclad he took the red on and now that he's

potted it, he can put Ronnie in all sorts of trouble. If he hadn't

potted the red, he still have a good cue ball, so he could run up behind

the brown, but he feels Ronnie may come off a couple of cushions and

land on the red that is to the left of the black there.

And that's what he's going to do. He was thinking of playing the green

there, but... Oh, now that he's so tight to the brown, Ronnie's going

to have to find an alternate way around the table to that red. He can

do it off the baulk cushion. He's normally good at these sort of

shots, but he has to be so accurate at this.

Not the red he intended to hit. He's left a possible long red for Barry

Hawkins. Depending on the angle, it might be

worth taking this on. Looks good. Right in the middle of

the pocket. So Ronnie's great escape there

didn't keep them safe. He just caught the wrong red when he went

around the angles. This looks good.

He has to do more work with the cue ball. If it had been on the red, it

would have been a formality to pot it beyond the pink. I don't think he

can risk playing for the black. He's playing for the pink and he's got

the right angle on the pink, so he needs to pull out a good pot here.

Makes the pink missable. What an excellent pot, and oh, that

little rub on the black has not helped.

It has not helped his situation. If he just misses the black, he would

have been inch-perfect. That was the problem. He just lost control on the

red and wasn't perfect on the pink. It's not all that easy to get where

he wants to. Considering he was so close to the

red, he'll be very disappointed with that.

It should have been on the cushion, not the line.

But it hasn't cost him. Comes to the table, 14 points

behind. You can see the big problem - Ronnie missed running up to the

black. That red will be a big hurdle to overcome.

If he's any thoughts of winning the frame at this visit.

He's gone a fraction too far to cannon the red and black. Can't do

that from that angle. That will be his plan, if he could

get a decent angle. Really to get to the black and red,

you'd have to do it off the pink. Blue would be no use. The pink would

be in the use of the cannon on to that difficult red and black.

If he strays on the blue, he can't get on the red, so he may have to

take the pink again. That's a good shot. A very good

shot! Oh, I just wonder if he's got the

angle to screw this in and cannon the red and send the black over the

mock ket. He -- the pocket. He doesn't have it - if he had been to

the right he could have screwed back and moved that black.

Now, he knows straight away - no angle on the pink now, so, he's got

himself one point in the lead. He could take the six points and

play a decent safety shot or just refuse the pot. I have to take the

six points and play a good safety. He's just making certain that when

he clips the red he doesn't send the black into the right corner. I am

sure he's not aware of that possibility.

APPLAUSE He's played a very good cue ball

here. He's got Ronnie snookered.

And he's got a seven-point lead now has Barry.

Will he risk it? He's just had a little think about it there.

He doesn't fancy the cut. You can tell by the little shake of the

head. It needs to bounce.

And it hasn't. Now, this is almost dead straight. This one requires

perfect cueing. This is not easy. He delivered that in a straight

line. What a pot! He's not going to need the black.

He's got a nice angle on this yellow. He needs a good angle on the

green. Doesn't want to be straight. This green is still a tough shot.

Now, you can make it easier, as Barry sits there, watching Ronnie

knock in that last red - he can make it easier playing for the brown into

the middle pocket. Well, even then the green was

missable. He gave it every chance. He played for the brown into the

middle pocket. It stayed there. So, Barry - the

points are all square. He's up to and including the pink.

Could this be another boost for the very likeable Barry Hawkins? Just a

funny angle if he screws straight back he could go in the pocket. He

doesn't want to screw it too much. I always feel when you are making a

clearance, the shot from brown to blue is important. He doesn't need

the black, so he should be OK. Should be on the pink.

And that's just about perfect. That green, just off the baulk cushion

found Ronnie out. And in goes... He puts his second

frame of the morning on the board. He was 10-2 behind. Those two frames

have made it 10-4 to the reigning champion.

Into the next, Ronnie O'Sullivan to play, leading by 11 points.

Ronnie missed that long pot by quite a margin. Since the mid-session

interval, where Ronnie made back-to-back centuries, he has not

had many opportunities. I could see that red straighten up

there. Not the best, JV. No, he will be

disappointed. You would favour the right middle.

Anything but straight. Looks to be straight enough.

They are tough enough fees when you are close. He is a bit further away.

Needs good cueing to sneak that one in -- snack that one in. Well

played. I think the only way he could get

into the reds is to power the blue and go round the back of the black.

That is the only way he can do that. That is a pretty good effort.

APPLAUSE He will be quite happy that he has

knocked one red on to continue it. In an ideal world, he would like to

play that red in the middle of the table to get a nice angle on the

blue. He has got the red over the right

side of the table. He could play a couple of shots in one here.

Do you not always feel that if you playing with a lot of pace, it can

swing the cue ball wide? That is the problem here.

He has been very unfortunate at first glance. He really was. He is

one of the best I have ever seen using the rest and he played that as

well as he possibly could and was unlucky to finish where he has.

He has done very well here, Barry Hawkins. From 10-2 down in the

mid-session interval, he seems to have changed things slightly.

I think the red that is in between will prevent him from making the

plant. He has pointed the cue at it but it will be interesting this. He

is taking the other red. APPLAUSE

He is on the green. In the end, it did go in. He looked like taking the

more difficult red. He was not sure if it would be in the way. In the

end, he has spread the reds perfectly and is on the green. One

good positional shot and they are all there for the taking.

The last frame was in its 20th minute.

Just struggling with the cue ball here. The frames get a little bit

scrappy. You lose that fluency. Ronnie with the tricky red here.

He played it such a way that he was either on the blue wore the green.

He may favour the green. Once again we go back to Ronnie

O'Sullivan and how focused tears. He didn't even bat an eyelid when he

was unlucky there. -- how focused he is. He landed on the red, never

batted an eyelid. It was a difficult pot but cut it in the middle pocket

and continues. That shows you. The focus that he has.

He will be even more annoyed this time because he has got no

alternative. He shows a little bit of frustration which is quite

understandable. A couple of seasons ago, something

like this would really upset Ronnie but he is coping with things when

they just don't go right. That was a bit careless. I can only assume he

played a little cannon on that red. He took a few moments pause to get

over the disappointment of not winning the frame. A wrap of the

knuckles on the table. That must hurt, mustn't it? Michael Holt did

that once and he broke his finger. At least it got him a nickname.

He competed in this year's world Championship. His nickname is the

Hit man halt. He went out to Mark Allen.

He could have left this easier for Barry.

As I say, he is very good with the rest here.

That was very well played. I think this man is as good as Jimmy white.

Barry is right up there. Jimmy is staying on the main tour

because of Dominic Dale and how well he played. That has kept Jimmy on

the main to war. It looked like he would drop off. If Michael Wasley

had beat Dominik then he would have to go back to cue school. Oh, Barry!

There we are, idle gossip because we thought he was in, and unmissable

red. I think he got a kick. I am sure I saw the red jumper. It

jumped. He may try to cannon one of the reds

away from the side cushion. That is what he has done. A good choice of

shot. This cue ball tight against the side cushion does not make this

pot any easier. Two reds, two colours needed.

Every time you strike a ball low and you hit it hard, the ball seems to

leave the bed of the table. When they bounce, of course they can be

thrown off line. One more frame to be played after

this. Barry Hawkins badly needs it. Played with a terrific amount of

side. Does not need the black but he wanted to play a little exhibition

type shop there. He is not bothered about that. That break of 47 stops

the mini fightback by Barry Hawkins. Ronnie O'Sullivan takes the frame

and he now leads 11 frames to four. Thank you, the final frame of this

session, Ronnie O'Sullivan to break. As you just heard, the referee

telling us this is the final frame of the session. Barry Hawkins

started this session four frames behind, 6-2. If he can win this

frame and take it to 11-5... As I said at the start of the session, he

needed to start winning these eight frames, 5-3 claws away back. But he

just cannot close the gap enough. If he loses this frame, he has lost

his second session 6-2. If he wins it, this last frame, he will have

lost it five - three. Not making any inroads this moment on Ronnie's

lead. Another Ronnie special there. A

terrific long pot. Almost six foot away from it. He cued it

beautifully. It is not bad. If he can pop this

and flick the red near the black, he might need to play it with quite a

bit of side. This could be the shot which sets up a frame winning chance

if this one goes right. No. That is the problem.

That is a very difficult table at the moment. The reds ROK but pink

and black are awkward. -- the reds are OK.

He has got a red to the right middle pocket. That has really tied the

back-up now. If you are having a good day, that red and black would

be a plant to knock the red in. That is not the case.

We were talking in the last frame about how good Barry was with the

rest. We mentioned he was as good as one of the greatest players ever at

using the rest, Jimmy White, and believe it or not, it is his

birthday today, he is 52 and he will be on the main tour. Happy birthday,

Jimmy. Looking forward to seeing you hopefully qualify for the televised

stages next season. He will not stop trying to stop he absolutely loves

the game and still loves the practice and the playing.

That is the hardest part when you get to a certain age. Not being out

here, this is the icing on the cake, it is going to the snooker

club and putting in the four or five hours practice a day.

I think that is the hardest thing for Ronnie O'Sullivan. He loves to

run but he finds the practice quite difficult. But you have to do it, no

matter how much talent you have. A 12-4, he will be an awful long way

back. APPLAUSE

Justified applause. Good positional shot.

He would love to get back black into play. Pink will put him 28 points in

front. I think he had a thought in his mind

here. His plan would be the red, pink, get

on the red next to the, cannon the other red, he can do that. He's

already thinking three or four shots ahead.

He will be very disappointed if he does not win this frame now.

He is showing a lot of character, Barry, battling the way out there.

Nicely played. He screwed that back in such a way, he would have black

or pink and it is the one that gets into the two reds.

The only thing is, can he run through here and avoid a kiss on the

red just below the black? If he cues it well, he can.

He is not perfect on this red. Red, colour, red, still needed.

APPLAUSE It wobbled away into the pocket. As

you say, it wobbled its way in. The pocket just about accepted it.

In a goes! -- in it goes! Just this red needed.

And in it goes. Well played, Barry Hawkins. After losing the first four

frames this morning, we were getting very concerned for him, but he has

shown his battling qualities. He still loses a session 5-3, and he

needed to at least level the session, you felt, or win it, but at

least he has taken something out of it.

It will be nice for him to make a century because it has been Ronnie

who has been getting all the headlines so far in this match.

Barry has been a bit part player, so headlines so far in this match.

to speak, no disrespect meant. If you can make a 100 break here, it

would really make you feel good. This would be the 15th century, if

he can make it. He has already made three so this is Barry's fourth.

He avoided a kiss on the brown. This green for the hundred.

APPLAUSE Very well played, Barry Hawkins.

I think he was so relieved that the green had gone in, he didn't really

get on the blue. After losing the first four frames this morning, to

come out and win three of the next four, well played, Barry Hawkins,

but he still trails Ronnie O'Sullivan by six frames. Ronnie

O'Sullivan now leads by seven frames to five.

It is amazing what difference an interval can make. Look at the stats

of this match. It is amazing how you relax once you

get your first points on the board. And a bit of pride for the rest of

the session and half a shout for the match. Still in danger of this match

is not going to a final session, but he has given himself a chance to get

back into the match. Let's turn our attention to the other semifinal.

You are up to date with Barry Hawkins taking on Ronnie O'Sullivan

will. Mark Selby is looking to renew his rivalry with Neil Robertson.

Mine. If you were to look at Ronnie's frame winning break to

ratio, it is better than anyone else's. Mine. Ding Junhui. It is the

best in the game. I'd say John Higgins. All-round safety play.

Mine. Mine. Shaun Murphy. He is the best rest player I have ever seen.

Mine. I'd say Stephen Hendry. Ken Doherty is very good at that, great

creativity coming off the cushions. Ronnie O'Sullivan by the long way.

He is the best I have ever seen. He is the worst player to be behind

against for sure. Tactical awareness I would say John Higgins.

John Higgins is the worst player to have a big lead against. This is

beautifully set up after yesterday evening's session. We have got some

cracking snooker ahead this afternoon. Talking you through it

this afternoon is John Virgo and Willie Thorne. This is set up

perfectly. Absolutely. It was a great eight frames last night and it

could have gone either way. From Neil Robertson's point of view if

you lose the first session, you cannot afford to lose the second

session. He will be looking at for a piece, but he will want to win this

session. Do you fancy Selby to go all the way? Why not? They have both

made a century. Robertson cannot afford to lose in this session. But

being from Leicester I am going to support the Leicester man. How much

will Mark Selby be fired up? He lost the UK Championship to Neil

Robertson in Europe. He was suffering from a lack of confidence.

But I said to him, you're a big goal is the World Championship and it

looks as if that is what he has got himself prepared for and he is

playing the best snooker of the season now. We have seen Neil

Robertson become a record-breaker. Now he has got it out of his system,

has he got the potential to go all the way? Without doubt. Barry

Hawkins is not dead yet in that match. Either of these players will

give Ronnie again. It will be a classic final. Rob Walker is

standing by and the players are ready and the Crucible Theatre is

ready. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.

A growing sense of anticipation because this has the makings of an

absolutely epic afternoon. It is a drive to the final of the World

Championship. It is all to play for here today. World number three and

world number one. Please welcome a player who has nerves of steel on

the biggest stages of all. Bidding for his first Crucible final for

seven years. Three times a Masters champion, he has won the Welsh, the

Shanghai and the UK Championships. He is a brilliant ambassador for

this sport who always plays with a big smile on his face. That is why

he is the Jester from Leicester, Mark Selby.

And his opponent. What a fabulous fortnight so far for this proud

Australian. Already a world champion, UK champion and Masters

winner. He arrived in Sheffield on the verge of a magic milestone many

thought impossible. But against Judd Trump he did it, 100 centuries in a

season, amazing. Last night he added another to stay in touch. He is the

thunder from down under. He is the Centurion. He is Neil Robertson.

Yet again a terrific welcome for these two players and a wonderful

atmosphere inside the Crucible Theatre. This is going to be a

cracker. Thank you, Jason, the scene is set

for the second session. It is a big one for Neil Robertson. But Mark

Selby will be well aware of that. If he could win this session, he will

have a for frame advantage. All these frames, the best of 33. It is

the first to 17. Every frame is very important, Willie. Yes, it was one

of the most enjoyable sessions of the tournament so far with these two

yesterday. Mark Selby definitely deserved to win the first session.

It has been pretty high standard if you look at the stats.

He did not get enough backspin on the cue ball. That was a bit

careless. He was looking as if there was something wrong with the cue

ball. But he hit the red full ball and it took all the spin out of it.

He did not expect it. He is just checking with the referee that it is

touching ball. You mentioned after the UK final you had a good chat

with him and it is amazing for a player with such an abundance of

talent and negative he could be. It was the after drinks party and Neil

and Mark were there. That is when Neil was chatting to Stephen Hendry

about break-building. Mark was suffering from a lack of confidence.

It is surprising with all the ability he has got and a wonderful

technique. But as you may know, if you are not getting results, then

your confidence does take a drop. Harsh but true. I did not mean you

personally! I am talking about any player.

A pretty good line, but there may be a path past the green.

In their first session the safety play was the best we have seen in

the tournament so far. You said it was an easy safety shot,

but he has not made the best job of it. He will not be happy with that.

Not the best kiss. It pushed the white right to the cushion.

It is a massive help when a baulk comes of its spot. All the reds

appear to be in the way of one another.

Just trying to see what kind of an angle he has got.

Absolutely nothing has happened. Even contact with the Blackwood not

have been bad to bring it into play. When the cue ball is not tight

against the baulk accretion, it allows Neil to play this with a

little bit of side. As baulk cushion.

Nothing will go to the right corner. They are all blocking one another.

That was a clever little shocked to bring the black into play. -- shot.

He did not hit that safety shot as he would have liked. This red to the

left of the black will cut. But it is dangerous.

It is a bit narrow, but the yellow has come to the rescue. He hit that

a bit thinner than he intended, but he will take that.

He probably tried to get in behind the green, but he will be happy with

the result. He is giving this plenty of thought

and why not? It is not safe. He hit the wrong

red. This is a chance for Selby to get four or five red and the black.

The three red to the left of the black are all covering one another.

Would you want to risk bringing those reds into play?

If he does play it, and does not get on one, he will be kicking himself

for not playing one of the two loose reds.

It is amazing, if you hit them full volume, they don't move.

He was trusting to luck for position. He did not have a lot of

idea where the cue ball would end up. But a clever little short. This

is a little bit more difficult to get safe. That red just above the

black is pottable into either pocket.

Believe me that is not the red he played to hit. Has he got it safe?

Looking at Neil's body language, he did not look too happy. That is

tight. It is not on. Neil was a bit fortunate.

That is a good shot. Mark is keeping the pressure on.

That was a tough shot. It was so thin that the red would hardly move.

I think he has asked the score to bring it up.

Michaela Tabb is giving the instructions.

Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! We used to have eyesight like that,

didn't we, Willie?! A very good safety. There is a gap between the

yellow and the green, but not enough for him to be able to play the pot

on this red. Playing a two cushion escape with pace.

Expecting to get closer this time, but the one thing he is wary of is

catching this red toothache. As adjusted? Not quite. With this

misrule you don't have to be able to hit the ball on either side like you

can with a free ball. Oh, free ball. He will be taking the green on.

Two shots in one you can play there. But it was important to pot the

green and that is what he has done and it has given him a chance. The

black is in the open at the moment. Just the wrong side of that red so

that is why he had to go back up for the blue, but no problem.

He would love to pot the red below the pink and free dipping up. --

free the pink up. He needed a bounce. Then he would

have had a choice of reds. This red is pottable, but it is difficult.

Yes, they are difficult shots. He has not got away with it.

Not a great angle on this red. I could see him missing that. It was

so awkward to get a good cue ball. I am wondering whether he played the

cannon on the black and that is why he caught the red a bit thick. You

are definitely right, he did play the cannon. Maybe he was in two

minds when he was playing the shot. He has given Neil Robertson a shot

now. He will not take this black for granted.

A perfect angle on the blue to drop it on the cushion between those

reds. Very good. There is an example of

wine a player is perfect. He was playing that before the referee had

a chance to put the blue on its spot.

Still plenty left to play for. Good cue ball control, but would not say

that is inch perfect by any means. He has two go in and out of baulk.

Needs to find the gap between yellow and brown.

Red, colour, red, that is what is still needed.

Once again, we saw the problem, when a ball is tied, almost tied to a

cushion, you hit them anything but half-ball contact portable, you get

the double-kiss and they do not move, hardly. That one red he needed

to clinch the frame, you will need to wait for his next visit, because

he will not be potting it now. Hawk-Eye, he would have played as a

little bit less than half ball. That was half the chant their four

mark. That was a week safety shot. -- that was half a chance for Mark

Selby. There you see it, 48 ahead, Neil Robertson, but still 51

remaining. He needs to try and cover the red in

baulk with the yellow. There was always a danger he may

leave the plant, but it is not quite on.

There may be a possibility here, it depends if you want to take the

risk. The further you leave the cue ball from the object ball, it just

makes it more difficult. You can go up the middle of the table and use

the pink and brown or possibly the blue to cover the red in baulk. It

is just about the distance between the two macro reds in the cue ball.

-- the two reds in the cue ball. There is a little disturbance in the

crowd, somebody is not feeling very well, they are waiting for them to

be taken out. Play will commence once they have

left the auditorium. , this time, Neil has got the path

to the yellow in the baulk and. -- now, this time, he has the past to

the yellow in the baulk and. The right shot is to play safe office

red. -- from this red. Is a Greenwich safety shot, these

two macro players. Four. Now, he needs a snooker.

So, that is the end of the first frame.

This was the start that Neil Robertson was looking for. He did

not want to drop any more friends behind. This is a very important

second session for him. Just a little bit too much side on

the cue ball. That is why he ran into the brown. The frame as well

and truly over, he is just getting a little bit of practice. If there is

one thing this man can do, it is pot a ball. But not when he is snooker

decks mag anyway, it doesn't matter. It was a typical frame, very

competitive. The Australian will be very pleased that he took it and

reduces his arrears to just one frame.

Five times they have met recently, there is something about Neil

Robertson, since he has broken his record, use walking around the table

very confidently. The first little bit, I thought he looked out of

sorts. We were watching Mark Selby looking like he had a good

break-building opportunity. He tried to break those temp -- break those

reds, he played a shot with the rest, much more guaranteed

positionally. If anything, Mark Selby is tending to go for the

difficult shots. Given his recent record against Neil Robertson, does

that affect a player, Steve? , you would have expected him to go for

the keeping the cue ball at the top of the table. -- you would have

expected. Back to the table we go. We are expecting a very tough battle

out here. Mark Selby had two macro chances in

that frame, you will be disappointed not to have scored more than he did.

That was a good pot. An excellent pot. A little bit -2 roll-up to the

brown, but after one cushion it should be easy to work. -- a little

bit negative two roll-up to the brown.

An easy escape here from the side cushion, there is more danger from

Mark playing this. He caught the red well, he deserved

the little rub off the green. all the pressure is on mark to play

a better safety shot. But he has not.

Always have to be wary of that red near the left-hand cushion. He has

not hindered his safety shot too much, but Mark Selby can get past

the yellow. He can do a little bit with the cue ball, but you need to

trust in looking for a position. In these situations, the pot is the

priority. Good position, at least he gets to play the next shot, and it

is OK, it worked out nicely! Yellow or blue!

You know that you are running into another ball, but do not take your

eye off the pot. He would love to get rid of one of the reds at either

side of the black. Play that ten times, you will go

well to get to their 1's! -- to get through their once. When you get the

chance, you need to get in and open it up. That red he just played, he

is thinking if I go into the cluster, at worst, I will be on that

red at the middle, so you cannot blame him for playing the cannon.

This is a shot, that red near the right middle, you think, at worst,

he would be on that. Of course, Hawk-eye would have spotted the gap.

Oh, what a pot! That was his time to be a little

unlucky! You would not expect Mark Selby to

leave a pot on here. But after he found that gap before, anything is

possible on these snooker tables. He is playing on such a way that

there is no pattern back to baulk. . He will be a bit wary not to leave a

touching ball. As he left an opportunity for Mark

Selby to get back to baulk? -- has he left. He is very close to that. A

possible plant. He would have to be sure that it was, because he would

be risking all. He cannot take that on. Neither of

these players likes this type of game to develop like this, because

it just stops the flow of everything.

He needed to be careful not to get the double-kiss! E is OK! -- he is

OK! These safety exchanges, it is so

important, who is going to get the next chance?

Not the best safety shot once again, but the fact that there is awkward

bridging for Neil Robertson, with the green and brown, I do not think

you will be thinking about the pot, just a safety. But what a target

that is, the green, the brown and the yellow, to try and get the cue

ball behind. But yet again, another very average safety shot. If Mark

Selby cannot get to the middle of the cue ball, he would be very

fortunate there. Can he get past the yellow?

the angle, it threw out into the middle of the table and nestled

behind yellow. He immediately tried to get onto the

one to the right. He is still behind the back of the pack. Trying to make

sure there is another one on it, just looking at the plant. If the

plant is a certainty, he can stunt to get to the pink. He might have to

get up to the blue this time, because the red is in the way of the

pink. Once again, he has come up a little

short on this blue. I'm surprised he did not play its low with check

side. -- play it slow. He played at plain ball, that is why

he finished closest to the cushion. He will be playing for the pink this

time. He would like to be straight on the pink so he can play the red

to the right of the black. That is the red that he played for.

We know that he has got to play for the pink or the blue. But the black

at the moment, that is not available.

He has got an angle. You would think the red that he would like to play,

he has just pointed out there, and getting the pot on this Reg... --

red... That looks absolutely into perfect

on the pink. -- inch perfect. Not a straightforward run to the

line. This pink will put him 46 points in

front with still 75 remaining. One or two precise positional shots are

still needed. This may be a little bit pacey. Not

sure if he can get to the one that is nearest to the pocket between the

black and the red. Not a nice angle. When the cue ball travels

distances, you never get a guaranteed position on the next

ball. Played that very well, that was

perfectly played. This red, the black, and one more red. That is all

that is required. This Blackwell put in 57 pointed front with a possible

59 remaining. -- this black well put him.

Mark Selby will have to be pretty concerned about possibly losing the

first two frames, but has not Just this red to go 58 ahead with

only 51 meaning. He looks a bit bemused by the bounce

off the top cushion. But this table is playing better than the tables at

the quarterfinal stage of the competition. He just keeps so still

on every shot. He gets through the ball. If the red goes in, you would

expect a century. He is a century machine, this boy,

at the moment. If he gets this it will be his ninth

century at a World Championship. That is the number that Ronnie

O'Sullivan is on. Of course everything now is going to

set the standard. Another flawless break-building display. He was given

a second chance by Mark Selby, but the rest was perfect. It levels the

match at 5-5. That was Neil Robertson by numbers,

and some very impressive numbers. He just seems to be setting the bar

higher and higher. Certainly on the centuries. It is hard to see why he

is not winning absolutely everything. He is the best long

potter and the best break-builder in the game at the moment, but he must

have a floor somewhere. It could be a guy called Ronnie O'Sullivan!

REFEREE: Mark Selby to break. Mark Selby gets the third frame of this

session underway. He has lost his lead. He came with a two frame

advantage. I must say he was a bit unlucky in the last frame. Things

happened that can only happen in a game of snooker. But you have to put

that behind you and just look at the scoreboard. He is not behind. This

frame and one more before the mid-session interval. That is more

like the safety play we have come to expect from Neil Robertson.

It looks dead straight. That will put him off.

He did not want to catch a ball colour. And he has. But fortunately

for Mark, no real value. The black is now tied up.

It was a Robertson ripper! That was excellent. We knew he could not

leave anything on. Look at the distance of that pot. An excellent

shot. He will not be too happy with that.

Believe it or not, he played for the black. He is having a look at the

tip. Nothing wrong with that, is there? He just overdid it. It still

cuts, but not what he wanted. Everything is going Neil's way at

the moment. It all depends. You cannot do a lot

with the cue ball. He is having a look to see if the other red is

pottable to the middle. With that he might have more control of the cue

ball. He has got to avoid the case on that red at the top cushion.

You get two points for that! Well, there is a surprise. It was as good

as he could have expected to be on the pink. It went in and it nipped

out. It is not the best chance with the pink in the other half and the

black tied up. That is not the perfect angle on

this red. He will be thinking even now, can I get that black into play?

Nicely on the blue and maybe a chance here. With the line of three

reds, with the bottom one, he could bring the black into play.

It gives him a thought he can win the frame at this visit and wouldn't

he loved to do that? But once again it is a poor positional shot. The

pink is a bonus if he is on that. He is blessed like Robertson with a

lot of cue power. Beware the middle pocket. He will not be interested in

playing anything until that black can go on its spot. He will be

concentrating on the pink and the blue. This is a chance.

That is OK. The three reds below the pink are all available into the

opposite corner. There are no cannon is required, just good positional

play. He does not want to play for the

black year. He may have to, though. At least three or four of these five

remaining reds are required. He does not want to play for the black, but

he may have no other option. Well, he decided he did not want to risk

the black. But he is not the right side of the blue. He is not out of

the woods yet. You would like to have some sort of angle on this blue

and he does not appear to have one. The red to the left of the pink goes

to the corner pocket. This could be the frame winner.

He played that well. Red, colour, red required. What a kick that was.

All he was looking for was a decent angle on the blue. He may have to

play the more difficult pink here. He still needs a colour and one more

red. He only needs the red, but it would

be a lot easier if he was closer to it. Well played, Mark. He would have

been disappointed not to have a good angle on the blue. 40 points in the

lead and 35 remaining. It is not quite over this frame, yet.

You would like to get the cue ball up in the baulk end. But he does not

want to be tight on the cushion. I know you think there are a good

line up balls, but tight on the cushion means no guaranteed snooker.

A good effort, but not quite there. I think Mark can just about support

this. -- pot this. If that had gone in, Neil Robertson

would not have bothered carrying on. We are in the situation here where

Neil at the moment needs two snookers.

He has caught that very nicely. That is a bonus.

He has got to play this with a little bit of side.

I have seen so many one cushion snookers missed. At this level you

do not expect it. Neil Robertson will think he is back

in this frame. He needs one snooker. He is trying behind the black, but

he has caught it much too thick. This yellow would put this frame to

bed. Mark Selby is a little bit relieved.

He looked as though he had the frame well one. But he had to go through

an agonising few minutes where he missed one snooker.

That was good cueing. Plenty of top spin on the cue ball. That will

please him. He has got his nose back in front. Where is the cue ball

going? It doesn't matter. Mark Selby will be relieved. That is the first

frame he has won in this second session and it puts him back in the

lead. Just a hint of a smile. Neil Robertson lived in or some form

and then he missed the easy pink in the middle. It is great from Mark

Selby's perspective. There was a minor moment when there was just one

red left on the table and if you pot the red and the black, you need two

snookers and you keep the rhythm on the table. You would rather leave a

red on the table and the chance of a free ball. He potted it and from

then on he needed to. It is a small point. He would have conceded. What

would you have done? You would keep the red on the table but the

possibility of getting a free ball and only needing one snooker. He

could have got a snooker on the pink, but as it turned out he will

look at the missed pink in the middle pocket as the problem. From

Mark Selby's point of view that is the perfect response. He is

displaying his fighting qualities. It shows

displaying his fighting qualities. temperament he has got. He is a

tremendous match player and he can put disappointment behind him very

easily. It was the perfect response. It was hard fought. You would expect

nothing less from these two. They have got great respect for each

other. In the technical department they can both outplay each other. It

is a case of who can create the most opportunities and convert every

opportunity they get. Back to Willie and John.

Mark Selby will be a little bit disappointed with his safety play.

He is not finding that baulk cushion often enough for me. OK, he has not

left a pot on, but you have got to find the baulk cushion at this level

and with a potting machine like Neil Robertson. He is guilty of the same

thing. There you are, once again. I don't

know if these baulk colours are bigger than what they normally are,

but they keep catching them! You keep leaving Neil Robertson these

type of long pots and you know the long pot success of Neil Robertson.

There you go. You cannot keep hitting the baulk colours and

leaving the cue ball on the baulk line. You are asking for trouble

with this man. We have had a rasp, a ripper and that was a snorter!

I think he is OK. On a bad day he could have caught that red a little

bit full and been on nothing. Now he just has to play it playing

ball. This is a good chance to take this frame. It is just coming up to

four hours of play and this bottom cushion is causing a problem for

these players. Both of them have not been happy with the bounce. Usually

it is too high, but that appears to be to low. Maybe they are playing

for bounces sometimes and they are not there.

He might not be able to reach this left-handed. It has given him a

chance of the blue, but as you say, Willie, being left-handed he will be

at full stretch. And hampered. That looked fake to me. It was not

easy, believe me. If you do not hit that cue ball right in the middle,

and that appears to be what happened there...

Any red here, that would give him position to the black.

I do not think I have seen anybody concentrate as much as Mark Selby.

It shows you what a fantastic match player he is. He is certainly

showing his best form of the season so far in this tournament.

Slightly underhit, but the pink is OK. The pink doesn't go to the

middle. That was a little bit careless. Just needed to stun past

that red to the right, and it is so awkward now for the black. You have

to be careful. It has checked. Where has the cue ball gone? ! Could not

be in a much worse position than that, I promise you! He could have

played the blue cushion first. There was always going to check up with

top spin. -- the white was always going to check up. He was suckered

by that one. Wants to get through to the ones at the right of the pink.

He will settle for that. When he snooker to himself, I thought he was

in real trouble. But there is a chance for a pot here. That is a

result! E has not missed many of those today! -- he has not missed.

It is going to be some performance to win the frame at this visit, the

way that the balls are situated. This blue will put him 13 points in

front, but there is one easy red, that is the one adjacent to the

pink. But everything else is a little bit difficult. He needs to

run the cue ball little bit. Just a little bit short of his intended

target, but not too bad. Schoolboy error! Those pockets are

always there! I think you felt like you got a bad contact.

Nobody saw that coming. But he leads by nine.

REFEREE: Foul and a miss. Very, very surprised when you're Robertson was

playing from anywhere in the baulk area, he would have brought the lack

into play. -- Neil Robertson. This is a little bit easier to go for.

Another hard-fought and tense frame. Your guess is as good as mine as to

what the outcome will be. A similar shot to what Neil Robertson played

here. Miss it on the way down, hit it on the way back. You would prefer

to hit the question first. -- hit the cushion. Yes, played the cushion

first knowing that the black would not come into play. An excellent

safety shot. Neil Robertson will do well to get

this say. I will be very surprised if he doesn't leave a pot on of some

kind after this shot. He did just about as well as he

could. An excellent shot. Well worked out. Is there any value?

Let's take a look at the scoreboard. 13 points the lead. I do not think

if he plays a safety of this red closest to the black, he can

guarantee getting the cue ball at the baulk cushion, very would like

to. -- where he would like to. He is looking for an alternative.

That looks pretty good to me. He is granite with his safety shot.

I'd do not think he can see enough of the red to pot it.

Just missed the double-kiss, but a chance for Mark Selby here. This red

to the far left corner. He has got the insurance, if you like, of that

red next to the black. So if you made a mistake, it would not be

automatic for Neil Robertson to win the frame, whereas if you knocked

this red in, you would fancy winning it.

He has left a chance of two long putts. -- pots.

That is two he has missed in this frame. It is not like Neil Robertson

to miss these types of shots. It is the second one he has missed in this

frame. Could have put him right back into it. By a long way also will --

also. Perfect on the yellow. Not a

frame-winning opportunity by any stretch, but he can certainly put

himself in a really strong position. The pink, exactly half ball, just

before the baulk line in between the Gap of the brown and the green and

he would get nicely on the red. Two reds, two colours to win the

frame. If he has not covered the left-hand

side cushion, then that is a bad shot. Very difficult when you're

hitting the first cushion very quickly. Just a bit narrow. This is

a free ball. Now, that does make a difference. 28

point the lead, if the managed to pot the brown and the pink, that

would put in 35 in front but still 35 left.

I think this red is available. He played the snooker.

It is not safe in the respect that if Mark was to pot this, Neil

Robertson would concede. It is a thin cut, so he might shy away from

it. It is uncertain whether cue ball would run to. -- where the cue ball

would run to. A cover shot, pushing the brown into

a slightly more difficult position. Mark Selby will not be bringing the

green into play, he will be keeping everything away from the green.

Because Neil Robertson needs the black, you would think he might

leave the red at that end of the table.

A big favourite for this frame, but as we all know, it is a funny old

game, things can happen. When he be tempted with this cut?

Getting key may be. -- I think he may be.

That is certainly end of frame. He was made to sweat therefore a little

bit. After two players, Mark Selby will definitely be the more pleased

of the two to have shared this mini-session of four frames. You

would have thought it 2-0 in the session that Neil Robertson would

have had the chance to win one of them. Mark Selby has dominated the

last couple of friends, really. I'm sure that Neil Robertson will stay

in his chair or a walk to his dressing room, and he has done that.

What an interesting four frames, who will be the happier? Mark Selby will

be delighted to get his lead back, it's looked at one stage that Neil

Robertson would get stronger. In the UK final, the first session, Mark

Selby, he dragged Neil Robertson into this kind of game, and Neil

Robertson didn't like it and in the evening session, he stepped up the

pace, so those kind of long, scrappy frames they seem to suit Mark Selby

more. If you look at when Mark Selby is in front in semifinals, Neil

Robertson pulled himself back in, and he managed to win it, so the key

to Mark Selby is to stay in front. There is not much to choose between

this two players. Every time they play mini sessions, Mark Selby is in

front, you cannot argue with that at this level. Ken Doherty is at the

Winter gardens with his assessment. A wonderful shot, it proved

dividends. He tries to split the pack, he trying to bounce it.

He was hampered slightly on the blue. When you bounce the cue ball

over the top of the red, the top spin helps the reds to split up and

you bring the cue ball away from the reds and hopefully onto a colour.

OK, let me see if I can do this with this shot, trying to bounce the cue

ball on the top of the reds, a similar shot to what he had. You

bounce over these six reds. Something like that. A similar

situation where Neil Robertson was, but you can see the way that the

colours come out and sometimes it goes right and sometimes it does

not, and that is my history of demos!

Thank you. Time to catch up with Richard Osman, we have turned his TV

hit quiz show into Potless! We asked our 100 people, we gave

them 147 seconds to name anybody that has ever beaten Stephen Hendry

or Steve Davis at the Crucible, hundreds of answers on the list.

Steve or Stephen, if you do not win this one, I do not know what to say!

Stuart Bingham. Willie Thorne. Peter Ebdon. Steve James. Tony Knowles. So

many people have beaten me here. 10-1 or 20-0? What about Willie

Thorne? ! So depressing. It is as bad as a 10-0 in the UK, but not in

the world! We're talking about the world. 10-1. Tony Knowles. A big

shot a long time ago, one of the seismic shocks. Tony Knowles. I

would definitely go with Steve James. That is a great shot. A great

shot. Terry has come up with Steve James. I think that is a good shot.

9-0. Steve James. What you think at home? Some

pointless answers you may not have got. We will give you all of the

answers at the end of the interval. To get involved, use the hashed

tiger, we will be back with Richard later. -- hashtag.

Let's catch up with Mark Selby now, he beat Alan McManus in the

quarterfinals. Let's go back to those heady days

when you approach the world finals, can you describe that incredible run

and what it felt like in the midst of that? It was strange, I was going

to the World Championships not in the top 16, I was like an outsider.

I had qualified the year before, a year later I am playing Stephen

Lee, so I had no real expectations. As a sportsman, you want to win

every single tournament, but knowing that I had never achieved anything

prior to that, so I was just really going to enjoy it. I was 5-0 dentist

evenly thinking I would go out, and I managed to turn around the match.

-- 5-0 against Stephen Lee. Then you get to the final against John

Higgins and an amazing performance on the Monday. He got within one

frame of him. Did you really think you would do it at that point? I

did, it was disappointing because I got into the final and the World

Championships, it is such a long tournament, mental and physically

draining, and I woke up on the morning of the first session and I

felt like I had not slept all night and I had nothing left, and when it

happened, it really showed, because I felt I had nothing left and John

capitalised on my mistakes. I was heartbroken, I thought this is my

chance to win, and I thought I am a thing left, there is no way I can

beat someone of John's class, but I just thought I would go out there

and try my best and obviously, not lay down and enjoy the day, really.

It was a fantastic occasion and before I knew it, I was 14, 13, then

I had the chance to win. The last five frames, John showed for the

champion he was and pulled away and played some great snooker. What is

your ultimate goal? People have said with July to go back to number one?

Obviously, it is an aim, but because I had got there before, it is not an

ultimate goal, but at the back of my mind, the World Championships is

what is missing for me, and two win more tournaments. Have you peaked,

how much more is there to come, and what are you doing to make sure that

you have not beat? I think there is a lot more, I'm still putting in the

work, obviously, travelling comes into it a lot, you need to balance

it a lot more for the major tournaments. It gives you a better

chance. I have to just keep putting in the hard work and if you keep

playing well, you're still not guaranteed to win a tournament with

the standard the way it is. I had a chat with Mark Selby in the practice

room yesterday and he said that he finds coming to the Crucible, he

comes with that weight of expectation, and we have referred to

this before, last year he felt that expectation on him completing the

triple Crown, big expectation on him. Perhaps he's coming in now with

less expectation from himself, but he is definitely one of the

favourites, and one thing, after what happened in the Masters against

Ronnie O'Sullivan, I think he is dying for another crack at Ronnie

O'Sullivan, definitely. And if it was Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final

against him, it would be a difference in styles, do you think

he has enough to win against Ronnie O'Sullivan? I think it is still

Ronnie O'Sullivan's title to lose. Mark Selby probably has got the game

that might mess up his rhythm if he gets a good start. Mark Selby has

got to finals this season, but he has lost them, you know what it

takes to win out, do you see these qualities in him to win the title?

Oh, yes. You could argue that by having a little bit of

disappointment this season, this has toughened him up and he is raring to

go, and I think that the way that he walked out to start the semifinal,

he looked really as if he was very, very focused, and you obviously

should be, but it just looks like he was not afraid of what was

happening. If he gets to the final against Ronnie O'Sullivan, he is one

of the few players that will not be afraid. He will not be afraid

against one of the best players the game has ever seen. You need to be

like that going into the match. I thought it was significant this

morning, when you do the morning programmes, I am in the practice

rooms and you can hear the officials coming in to talk to the players,

and I found it really interesting, I'm referring to Barry Hawkins and

Ronnie O'Sullivan from one moment, against Shaun Murphy, the officials

came out and asked Shaun Murphy was he ready and he said, how long have

I got? He wanted more time. The same was with Barry Hawkins today, I am

in no sports psychologist, I just wonder if it is a real big issue

that these boys are afraid to step out here and play Ronnie O'Sullivan

and that Mark Selby will achieve and to go to Ronnie O'Sullivan if that

happens? Ronnie O'Sullivan really outplayed him from shot one in the

final of the Masters, and Mark Selby looked a little bit afraid of him

and a bit intimidated. But if it is Neil Robertson, the same goes, he

will not be afraid either, so whoever faces Ronnie O'Sullivan...

We're talking as if Ronnie O'Sullivan has won at! Whoever he

faces, if that is the case, they will go there and hold their own.

Thank you. Now, time for the trick shots.

This shot here is pretty crazy as well. This will jump out of the rail

and the ball well and here in motion.

This shot here is what I call a double draw shot. I'm going to hit

it into the five. I will hit the triangle.

This shot here, what I'm going to do is hit the white ball, the white

ball will go along the rail, hit the a ball and then it will finish in

the corner. He is fast becoming the star of this

year's Crucible Theatre shenanigans. Wonderful stuff from Florian Kohler.

However, he has not completed a century of century breaks. This man

has. Ladies and gentlemen, channel mode -- champion of the world, Neil

Robertson. We saw you draping the flag over your shoulders.

How often do you recall those moments? When I went 17-13 up, I was

pretty certain I was going to win. It was getting pretty late. Graeme

was tiring. I thought there is no way he can win five frames in a row.

I potted the match-winning hole. She was there and was waving the flag.

It was brilliant she could come over for the final. I had no idea she was

coming. It was only when I checked my voice mail after the match with

Ali Carter, she had left me a voice mail saying they had left Singapore

and would be riding on the day of the final. She came over fully

prepared with the Australian flag just in case. To have the flag

draped around me, holding the trophy, there with my mum, was a

memory I will have for the end of my days, for sure. Now you have an

opportunity to become the most decorated in terms of world ranking

titles that you have one but no overseas player has won a world

title twice. Is that a focus for you as a man who knows his stats? It is

a focus to build up to the world Championship properly. I felt with

myself lasted, especially in the world Championship, that I had

entered too many tournaments. I did have a feeling. If you are world

champion, everyone, you get a lot of recognition for being world

champion. I do not believe in anyone fluking a world title. I do not like

it when someone says you have to win another one to prove yourself, but

to join the likes of someone like Mark Williams who is on two, there

are not many multiple world champions in our sport. It is not

something I want to win to prove to something else, it is something I

want to win to become part of a special group of players. Obviously,

I have achieved a lot in my career already and I am doing everything

possible to make sure I can win more masters and more World

Championships. I am on the right path and hopefully, I can be

standing alongside some of the greats.

Neil Robertson. We will not forget what happened the other night for a

long time. It was great to see that emotion. Amazing. To get a hundred

century, the pressure was so intense and you could see the release when

he finally did it. To repeat myself from what I said before, obviously,

there are more tournaments in the season but it smashed Judd Trump's

record from last year which was 60 odd and I suppose the question is,

when will someone better that? If there are no more tournaments in the

season, when will some be better that. The way the new system is, top

players might pick and choose tournaments now are not play in as

many so it might never get beaten. Thank you for the moment. Time to

catch up with Richard and our Potless answer.

Welcome back to top two. Earlier I asked if Enron had beaten Steve

Davis or Stephen Hendry --. Tony Knowles would have scored you 16.

Steve James, not a bad answer at all, six points.

There are quite a few answers which would have beaten six.

There are two pointless answers, the players who have beaten Steve Davis

are Anthony Hamilton and Andy Hicks. Well done if you said him. Stuart

Bingham is the lowest score of a player who has beaten both of those

players. Well done if you said that. Thank you for those tweets. Well

done to people who said Andy Hicks and Anthony Hamilton. Let's dissect

some of those matches. I just want to talk about the league tables. We

are not doing that yet. All I want to say is losing 9-02 Marcus

Campbell, at least I won the frame. Let's have a look at the league

table. At least Hazel and I are not propping up the table.

Have you got anything to say? Considering we spent our time

winning we did not notice the other players. Well I was only a my purse

so I do not remember those matches! And I have got more hair than you!

Back to our commentary team, John Virgo and Willie Thorne.

Mark Selby, definitely from Leicester, and he has got that two

frame advantage back. Not a bad break off but there may be an

attempt here for Neil, if he can roll this red to the right corner

and without do anything, get a position on the black, and he will

take it on. He won the first two frames of this

session. He will be a bit disappointed when he went to the

mid-session break, still two behind. There have been sometime frames. --

some tough frames. It is really turning into a battle. The average

frame time is moving up. Nearly 22 minutes frame.

The average shot time is about normal for both these players. Neil

Robertson can get a bit bogged down sometimes and get up in the 30s.

Yes, the frame time is being this long is not because they are missing

balls. The standard of safety has been pretty good, except just then.

He had a couple of long pot chances which he missed.

He has got a nice target with the green and brown. A bit too much side

on that. He has missed yellow. There was a little tap on the table

and I am sure Mark said shot. It is not easy to play safe. It is a bit

congested. This is his these. -- this is his view.

APPLAUSE A flick of the yellow. That has made

it pretty good. A containing safety.

APPLAUSE Pretty good.

I don't think he can get in behind the brown and green.

He was obviously trying to get the other side of the middle pocket. A

couple of long pots but the black now not available.

Deciding to leave the straight red. The pink is available. He may have

ideas of screwing back for blue or bought colour. This next pot more

difficult. A good pot it was. That is the

advantage, when you're opponent goes off, you can adjust that cue ball

anywhere you like in the D. He found the angle to make it easier.

I think the black may be available in to the opposite corner. Not a bad

chance now. APPLAUSE

I was sure for a moment Neil thought he had let that cue ball won just a

bit too far but it stopped just in time. Straight on this black, it

would have been a formality, just roll it in and play for the red that

is just below the cue ball. I think he thought he was going to

kiss that second red there. Just getting up off the shot. Something

was whistling, I do not know if it is a phone. It is a distraction he

could do without. He wants to be high on this black

rather than low. With him being hampered, he just had to play the

run-through. You would expect him to be on a red but it is not a

straightforward positional shot, this.

He is trying to push the red out of the way that I still do not see how

he can get the white into play. The white was not going to do anything.

He was lucky to get through to this. The white could not do anything

there. This is a big second prize.

APPLAUSE That was a bonus to be on that red.

And now pot the blue, play a little cannon on the two reds together,

just a soft little cannon, catch the join of them.

You would not want to hit it hard. If he hits it hard, or too hard, one

of those reds could block the black from going in the left corner.

Was he too thin on the blue to play the delicate shot? I think he was.

A great recovery. Once again, you can say he was a little bit

fortunate to have that as an option, but take nothing away from

the pot. He is looking at the pink. I thought the black went into the

left corner. He played it nicely. A great chance

now. I can only presume the black must

have been tight in that left-hand corner. The pink was more difficult

than the black. But he has done it nicely this time.

Goodness me, it has been hard work this break. Give him credit for

playing the more difficult pink because the black was unmissable but

he played the pink for position. Such belief in his potting prowess

has Neil. He will be making certain of this

black. It may encourage Mark Selby to play

on, it looks as if he is. I think Neil Robertson has done enough but

he would love to have potted that red and have this frame put to bed

now. Mark will concentrate now and try

and get the black through these remaining three reds.

He did not play the pot. He played safe of that red.

You would think, just drop this in and that is the point of no return

for Mark. He reduces arrears once again to

just one frame. It was an interesting frame. When Neil was

hampered by the green and played that containing safety, you did not

see a lot of danger therefore Mark. The fact that the blue was in his

line. He was trying to hit it thin and swerve it. But the side did not

take, its kids. You could see it at the last minute start to swerve. He

was expecting the cue ball to arc but it did not happen. You camp at

the cue ball anywhere in the D. He managed to find the red. -- you can

put the cue ball anywhere in the D. Good straight cueing and from that

he made a 72 which in effect, was the frame winner.

Thank you, frame 14. Neil Robertson to break.

He will be trying to level the match now at seven all. It always looked

like a close encounter. Who would take the match by the scruff of the

neck? Mark Selby sometimes plays the

attacking safety. Could have played the green to the bunch and screw

back. Let's see what he does this time. These players are too good to

play an escape. I thought Neale would do this earlier on in the

match -- Neil. Didn't quite get the bunch. He's clipped the corner.

Strange, isn't it... And a little careless because he

should have known the angle there, where to hit the green to go to the

main bunch of reds. Didn't have to hit them that hard but that was his

intention. Good, attacking safety, but flicking the reds.

He can't believe it. He's knocked the red in but won't be

happy where the cue ball's finished. Unless he can just drop this green

in and find a red to go for. Slight angle on this green, but near

the cushion. Tough shot. That was a very good effort.

To be that close to the cushion and get that, it made the pot more

difficult and the movement on the cue ball an excellent shot.

As I said earlier, he can pot a ball, this boy.

Not guaranteed to get a good angle. There is only one loose red left.

If the red pots in the middle, that is OK, but he may then have to

cannon one. He's made the pot easier by playing for the pink, but being

on the pink at this angle, I'm not certain where the next red comes

from. He's going to have to push that red in.

It bounces. Has it gone far enough? His body language tells me no. That

picture tells you no. I can see the reason now he played for the pink

because the pink spot wasn't available, he was going on the black

spot, so another inch of roll and he would have been on the red to the

corner. Trying to bend the cue ball. Oh,

that was risky. Basically he played a lot of left hand side and thought

he could just push the red to the right, but that was a risky shot to

take on. A secondary spin, so to speak. That

nestled the cue ball further into the red balls. That back spin just

took them into the reds. I'm saying, he's not had anything. Obviously had

a couple of second prizes in the second frame.

That was a terrific pot and very good control of the cue ball. Quell

played. Looks as though the top red of the

cluster will certainly go to the right middle.

This is the last of the loose reds apart from the one up the top.

Doesn't want to hit one of the Reds to the right of the black ball. If

it hits either half ball or either the joint of the two reds, he'll

push one towards the middle. That was always the problem. Yes,

playing at that pace, it's very difficult to know exactly which way

you are going to git into dumb Get into. He could haven't played it

much better. When you come off the top cushion, with a bit of top spin,

it reverses to almost like a stun shot. When it hits the pack, yes.

Cut the black and the red at the same time. Little unlucky to have

stuck on them. A similar pattern to quite a few of

the frames this afternoon. We have got this tactical battle. If

Mark Selby gets the next chance, you fancy him winning the next frame.

He was thinking he wouldn't leave anything should he miss it, but he

was wrong. No good to him. It would send the

white towards that and then the flip on the black.

Going to take him to the cushion until then.

If Mark can win this frame, he can relax a little bit. When you get to

eight, you know you can't go behind into the next session.

Certainly he'll feel a lot better when he gets to eight.

It's always the Daning we are that shot isn't it, you are frightened of

over-screwing and then you can bet your life you'll under-screw. --

always the danger. He knew he couldn't get the right andth angle,

wanted to screw back a couple of inches.

Didn't manage that. He was trying to hold it and that's the problem, he's

trying to hold them and you just take your eye off the pot. Big

chance gone. Just tried to pinch a little bit of

the pocket to hold for the red. Big shot this now.

Where's that red going? ! Well, I thought for a moment it

might be going into the left middle. There's twhawn will go to the right

middle and Mark Selby will be very, very relieved having missed that

last pink on his last visit, he's come straight back to the table with

a chance of winning the frame. The worrying thing for Neil

Robertson supporters is that every shot's difficult. He'st he's --

every shot's thick that is difficult. When you look at that,

you think maybe a trace of the right hand side and he's pushing the cue

ball into the red. Very straight on that pink.

With it being so close to the pocket, it could use all of the

pocket for position. Taking the opportunity to follow the

red but it's not worked out ideally this. OK that red's potable, but

he's not got the right angle on the blue. He may have to force this cue

ball in and out. Is it going to run? It's OK. But

this red, it's very close to the middle. It's a very thin cut. So

much so, does he fancy it? It's very thin.

No. Now, what's he left? We know that the red to the left middle

isn't on from where the cue ball is, the yellow's covering the red baulk.

Mark's got to sit down and wonder. This is the type of shot he's missed

a few of the last couple of frames and there's another one to add to

the list. That's twice he's made mistakes,

come back to the table with a chance of clinching the frame. How often at

this level do you make two mistakes and get another chance to win? Very

rare. Pots this red, goes 44 ahead with 43 remaining.

It's a bit of a relief. No worse than all square, but this has really

been a bonus. Made a lot of mistakes in this frame and it hasn't cost

him. If that doesn't give you confidence, nothing will.

When you win a frame, those mistakes, you can erase out of your

mind. They don't stay with you. Obviously Mark Selby will be going

8-6 in front. Needs to make sure of this last red now.

This is of course what no player wants, to have a frame drag on

needlessly. If he'd have potted that red, there's no way Neil would have

come back to the table. Looking to be on the black. Nothing

else will do. The possibility of one snooker.

One sneerk would be enough. Didn't play the pot. He tried to

stun cue ball behind the yellow and was just an inch, that's all, short

of pace. The worrying thing for me, OK John's

won a couple of things this afternoon, but he's been doing it