Friday, Semi-finals, Afternoon

:00:50. > :01:33.Good afternoon to you. Four days to go here inside the Crucible Theatre

:01:34. > :01:38.and who knows what we're in for. After all, over the last 14 days

:01:39. > :01:43.we've been telling plenty of tales of the unexpected about top seed

:01:44. > :01:48.turmoil, all reflected in the press cuttings that are posted outside the

:01:49. > :01:53.press room every morning. We have been left with a rather unexpected

:01:54. > :01:58.semifinal line-up after all of this. One which features two qualifiers

:01:59. > :02:02.and the oldest player for 30 years to get this far. We also have one

:02:03. > :02:07.world champion and for the first time in history, two players from

:02:08. > :02:11.Asia as well. Plenty of possibilities as we start our second

:02:12. > :02:17.day of action in the semifinals of the Betfred World Championship.

:02:18. > :02:27.Ding Junhui scorched out of his blog yesterday with four centuries in six

:02:28. > :02:31.frames. He looked every inch a world champion in waiting. But ever

:02:32. > :02:36.popular Alan McManus clung on and he does have a foot hold in this match.

:02:37. > :02:41.Second session to come. While number one Mark Selby needs to win this

:02:42. > :02:51.title to stay at the top of the rankings. He took charge in his

:02:52. > :02:59.opening session. It is against Marco Fu that he plays and he has waited

:03:00. > :03:03.ten years for another final. The unmistakable style of Stephen

:03:04. > :03:11.Hendry there. Walking around the table. Already lost some time.

:03:12. > :03:16.And the greatest quizmaster of all time is back as well. Will you get

:03:17. > :03:23.full marks or lose them in today's quiz? What an eventful championship

:03:24. > :03:32.it has been when a 301 outsider of 43 years of age makes a semifinal

:03:33. > :03:39.appearance here. We are of course talking about Alan McManus. Ding

:03:40. > :03:45.Junhui is trying to win this title as a qualifier, like Alan McManus.

:03:46. > :03:54.Can you remember what you are like at the age of 22? Alan McManus was

:03:55. > :04:06.reaching his second Crucible final in two years for a very long time.

:04:07. > :04:09.He didn't qualify for another 11 years but he has had a real

:04:10. > :04:18.renaissance in the last two or three years and 23 years after the heady

:04:19. > :04:27.days, he is back here at 45. Only Ray Reardon can beat that. Ding

:04:28. > :04:38.Junhui was only six when Alan McManus was last here.

:04:39. > :04:45.' is one of the best players in the game but he is under so much

:04:46. > :04:54.pressure from China. He is under so much pressure and very quiet. He

:04:55. > :05:01.speaks English as well as anyone now. At the beginning, it held him

:05:02. > :05:08.back, but not any more. I think Ding is the next best thing to money and

:05:09. > :05:13.heating. On his day, formidable. His cue ball control is amazing. His

:05:14. > :05:16.break-building prowess is better than anyone on his day. It is just

:05:17. > :05:21.questionable about whether he believes he is one of the best

:05:22. > :05:29.players on the planet. Ding is the closest to text back technique, that

:05:30. > :05:36.ramrod cue ball action, the way he strikes the ball. When he first came

:05:37. > :05:44.on the scene, he didn't speak to anyone. Now his English has got

:05:45. > :05:47.better, he speaks to everyone. I couldn't want anyone to win the

:05:48. > :05:53.world championship more than I want Ding to win this. He is such a nice

:05:54. > :06:00.kid, so as a nice player and a nice person, I want him to win this. Ding

:06:01. > :06:05.Junhui could be in ground-breaking mood today. He was only one shy of a

:06:06. > :06:11.record five centuries ever recorded in a semifinal yesterday. He made

:06:12. > :06:19.for in the first eight frames to lead it 6-2. What can McManus do to

:06:20. > :06:26.slow him up? Willie Thorne and Ken Doherty are in the -- were in the

:06:27. > :06:30.comedy box at 10am. Alan McManus looks great this

:06:31. > :06:33.morning in his tartan waistcoat and trousers. What a wonderful

:06:34. > :06:40.championship he has had so far, Kent. Absolutely. Fantastic. Rolling

:06:41. > :06:47.back the years. He has done remarkably well.

:06:48. > :06:55.Considering these two players have come through the qualifying rounds

:06:56. > :07:01.and this is their seventh map -- match already in these

:07:02. > :07:10.championships. And this man at the table now, Ding, has grown in every

:07:11. > :07:18.match. Particularly yesterday. For centuries in those eight frames was

:07:19. > :07:23.really fantastic snooker. His pot success rate was 96% on the first

:07:24. > :07:32.fall. It has now gone to 99%. He's barely missed a ball. -- on the

:07:33. > :07:40.first ball. That is a wonderful opening red. This is a great sign,

:07:41. > :07:46.Willie. It is a sign of conference -- confidence. A wonderful angle, to

:07:47. > :07:50.knock the red away from the black and set up the opportunity. This is

:07:51. > :07:55.the sign of a guy who is in complete control of himself and has

:07:56. > :07:59.confidence. Yes, it he'd be disappointed that over the years he

:08:00. > :08:04.has only had one Crucible semifinal. For a player of his class, that is

:08:05. > :08:12.not what you'd expect. He looks to have settled this year. He has never

:08:13. > :08:15.liked it here, has he? OK, he has made a semifinal before but any of

:08:16. > :08:20.the other times, he seems to have struggled with the atmosphere and

:08:21. > :08:26.the layout. Sometimes, players can take a while to get used to it. He's

:08:27. > :08:32.certainly got used to it this year. He still on a choice of two red

:08:33. > :08:37.spare but he wanted to be on the back of the pack. He seems a little

:08:38. > :08:41.bit disappointed that he missed the case. He missed the joint of that

:08:42. > :09:00.red. He will take an alternative. It will be interesting to see after

:09:01. > :09:05.he pots this pink, will it pop back on the spot or is it covered? It

:09:06. > :09:21.will help him if it is covered because it will go back on the blue

:09:22. > :09:25.spot. They're's his target, 72. The red at the bottom of the pack just

:09:26. > :09:34.to be left up from the black is pottable into this corner pocket.

:09:35. > :09:35.That is what he is looking at now. We saw it land in between two reds

:09:36. > :09:52.here. He will have a choice. It's amazing to try to work out

:09:53. > :09:56.where he disappeared. He had that amazing season two seasons ago where

:09:57. > :10:00.he won five tournaments, and then last year and the best part of this

:10:01. > :10:04.year he has hardly won a match. He has found his form again and he is a

:10:05. > :10:12.wonderful player to watch when he is in full flight. Yes, he lost the

:10:13. > :10:16.first round at the China open in Beijing just at the end of March and

:10:17. > :10:19.that knocked him out of the top 16, losing that first round match. That

:10:20. > :10:29.is why he had to go on prequalifying for the squad championship. -- for

:10:30. > :10:35.the world championship. Stephen Maguire had to get to the semifinals

:10:36. > :10:45.or better, which he did. He was at 17. In an adverse way, Willie, it

:10:46. > :10:52.might have been better, really. He won the pre-qualifiers pretty

:10:53. > :10:55.easily, 10-4, 10-2, 10-2 and that might have given him the confidence

:10:56. > :11:01.he was lacking. There is no doubt he has had such a poor season, as you

:11:02. > :11:03.said. He needed to get a fewer matches under his belt and he is a

:11:04. > :11:14.completely different player now. That is the problem when you are

:11:15. > :11:19.flat at the back. You only get one in the middle and he has got one in

:11:20. > :11:27.the middle. He finished off with a century in the eighth frame, is he

:11:28. > :11:31.going to start with another century here? Alan McManus one two frames

:11:32. > :11:57.and he will have been pleased with that the way that Ding played.

:11:58. > :12:05.He has got a chance of equalling the record here if he makes the century.

:12:06. > :12:10.He will be the fourth player to make five centuries in a semifinal.

:12:11. > :12:14.Should he get a century here, you would think he will go on to make

:12:15. > :12:24.more, so he will get some sort of record. Ronnie O'Sullivan did it

:12:25. > :12:45.twice, and Murphy has done it. It will be a very special moment.

:12:46. > :12:50.He is just getting the cue ball cleaned. He will possibly be playing

:12:51. > :13:01.for that read just to the right of his cue ball. -- he will possibly be

:13:02. > :13:18.playing for that red just to the right of his cue ball. There is the

:13:19. > :13:24.possible break, 146. He is on course at the moment. The highest at the

:13:25. > :13:29.moment is 143 from Kyren Wilson and he made that in his quarterfinal

:13:30. > :13:34.against Mark Selby. A really big break on here. Watch his cue ball,

:13:35. > :13:40.Willie. When he makes these breaks that he has done, his cue ball is

:13:41. > :13:45.never more than 18 inches, two feet within the vicinity of his object

:13:46. > :13:55.ball and his cue ball control is so good when he is playing like this.

:13:56. > :14:04.He puts the frame safe and now he can try to make at least one for

:14:05. > :14:07.6,145, something like that. The difficult thing for Alan McManus, he

:14:08. > :14:10.broke off when he hit the blue, which left Ding a half chance when

:14:11. > :14:35.going for the black. Very, very good. He knows there are

:14:36. > :14:41.four reds. He probably needs the pink on the spot to make a really

:14:42. > :14:50.big break. He will be hoping for 143 or above. I wonder, does he know

:14:51. > :14:56.what the high break is? I know Kyren Wilson's high break against Mark

:14:57. > :15:04.Selby, he was asking the referee and some of the guys in the commentary

:15:05. > :15:14.box will be high break was. I wonder if Ding already knows. Interesting

:15:15. > :15:19.to see him play for that read there, knowing it will be the most

:15:20. > :15:24.difficult to go for. Oh, that have gone straight. He went for a

:15:25. > :15:39.full-ball contact and God be half full. This is to equal the record.

:15:40. > :15:45.-- got the half ball. Get in there. Well done, Ding. Fantastic. Five

:15:46. > :16:05.centuries in nine frames. Unbelievable.

:16:06. > :16:11.Well, Willie, he obviously doesn't know what the high break is because

:16:12. > :16:20.if he takes the pink here, he can only equal 143 here. I'm likely he

:16:21. > :16:25.will get off of the black on here, so I agree with you, Ken, he doesn't

:16:26. > :16:35.know. It doesn't matter though. This has been flawless. If Kyren Wilson

:16:36. > :16:41.is watching, he will be delighted. He can enjoy his breakfast now. He

:16:42. > :16:45.wouldn't have enjoyed its before. He needs that cue ball to go past the

:16:46. > :16:54.blue so he is not hampered. He is OK.

:16:55. > :16:58.This would beat his own highest break of the tournament so far which

:16:59. > :17:18.is 132. He has made an amazing 411 centuries

:17:19. > :17:21.in his career. This will be before hundred and 12th and this one has

:17:22. > :17:30.been absolutely out of the top drawer. -- this will be the 112th.

:17:31. > :17:43.That is the only out of position one he has played. " But in my ear,

:17:44. > :17:50.careless! Ken just whispered in my ear, careless! What a fabulous frame

:17:51. > :17:58.that was. All Alan McManus could do was sit in his chair. Ding Junhui

:17:59. > :18:06.now leads by 7-2. Ding Junhui's record equalling fifth

:18:07. > :18:13.century in the semifinals and McManus responded with a brilliant

:18:14. > :18:18.century of his own. Ding has powered home in the next with a 90 break to

:18:19. > :18:42.restore his five frame advantage at 8-3. This now is frame 12.

:18:43. > :18:49.That has certainly split them up. At first glance, I can't see a pot. He

:18:50. > :18:53.might be able to get through to that one on the left hand side. Let's

:18:54. > :19:07.have a look. Yes, you can. There is a small and he can go through that.

:19:08. > :19:14.-- a small gap and he can go through that. He does not want to go too far

:19:15. > :19:20.through, as he wants to get onto a colour. Wonderful. He doesn't

:19:21. > :19:33.deserve that. A very, very good shot.

:19:34. > :19:42.A wonderful pot, wasn't it? He found a gap as well. You didn't expect it.

:19:43. > :19:52.It went in the centre pocket. What has he left Alan McManus? Nothing

:19:53. > :19:57.straightforward. A possible read to this right corner pocket. -- a

:19:58. > :20:08.possible red to this right corner pocket. He has got to get the cue

:20:09. > :20:15.ball back around the back of the pack, so looking at a more straight

:20:16. > :20:19.red to this left-hand corner pocket. There is a lot of pressure on this.

:20:20. > :20:26.He is looking to see if it will pot to the centre pocket. It is about

:20:27. > :20:34.putting all your eggs in one basket. If it goes in, he could win this

:20:35. > :20:43.frame, but if he misses, he could be throwing it away. Ebbert of pressure

:20:44. > :20:47.and may be the wrong choice. He was sort of forced into it but there

:20:48. > :20:50.were other options. I was surprised he took that on. There were easier

:20:51. > :21:16.shots when you are 8-3 behind. In a funny way, that bit of

:21:17. > :21:43.misfortune for Ding has created this opening now.

:21:44. > :21:51.He will be disappointed. It is not normally his style to push the boat

:21:52. > :21:57.out like that. He does talk to himself quite a bit when he is in

:21:58. > :22:09.the chair. I'm sure he's giving out to himself.

:22:10. > :22:15.I think he knows with the black and pink both being in play, this is

:22:16. > :22:21.likely to be another frame-winning break with the way Ding has played

:22:22. > :22:34.in this match. You can't afford to make any stakes at the moment, can

:22:35. > :22:38.you? -- any mistakes. We have had four players, as you have said, who

:22:39. > :22:46.have made five centuries or more in the semifinal. A possible chance of

:22:47. > :23:10.a record now. Ding, the first man to make six centuries.

:23:11. > :23:15.Once again, he doesn't have to play at cannon here but he knows by

:23:16. > :23:20.playing a little cannon, he will bring every read into play. See if

:23:21. > :23:26.he can get onto this red low so that he doesn't have to do is play the

:23:27. > :23:35.cannon. He could push the other two reds into play. Different

:23:36. > :23:45.possibilities. He is not going to play the cannon here, but he is on

:23:46. > :23:51.that read there. He will play this as a little run free. He didn't

:23:52. > :24:15.quite play the cannon. We have never had six centuries in

:24:16. > :24:20.any single match at the Crucible, so this would be... Well, we have had

:24:21. > :24:28.one match with centuries, so this would equal the record. Just the way

:24:29. > :24:39.he has been playing this morning and throughout this match, it's a good

:24:40. > :24:50.opportunity. His cue ball control. I mean, we are witnessing here, he is

:24:51. > :24:52.never more than 18 inches or force -- or 24 inches from his next pot.

:24:53. > :25:31.He is just so good. He is 49 points in front. Those two

:25:32. > :25:41.reds will have to be brought into play very soon otherwise he won't

:25:42. > :25:50.win on this visit. A glance at the school board. You just wonder if he

:25:51. > :25:56.can get onto this red, screwing into them at an angle to bring them into

:25:57. > :26:06.play. If not, he can certainly get into play the black. He will aim to

:26:07. > :26:17.get onto the black if he gets a cannon. Always thinking. That is

:26:18. > :26:21.what I like about Ding. A lot of players would just have made sure of

:26:22. > :26:26.the red, potted the black, and then obviously if you don't pot the next

:26:27. > :26:30.red, your opponent plays on. Ding wants to make sure that Alan goes to

:26:31. > :26:39.the interval now. He doesn't want to let him back on the table. The

:26:40. > :26:43.lowest break in this mini-session of four has been this but this could

:26:44. > :27:20.obviously become bigger very shortly.

:27:21. > :27:27.He was trying to lead an angle on the pink and I think he has gone too

:27:28. > :27:40.far. He might have to do the double unless he can sit in behind the

:27:41. > :27:45.reds. A good effort. The red is still pottable into either of the

:27:46. > :27:55.corner pockets, after which it will be very difficult.

:27:56. > :28:08.Amazing. This Crucible crowd are missing -- watching some of the best

:28:09. > :28:38.break-building we have ever seen. Just got enough angle on the black.

:28:39. > :28:45.He has got to be careful where the yellow is. He doesn't want to get

:28:46. > :28:55.too much side on this. Not too much side on it. Oh, what a shame. He

:28:56. > :29:06.would have been breaking the record or equalling the record of six

:29:07. > :29:14.centuries in the semi. Hello? What an amazing first four frames this

:29:15. > :29:20.morning. Ding Junhui is absolutely on fire. He doesn't realise it is

:29:21. > :29:25.the interval. He does now. And smiles all the way.

:29:26. > :29:31.The world number 29 stuck to the chase after the interval, taking the

:29:32. > :29:33.first after that, and snooker's elder statesman is more than just

:29:34. > :29:48.hanging in there. This is frame 14. Well, a few mistakes from Ding

:29:49. > :29:53.arriving now. His safety has been very good in the last couple of

:29:54. > :30:01.frames, forcing the opening. If he can get out of this session no worse

:30:02. > :30:07.than 10-6, wedding started, he will be pretty pleased with that. --

:30:08. > :30:12.where Ding started, he will be pretty pleased with that. That stat

:30:13. > :30:18.we just showed you with the safety, Ding was in front with the safety

:30:19. > :30:30.before today. Coming into this session, that has changed.

:30:31. > :30:38.Not perfect on the blue or the green. Normally the shots just, you

:30:39. > :30:43.don't have to go hard into the pink, you play slow into the pink. But the

:30:44. > :30:48.blue is slow in. He has to very careful here. Not even playing into

:30:49. > :30:51.the pink, playing to the two reds to the right of the pink.

:30:52. > :32:30.It is amazing how much he lifts his head. Two or three inches of

:32:31. > :32:34.movement every time. When he plays a power shot, his head rises about

:32:35. > :32:42.four or five inches. Unlike any other player in the game.

:32:43. > :32:47.We have seen a few players, Mark Selby sort of sways from

:32:48. > :32:57.side-to-side a little bit. Marco Fu sometimes can move the head

:32:58. > :33:00.slightly. Not many players lift just before

:33:01. > :33:11.playing the shot. Didn't get nicely on the previous

:33:12. > :33:22.black. I don't think he can push through to

:33:23. > :33:26.the black. He'll have to play a bit for the blue. Maybe the pink is

:33:27. > :33:39.available in the same pocket. It is. That helps.

:33:40. > :33:47.I don't think pink will be on its own shot, it will go up to the

:33:48. > :33:54.highest available, the yellow. He's got three, four lose reds before he

:33:55. > :33:59.has to worry about even any more. He'll be on the stage where his

:34:00. > :34:01.opponent will need a snooker. He could just concentrate on the lose

:34:02. > :34:21.reds here. Missed a red into this bottom left

:34:22. > :34:28.corner pocket. Albeit more difficult than this.

:34:29. > :34:36.Didn't go into the heart of the pocket, but rattled a little bit. He

:34:37. > :34:54.nicely on the black. At 61 ahead, didn't play that as

:34:55. > :34:58.well as he would have liked to. He wanted to be straight on this red.

:34:59. > :35:07.He may have to pot this red and go into the cluster.

:35:08. > :35:15.He's played it nicely. Played it lovely.

:35:16. > :35:37.Has been top tails. This red goes into a winning frame in this break,

:35:38. > :36:44.frame 14. It has been good stuff, hasn't it?

:36:45. > :36:51.128 and a 38 in the first round and 107. Three centuries on the bounce.

:36:52. > :36:53.97. Another possible century now for

:36:54. > :38:27.McManus. This has been a fantastic break. A

:38:28. > :38:38.great response from Alan McManus and a nice response from our sponsors of

:38:39. > :38:45.course. Once it got over the 70th century mark, Betfred have given

:38:46. > :38:52.?25,000 to the bluebell wood child's hospice. This will be the 22nd

:38:53. > :38:58.century of the tournament. The target is 86, which was made last

:38:59. > :39:01.year. More importantly for Alan McManus, it is closing the gap to

:39:02. > :39:17.four now. It will be nice for him to pot the

:39:18. > :39:24.black. It would level Ding's high break at the moment, 136, thinking

:39:25. > :39:26.about it. This time it is close... Trust me. This time it is really

:39:27. > :39:47.close. Finishes off... That is Alan's highest break of the

:39:48. > :39:54.championship so far. Alan showing us there's more to his game than

:39:55. > :39:57.tactical at the moment. Fantastic fluency from the Scot. Into frame

:39:58. > :40:39.15. Alan, 20 points behind. Once again safety not good enough at

:40:40. > :40:43.the moment. I think he may have covered the red over the corner

:40:44. > :40:45.though. A little bit fortunate there, Ding. Didn't play that

:40:46. > :41:06.particularly well. Would love to get the cue ball down

:41:07. > :41:15.the left-hand side of the table, somewhere behind the yellow.

:41:16. > :41:20.It is much more difficult for Ding. There's his view.

:41:21. > :41:30.Having a look at two reds behind the pink. They are a possible plant. I

:41:31. > :41:34.am wondering if believes the cue ball down the left-hand side of the

:41:35. > :41:39.table, will Ding be able to make that into a plant. That is

:41:40. > :41:49.exactly... Down behind the yellow somewhere.

:41:50. > :41:56.You can see where the cue ball was, well, is now.

:41:57. > :42:01.It blocked his path down the right-hand side of the table. Alan

:42:02. > :42:06.is definitely old school, playing the run-up. The modern day player

:42:07. > :42:17.takes the yellow on to the middle nowadays.

:42:18. > :42:21.Just sometimes the situation sort of will tat whether you take that --

:42:22. > :42:26.will dictate whether you take that yellow on or you don't. If he had

:42:27. > :42:31.been closer to it, he would have taken it on. The momentum is with

:42:32. > :42:35.Alan. He wants to keep a little bit of pressure on his opponent.

:42:36. > :42:41.Should he have taken the yellow on and potted it and won the frame from

:42:42. > :42:45.it, then Ding is thinking, well, it is off a fluke and his mind starts

:42:46. > :42:52.to wander. At this level it is hardly unlikely he'll leave the pot

:42:53. > :42:59.on, unless he does it too thick when he's playing up and down.

:43:00. > :43:05.All of a sudden things are not happening for Ding.

:43:06. > :43:09.It was not straightforward. The red that is to the left of the cue ball

:43:10. > :43:14.that was blocking the pathway just to lay on the red on the top

:43:15. > :43:21.cushion. I don't think he's left the pot on here though.

:43:22. > :43:25.Possible red up to the green pocket, but Alan will certainly put Ding

:43:26. > :43:36.back. Not sure which red Ding was trying

:43:37. > :44:05.to lay on to there. It is a long way away from any red.

:44:06. > :44:12.He's left his red into the right-hand corner pocket. The

:44:13. > :44:16.problem with this is that he's got to play it with a bit of pace. He 's

:44:17. > :44:20.got to screw it in and take the black into the same pocket. Now, if

:44:21. > :44:25.he misses it and we saw him miss a red like that into the left-hand

:44:26. > :44:31.corner pocket and that's why he's refused it.

:44:32. > :44:34.This is what I think Ding is trying to accomplish here. He's trying to

:44:35. > :44:38.come off the side cushion. He's trying to clip the left-hand side of

:44:39. > :44:42.the red with the cue ball, which means the cue ball will travel down

:44:43. > :44:46.towards top cushion and try and block the path of the red to the

:44:47. > :44:50.bottom right-hand corner pocket. He does not have the angle to come off

:44:51. > :44:54.the side cushion and lay on the red which is closest to the left-hand

:44:55. > :44:58.corner pocket. He's trying to play a delicate shot off this red. Trying

:44:59. > :45:10.to clip this side of the red on the way down.

:45:11. > :45:21.. Well, he's hit that red. It certainly wasn't his intention.

:45:22. > :45:26.If you leave the cue ball where it is now he would take the red into

:45:27. > :45:33.the yellow pocket because he cannot leave the two reds on the centre

:45:34. > :45:37.cushion. He will leave the long red on if he takes the green on and

:45:38. > :46:00.misses it. Could he go on to win this 5-3? And

:46:01. > :46:18.close to 9-7? He's playing well enough.

:46:19. > :46:24.A line her on potting the blue. The two -- a line here on potting the

:46:25. > :46:30.blue. He's played it nicely. A beautiful

:46:31. > :46:47.shot. A beautiful line, if I may say. That

:46:48. > :47:00.was played to perfection. Finishes low on the black. Flicking another

:47:01. > :47:03.couple of reds into play. If he could kiss them both, thin off the

:47:04. > :47:11.first one and then play into the second one. I am really surprised he

:47:12. > :47:13.didn't... There was a line-up, which was not shown, he may live to regret

:47:14. > :47:38.that. Hopefully not. I think he'll be playing it this

:47:39. > :47:44.time. That's the line that Ken's put up.

:47:45. > :47:47.He would like to flick the first, where the two reds together, pushing

:47:48. > :47:53.clear and play the kiss behind it - it opens all four reds. That is what

:47:54. > :47:59.he's looking for now, to play all four reds into play. The one to the

:48:00. > :48:01.extreme right is the red already. This could be a frame, and if this

:48:02. > :49:01.goes right. Just nudged that red nicely out of

:49:02. > :49:34.the way. Play youers don't like to take those

:49:35. > :49:38.reds -- players don't like to take these reds, if they can help it.

:49:39. > :49:43.They are missable below the black, particularly if you land straight on

:49:44. > :49:46.them. He's got plenty of options here before he considers even taking

:49:47. > :50:10.that red. 26 points ahead.

:50:11. > :50:16.Going back to that previous shot you mentioned if you had to play the

:50:17. > :50:20.cannon into those little four reds, all of those would have been

:50:21. > :50:24.available for him now. It wasn't as if there was any risk. It is OK.

:50:25. > :50:29.There's nothing wrong, if he goes on to win the frame, he's done it the

:50:30. > :50:51.right way and his way. This has been a wonderful break

:50:52. > :50:53.again. He needs to pot three more reds and three colours to be

:50:54. > :51:41.absolutely sure. He took the opportunity to make sure

:51:42. > :51:44.he was on a baulk colour rather than on the blue. This is where the

:51:45. > :52:02.problems arise. He's got to play a good positional

:52:03. > :52:04.shot here. Now he's put himself under a bit of

:52:05. > :52:08.pressure. I expect him to pot it, but this is

:52:09. > :52:24.basically frame-winning ball here. No, no, no. And he put himself under

:52:25. > :52:33.pressure from early on in that break.

:52:34. > :52:38.Didn't play the cannon, as was pointed out, may row that mistake

:52:39. > :52:46.now. That is why -- rue that mistake now. They are missable unless you

:52:47. > :52:50.get directly behind them. I know people will say why have you said

:52:51. > :52:54.the wrong way. It is not necessarily the wrong way, it is the way to make

:52:55. > :53:00.sure you don't have any troubled reds. Ding will play the cannon now.

:53:01. > :53:05.He's muttering to himself and he should have definitely have won this

:53:06. > :53:09.frame. He may still. If this kiz goes right he's gone second

:53:10. > :53:17.favourite, even though he's 43 points in front.

:53:18. > :53:26.Well, that hasn't worked out. Just a little bit hard. He's got

:53:27. > :53:32.this red it is very close to the cue ball.

:53:33. > :53:38.Could possibly push it. And the referee has got to be very close to

:53:39. > :53:39.Ding here, just to watch the cue ball on the red because this is a

:53:40. > :53:59.very difficult shot. Played it very well. Amazing how

:54:00. > :54:06.he's not pushed it. Got the screw as well and a little bit of power in

:54:07. > :54:10.the shot. Fabulous cueing. It is such a shame because Alan has

:54:11. > :54:16.fought his way back into this match. He missed a little bit of a trip. It

:54:17. > :54:19.is not nice to criticise a player's break-building, but that is

:54:20. > :54:24.old-school snooker, the way he broke there. He didn't try and win the

:54:25. > :54:40.frame at one visit. The pressure was on it.

:54:41. > :54:46.This could be a massive frame and massive turning point for Alan

:54:47. > :54:53.McManus. A long way to go in this match. Sometimes matches can

:54:54. > :54:58.completely... You claw your way back and make one mistake, and all of a

:54:59. > :55:33.sudden, you still have got a big gap to make up.

:55:34. > :55:42.It has been the longest frame of the match so far. 25 minutes.

:55:43. > :55:46.Over on the blue. There may be a lifeline for Alan, he will play the

:55:47. > :55:55.yellow at distance. Playing around the cushions, through the gap of

:55:56. > :56:00.the... He didn't play that right. He played to go between the pink and

:56:01. > :56:18.black there. This is definitely missable.

:56:19. > :56:33.It may run into the brown here with the cue ball.

:56:34. > :56:41.A natural part of the cue ball was running into the brown.

:56:42. > :57:07.A lifeline for Alan McManus. Played a good shot. He would have

:57:08. > :57:14.been disappointed. He tried to get off from the blue.

:57:15. > :57:17.All of a sudden they miss. An opportunity from Alan, he wouldn't

:57:18. > :57:22.be out of his mind now if he did not lose at this visit, it would have

:57:23. > :57:23.hurt him. Now he knows he has a second chance he will not feel quite

:57:24. > :57:27.so bad. These are the types of situations

:57:28. > :57:42.that Alan McManus is very good at. Ding will have to play some really

:57:43. > :57:59.good shots if he will get another chance.

:58:00. > :58:09.Pretty good. Got the most important part of the safety shot.

:58:10. > :58:17.A possible chance for McManus to get the cue ball behind the brown. Got

:58:18. > :58:20.to be careful of the green. Doesn't want the green to go towards the

:58:21. > :58:32.left-hand corner pocket. Played this with left-hand side,

:58:33. > :59:06.trying to check the cue ball behind the brown.

:59:07. > :59:11.This looks very good. An excellent shot from Ding. Very, very good

:59:12. > :59:52.indeed. A possible escape route just below

:59:53. > :59:57.the middle pocket. Doesn't want to play it off one cushion. Would

:59:58. > :00:00.prefer to hit the cushion and hit the green back up towards pink and

:00:01. > :00:36.black. He misjudged that by quite some way.

:00:37. > :00:42.Once he hit the ground, how has he not get the green on? That's where

:00:43. > :00:55.it was. It is important, as Ken said,

:00:56. > :01:06.because he is playing the two-cushion escape, not the one fish

:01:07. > :01:10.and escape. He will have two attempt three or four more inches than he

:01:11. > :01:20.did first time. Sometimes you have got to slide off of the cushion. He

:01:21. > :01:21.needs to take you baulk cushion. This looks good. This looks very

:01:22. > :02:00.good. Excellent shot. Bit short of pace with the cue ball

:02:01. > :02:06.and with the green. Now, a chance for Alan McManus here. He will try

:02:07. > :02:19.to get the cue ball behind that black. This looks good. This looks

:02:20. > :02:27.very good. He could have done with being a little bit tighter, couldn't

:02:28. > :02:35.he, to the black, Willie? I think that's OK. I don't think he will be

:02:36. > :02:40.able to get past the black. I don't think he will be able to get a

:02:41. > :02:55.natural angle. He may have two play-off three cushions. I am not

:02:56. > :03:00.sure it is on that great. Alan has two take the green on, it will not

:03:01. > :03:07.be amiss, and he deserved to win this frame. In the context of this

:03:08. > :03:12.match, this is probably the biggest shot Alan will play. If he gets

:03:13. > :03:19.nicely on the brown, he should closed to within three. I'm

:03:20. > :03:24.surprised it's not playing with the rest here. He is drawing out quite a

:03:25. > :03:30.lot of the cue here. He could be wise to use the rest. His pot Raid

:03:31. > :03:34.with the rest is eight out of eight, so he shouldn't be afraid to use the

:03:35. > :04:00.rest. -- his pot rate. Oh, a super shot. A beautiful shot.

:04:01. > :04:04.And believe it or not, and incredible statistic. Our director

:04:05. > :04:09.has just told us he has only missed three shots with the rest out of 69

:04:10. > :04:23.shots with the rest. Isn't that an incredible statistic? Rest play from

:04:24. > :04:32.Alan McManus. The brown is in and he is nicely on the blue.

:04:33. > :04:49.The blue will put him 13 points ahead, 18 points ahead with 13

:04:50. > :04:56.remaining. Engage the pink and what a frame -- in goes the pink and what

:04:57. > :05:00.a frame that may turn out to be for Alan McManus. He gave Ding a chance

:05:01. > :05:10.and he couldn't take it. Alan McManus comes back and closes the

:05:11. > :05:16.deficit once more. Final frame of this session, Ding Junhui to break.

:05:17. > :05:21.A wonderful seven frames of the session have been played. This, as

:05:22. > :05:26.far as Alan McManus is concerned, is one of the most important frames of

:05:27. > :05:44.the match to get back within two. He trailed, remember, 6-2 overnight.

:05:45. > :06:01.There is a gap between the pack of red, so he will be playing with a

:06:02. > :06:07.lot of left-hand side. He hasn't gone for a pot, he is trying to get

:06:08. > :06:09.back behind the yellow. He didn't want to refuse that in the opening

:06:10. > :07:09.session. Pressure put on the safety. Alan

:07:10. > :07:19.just checking to make sure he went to push a red towards the corner. He

:07:20. > :07:20.could bring the white in behind the brown and green here, making it the

:07:21. > :07:32.more difficult safety shot for Ding. Just a fraction heavy but he will be

:07:33. > :08:03.pleased with that. It's amazing the mind games it plays

:08:04. > :08:08.you here at the Crucible, Ken, because if you had said would you be

:08:09. > :08:13.happy going into the session leading 9-7, you would have said yes. But

:08:14. > :08:22.after going in leading 6-2, he went to be happy. OK, if he wins this, he

:08:23. > :08:27.still maintains a four frame advantage, meaning the session will

:08:28. > :08:31.be tied for frames all, but with the way he started off this session, he

:08:32. > :08:38.was looking to extend that meet with century breaks. This is a massive

:08:39. > :08:46.frame for Alan McManus as well to cut the deficit to two. All to play

:08:47. > :08:52.for in the next session, of course. A good safety. They will come back

:08:53. > :09:18.out this evening. The final session will be tomorrow.

:09:19. > :09:28.That looked pretty good if it had one. It just slowed up. Top of the

:09:29. > :09:35.table from Alan. An acknowledgement. What can he do here? Is there a

:09:36. > :10:14.pathway back to baulk? At first glance, it looks very difficult.

:10:15. > :10:23.Still possesses a lot of key power. It has returned to baulk. He can't

:10:24. > :10:27.play the same shot. He is too close to the cushion. But if he plays a

:10:28. > :10:32.thinner safety shot, to the right of the pin, there is enough room around

:10:33. > :10:37.the back of the red. That is the problem. If you are too thin or too

:10:38. > :10:49.thick, you are in trouble. It has to be perfect.

:10:50. > :10:54.That is pretty good. I know it is pacey with the white, but it was

:10:55. > :11:38.tough to get the gap. It goes without saying that

:11:39. > :11:42.obviously that red going again, that little bounce took a little bit of

:11:43. > :11:58.spin off it. Going across the map is not straightforward.

:11:59. > :12:14.Pity on anything? His body language tells me he might not be. -- is he

:12:15. > :12:19.on anything? Maybe just got to flick a little bit of left-hand side to

:12:20. > :12:21.turn that over. Not too sure he can miss the kiss on the black in

:12:22. > :12:43.playing this. Well done. This was an excellent

:12:44. > :12:51.shot. He turned it round, that red, Ken. A little bit of side helped.

:12:52. > :12:56.He's just got to play one good positional shot here. The red above

:12:57. > :13:04.the black pots into the left-hand corner pocket. If he could get on

:13:05. > :13:21.that, he would free up the black. He has taken the lead. A good part. --

:13:22. > :13:23.he has taken the blue. A good pot. He could not get on the red behind

:13:24. > :13:49.the black. This will open things up. That brings some more reds into

:13:50. > :13:56.play. Excellent shot. He needs to get onto the red behind the pink at

:13:57. > :14:11.some stage and that will open it up. Not a frame-winning opportunity yet.

:14:12. > :14:18.But it could be in a minute. Another excellent positional shot. He has

:14:19. > :14:37.got the pink into the right-hand corner pocket.

:14:38. > :14:42.He could have done without cue ball another two inches higher so he

:14:43. > :14:59.could have screwed into the red behind the pink.

:15:00. > :15:16.He has worked himself into an excellent position now to win this

:15:17. > :15:44.frame from this visit. He hasn't stunned quite far enough.

:15:45. > :16:04.He would have liked to be straight on this thread. -- on this red.

:16:05. > :16:12.He has had to work so hard for this break. All the reds were in the way

:16:13. > :16:16.but slowly but surely he is picking them all off, one at a time. This

:16:17. > :16:43.now becomes a frame-winning opportunity.

:16:44. > :16:48.He has surprised a lot of people this tournament, Alan McManus. We

:16:49. > :16:57.really thought his glory days were over. What ever happens in this

:16:58. > :16:58.match now, he has done himself proud and who knows, he might still get to

:16:59. > :17:52.the final. He has just overrun it slightly but

:17:53. > :17:59.the blue is OK or the pink. Probably be able to play between the blue and

:18:00. > :18:04.-- the green and brown and bring the cue ball back down. If the yellow

:18:05. > :18:10.was on its .com he would play at the other way round, but it is not so

:18:11. > :18:19.easy to do that. Another excellent positional shot. He is getting

:18:20. > :18:35.close. He will need red colour red, as he

:18:36. > :19:21.is not quite 58 points in the lead. I think under the circumstances,

:19:22. > :19:26.this has to be the best session of snooker Alan McManus has ever

:19:27. > :19:32.played. When you think he has won four frames in this session, to get

:19:33. > :19:58.himself back in the match, that is going to be the reality.

:19:59. > :20:04.It is nice, Ken, isn't it, to see that crowd realising what hardware

:20:05. > :20:10.kit has been for Alan to claw this back? He has got a lot of support

:20:11. > :20:14.it. The Crucible crowd love to see a comeback, that is for sure. They

:20:15. > :20:19.have seen many of them over the years and it is also -- it is always

:20:20. > :20:25.nice to see a player make centuries as well. It is nice to see a player

:20:26. > :20:29.come from way back and get himself back into a match. That is exactly

:20:30. > :20:38.what Alan McManus has done here. He was nine behind at one stage. It is

:20:39. > :20:43.going to close at 9-7, which means he has won this session, 5-3, and

:20:44. > :20:56.sends out a message to his opponent. Just gone a little bit of the cue

:20:57. > :21:17.ball. It is in and he has held it for the

:21:18. > :21:18.black. A beautiful shot. He has had five centuries so far in this

:21:19. > :21:34.tournament. Well played. This has been age and a

:21:35. > :21:42.session of snooker from both players. For centuries from Ding in

:21:43. > :21:56.need first session, five centuries between them in this session.

:21:57. > :22:08.This is his 206 career century. One of the most important ones he has

:22:09. > :22:14.made. I don't think in his career he has ever made this many centuries in

:22:15. > :22:26.one match. He will be buzzing inside.

:22:27. > :22:31.This has equalled the amount of centuries made in one match by both

:22:32. > :22:38.players, which shows you the standard has been fantastic. Great

:22:39. > :22:45.positional play. Now let's see the pink and see if he can pot the black

:22:46. > :22:50.around for cushions again this time. I am sure he will play the

:22:51. > :22:56.four-cushion part on the black. Go one, Alan! They want to see it. They

:22:57. > :23:10.love a trick shot. It is close, it is very close. It is there... Oh!

:23:11. > :23:15.Aged Mendis break from Alan McManus. -- a tremendous break from Alan

:23:16. > :23:22.McManus as Ding shakes his hand. The crowd are on their feet. It was all

:23:23. > :23:33.Ding any best session, it has been all my man is in the second. Ding

:23:34. > :23:40.leads by 9-7. A fantastic session of snooker by those two this morning,

:23:41. > :23:44.with days centuries -- with those centuries equalling the best we have

:23:45. > :23:50.ever seen. What did you think Alan McManus's fightback, Steve?

:23:51. > :23:53.Absolutely fantastic. You can't underestimate it. It is astonishing.

:23:54. > :23:56.The game is not that physically demanding compared to other sports

:23:57. > :23:59.but we know from history that players start to go off the boil.

:24:00. > :24:05.They lose their drive and motivation, don't handle the

:24:06. > :24:12.pressure so well. Alan McManus is winding back the years. Ding had

:24:13. > :24:18.just made five centuries. A lesser player would have crumbled but he

:24:19. > :24:29.seems to have galvanised himself instead. What he is doing is doing

:24:30. > :24:32.it with one visit. He is playing absolutely fantastic snooker. He is

:24:33. > :24:37.entertaining be proud and getting them on his side as well. These long

:24:38. > :24:44.matches, you can win three, four, five matches at a time because you

:24:45. > :24:49.get the momentum. He's probably disappointed that the session ended

:24:50. > :24:56.there. Disappointing in some ways for Ding Junhui because he has

:24:57. > :25:01.played the best he can and this fella has just hang in there. It

:25:02. > :25:05.shows you that there are no easy matches. You have got to fight all

:25:06. > :25:08.the way and Ding is prepared to fight but it is always a shock when

:25:09. > :25:18.someone you think is on the ropes comes back at you. 7-9, Alan McManus

:25:19. > :25:24.was behind and came back to win it, so Ding knows he can do it. Do you

:25:25. > :25:30.sense joy and wonderment that he is still there and kicking? I think he

:25:31. > :25:34.is having a wonderful time. As I have said before, he loves back to

:25:35. > :25:39.thing, he loves playing snooker. He still plays in everything will turn

:25:40. > :25:44.it. We talk about the fatigue but I think the excitement and the

:25:45. > :25:50.enjoyment of being out there galvanises him, and he is loving

:25:51. > :25:55.being out there. We talked at length about fatigue at the start of this

:25:56. > :25:59.tournament because nobody gave a chance of a qualifier coming out and

:26:00. > :26:06.potentially winning. I wonder what they think now? Everybody outside

:26:07. > :26:11.the top 16 has had to play three qualifying matches this year. That

:26:12. > :26:15.is tough. I hope I will be in the top 16 next year and won't have to

:26:16. > :26:19.qualify. I think that will play a big part in being able to last the

:26:20. > :26:25.distance of the 17 days at the world Championships. It can take a lot out

:26:26. > :26:29.of it -- out of you. There is a lot of mental stress and pressure but

:26:30. > :26:33.I've had three really good practice sessions, that is the way I am

:26:34. > :26:36.looking at it. I know from personal experience how much this tournament

:26:37. > :26:40.takes out of you and it is incredibly tough. I think the

:26:41. > :26:47.qualifiers are probably too close to the world championship. I think it

:26:48. > :26:52.is something as important as this which needs the qualifiers to be a

:26:53. > :26:56.month before. The qualifiers are part of the ranking system so I am

:26:57. > :27:00.afraid there is no room for change and if I ever doubted myself,

:27:01. > :27:03.obviously I would look at the performances of two of the players

:27:04. > :27:09.in the semifinals, Alan McManus and Ding Junhui, that both came through

:27:10. > :27:14.qualifying, and one of them is 45 years old, so if anyone is whingeing

:27:15. > :27:22.about the jer raging, I would say the examples of excellence are

:27:23. > :27:25.there. This is fair. -- about the duration. You have got to be fit

:27:26. > :27:32.enough, mentally and physically, to deal with this. You are in a big

:27:33. > :27:36.league now. This is not a small sport any more. You have got to

:27:37. > :27:43.adjust, rather than the format adjusting for you. 1978 was the last

:27:44. > :27:50.time we had to qualifiers in a final. It seems a long time ago now,

:27:51. > :27:56.over two weeks ago. Why do you think it has sharpened up? I don't think

:27:57. > :27:59.it is necessarily that they weren't sharp but I think the amount of

:28:00. > :28:03.snooker that the players are playing keeps them in good nick. There is

:28:04. > :28:08.the argument that you could go stale, that you could be burnt out

:28:09. > :28:11.by the time you get to this part but there are enough days between your

:28:12. > :28:15.matches to recover and relax. You might not need as many as you think.

:28:16. > :28:21.A couple of days off and you are ready to rumble. If it adrenaline

:28:22. > :28:26.keeping Alan going? Fitness? I think if you can't get the thrill of

:28:27. > :28:31.playing in a world championship, you shouldn't be a snooker player. They

:28:32. > :28:38.have played three qualifiers. Ding breezed through his. In Alan

:28:39. > :28:41.McManus's case I think he just loves playing snooker. If you can't come

:28:42. > :28:46.to a one-table situation and have the adrenaline carry you through,

:28:47. > :28:52.you shouldn't be playing anywhere. There are quite a lot of observers

:28:53. > :28:55.on social media saying there are parallels with Stuart Bingham, that

:28:56. > :28:58.sense of appreciation of the situation is very similar to what we

:28:59. > :29:03.saw carrying him through last year as well? Yes, and it seems that the

:29:04. > :29:08.second week of the tournament, somebody comes out of the pack and

:29:09. > :29:11.starts to produce something that is extra special. It doesn't matter

:29:12. > :29:15.what you have done in the first top of the tournament. You are just

:29:16. > :29:19.keeping yourself in there in the first -- like in the first lap of

:29:20. > :29:26.the Grand National, so to speak. If you are able to time your run to

:29:27. > :29:32.perfection, you are in with a shout. There are a couple of other players

:29:33. > :29:36.timing their runs as well though. The only problem is you cannot get

:29:37. > :29:43.off to a poor start because there are no easy matches. We are

:29:44. > :29:48.guaranteed to have one qualifier in the final for the first time since

:29:49. > :29:58.Judge Trump in 2011. The crowd are getting going for the semifinal

:29:59. > :30:02.session with Marco Fu, and Marco Fu has spent half of his life coming to

:30:03. > :30:07.the Crucible. He was 19 years old when he came here first and 19 years

:30:08. > :30:14.have gone by. Only once in that time has he tasted snooker in the

:30:15. > :30:20.one-table situation. I used to watch Stephen Hendry and love watching him

:30:21. > :30:28.play and him and Jimmy were great rivals in the 90s. I remember Jimmy

:30:29. > :30:31.missing the black on 17 and that was one of the most heartbreaking

:30:32. > :30:36.moments. The first time I qualified for the Crucible, I was due to play

:30:37. > :30:39.James Wattana. I went in to have a look at the venue and I couldn't

:30:40. > :30:44.believe how small it was. The atmosphere was great but I couldn't

:30:45. > :30:49.believe it was only 900 people inside the venue. It was still

:30:50. > :30:53.amazing though. The wall separating the two tables when you are playing

:30:54. > :30:57.off the cushion on one of them, it feels like Yorkie will hit the wall,

:30:58. > :31:02.it is that close. When you are sitting down, the crowd is right

:31:03. > :31:09.behind you. You never have that same atmosphere anywhere in the world.

:31:10. > :31:17.It is very modernised now, it was old school before. Now like

:31:18. > :31:24.brand-new venue. In some ways. Which I don't really prefer. I would

:31:25. > :31:29.always go to watch one of the games before I played, to get a feel for

:31:30. > :31:33.the atmosphere. I don't do it in any other venue, only the Crucible, to

:31:34. > :31:40.get a feel of what it is like, and watch the games. You feel nervous,

:31:41. > :31:48.to play, yourself. Really unbelievable feeling. Sheffield is

:31:49. > :31:55.the best place to place Nico. All the snooker fans treated as the home

:31:56. > :32:01.of sneaker. No point moving any rows. Every snooker player's dream

:32:02. > :32:07.is to win the World Championship. You have to stay focused for 17

:32:08. > :32:12.days, which is very difficult. Mark Selby has had quite reason, by his

:32:13. > :32:18.standards will stop the first time for seven seasons the Leicester

:32:19. > :32:22.player has not won a major title. Claiming one of the smaller titles

:32:23. > :32:27.in Poland in February. Yet to get beyond the semifinals of the big

:32:28. > :32:34.ones. Since February, very quiet indeed. Even took five weeks off in

:32:35. > :32:38.the build-up to this one. Could he be timing his season to perfection?

:32:39. > :32:43.He took command of yesterday's opening exchanges between him and

:32:44. > :32:58.Mark. Could not play much better than

:32:59. > :33:05.that. First frame goes to Mark Selby.

:33:06. > :33:24.He has played this very well. He has the gap. Mark Selby leads 2-0.

:33:25. > :33:57.What a hit? Where is the cue ball going? Unbelievable. Tough shot.

:33:58. > :34:14.Jumped out of the pocket. Marco Fu won it, closes to one frame, 4-3. He

:34:15. > :34:19.has sunk some good balls tonight. Two frame advantage for Mark Selby,

:34:20. > :34:24.enjoying a laugh with Marco Fu. He was 3-0 down, he showed incredible

:34:25. > :34:30.touch and judgment, escaping from some devilish sneakers. I wonder how

:34:31. > :34:41.evil fair, just one session for these players. They are ready, so is

:34:42. > :34:49.Rob Walker. We have already witnessed one incredible session and

:34:50. > :34:53.sneaker. These players are living up to their star-studded billing. At

:34:54. > :35:16.the sport's spiritual home, we are ready to go again.

:35:17. > :35:23.Please welcome a player making his first appearance at the one-table

:35:24. > :35:28.set-up in a decade. From 30 down, he showed composure and experience to

:35:29. > :35:32.get back in this match. Two times a ranking event winner, looking for

:35:33. > :35:37.his first appearance in a Crucible final. One of the sport's global

:35:38. > :35:52.ambassadors, from Hong Kong, Marco Fu.

:35:53. > :36:06.His opponent, player of the mental self belief, even under pressure. A

:36:07. > :36:11.Masters champion, UK champion in 2012. He completed sneaker's Triple

:36:12. > :36:18.Crown winning the big 12-macro years ago. Can he follow his great start

:36:19. > :36:22.to the match. He is number one, he is the Jester from Leicester. He is

:36:23. > :36:43.Mark Selby. Eight more frames this afternoon,

:36:44. > :36:51.Willie Thorne and John Virgo watched yesterday's action, they are back in

:36:52. > :37:00.tandem today. Thank you, Hazel. Good afternoon to you and everybody else.

:37:01. > :37:04.Fantastic atmosphere for the second session of this second semifinal.

:37:05. > :37:18.Shake the hands. All to play for, Willie. Absolutely, watched the

:37:19. > :37:27.morning session and it was absolutely first class, must've

:37:28. > :37:36.whetted the crowd's appetite. Just short of two and three quarters

:37:37. > :37:42.hours for the first eight frames. The fifth one was a long one, 38

:37:43. > :37:47.minutes. Average shot time. Neither players got into frame-winning

:37:48. > :37:52.contributions assistant Lee. Pot success, you are looking at 90% or

:37:53. > :37:56.more to win this kind of match. The highest break, not a century. I

:37:57. > :38:11.would be very surprised if we don't team or in this session. There is

:38:12. > :38:22.the perfect start. Once again, the poisoned chalice of the break off

:38:23. > :38:27.shop. -- shot. Probably came higher on the black nanny wanted to place

:38:28. > :38:34.the misfit. Not sure, looking at an angle to move the red away from the

:38:35. > :38:35.black. The little bit concerned if the black goes on to its own spot,

:38:36. > :38:55.the red will not be 's pottable. Well, he had the

:38:56. > :39:07.opportunity to move the red, he thinks this Moscow. Is he right? --

:39:08. > :39:18.must go. Maybe if he plays it slowly, it could go in-off the far

:39:19. > :39:23.jaw. I think it can go in-off the right-hand jaw, that has to be dead

:39:24. > :39:32.weight. Looking for another opportunity, does not go in for him.

:39:33. > :39:38.Back to the red above the black. Sometimes, you know as well as I do,

:39:39. > :39:44.you convince yourself to pot the ball. He is entitled to ask the

:39:45. > :39:51.referee to re-spot the black, in case it is not on the spot. Feeling

:39:52. > :40:03.infractions. Cannot get through to the potting angle, having to bite

:40:04. > :40:08.the bullet, play safe. After a tremendous opening red, he will be

:40:09. > :40:15.disappointed. He will be thankful there, if he had caught the brown

:40:16. > :40:20.full, you can see that one does not go. If he had caught that brown

:40:21. > :40:25.full, he would have left the red to the right middle. Disappointment not

:40:26. > :40:38.being on the red, affecting the next shot. Luckily for him, he has it

:40:39. > :40:54.safe. Coming off two cushions, needs to

:40:55. > :41:00.Harry. Judged it well. Lovely shot. Has he hit that fractionally too

:41:01. > :41:01.hard. Mark Selby coming to have a look if there is a red to the

:41:02. > :41:18.corner. Looks as if there is. Very hard to generate the pace

:41:19. > :41:28.required to come off the top cushion. He had to avoid the push

:41:29. > :41:30.shot, getting that you out of the way quickly. Just nudging behind the

:41:31. > :41:51.black. Just nestling into the side of this

:41:52. > :42:05.cluster, you would think he would not leave anything. The semifinals

:42:06. > :42:13.after four sessions. The first three, eight frames play. The final

:42:14. > :42:19.session, possible nine. Which makes up the best of 33, the target. 17

:42:20. > :42:56.for a place in the final. There is a gap between green and

:42:57. > :43:04.brown, but whether he can be one of the reds, not sure. He feels he can.

:43:05. > :43:24.Quite clearly, from the picture. That was much to thick. He has left

:43:25. > :43:26.the cube will tighten the cushion, that makes this pot far more

:43:27. > :43:51.difficult. Yes, get the cue ball close to the

:43:52. > :43:58.cushion, makes any shot difficult. I thought he would get it. He has

:43:59. > :44:07.missed it, leaving Mark with a nice easy starter.

:44:08. > :44:28.We know with Marco Fu role to that black, it was pot. You would think

:44:29. > :44:34.you would want to get on the red above the black sooner rather than

:44:35. > :44:44.later. Mark was very relaxed before the match, are in the champions'

:44:45. > :44:49.Lounge. He was very relaxed going into the second session. You have to

:44:50. > :44:56.try and take your mind off of it. Cannot be 17 days of concentration,

:44:57. > :45:06.it will take a lot out of you. Absolutely. Even the days you are

:45:07. > :45:19.not playing, still have the tournament on your mind. Having a

:45:20. > :45:30.look, if the pots the black, silver red -- will the red be available? It

:45:31. > :45:32.will. It was on its spot. When Marco Fu got on it, he just nudge the

:45:33. > :45:53.black. Mark's wife, Vicki, after the

:45:54. > :46:00.players' box, with family and friends. Grandparents can often

:46:01. > :46:12.result of this afternoon. -- looking after the daughter. Mark Selby has

:46:13. > :46:17.been potting some Gimenez falls, but one thing that has been lacking, not

:46:18. > :46:27.finishing in one visit. Going to play the cannon.

:46:28. > :46:43.Just catching the edge of them. Maybe the red five think is

:46:44. > :46:47.available to the left corner. It looked like it was all going to line

:46:48. > :47:08.up, but you can see that one is available. Good solid pot.

:47:09. > :47:14.The highest break of the match so far is a break of 69. Looks certain

:47:15. > :47:48.to eclipse that one here. He feels as if he got a bounce

:47:49. > :47:57.there. I must admit, seemed to fly off the top cushion. I have the

:47:58. > :48:01.pleasure of working on this morning? Session, never had one bad bounce

:48:02. > :48:13.can't believe it was such a bad misjudgement. A tough red to keep

:48:14. > :48:20.this visit going. Not there. Mark Selby will go back to his seat. With

:48:21. > :48:29.a 43 point lead. Still a possible 75 remaining. He has had a bit of a

:48:30. > :48:32.result. And Marco pot this, and get on the black? Not easy, hampered as

:48:33. > :48:50.years. Played it is positive. If you were on the practice table,

:48:51. > :49:08.you would play this with a lot of left-hand side. Decided to play dead

:49:09. > :49:15.weight. It could hold. This would be a steal, Willie. Mark is sitting

:49:16. > :49:20.down, feeling a bit unhappy about the cushion. It was a bounce,

:49:21. > :49:26.amazing we did not have one this morning. That one fly. Something

:49:27. > :49:30.about the physician, could have cost in the frame. He gestured with his

:49:31. > :49:38.hand, walking back to his seat. Not happy with it. These are the kind of

:49:39. > :49:51.things that can change matches, your frame of mind can change. As I say,

:49:52. > :49:59.to be so far about, it just seemed to fly off the first cushion. No way

:50:00. > :50:03.he could misjudgement by that much. The thing is, Willie, with this type

:50:04. > :50:08.of frame, you are sat in your seat, thinking the frame has gone. All of

:50:09. > :50:12.a sudden your opponent gives you a chance, getting back to the table,

:50:13. > :50:24.it is like a bonus just to be back in the frame. The one on the back

:50:25. > :50:36.cushion, which he will play for now... Mind you, did that? He was up

:50:37. > :50:39.early, Little bounce. He thought he missed that, you know. Just fell in.

:50:40. > :51:04.Not perfect on the red. Could not avoid the jewels. -- jaw.

:51:05. > :51:09.He will have to play the snooker, no value in plain black. Obviously the

:51:10. > :51:25.natural one to come off the yellow, try to use green and brown. Not

:51:26. > :51:31.quite. Little get past the blue. Mark looking at the potting angle.

:51:32. > :51:33.As you can see, he can get through to it. He will certainly be taking

:51:34. > :52:14.it on. This looks a good line, pretty good

:52:15. > :52:22.length. Very well played. Advantage Marco Fu now. All the colours are

:52:23. > :52:31.open. Mark with the age-old problem, not hitting the red. Can he get it

:52:32. > :52:37.safe? Looking to come off two cushions, using lots of right-hand

:52:38. > :52:42.side. Just wants to hits this quarter full, or less will stop he

:52:43. > :53:21.has hit eightfold. That is the problem. -- he has hit it full.

:53:22. > :53:32.Seven points behind, need up to and including the thing. -- pink. For a

:53:33. > :53:40.frame, just the moment ago, you thought he had no chance in. Not

:53:41. > :53:45.leaving himself the nicest of angles on the yellow. Green should be quite

:53:46. > :53:59.straightforward. Will have to bounce off the cushion.

:54:00. > :54:06.He only needs up to and including the think, makes it easier. If you

:54:07. > :54:10.need black, I always say this is the key shot, going from brown to blue.

:54:11. > :54:31.Does not matter, only needs to think. He has overrun it. He will

:54:32. > :54:37.have to go in and out of baulk. He is OK. If he needed the flak as

:54:38. > :54:47.well, would not be good on this thing. Just the thing. This will

:54:48. > :54:53.hurt Mark Selby. If it goes. -- pink. Mark Selby in and amongst the

:54:54. > :54:58.balls, got a bad bounce, looked certain to win the frame. Marco Fu

:54:59. > :55:05.had two opportunities, taking the second one, closing the arrears to

:55:06. > :55:09.just one frame. STUDIO: A bit of a steal. Marco

:55:10. > :55:14.showing some of that trademark composure to finish off that break.

:55:15. > :55:18.Nice clearance in the end. This match is such a contrast to the

:55:19. > :55:23.other semifinal. The highest break is only 89, the other match there

:55:24. > :55:27.centuries all over the place. Mark Selby, the one thing missing from

:55:28. > :55:33.his game, winning frames in one visit. Making big breaks. As long as

:55:34. > :55:38.he's not doing that, Marco has good Hope. As you say, completely

:55:39. > :55:45.different kind of match we are watching. No less intriguing between

:55:46. > :55:51.two top 16 players. World number one, and Marco starting the season

:55:52. > :55:59.at number 14. The only two seeds remaining. I hate going on about it,

:56:00. > :56:03.but people who watch this game about it don't like us to moan. But things

:56:04. > :56:10.conspired against Mark, as I've found is destroying his positional

:56:11. > :56:19.play, making his shot important. Marco Fu Mr black, -- missing the

:56:20. > :56:26.black, everybody knew that he enlisted, people talking about the

:56:27. > :56:38.pockets being bigger. But it is the same for everybody.

:56:39. > :56:45.COMMENTATOR: This is one of those, if you pot it, going through the

:56:46. > :57:07.gap, if it is slightly thick, you catch the red.

:57:08. > :57:12.He has gone all out for it. Not hitting that very well. Good chance

:57:13. > :58:07.the market. -- for Marco. He drove into them, not working out

:58:08. > :58:14.well. He knew, as soon as he court the red. Came off that red, then

:58:15. > :58:17.getting the vaccine. He knew when it came off the side cushion, even

:58:18. > :58:43.nestled into that bunch, being on nothing.

:58:44. > :59:04.Just gone over three hours, match time. A little sign of frustration

:59:05. > :59:17.from the previous frame, on his facial expression at the moment.

:59:18. > :59:30.Nicely dropped in. Nicely on the green. The black not available into

:59:31. > :59:39.both corners. Plenty of room to play for it in the right corner pocket.

:59:40. > :59:46.Playing for this red in the middle, needs travel a little bit. A little

:59:47. > :59:54.bit thinner than he wanted, to drop it in, get position on the flak. --

:59:55. > :00:03.black. You must be reasonably happy with the potting angle. Coming off

:00:04. > :00:07.two cushions. Well, a little bit firmer than he needed. Not perfect

:00:08. > :00:23.on this black. I just wonder if he could roll it in

:00:24. > :00:35.and try to kiss the red. Off the cushion first. He has lost the

:00:36. > :00:41.white. Very surprised he did not choose your shot. That would have

:00:42. > :00:45.held him for the other red. Nothing much to do with the cue ball. It

:00:46. > :00:59.just seemed like a little bit of edge.

:01:00. > :01:06.Not making the most of their opportunities. That was always

:01:07. > :01:27.missable. It was a poor positional shot off the black. He caught that

:01:28. > :01:32.much too thin. The red on the side cushion may not tempt Marco. If he

:01:33. > :01:37.tries to play a return back to the baulk end, he has got to be very

:01:38. > :01:53.wary that he does not run into that red. I think he is playing the pot.

:01:54. > :01:58.That was a tough pot to take on. But he preferred it to the safety. And

:01:59. > :02:06.he has not got away with it. Yes, he had a goal added. Mark Selby has no

:02:07. > :02:12.problem with the red but he will have two play this firm to come out

:02:13. > :02:17.for the pink or the black. It is all about the pace. He has got through

:02:18. > :02:26.the gap. He played to get into the bunch. He will be happy with that.

:02:27. > :02:45.Look at the gap he has gone through. Playing for the red near the top

:02:46. > :02:49.cushion. He has played it well. He has got a beautiful angle on it. He

:02:50. > :03:00.can play for the black now. Get the black back on its spot. There is a

:03:01. > :03:07.loose red on the right-hand side of the cluster that he can play for. He

:03:08. > :03:14.would like to have been straighter. He is just pointing where he would

:03:15. > :03:18.like the cue ball to be. If he was straighter on the black, he would be

:03:19. > :03:32.closer to the next red then he will be. -- than he will be. He will have

:03:33. > :03:36.to use the rest. And he will be running into other balls. He will be

:03:37. > :03:47.bringing other reds into play. This is a must pot.

:03:48. > :04:02.No. It was dangerous. Very dangerous should you miss that. If you miss at

:04:03. > :04:26.this level it can cost you a frame. An easy starter for Marco.

:04:27. > :05:19.He has gone into the cluster again. Let's have a look at it again. Did

:05:20. > :05:27.he catch the wrong red? And not really. It was a good line. All it

:05:28. > :05:32.lacked was pace. He went into them a little bit tentatively. A bit more

:05:33. > :05:34.pace and he would have got the cue ball going through the reds more.

:05:35. > :06:03.Another chance and it is gone. The only reason he is thinking about

:06:04. > :06:07.this is he is trying to get over the disappointment of having to play

:06:08. > :06:15.safe. It seems he does not want to risk going to the baulk end, which I

:06:16. > :06:20.find strange. But playing that way, he had to judge it well. And boy,

:06:21. > :06:29.has he judged it well. He has left a pot on. He has left a red for Mark

:06:30. > :06:35.to go at. But Mark knows, being 24 points behind and the way the reds

:06:36. > :06:51.are, and the colours on their spot macro -- spots, and he is only 50%

:06:52. > :06:58.long pot success, this is a test. He got the cue ball running back to the

:06:59. > :07:10.baulk. And he got a good cue ball. He will settle for that. It was

:07:11. > :07:11.tough. Once again the cue ball being close to the cushion makes it so

:07:12. > :07:39.much more difficult. At first glance, nothing available

:07:40. > :07:43.to pot your way out of trouble. Unless that red just below the pink

:07:44. > :07:50.will go to the right corner. The only problem is he is in danger of

:07:51. > :07:57.catching the red Navy top-cushion. That would leave the cue ball at

:07:58. > :08:03.this end. -- near the top-cushion. That is the problem. Now Marco Fu

:08:04. > :08:10.has got a tremendous chance. A little bit of annoyance there for

:08:11. > :08:17.Mark Selby. That is not like Mark. A little bit of annoyance. He probably

:08:18. > :08:21.feels a little bit aggrieved about the first frame when he looked

:08:22. > :08:32.certain to take it. What a chance per Marco Fu to level the match.

:08:33. > :09:16.He needs another 25 points from here to get to 67. He will level the

:09:17. > :09:31.match. You can see a lot more than 25 coming from this position.

:09:32. > :09:40.For a moment Marco was stopped in his tracks. I think he played for

:09:41. > :09:48.the one below the pink there. Yes, I do not think he played for this but

:09:49. > :10:14.he hit it too hard. As it happened, he landed perfect on the red.

:10:15. > :10:20.42 points is the lead. Not perfect on this red. He has a little bit of

:10:21. > :10:29.work to do with the cue ball but you would not expect him not to be on a

:10:30. > :10:38.colour. Well, he took his eye off the pot. It just shows you, it was

:10:39. > :10:44.not perfect on the red. He took his eye off the pot. How many times do

:10:45. > :10:54.we see that? Now there is a chance that Mark Selby was not expecting.

:10:55. > :11:00.He has got to make the most of it. As he was about to hit it, somebody

:11:01. > :11:07.in the audience coughed. He has to stay focused. Do not let something

:11:08. > :11:12.like that put you off. I would suggest the way he turned around

:11:13. > :11:18.there, Mark has not settled. Yes, his concentration is poor for him to

:11:19. > :11:24.let that put him off. This should relax. He should have won the first

:11:25. > :11:26.frame but did not. He thought this frame had gone away and now suddenly

:11:27. > :11:46.he has been given a lifeline. A couple of awkward reds to contend

:11:47. > :11:52.with. 27 points behind. 51 remaining. Plenty of points to play

:11:53. > :12:04.with. It does not match -- matter which colours he plays for. To make

:12:05. > :12:09.this red to the left, he has to get as close as he can, stunning between

:12:10. > :12:20.brown and yellow, a little bit of sight. Played it absolutely inch

:12:21. > :12:28.perfect. It is one of those, you cannot be too greedy. You just roll

:12:29. > :12:36.it in dead weight, let gravity take over. I know they always look easy.

:12:37. > :12:45.It is quite an acute angle. He seems very concerned about the angle he

:12:46. > :12:53.needs on the blue. This is one where you play for two pockets. You play

:12:54. > :12:59.around the back of the red. Give him a choice of both corners. Or the

:13:00. > :13:03.right-hand medal. You cannot guarantee you will get into the

:13:04. > :13:13.exact area. Just a fraction too hard. Betwixt and between, as we

:13:14. > :13:22.say. 15 points behind. This red, any colour. We call this playing into a

:13:23. > :13:26.blind pocket. You can see the cue ball and the object ball but the

:13:27. > :13:36.Pocket is not in your eye line. You have to trust you pick the . And he

:13:37. > :13:48.has. That is perfect. -- you have to do to trust to pick the angle out.

:13:49. > :13:53.Marco Fu was pleased with stealing the first frame. Mark Selby will be

:13:54. > :13:57.happy to get this opportunity. I think in some ways this will mean

:13:58. > :14:01.more to Mark Selby than the first frame that he lost. There was no

:14:02. > :14:07.chance of him coming back to the table until Marco missed that red.

:14:08. > :14:12.An unbelievable mess. He has forgotten what happened in the first

:14:13. > :14:21.frame. He needs these remaining colours to pinch it. If you add all

:14:22. > :14:24.the hours that Mark Selby has been playing at this championship, he has

:14:25. > :14:39.gone over 24-hour 's of play since the first round. -- 24-hours.

:14:40. > :14:52.Marco sat there. As Mark out to sit and suffer in the first frame of

:14:53. > :15:03.this session... He cannot just roll the blue in. Blue and pink needed.

:15:04. > :15:22.Hain goes the pink. Marco Fu had three chances in that frame and in

:15:23. > :15:28.the end he missed a simple red. Mark Selby will be mightily relieved. He

:15:29. > :15:33.took his opportunity and goes two clear once again.

:15:34. > :15:38.Yes, he restores his advantage. We will be back there shortly.

:15:39. > :15:44.We will be looking -- we have been looking for John Parrott everywhere.

:15:45. > :15:49.Getting some practice in. We said that Marco Fu has slightly different

:15:50. > :15:53.cue action to other people. We are going to show you a shot he played

:15:54. > :16:02.in this frame. Watch how little his cue actually moves. The cue is

:16:03. > :16:07.absolutely ecstatic before he takes it back, has a pause and then he

:16:08. > :16:12.knocks the red in. Why is that unusual? Most of the players, when

:16:13. > :16:18.they are growing up, are told they have to have a pre-empt of the shot,

:16:19. > :16:23.a waggle. One player who did not do that was James Wattana. He used to

:16:24. > :16:28.put his cue to the ball and not move at all. If I try to do that, I do

:16:29. > :16:35.not think you can get the feel for the shot. Marco has played a heck of

:16:36. > :16:40.a long time. Over 400 centuries in competitive play. But if you are

:16:41. > :16:44.starting off, I would like to see more movement. You waggle to get a

:16:45. > :16:52.feel for the shot you are about to play. Get away from the feeling of

:16:53. > :16:59.being static. If I play for the pink to come down the table. A little bit

:17:00. > :17:04.more feel for the shot. I would be coming in something like this. I is

:17:05. > :17:11.on the ball. Screw the pink back down the table. And have a bit more

:17:12. > :17:13.feel for the shot. Marco Fu and James Wattana, certainly unusual.

:17:14. > :18:00.But it definitely works for them. He decided he could not find a path

:18:01. > :18:04.back to baulk. He has left a red to the right centre. It may tempt

:18:05. > :18:10.Marco. It all depends. If he feels he is going to run into the blue, it

:18:11. > :18:20.is not on. If he feels he can avoid the blue, he will take it on.

:18:21. > :18:26.No, he does not feel he can avoid the kiss on the blue. Running off

:18:27. > :18:28.this red, trying to find the baulk cushion. The tighter the better.

:18:29. > :18:52.Pretty good. A pretty good safety shot from Mark.

:18:53. > :18:58.It is funny how matches seem to be played. You are talking earlier

:18:59. > :19:02.about the Ding Junhui and Alan McManus match, where there has been

:19:03. > :19:07.a glut of century breaks. These frames have carried on from where

:19:08. > :19:11.they left off in the first session. Every frame is different. There have

:19:12. > :19:19.been eight centuries in 15 frames in that first match. Still no century

:19:20. > :19:23.as yet in this. But I think there will be at least one century in this

:19:24. > :19:32.session. By whom, I am not quite so sure. A little tap on the table

:19:33. > :19:39.there from Mark. He has a better view of the situation than me. It

:19:40. > :19:42.looks like there is a pot on. Looking at the virtual image, he

:19:43. > :19:51.cannot get through to anything on the right-hand side. So yes, it will

:19:52. > :19:53.not be easy to get this back in to baulk. If he tries, he has got to

:19:54. > :20:02.hit this absolutely perfect. He did not want to risk it. He just

:20:03. > :20:46.played the containing safety. Not many players in the game can

:20:47. > :20:47.outplay Mark Selby in the safety Department we will see how this goes

:20:48. > :21:17.on in this frame. He must be taking this on. The pink

:21:18. > :21:24.goes to the middle. A terrific shot. The cue ball has not slowed down.

:21:25. > :21:33.That was the only way he felt he could escape that problem, by

:21:34. > :21:40.rolling this red in. Seven foot 11. Used to do that on the high jump,

:21:41. > :21:47.didn't you, Willie? The Fosbury flop as well. The pink does go. But too

:21:48. > :21:58.risky. Trying to find the baulk cushion. He has not founded. He has

:21:59. > :22:06.not put Mark Owen as much trouble as he would have liked. -- he has not

:22:07. > :22:19.put Mark -- Marco in as much trouble. This looks a good safety

:22:20. > :22:21.shot. Excellent reply. That was as good a safety shot as you will see.

:22:22. > :22:45.Well played. And it looks like it has forced an

:22:46. > :22:51.error. Mark has left this red on. If it is straight, I do not fancy him

:22:52. > :23:00.getting on a colour. But he might just be able to run the cue ball off

:23:01. > :23:04.two-cushions. I will tell you what, you say he is not blessed with the

:23:05. > :23:09.most cue power in the game but he did well enough there. He had to

:23:10. > :23:15.throw everything into it. We talk about Alan McManus coming off the

:23:16. > :23:25.shot. Everything came up there. What a great positional shot. We often

:23:26. > :23:31.say when you play a great shot, you get what you deserve. But he is not

:23:32. > :23:38.happy with that contact. The pink has gone on the black spot. He got a

:23:39. > :23:43.heavy contact. When he kissed the red, the cue ball stopped, held the

:23:44. > :23:52.pink spot and now the pink and black well and truly out of commission. He

:23:53. > :24:05.would like to get top side of the blue. Goodness me, missed that by a

:24:06. > :24:18.long way. Completely the wrong side of the blue line.

:24:19. > :24:49.He will need all the cue power again here to get back for the blue.

:24:50. > :24:56.Now he has got the angle on the blue that Willie was talking about. Does

:24:57. > :25:04.he pick off the loose ones and play for the blue? He cannot win the

:25:05. > :25:07.frame with just the loose reds. There is every chance if he placed

:25:08. > :25:15.the pink firm, the black will come into play as well. I think he has

:25:16. > :25:23.decided to play the cannon. No. We will see. He has certainly overrun

:25:24. > :25:30.that. I think he played for the red on the left corner. He has got one

:25:31. > :25:38.to the metal. I will give him the benefit of the doubt. That was one

:25:39. > :25:44.of the tricky ones. My mistake. As you mentioned, John, it is not a

:25:45. > :25:49.frame-winning opportunity with just the blue and baulk colours in play.

:25:50. > :25:57.He will have to get the right side of the blue singer Later. The four

:25:58. > :26:06.reds impossible positions, if he got those and the blues, that would be

:26:07. > :26:12.another 24 points. There would still be 75 remaining. He has to start

:26:13. > :26:19.thinking about those reds that are surrounding the pink and black.

:26:20. > :26:24.There is a gentleman in the studio that would have played it the first

:26:25. > :26:38.shot. Blue into the pink when he had the perfect angle. He overdid that.

:26:39. > :26:43.He immediately asked for the cue ball to be cleaned. I do not know if

:26:44. > :26:44.he felt he had got a bounce. That cue ball is definitely not where he

:26:45. > :27:13.wanted it to be. Just dropped in. Only just. And at

:27:14. > :27:31.first look, he is not perfect here by any means.

:27:32. > :27:45.Not quite recovered the situation. The wrong angle on the blue. He has

:27:46. > :27:51.left it until the last minute. He desperately needs a good angle on

:27:52. > :28:04.the blue or baulk colour to try to get into those reds. Good pot. Penny

:28:05. > :28:14.has found the angle on the blue. He cannot refuse the cannon this time.

:28:15. > :28:26.-- and he has found. He found a gap. Where did that gap come from? That

:28:27. > :28:34.is a port shot, isn't it, John? You are a hard man, Willie. He wants the

:28:35. > :28:35.pink in play. He got too much into the cue ball. That is what I am

:28:36. > :29:02.saying. Anyway, it is end of break. Not the

:29:03. > :29:07.old robe of the green. Well, it has touched the brown. He will be

:29:08. > :29:12.disappointed he did not win the frame at that visit come but maybe

:29:13. > :29:14.he should have played the cannon early and not leave it until the

:29:15. > :29:36.last minute. That was a good shot. Good shot.

:29:37. > :29:49.There is a part of -- possible pot on here. Right in the heart of the

:29:50. > :29:54.pocket. He is on the green. So, another chance to win this frame.

:29:55. > :30:02.That was an excellent pot. Every credit. Can he get into the cue ball

:30:03. > :30:15.enough to play the cannon off one cushion? It looks like he is playing

:30:16. > :30:20.two. As he got on the red to He has. What a mess on the green that could

:30:21. > :30:26.be. He could get through to this red just below the black. He may be able

:30:27. > :30:31.to pot it, screw back, bring the other reds into play and still be on

:30:32. > :30:37.the black. From no where he has been given an opportunity to steal the

:30:38. > :30:45.frame. -- no. He will be disappointed. He did not get into

:30:46. > :30:49.that. He was given a chance there but he wanted more back spin.

:30:50. > :31:20.An opportunity missed. I cannot see him going for the pot

:31:21. > :31:29.here. Nestling behind the green and get

:31:30. > :31:33.the snooker. Not a bad effort. Marco Fu, 48 points ahead, 59 remaining.

:31:34. > :31:40.He only needs and other red and a colour. He will not want to bring

:31:41. > :32:23.the pink interplay. Can he avoided? -- interplay.

:32:24. > :32:30.A dilemma here. He has a lead and he wants to protect it.

:32:31. > :32:31.He doesn't want to open he's reds up. You've got to play the right

:32:32. > :32:47.shot. Left the pot on for Mark Selby. If

:32:48. > :32:54.you were feeling really confident here, you could pot this red, cannon

:32:55. > :32:55.into the pink and red. If you catch the pink full ball, you'd be on the

:32:56. > :33:02.black. I like that. He can play is slowly

:33:03. > :33:20.as well. Well, he got the cannon and

:33:21. > :33:28.everything. But he didn't get the pot. Played a little harder than I

:33:29. > :33:35.thought he would. A bit slower and that would have been on the black.

:33:36. > :33:40.It would have been on the pink. Surprised Marco's not taking this

:33:41. > :33:47.red to the left middle. That red and a blue would put him to the nookers

:33:48. > :34:08.required stage. -- snookers required stage.

:34:09. > :34:13.If it runs boost the brown, this could be -- past the brown, this

:34:14. > :34:47.could be very good. Here's another opportunity now for

:34:48. > :35:08.Mark. I think he can get through to the red closest to the corner.

:35:09. > :35:26.That's a poor shot. He could not afford to miss the cannon there.

:35:27. > :35:33.It was for the red to go on the right hand. If he caught the red

:35:34. > :35:36.thicker, it would have made the cannon.

:35:37. > :35:52.He's taking this brown on. Doesn't want to sneak behind the red

:35:53. > :35:56.near the cushion. Oh, that's unlucky.

:35:57. > :36:27.Of all the places in all the world! Forts

:36:28. > :36:38.Where's the blue ball going? Oh, you could not believe it. Cow have a

:36:39. > :36:51.thousand attempts at that and not get it. Trying to hit that red.

:36:52. > :36:56.Never dreamt of putting the blue in. Marko just needs this red for the

:36:57. > :36:58.frame. It's not there, though. How many

:36:59. > :37:11.chances? Sometimes if you get a couple of

:37:12. > :37:15.chances a frame, you're more than happy. There's been three or four in

:37:16. > :37:34.every frame we've played this second session.

:37:35. > :37:43.Oh, landed perfect. Landed absolutely perfect here. I presume

:37:44. > :37:52.you'd play the kiss black here. If you just kiss the black, you may

:37:53. > :38:12.not finish on the red. He's gone into the black. It needs

:38:13. > :38:15.to stop. It's very hard. I just thought he'd - I mean, at the end of

:38:16. > :38:20.the day, he's thinking if I get the cannon, at least I might be on a

:38:21. > :38:21.red. I think he played your shot, but he

:38:22. > :38:39.got into the cue ball too much. But he's still in this frame. That's

:38:40. > :38:56.a pretty good shot. He's covered the red in the middle of the table.

:38:57. > :39:11.It's going to be a free ball here. Free ball called.

:39:12. > :39:16.Must be the blue that's covering the left-hand side of the red.

:39:17. > :39:24.This yellow will be counted as a red and then colour to follow.

:39:25. > :39:28.This could be three frames on the trot that the right person's not won

:39:29. > :39:30.the frame. There's been so many twists and

:39:31. > :39:47.turns in the first three frames. No need to tell you this is the key

:39:48. > :40:04.shot coming up. Needs a good angle on the colour to drop on this red.

:40:05. > :40:09.Could have played it better than that. He has a slight angle on the

:40:10. > :40:21.blue. But he's going to have to force it.

:40:22. > :40:37.It's tricky, this. Doesn't have to play the pot, of

:40:38. > :40:39.course. If the black was on its spot, it would have been easy to

:40:40. > :40:49.roll it in. He could play it slowly and get on

:40:50. > :40:55.the pink in the middle. But the pink aawkward for the yellow.

:40:56. > :41:14.Playing this pot is very risky. But played beautifully.

:41:15. > :41:17.He can't get enough side on, so he has to get the gap in between blue

:41:18. > :41:26.and pink. Anything but straight on the green,

:41:27. > :41:33.you fancy him to pinch the frame. He needs the six remaining colours

:41:34. > :41:59.for a steal on the black. His body language suggests it may be

:42:00. > :42:14.frerlly straight. -- nearly. This is very good. That's an

:42:15. > :42:37.excellent shot. Just about perfect. Mark Selby

:42:38. > :42:43.should have won the first frame, but he didn't. The next two frames,

:42:44. > :42:46.Marco Fu will be kicking himself not to have won them both. Looks like

:42:47. > :43:11.losing them both now. He led 3-0, this will be the first

:43:12. > :43:19.time since then he goes three frames clear.

:43:20. > :43:34.Using the rest adds a little more pressure to the shot.

:43:35. > :43:59.CHEERING AND APPLAUSE Mark Selby pinches the

:44:00. > :44:04.frame and goes three clear again. STUDIO: Marco Fu has to sit and

:44:05. > :44:08.think about what is effectively grand larceny. It's raised

:44:09. > :44:12.interesting issues. With were talking about the fact that one or

:44:13. > :44:19.two of these pockets, since they've been recovered, are rather generous.

:44:20. > :44:23.The general consensus amongst the pros watching are that the pockets

:44:24. > :44:27.are oversized. If you are playing shots on pockets that are bigger,

:44:28. > :44:32.you should make the most of it. This one in particular, he knew he had

:44:33. > :44:39.missed this. You see his reaction when he hits it. It looks wide from

:44:40. > :44:44.there. Definitely. It hits three knockels and drops in. Here's

:44:45. > :44:50.virtually the same shot on the other pocket, that's even wider. That's a

:44:51. > :44:55.lovely gift. This changes your thinking out there, as you get to

:44:56. > :45:02.grips with what's happening. Yes it can. Let's say you're a good tight

:45:03. > :45:05.rope walker and you can get into tight pockets under pressure. You'd

:45:06. > :45:10.be grieved if you thought somebody was not as good in that department

:45:11. > :45:15.and gets away with it. A shot where it changes the equation, this shot

:45:16. > :45:19.here. It's a tough shot, but if the pockets are bigger... Definitely. If

:45:20. > :45:22.they were playing tight, he would definitely have played the snooker

:45:23. > :45:28.there. He would have sent the red round the table. If you feel that

:45:29. > :45:32.the object ball is going to hit the knuckle and still go in, that shot

:45:33. > :45:38.is so much easier. You're constantly, your frame of mind is

:45:39. > :45:43.more confident. What it does is put a premium on, once you get amongst

:45:44. > :45:47.the balls, you have to kill. You don't necessarily get that many

:45:48. > :45:52.chances. Once you get them, you know you should. Marco missed a glaring

:45:53. > :45:55.red, a bit of pressure in his arm. It puts a bit of pressure on the

:45:56. > :46:00.safety. You've got to get the safety even better. It's hard to judge

:46:01. > :46:04.which players it helps and which players it doesn't. It is argued

:46:05. > :46:07.that it's a great leveller. That's perhaps something that a few players

:46:08. > :46:11.have been aggrieved about. It is the same for both players. It could

:46:12. > :46:15.favour certain types of players. It could indeed. It's certainly been an

:46:16. > :46:19.issue. A lot of discussion happening. That's on social media.

:46:20. > :46:21.Interesting to get your opinion, both of you, that you think that

:46:22. > :46:34.they're right. COMMENTATOR: Marco gets the 12th

:46:35. > :46:38.frame under way. A mid-session interval after this one. If he's

:46:39. > :46:43.going to go to his dressing room, with any good thoughts, he'll want

:46:44. > :46:48.to win it. He'll be disgusted the way he lost

:46:49. > :46:51.the last one. Missed a fairly simple green. OK,

:46:52. > :46:57.Mark Selby didn't take advantage of it. But he did eventually steal the

:46:58. > :47:07.frame. Marco had two or three golden opportunities.

:47:08. > :48:10.One of the better safety shots that we've seen so far in this session.

:48:11. > :48:12.Marco's got to be wary here, he doesn't knock a red towards the left

:48:13. > :48:20.corner. He's got a good white, but that red

:48:21. > :49:07.coming up. I don't know whether he can play the

:49:08. > :49:15.cut. He could. When a good pot it was.

:49:16. > :49:19.I don't think he's got the right angle on the yellow. If not he'll

:49:20. > :49:39.trick up behind it. As it turns out, a slight angle, the

:49:40. > :49:40.cue ball - if he picked it up with his hand he couldn't have put it in

:49:41. > :49:52.a better position. Can one of these players take this

:49:53. > :49:54.opportunity - again, it just catching the pumper of the middle

:49:55. > :50:09.pocket. Never certain to be on the colour.

:50:10. > :50:20.But don't miss the red. APPLAUSE Right in the middle of the

:50:21. > :51:11.pocket though, good recovery. When he knocked that tricky black in

:51:12. > :51:17.with the rest, a tremendous round of applause from The Crucible audience.

:51:18. > :51:35.They've always been very fair, haven't they?

:51:36. > :51:42.Mark Selby should have won the first, lost it. Marco Fu should have

:51:43. > :51:43.won the next two, lost them both. Marco Fu in a position where he

:51:44. > :51:56.should win this frame. If he gets to 68 points, it will be

:51:57. > :52:33.snookers required. Just the feeling about this match,

:52:34. > :52:37.at the moment, and matches can change, but doesn't look as though

:52:38. > :52:49.anyone's going to Republican way with it. -- run away with it.

:52:50. > :52:50.Marco being three frames behind would have known this is a massive

:52:51. > :53:35.frame. Just went to throw his cue up in the

:53:36. > :53:37.air. He's not perfect on this black. I think that red below the pink will

:53:38. > :54:17.go to the right middle. Looks all over now. Played that

:54:18. > :54:22.nicely. In fact, red and a high value

:54:23. > :54:33.colour, you'd think he would roll through for the black here.

:54:34. > :54:44.Well played. He must have been very disappointed after losing the last

:54:45. > :54:48.frame. And even the one before that. Yes, I think on reflection, 2-2 is

:54:49. > :55:27.the fair scoreline. Marco Fu has had five centuries in

:55:28. > :55:37.this World Championship. Amazingly, there have been 73 centuries so far.

:55:38. > :55:45.It probably won't be done, but a couple of days ago, it's not beyond

:55:46. > :55:49.the realms of possibility we could have a century of centuries!

:55:50. > :56:02.Wouldn't that be something at The Crucible. Absolutely.

:56:03. > :56:14.Lovely. This black for a beautifully-piled century break.

:56:15. > :56:15.Well played. -- compiled century break. Well

:56:16. > :56:46.played. Five centuries in the morning

:56:47. > :56:52.session. This, the first for this session.

:56:53. > :57:08.He made 138 earlier on in the turnament.

:57:09. > :57:15.Lost a couple of frames, he will feel that he should have won. I have

:57:16. > :57:21.to say, at the moment, he looks the more likely to win a frame in one

:57:22. > :57:29.visit. Yes, Selby's highest speck still 69. This has been top quality,

:57:30. > :57:38.this break. Lost position just once. APPLAUSE Mark Selby is still two in

:57:39. > :57:41.front at 7-5. STUDIO: It's one tenth of the

:57:42. > :57:46.century action that we've seen in this particular semi compared with

:57:47. > :57:52.the other one. It's intriguing stuff all the same. Fans of both Marco and

:57:53. > :57:57.Mark will be slightly concerned with the exception of that frame, with

:57:58. > :58:04.their inability to kill off frames in one visit. You can see that's

:58:05. > :58:11.Marco's strong suit. His strongest suit is his break building, his

:58:12. > :58:16.scoring. If Fu won this match and Ding won the other one, we could

:58:17. > :58:21.have 20 centuries! They're tremendous break builders. He should

:58:22. > :58:25.have won the two frames previous. He put that out of his mind. That's him

:58:26. > :58:28.at his best. You have a poacher supreme in Mark Selby who's able to

:58:29. > :58:35.pounce and get over the line, when presented with an opportunity to

:58:36. > :58:38.make steals. Yes, he can. He's able to up it and go through the gears.

:58:39. > :58:43.We saw that against Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final that year.

:58:44. > :58:47.You never discount Mark Selby that he could start to reel off frame

:58:48. > :58:51.after frame. There's no-one better at winning lug I. That's -- Winning

:58:52. > :58:54.ugly. Thank you very much. We'll give them

:58:55. > :58:58.a break, whilst you sit back, open your mind and prepare to be

:58:59. > :59:07.enthralled by the wit and wisdom of the brilliant Stephen Fry.

:59:08. > :59:11.Hello again. Today, I have a question that may appeal to the hot

:59:12. > :59:17.heads amongst you. If you possess a short fuse or incendiary temper,

:59:18. > :59:22.this is for you. Tell me, what was the most explosive chapter in the

:59:23. > :59:27.history of snooker and why? I'm sure we can all think of a few, fiery

:59:28. > :59:31.tempered players over the years. The answer may amay not be about one of

:59:32. > :59:38.them. Get involved on social media using hashtag QI. I will reveal all

:59:39. > :59:44.later. An intriguing one. All right, it is

:59:45. > :59:51.time for the final instalment of pot quiz. Mark Allen must be shaking in

:59:52. > :59:56.his boots or not about the thought the greatest that the Crucible has

:59:57. > :00:03.ever known, only seven times Stephen Hendry's turn.

:00:04. > :00:13.And today's contestant is seven times world champion Stephen

:00:14. > :00:23.Hendrie. A man who never likes to lose. No. One minute debate. I am

:00:24. > :00:30.doing it into the second week. The cloth should be changed. Everybody

:00:31. > :00:35.has played on it. Two minutes and 11 seconds was posted by me. One minute

:00:36. > :00:40.will be tough. I think I would rather do an omelette. That is the

:00:41. > :00:47.wrong programme. Five questions. If you get them right you can take five

:00:48. > :00:57.reds off the table. The year you won your seventh world title in 1999,

:00:58. > :01:04.who did you play in the first round? Was it the late great Paul Hunter?

:01:05. > :01:14.It was. Who talk your record of the youngest competitor at the Crucible?

:01:15. > :01:19.Ding Junhui? No, Luca Brazile. 54 days younger than you were. You were

:01:20. > :01:34.the youngest ever world champion, who was the oldest? At the Crucible.

:01:35. > :01:43.Or... Dennis? Ray Reardon. 45. Dennis was 35. I think this is

:01:44. > :01:51.gettable. Name three of the semifinalists at this season's UK

:01:52. > :01:57.Championship? David Grace, Lang when Bo and Mark Selby.

:01:58. > :02:04.Last question. How many century breaks have you made at the

:02:05. > :02:13.Crucible? Is it 117, 127, 137 or 147? Surely not 147? That would be

:02:14. > :02:20.lovely, wouldn't it? I wanted to be 147 but I do not think it is. I will

:02:21. > :02:28.go 127. Correct. Three reds. Take your three

:02:29. > :02:36.reds off, please. I think I am going to go... I quite like that. You can

:02:37. > :02:47.put your white ball anywhere you want. Your time starts when you

:02:48. > :02:50.strike the cue ball. The unmistakable style of Stephen

:02:51. > :02:59.Hendrie. Walking around the table, lost a bit of time already. Looks to

:03:00. > :03:08.be chewing well though. Moaned about the cushions, moaned about the

:03:09. > :03:13.cloth. He is back in prime position. Making sure he does not use the

:03:14. > :03:21.cushions. Keeping everything tight. He does not like it. 30 seconds gone

:03:22. > :03:29.already. The crowd go ballistic! LAUGHTER. No mistakes so far. He is

:03:30. > :03:37.not fast around the table but he is efficient.

:03:38. > :03:44.He will have to do some work with this cue ball. This will be going

:03:45. > :03:56.around the table. It is not the black yet. One minute. He will not

:03:57. > :04:03.be happy with that. Schoolboy error. If the cue ball goes in-off, you

:04:04. > :04:13.have to play it from the baulk. It is not going well. There are two

:04:14. > :04:23.reds left. He is playing safety shots on himself. One minute and 28

:04:24. > :04:30.seconds. Still looking quite nice. He will not be top of the table but

:04:31. > :04:47.he will not be bottom. Willie tried to play the positive shot? He does.

:04:48. > :04:54.-- will he try. And your time... Rhiannon Evans, one minute 34.

:04:55. > :05:00.Stephen Hendrie, one minute and 48. It could have been one minute and

:05:01. > :05:04.47. The seven times world champion goes well below Rhiannon Evans.

:05:05. > :05:10.Below Ciaran Wilson. Just above Ken Daugherty. I have beaten Ken

:05:11. > :05:19.Daugherty, Ebdon and Davis, that is all that matters.

:05:20. > :05:22.Mark Allen may have gone out in the last 16 but he has the ultimate

:05:23. > :05:27.consolation prize. I do not think it would be going on

:05:28. > :05:33.his CV any time soon but thank you to our game competitors this year.

:05:34. > :05:38.There was much to laugh at when you look at the bottom of the standings.

:05:39. > :05:44.Bringing up the rear, a former rear of the year, Steve Davis. You were a

:05:45. > :05:49.guinea pig. You wanted another shot but we did not give you one.

:05:50. > :05:56.Mid-table, almost relegation zone flirting for you. I should have done

:05:57. > :06:03.more research. I think the clock was wrong. I cannot believe I was that

:06:04. > :06:08.slow. And to be behind Peter Ebdon, that is frightening.

:06:09. > :06:15.John, you were mid-table, respectable?

:06:16. > :06:19.I am actually very happy with that. I beat everyone on our crew, so I am

:06:20. > :06:27.happy with that. We have heard and commentary today that he has missed

:06:28. > :06:31.this and played with a little bit of side. They are the best players in

:06:32. > :06:37.the world and what they do not want to use is side. I am not a physics

:06:38. > :06:46.expert. It was my worst subject at school. But if you get down, watch

:06:47. > :06:52.how the cue ball throws to the left before it comes back. I am playing

:06:53. > :06:58.this to the baulk line. It throws out. It went out straightaway. If I

:06:59. > :07:03.do it on the other side, it will go the other way. Obviously when you

:07:04. > :07:08.are playing over the distance of ground down the table, you have to

:07:09. > :07:12.calculate how much it is going to go out and wait for it to come back.

:07:13. > :07:17.That is why they do not like using the site on the bottom of the cue

:07:18. > :07:22.ball. When you play it at the top, it stays straight. Left-hand side on

:07:23. > :07:31.the top. It actually runs down the line. So basically, you cannot

:07:32. > :07:34.always play with top spin and the side you want. Sometimes you have to

:07:35. > :07:39.use the bottom of the cue ball. The players will like being close into

:07:40. > :07:44.the baulk because it will not throw off so much but they will not like

:07:45. > :07:48.the distance of ground. These tables have got shaved cloths. You have to

:07:49. > :07:55.do a little calculation for this one. You would have two calculate a

:07:56. > :08:00.little bit. If you are playing a little bit of

:08:01. > :08:06.bottom, left-hand side, pot the yellow and let it run down the table

:08:07. > :08:09.and down for the reds. But basically they do not like side at all and try

:08:10. > :08:12.to use it as little as possible and these are the best players in the

:08:13. > :08:18.world. Top marks for analysis. Back to

:08:19. > :08:28.Stephen Fry. He has lit a fire under us today.

:08:29. > :08:35.This is a really tricky one. What has been the most explosive chapter

:08:36. > :08:38.in the history of snooker? You may think it involves some of our

:08:39. > :08:42.celebrity players. I would have to think it has got

:08:43. > :08:46.something to do with the late great Alex Higgins. Everything was

:08:47. > :08:54.explosive when he was around. Explosive. The cue is not -- the

:08:55. > :08:58.clue is not in the question. Whenever you think of explosive in

:08:59. > :09:06.snooker, your mind is drawn to the Hurricane. Or Jimmy White. They were

:09:07. > :09:11.getting rid of elephants. It was OK for billiards. When they went to

:09:12. > :09:19.snooker, finding red elephants was difficult.

:09:20. > :09:29.Obviously the 1985 final, I think it was 1985... Dennis mentioned it!

:09:30. > :09:31.A few snooker managers have deliberately set fire alarms off

:09:32. > :09:39.when their players playing poorly. I have been in a few of those. It

:09:40. > :09:45.has nothing to do with fisticuffs or falling out. The answer I am seeking

:09:46. > :09:49.is a load of old balls. In fact, it is about the composition of some of

:09:50. > :09:55.the first billiards and Snooker balls. Congratulations if you are on

:09:56. > :09:59.the right line. Originally billiard balls were commonly made of ivory.

:10:00. > :10:06.Indeed they had to be caught from the dead centre of an elephant's

:10:07. > :10:12.Tosca. Dead, I am afraid, is right. Each task only yielded three our

:10:13. > :10:18.four balls. Animal welfare was not high on the agenda in the 1890s.

:10:19. > :10:22.Many elephant's were killed to allow snooker and billiards to be played.

:10:23. > :10:28.In the 1860s, a New York billiard table manufacturer offered a

:10:29. > :10:33.gigantic sum of $10,000 to come up with a replacement for ivory. An

:10:34. > :10:42.American chemist answered the call. He produced solid nitro cellulose.

:10:43. > :10:49.He patented it as celluloid. The first industrial plastic in the

:10:50. > :10:54.world. But it was volatile. Highly flammable. And it sometimes exploded

:10:55. > :10:57.during manufacturing. And indeed he recalled his experiments with

:10:58. > :11:01.billiard balls, writing, occasionally the violent contact of

:11:02. > :11:08.the balls would produce a mild explosion. We had a letter from a

:11:09. > :11:11.billiards soon proprietor in Colorado mentioning this and saying

:11:12. > :11:15.when it happened that instantly every man in the room pulled out his

:11:16. > :11:27.gun. Did they get kicks!

:11:28. > :11:30.Eventually celluloid was replaced, of course. These days snooker balls

:11:31. > :11:39.are almost exclusively made from resin. Cue sport is in a safer place

:11:40. > :11:45.now than it was in the 1860s. You would like to think that elephants

:11:46. > :11:50.have, too. But the killings still goes on.

:11:51. > :11:55.Today's snooker history lesson courtesy of Stephen Fry. Some of you

:11:56. > :12:01.were on the right lines. It was a tricky one. Chris Baker got the

:12:02. > :12:07.nitrocellulose connection. Graham Bailey and Aidan TAG. Give

:12:08. > :12:12.yourselves a big tap on the back. The blokes in the studio got -10 and

:12:13. > :12:21.-50 respectively. Mark Selby is capable of some explosive form

:12:22. > :12:27.himself might you know. -- explosive form himself, you know.

:12:28. > :12:34.Behind that funny mask is a player that is very clever, very shrewd. A

:12:35. > :12:37.bit of a street fighter. S very determined, very gritty. One of the

:12:38. > :12:44.nicest guys you will need. Very funny. Determination, great, you

:12:45. > :12:50.have to drag him off the table. He has a complete desire to win.

:12:51. > :12:54.He is funny, hard working and always tries his best.

:12:55. > :13:01.A good lad to be around. He has got so much bottle.

:13:02. > :13:07.Funny, witty, slow, safety. Very talented.

:13:08. > :13:12.Works hard, great ambassador. When Mark plays well he is mentally

:13:13. > :13:18.extremely strong, not fearful of any player. That makes him a tough

:13:19. > :13:25.opponent. A class act on and off the table. Probably one of the smartest

:13:26. > :13:33.players. He has a dry sense of humour. We get on very well. Top

:13:34. > :13:39.that, top player, he can grind out a victory from playing badly are

:13:40. > :13:46.getting way behind. All-round probably the best player in the game

:13:47. > :13:53.right now. Well, to continue the fiery theme, I

:13:54. > :13:59.he has still to catch fire in this match, Mark Selby but he is 7-5

:14:00. > :14:06.ahead. Marco Fu has begun to slow burn in this semifinal with 135 in

:14:07. > :14:21.the last frame. Back we go. Four more frames to play this afternoon.

:14:22. > :14:28.Yes, as you say, Hazel, four more frames to be played in this second

:14:29. > :14:40.session of four. A good break of shot. Just short of four ours match

:14:41. > :14:45.time. Marco Fu would be delighted with that Breaky made before the

:14:46. > :14:56.interval. A big break like that really settles you down. -- break he

:14:57. > :15:01.made. And a pot like that will. That is a cracker! Knew he would be on

:15:02. > :15:41.the pink. This pink does not go on its own

:15:42. > :15:46.spot. Close to its own spot. In direct line with the middle of the

:15:47. > :15:52.top cushion. The pink is not in too bad a position. He will have to go

:15:53. > :16:02.up for the blue here. That pink is definitely available into the corner

:16:03. > :16:09.pocket. Perfect on the blue. Can he stun down for the red to the right

:16:10. > :16:20.of the black? That is the red who would love to be playing on.

:16:21. > :16:29.He has got the loose red on the left-hand side to play for. He has

:16:30. > :16:34.chosen that. Now it is imperative he get this good angle on the blue.

:16:35. > :16:39.Looking ahead, if he can get a good angle on the blue, play for the red

:16:40. > :16:52.just behind the black, he can play for the pink and open up the reds.

:16:53. > :16:57.It is a choice. Do you play for the loose red or cannon into the main

:16:58. > :17:03.bunch? He has not got the angle to play into the bunch at speed. If he

:17:04. > :17:08.gets low on the pink, you will bring the reds into play. Just coming

:17:09. > :17:12.around to look at the angle he needs. These will be spreading far

:17:13. > :17:19.and wide if he finishes low on this pink. When people say how many shops

:17:20. > :17:30.in advance you look, on this occasion he is looking three shots

:17:31. > :17:33.in advance. Now a chance to pot the pink. Do not take your eye off the

:17:34. > :17:57.pot. That is OK. The pink spot is still covered. The

:17:58. > :17:59.pink available or be black. The blue needed and this time he will go into

:18:00. > :18:27.the bunch. He always gets perfect top side on

:18:28. > :18:38.that side macro of the table. On the other side he comes macro up short.

:18:39. > :18:51.You always need a bit of luck. And at first glance he has had none. He

:18:52. > :18:58.did pretty well. But he wanted to hit that front red fall in the face.

:18:59. > :19:02.When he has hit it half ball, it has come off the side-cushion macro, and

:19:03. > :19:11.then you are relying on a bit of luck. He has had none. So unlucky

:19:12. > :19:50.not to get onto a red. Mark spotted a foreign object on the

:19:51. > :19:59.cue ball. A little rub of the gloves. It will be replaced,

:20:00. > :20:06.meticulously. The referee is a Sheffield man.

:20:07. > :20:16.Too thin. He caught the bumper. Normally catching the bomb is a bad

:20:17. > :20:29.thing. He will not be too unhappy with that result. -- bump. There is

:20:30. > :20:39.a pot on here for Marco. He has to avoid the two reds on the left. He

:20:40. > :20:41.did not avoid them. He would like to get the one nearest the pocket. I

:20:42. > :21:08.think there is a gap. Both players struggling to get top

:21:09. > :21:13.side of the blue from that side. If he can roll the blue in but he is

:21:14. > :21:22.just the wrong side of the blue line. He will be looking to the

:21:23. > :21:28.straight red to the left corner. I do not know if he can drop this red

:21:29. > :21:34.in. See if he can get on the black to the opposite corner pocket. It

:21:35. > :21:47.looks as if he can. If he got on the black and knocked it in, you can see

:21:48. > :21:55.a big break. Do not miss the red. That is unexpected. That is the last

:21:56. > :21:57.thing I thought of. He was not having to do much with the cue ball.

:21:58. > :22:33.No excuse for doing that. Yes, it is certainly a chance

:22:34. > :22:48.missed, with where the black was. That is a better pace. What we saw

:22:49. > :22:52.just before you came back to us, the professional opinion of Mark Selby,

:22:53. > :22:56.and everybody intimated he is one of the few players who can win when he

:22:57. > :23:04.is not at his absolute best. He can grind out a result. Full ball kiss

:23:05. > :23:16.Andy Green is not good for Marco. -- on the green. OK, the green is maybe

:23:17. > :23:20.hampering Mark for the red into the left corner. But the fact he can get

:23:21. > :23:44.his hand on the table should enable him to play a better safety shot.

:23:45. > :23:51.If the red went in that would have been a bonus. The main thing was to

:23:52. > :23:56.screw the cue ball back to the baulk cushion macro. Having seen the red

:23:57. > :24:16.so close, he is wondering why it did not go in. The pace kept it out.

:24:17. > :24:24.This red was trundling towards the right corner. Did it stop on-time?

:24:25. > :24:57.No. He needed that to Mr brown for it to

:24:58. > :25:05.be a good shot. And it has done. An excellent safety. And Marco Fu with

:25:06. > :25:44.a problem to solve. This is not straightforward.

:25:45. > :25:54.He must feel the roll to the red, the bottom one of the two reds is

:25:55. > :26:01.not available. He managed to find a simple solution to the problem. That

:26:02. > :26:06.red is not available in the middle of the table. Another safety. Trying

:26:07. > :26:29.to get in behind the green. He played it very nicely. Calling

:26:30. > :26:38.the shots at the moment. 26 points behind. He knows he needs the next

:26:39. > :26:49.opportunity. If Marco gets it, it could be frame over. Kissed the blue

:26:50. > :26:58.full in the face, so it was never going to get safe. An easy red. Can

:26:59. > :27:07.he get position? Will he want to play for the black? He nearly fluked

:27:08. > :27:10.it. It is risky to play for the black, but if he does get on the

:27:11. > :27:17.black he has got a chance of scoring. He could decide to bring

:27:18. > :27:29.the pink into play, play it firm and try to push through the pink.

:27:30. > :27:38.It is decision time, really. Does he play for the black? No. He is going

:27:39. > :27:42.for a baulk colour. That is the problem when the balls are close. As

:27:43. > :27:50.soon as the cue ball, after hitting the object ball, it checked. That is

:27:51. > :27:53.what you get. That is why I thought he would play thing and get to the

:27:54. > :27:59.pink. A big shot needed here. It is not

:28:00. > :28:08.straightforward. He is worried about the red near the top-cushion. He has

:28:09. > :28:14.to avoid a kiss on the brown and the green. All of those things made that

:28:15. > :28:20.pot very difficult. Mark Selby is struggling at the moment. He throws

:28:21. > :28:28.his extension on the floor. He is looking a little bit rattled. Yes,

:28:29. > :28:34.he struggled a little bit against Kyren Wilson. As Stephen Hendry

:28:35. > :28:41.says, he can win with his second game sometimes. He will need to get

:28:42. > :28:49.to his top game shortly. He is still in front.

:28:50. > :29:01.Marco is OK. He has shown new where he wants the cue ball to be. He can

:29:02. > :29:10.get the cue ball away from the caution. -- cushion. This is OK if

:29:11. > :29:20.the pink is available into the left corner. I assume it is. He can just

:29:21. > :29:32.drop this red in dead weight and retain position on the pink.

:29:33. > :29:34.ever known, only seven times Stephen Hendry's turn.

:29:35. > :29:48.Couldn't have a better chance than this to win a frame.

:29:49. > :29:56.There's an interesting tournament total points, 4,160. Apiece.

:29:57. > :30:09.Marco Fu has just gone ahead. It's amazing that they've played the

:30:10. > :30:13.best of 19 and two best of 25s, now they're playing this game. Amazing

:30:14. > :30:46.what happens. And how it happens.

:30:47. > :30:51.So this red will put him 54 points ahead with just 51 remaining and the

:30:52. > :31:06.pink to follow. I can't see any way back here for

:31:07. > :31:09.Mark Selby in this frame. Marco Fu had the worse possible start to the

:31:10. > :31:19.match in the first session, losing the first three frames.

:31:20. > :31:32.He's back to within one now. Game on.

:31:33. > :31:40.Oh, he's missed it. So Mark Selby may be encouraged to

:31:41. > :31:43.come back to the table. Marco Fu is back to his seat. 60 points the

:31:44. > :33:12.lead, 51 remaining. The first opportunity Mark Selby

:33:13. > :33:16.gets he'd love to be potting a couple of reds, couple of blacks and

:33:17. > :33:58.leave the last red on the table for possible snooker.

:33:59. > :34:24.Here's a chance for Marco now to put this frame to bed.

:34:25. > :34:30.He'd be wishing he'd gone for the pot now because he's left the pot on

:34:31. > :34:38.for Mark. He might have got a bad contact.

:34:39. > :34:55.Mark can aford a pink off one of these reds.

:34:56. > :35:07.I think Marco Fu 64%, roughly about two thirds of what you go for, long

:35:08. > :35:19.pots. Marco now up to 90%. Mark Selby

:35:20. > :35:23.still in the 80s, all right high 80s. Marco Fu just looking the

:35:24. > :35:46.better player at the moment. Yes, having looked at most of those

:35:47. > :35:54.stats, it shows you what a seasoned match player he is. That's the first

:35:55. > :36:00.of three snookers he needs, albeit, they should be easy to hit.

:36:01. > :36:04.It might be three snookers to hit, you probably need about eight

:36:05. > :36:07.snookers to get the desired points. And very difficult to get a snooker

:36:08. > :38:14.on all three reds. Here's a opportunity for Mark to pot

:38:15. > :38:42.this red. If he pots the pink, he will be 53

:38:43. > :38:52.points behind with 43 remaining, he would still need three snookers.

:38:53. > :38:57.Tough shot. I'm certain he'd like to concede now. But it's etiquette,

:38:58. > :39:01.when it's your opponent's turn at the table, you don't concede. If

:39:02. > :39:13.Marco doesn't pot this red, I'm certain that Mark will concede.

:39:14. > :39:18.Frame conceded. Yes, he'd had enough. He had to pot that difficult

:39:19. > :39:23.pink. Marco Fu got in. No big frames that time. Just the breaks of 32 and

:39:24. > :39:25.35. Mark Selby just beginning to wobble a bit for me. Though he still

:39:26. > :40:35.leads. Interesting stats for Marco Fu

:40:36. > :40:39.there. A couple of things that came through, not very good over the best

:40:40. > :40:53.of 25s and things like that. He's lost a lot more than he's won.

:40:54. > :40:59.I agree with you, I'd be worried if I was in the Mark Selby corner at

:41:00. > :41:50.the moment. Decided to play safety into this end

:41:51. > :41:56.of the table. That's a little bit surprising as he could have played

:41:57. > :41:58.safe off the red that was by the left middle pocket. No player really

:41:59. > :42:16.likes this type of game. He's not found the top cushion. This

:42:17. > :42:29.will tempt Marco now to the far right corner.

:42:30. > :42:35.He'll be a little bit concerned if he plays for position on the black

:42:36. > :42:37.on this side of the table, he could lose the red, just to the right of

:42:38. > :42:47.the green. Because he was worried about doing

:42:48. > :42:54.that, put in that extra bit of pace and made that pot more difficult.

:42:55. > :42:56.He still left the red. He didn't play it with a great deal of

:42:57. > :43:16.conviction. Good, solid pot. Needs a bit of

:43:17. > :43:30.luck. Where's the cue ball going? ! Oh, well.

:43:31. > :43:37.Just feel now whether this is a big chance for Mark Selby. Yes, and

:43:38. > :43:45.everybody will be awake now, after that little blast.

:43:46. > :43:55.The last thing he needed there was a bit of bad luck.

:43:56. > :44:24.Didn't quite get into that. He's struggling at the minute.

:44:25. > :44:28.He wanted to screw back another good six inches to be straight on this

:44:29. > :44:51.red. He needs this cue ball to slow up.

:44:52. > :44:56.It's run too far for comfort. The only run I say that is because he

:44:57. > :44:58.will have to play this with pace to go into the cluster. This black is

:44:59. > :45:08.missable. Didn't go full out for it. He knew

:45:09. > :45:35.the black was difficult enough. Just coming round to see if he

:45:36. > :45:37.finishes where the tip is, there would be nothing on. Maybe a double

:45:38. > :46:21.on for Marco. This bottom red is cuttable. But I

:46:22. > :46:31.don't think it's in Marco remit to take a risk like this, surely not.

:46:32. > :46:48.Can you see there, he had to make it. OK it was played a little bit of

:46:49. > :46:52.safety in mind. But he's landed on the brown.

:46:53. > :46:53.He played the plant, a red has come up the table. He's level with the

:46:54. > :47:05.blue. This is a very good chance now for

:47:06. > :47:34.Marco Fu. The four reds in a line, the two

:47:35. > :47:55.middle ones of the four, pock into the same pocket of the black.

:47:56. > :48:00.Played it well. He's played it unbelievably well.

:48:01. > :48:15.Lots could have gone wrong there. You get the feeling that Marco is

:48:16. > :48:41.the one of the two more capable of winning the frame in one visit.

:48:42. > :48:57.All the reds there now for the taking.

:48:58. > :49:04.Don't know if the pink spot is available. Doesn't appear to be.

:49:05. > :49:11.The only one available is the green spot.

:49:12. > :49:31.Mark Selby will be getting a bit concerned. He's had a few chances

:49:32. > :49:41.and not made the most of them. Similar pattern as against Kyren

:49:42. > :50:39.Wilson. Straight on the black, no problem,

:50:40. > :50:41.just a straightforward screw off the side cushion for the red to the same

:50:42. > :50:50.pocket venlt -- pocket.

:50:51. > :51:09.Three reds, three colours would be more than enough.

:51:10. > :51:16.Mark Selby and Marco Fu have played 11 times. Selby leads 9-2 in

:51:17. > :51:18.matches. He's not playing like he's going to

:51:19. > :51:32.win this one, at the moment. Just have to sit and watch now. He's

:51:33. > :51:34.had a three-frame advantage on a couple of occasions, not been able

:51:35. > :52:10.to press home that advantage. This red to go 48 points in front

:52:11. > :52:25.with just 43 remaining. APPLAUSE

:52:26. > :52:36.Now he can concentrate on making another century.

:52:37. > :52:43.When the top seeds went out, there wouldn't be many big breaks going

:52:44. > :52:51.in, but there's been loads of them. Eight in the first match. This is

:52:52. > :53:03.Marco's second, should he get one in this match.

:53:04. > :53:19.It seems apparent to me, growing in confidence.

:53:20. > :53:23.Yeah, he's not being put under any pressure at the minute. That helps

:53:24. > :53:30.when you feel your opponent's not going to score against you.

:53:31. > :53:57.Any mistake you make is not being punished, certainly helps.

:53:58. > :54:10.APPLAUSE Gaining more and more confidence

:54:11. > :54:12.with every century. More importantly, getting more and more

:54:13. > :54:31.confidence. Excellent from Marco Fu. STUDIO: Two centuries, he was three

:54:32. > :54:38.frames behind on several occasions. Now we are all square. We saw a bit

:54:39. > :54:41.of frustration manifesting itself in the frame before that, Mark Selby

:54:42. > :54:46.throwing the extension on the floor. He's struggling a bit. Yeah, only

:54:47. > :54:53.one player is out there playing like he wants to be in the final. Mark

:54:54. > :54:57.Selby did his match against Kyren Wilson, he was 4-4 and he looked

:54:58. > :55:01.like he doesn't want to be out there. He looks bereft of any

:55:02. > :55:05.confidence. He doesn't look like he's enjoying himself. Marco might

:55:06. > :55:08.be picking up on that. What do you see is the problem from Selby's

:55:09. > :55:12.point of view? It may be the case that a lot of top players have

:55:13. > :55:18.fallen by the way side. All of a sudden he's the favourite. In the

:55:19. > :55:22.eyes of a lot of people in the betting world and that brings its

:55:23. > :55:25.own pressures. His first three matches were against people he was

:55:26. > :55:31.expected to beat. All qualifiers. This is another one. I assume

:55:32. > :55:34.everybody would have considered the fact that Ding Junhui and Mark Selby

:55:35. > :55:37.would be the final. There's always pressure on the favourite. Perhaps

:55:38. > :55:49.he's feeling the heat. The world number one is up against it.

:55:50. > :56:00.COMMENTATOR: I think these are two very important frames for Mark

:56:01. > :56:06.Selby. If he was to go out of this session two frames behind, he'd

:56:07. > :56:13.really be thinking the worse, because he's not played well today.

:56:14. > :56:19.We know he's such a hanger on in there. Well, there's a chance!

:56:20. > :56:21.Missed that by a mile. Left Mark an easy starter. That can

:56:22. > :56:34.help. Sometimes, when you're struggling,

:56:35. > :56:41.easier said that done to take advantage of these opportunities.

:56:42. > :56:44.Everybody who's played at The Crucible on numerous occasions have

:56:45. > :56:49.gone through spells where everything looks difficult. Even the two greats

:56:50. > :56:55.in the studio have struggled at times.

:56:56. > :57:15.Mark Selby has to make these chances count now.

:57:16. > :57:22.There's three reds in a line. I know it's strait on this red to the

:57:23. > :57:23.corner, but if he could get to one of those three reds, maybe the black

:57:24. > :57:45.goes into the opposite corner. Let's see what could have happened

:57:46. > :57:51.here. I don't think he needed to bend it slightly. He's just hitting

:57:52. > :57:56.across the ball at the moment. He's not finding the middle of the cue

:57:57. > :57:58.ball. It looked like he felt he needed to

:57:59. > :58:24.turn it over a little bit. Well, that's perfect. That was the

:58:25. > :58:28.line of three he needed to move. He couldn't have played it any

:58:29. > :58:29.better. He's in the ascendency at the

:58:30. > :59:29.moment, no doubt. It remains to be seen whether that

:59:30. > :59:35.little chance there, to bring the reds into play, will cost him in a

:59:36. > :59:38.few moments? I'm surprised the way he has played that red. I thought he

:59:39. > :59:46.would leave himself low on the black to go into the cluster.

:59:47. > :59:57.Imperative he gets a good angle on the black this time.

:59:58. > :00:02.68 is the snookers required target. This time he doesn't want to hit the

:00:03. > :00:04.front red. He wants to go into the joint on the two reds on the

:00:05. > :00:15.right-hand side. He has got them in the middle. He

:00:16. > :00:39.will be happy with that. I think that tells the story of this

:00:40. > :00:44.session. 94% pot success for Marco Fu. 86% for Mark Selby. That is the

:00:45. > :01:16.difference. He has got the right side of the

:01:17. > :01:23.blue. To win the frame at this visit he will have to play a cannon. To

:01:24. > :01:33.bring that little cluster of six into play. His tip has come off. You

:01:34. > :01:40.are kidding! We will have two have a ten minute break. The worst thing in

:01:41. > :01:48.the world that could happen to a snooker player. He must be

:01:49. > :01:51.distraught. What a thing to happen. There will be a break and we will

:01:52. > :01:59.probably have to go back to the studio. It was not like he was

:02:00. > :02:11.chalking it hard. This is where he is chalking the cue. Can you spot

:02:12. > :02:16.it? There it goes. Just watch. There it goes. That is the worst thing

:02:17. > :02:21.that can happen to any snooker player at any time. In the semifinal

:02:22. > :02:31.of the World Championship, when you are really in stroke, you could not

:02:32. > :02:34.take a worse time. That is absolutely just outrageous

:02:35. > :02:42.fortune for Marco Fu. That is dreadful. I don't think we have ever

:02:43. > :02:48.seen that happen live, especially at the Crucible. How bad a stroke of

:02:49. > :02:52.luck is that? I have got goose bumps. I cannot believe that

:02:53. > :03:01.happened. It is a must as if he got the corner of the chalk. To happen

:03:02. > :03:12.out there, that is horrendous. What needs to happen now? He will still

:03:13. > :03:16.be able to use that one, you would imagine to it requires somebody to

:03:17. > :03:20.have a steady hand and put it on. Usually you have them flush at the

:03:21. > :03:30.bottom part. Somerby HAAS to do it on quickly. With the modern-day

:03:31. > :03:35.glue, they dry quickly. There are two types of superglue. There is gel

:03:36. > :03:39.and the other type. The gel gives you a fraction of time to centre the

:03:40. > :03:47.tip before it sets. Hopefully there is some gel behind there. You hold

:03:48. > :03:52.the cue in the same place all the time. So consequently you are

:03:53. > :03:58.hitting the same place. The tip can be sloped. Whoever puts it back on

:03:59. > :04:05.has got to put it back on exactly the slain -- the same way. We are

:04:06. > :04:12.not quite in the Mark Williams territory. He. A split. That played

:04:13. > :04:19.a massive part in his quarterfinal. -- he got a split. Yes. If you put a

:04:20. > :04:27.tip on properly it does not come off. I do not know if Marco Fu puts

:04:28. > :04:34.his own tips on... You do not know how it has been put on. I cannot put

:04:35. > :04:41.a tip on. Well, it is about time you learned! If you put them on

:04:42. > :04:47.properly, they do not come off. The glue is good enough. Whoever put it

:04:48. > :04:51.on has not done the job properly. It is good to be very disconcerting for

:04:52. > :04:57.Marco Reich in the middle of a crucial part of the semifinal. What

:04:58. > :05:01.are your observations? I used to play with a cue with an

:05:02. > :05:06.overhanging tip. When you play with one of those and it happens like

:05:07. > :05:14.Marco happened, it is easier to come off. My tip now is flush to the

:05:15. > :05:19.side. Marco's tip looks like it is flush. You have to get it exactly in

:05:20. > :05:27.the right place. The gelatin superglue is a really good idea. You

:05:28. > :05:33.have got to get the tip absolutely plumb on. If it is hanging over one

:05:34. > :05:38.side or the other, you will not be able to play. He has got a job on.

:05:39. > :05:48.He has to get this sorted out. That will play with his head, surely? The

:05:49. > :05:54.mental side of it is a worry. He has got to quickly run to the practice

:05:55. > :05:59.table to have a few shots to make sure the tip is playing the same, as

:06:00. > :06:06.quickly as possible. Then he has to try to put it out of his head. If he

:06:07. > :06:15.starts to worry about it... Paul Collier there. Nice pressure Paul is

:06:16. > :06:20.under there! Putting somebody's tip on in the semifinal of the World

:06:21. > :06:26.Championship. Paul di Resta arena the final on Sunday and Monday. So,

:06:27. > :06:35.no pressure! -- Paul will be refereeing the final. He will

:06:36. > :06:47.probably glue his fingers to the cue! We hope it is not going to be a

:06:48. > :06:54.turning point but might it be? It depends on how good a job Paul

:06:55. > :07:00.Dodds. If Marco is looking down the cue at the practice table and it is

:07:01. > :07:05.the same, he has no problem. Is their any Limited to the amount of

:07:06. > :07:13.time he has? Effectively as quick as possible. Ten minutes was mentioned.

:07:14. > :07:22.When you put the tip on, you need to put pressure on, put the tip against

:07:23. > :07:26.the wall. Get some leverage. If you put the tip on without pressing down

:07:27. > :07:32.on the tip, you may not get a good contact between both surfaces. If

:07:33. > :07:37.you have got a tip that is flush and you are trying to put it back down

:07:38. > :07:43.again, it may not be in the middle. It is a problem. If he goes to the

:07:44. > :07:52.practice table, he could do with playing some shots with pace. Just

:07:53. > :08:01.to give yourself that confidence. There is Wayne Griffiths, Marco's

:08:02. > :08:06.coach. He is Terry Griffiths's son. He works with the elite players in

:08:07. > :08:12.Hong Kong. He has been with Marco from the start. He has done a fine

:08:13. > :08:22.job with Marco. Marco obviously trust him, he is not even in there!

:08:23. > :08:29.Marco is in tears in the toilet. Happily, he is not. He is in the

:08:30. > :08:34.practice room. He has clearly borrowed somebody's cue. This is

:08:35. > :08:41.Mark Selby practising. He has got a smile on his face. This breaks his

:08:42. > :08:46.rhythm as well. We have talked about how poorly he has been playing. He

:08:47. > :08:52.is straight to the practice table. He has to try to get some form back.

:08:53. > :09:00.It could be a lucky interlude for him. Fortunately it is towards the

:09:01. > :09:09.end of the session, so if it does mentally messy mob, he does not have

:09:10. > :09:17.too long to wait. They have tonight off as well. They will play two

:09:18. > :09:21.sessions tomorrow. It is a most unusual situation. Marco has had

:09:22. > :09:38.problems with his neck. He had problems against Anthony

:09:39. > :09:44.McGill. He is having to come through it. He said a couple of days before

:09:45. > :09:50.the match against Anthony McGill, he had a sudden neck injury and could

:09:51. > :09:57.not address the ball. Here he is. Let's hoped normal service will be

:09:58. > :10:03.resumed. A few shots being tried. He has two make sure the feel is right

:10:04. > :10:07.and get some screw back shots. I would imagine as long as he is happy

:10:08. > :10:11.he can play the screw back and he gets the same reaction, he will be

:10:12. > :10:17.all right. It is not a nice thing to happen. Far better to put the old

:10:18. > :10:24.tip on than a brand-new one. At least he has got an easy shot to

:10:25. > :10:30.come back to. Exactly. That was a dramatic interlude. Here comes Marco

:10:31. > :10:35.Fu accompanied by Martin Clarke, a former top player himself on the

:10:36. > :10:43.tour. Mark coming through as well. An unexpected interlude. Marco has

:10:44. > :10:49.had such a wonderful run to get into this semifinal. His first semifinal

:10:50. > :10:58.for ten years. He has beaten Peter Ebdon 10-2. Anthony McGill. Barry

:10:59. > :11:03.Hawkins. He got over the line against Barry with a clearance of 76

:11:04. > :11:10.in the match, among the best we have ever seen. He has withstood some

:11:11. > :11:17.pressure. He is shaking his head. Well done, Marco. Let's hope he can

:11:18. > :11:23.maintain the quality from his perspective.

:11:24. > :11:27.He is on a break of 33. We have never seen anything like this before

:11:28. > :11:34.but it is handy to start with in easy pot to get the confidence back.

:11:35. > :11:41.Yes, but it is what is going on between the years for Marco. He had

:11:42. > :11:46.a frame-winning chance the way he was playing. A smile for the

:11:47. > :11:59.audience. That might be a good sign. He has a nice angle on the blue.

:12:00. > :12:08.He played the cannon. Is he on a red to the corner? It has got to be the

:12:09. > :12:17.left corner, otherwise he is on nothing. You can never tell with

:12:18. > :12:31.Marco's body language sometimes. That is tight. It might just go

:12:32. > :12:39.in-off the right-hand jaw but it is risky. He seemed to hit them well

:12:40. > :12:44.enough. He could have done with just flicking the other red. That is

:12:45. > :12:56.making it difficult to judge whether this red pots. He thinks it does.

:12:57. > :12:59.Just half a pocket available. But half a pocket was enough. It was one

:13:00. > :13:07.of those, if you are right behind it, you fancy pinching it added. If

:13:08. > :13:11.he was not right behind it I would not have fancied him. I could not

:13:12. > :13:22.agree with you more. Now he has a chance to win the frame. When you

:13:23. > :13:32.play screw shots, you always favour shaping in a particular way. That is

:13:33. > :13:36.exactly what Stephen said in the studio. You always hold your cue,

:13:37. > :13:44.you grip it at the butt end in exactly the same place. You do tend

:13:45. > :13:49.to have a certain shape to the tip. But at the moment it does not look

:13:50. > :14:02.to be affecting him. 50 points the lead. Two reds and two colours. That

:14:03. > :14:06.would win him one of the most dramatic friends I have ever

:14:07. > :14:13.witnessed. The tip is back on. It looks like somebody has done a good

:14:14. > :14:19.job. Paul Collier, who is refereeing the final this year, was doing it.

:14:20. > :14:27.Ideally you want to play a cannon on that red to the left of the paint.

:14:28. > :14:37.You can see some superglue on the side of the tip. You can see the

:14:38. > :14:44.superglue on his feral. Another nice judgment with the cannon. He is not

:14:45. > :14:46.going to make another century with the tip having just fallen off? It

:14:47. > :14:57.is a possibility now. This black to go 66 points in front

:14:58. > :15:57.with just 59 remaining. What character he is showing here.

:15:58. > :16:02.Marco Fu. He does not show much emotion but after what has happened

:16:03. > :16:08.with the tip... That just struggled in. How well has he done to keep

:16:09. > :16:32.himself together and make this a frame-winning contribution?

:16:33. > :16:40.Well, he has missed a red but every credit to him, because when that tip

:16:41. > :16:45.came off you thought, what is he going to do now? He came back in the

:16:46. > :16:52.arena and he did enough. He now leads the world number one, Mark

:16:53. > :16:58.Selby, by eight frames to seven. One more frame to play.

:16:59. > :17:05.We're going to see where the tip came off. He almost was not choking.

:17:06. > :17:16.He took his eye off where the choke was inflicted off with the back end

:17:17. > :17:21.of the choke. -- choke. The referee making sure it is level. As we were

:17:22. > :17:33.talking about before, you cannot always get it in the same place. We

:17:34. > :17:36.saw superglue on the feral. It is hard to get rid of the remnants of

:17:37. > :17:42.the glue needed but they did a pretty good job. This is a massive

:17:43. > :17:50.frame here. The final frame of the session.

:17:51. > :18:00.Marco Fu breaking off in this final frame. He will be delighted.

:18:01. > :18:07.And once again we have been talking about the break for the last ten

:18:08. > :18:19.days. The shot to nothing left straightaway. That is a nice pot.

:18:20. > :18:40.Played that confidently, did mark. A big frame for Mark Selby. Playing

:18:41. > :18:43.for the red to the left of the black. And he has played it

:18:44. > :18:53.absolutely inch perfect. A wonderful shot. If you're going to lose a

:18:54. > :18:57.session, do not lose it worse than 5-3. Selby needs to win this frame

:18:58. > :19:38.to not lose it more than 5-3. A couple of loose reds on either

:19:39. > :19:45.side. He has gone into the main bunch. I think he has got a red. I

:19:46. > :19:59.think the red just below the blue will go to the left corner. He has

:20:00. > :20:03.got a pot on. He is struggling. He is struggling. He was potting very

:20:04. > :20:07.well in the first session. His cue ball control was not very good but

:20:08. > :20:14.he was getting away with it because he was potting well. Not too many

:20:15. > :20:26.mid-distance balls in this session. A chance for Marco. He played it

:20:27. > :20:31.beautifully. It looks to have not affected him, his tip coming off.

:20:32. > :21:16.Showing very strong character here. Looking to see what reds he can

:21:17. > :21:23.bring into play. Obviously he cannot get straight on the pink. If he can

:21:24. > :21:25.put a white into a position where it is not going to stick on the pack

:21:26. > :21:52.when playing this pink... The pink spot is covering the red

:21:53. > :21:54.available. He has the red closest to the cue ball. He can pot that. It is

:21:55. > :22:18.into a blind pocket. This is missable. Yes. Going into a

:22:19. > :22:24.blind pocket. You are never certain. You have got the angle of the pot

:22:25. > :22:30.but when you get down, you are so close, sometimes you think, I hit it

:22:31. > :22:36.a little thinner than I thought. That is what he did. Mark Selby gets

:22:37. > :22:46.an unexpected opportunity. What can he do with this chance? He did not

:22:47. > :22:51.make much of the last one. He played that beautifully. The

:22:52. > :23:03.pressure is on now though. No doubt. He did not want to kiss into that

:23:04. > :23:27.red. He wanted to just pass the red. Under normal circumstances you would

:23:28. > :23:32.say he would score 50 or 60 points from here but these are not normal

:23:33. > :23:50.circumstances. He needs that white to bounce.

:23:51. > :24:01.You said it earlier, the timing is not there. It puts pressure on the

:24:02. > :24:07.pot. He played it nicely. And now he would like to get rid of the red to

:24:08. > :24:12.the left of the black. That would make the black available into both

:24:13. > :24:18.corner pockets. That pot Robak pleas in more than anything. -- that pot

:24:19. > :24:47.will please him more than anything. That was a pressure pot.

:24:48. > :25:02.He played that nicely. 34 points the lead.

:25:03. > :25:10.It appears these four reds are in the way of one another. That is why

:25:11. > :25:17.he is leaving them. He is shaking his head. That tells me he has got

:25:18. > :25:28.-- not got the desired position on the pink.

:25:29. > :25:34.I cannot see another spot available. The pink will have to go as close to

:25:35. > :25:44.its own spot as it can if it's own spot is not available. Having to

:25:45. > :25:52.come around and play for the red in the middle. He has played that very

:25:53. > :25:58.well. A good shot. It is hard work at the moment for Mark. This is

:25:59. > :26:03.where his competitive instinct will kick in. He knows this is a golden

:26:04. > :26:12.opportunity. OK, he will have lost the session 5-3. But going in all

:26:13. > :26:17.square at 8-8. All to play for tomorrow. Just do not miss this

:26:18. > :26:40.chance. That is as good a shot as he has

:26:41. > :26:47.played in this session. He played that very tentatively. Was not

:26:48. > :26:52.perfect on the black and needed to go one way or the other. A little

:26:53. > :27:02.bit of left-hand side and right-hand side. In the end he has just made

:27:03. > :27:08.certain on -- of the pot. He has just not got any confidence at the

:27:09. > :27:16.minute. Absolutely. That is the only thing you can think of. He will not

:27:17. > :27:25.win the frame at this visit. Will he get a better chance? What about that

:27:26. > :27:34.shot? He could not let go of the cue. He overhit that by six or seven

:27:35. > :27:39.inches. Worrying times. I'm sure he will be straight into the practice

:27:40. > :27:51.room after this. Then get up in the morning do some more and get himself

:27:52. > :27:56.right for the two sessions tomorrow. This red does pot to the far left

:27:57. > :27:59.corner. I'm not certain it is automatic to screw back for the

:28:00. > :28:09.black. He will need to go for the blue.

:28:10. > :28:17.Sweet as a knot. Perfect angle on the blue. So the only stumbling

:28:18. > :28:23.block, and Mark Selby will be pinning his hopes on it, is the red

:28:24. > :28:31.to the left-hand side cushion. That is a smile of, almost he is

:28:32. > :28:35.wondering what is happening. I know what has happened. He is not taking

:28:36. > :28:42.his chances and he has missed too many. He will know that. We did say

:28:43. > :28:48.when he got that opportunity, it was not normal circumstances. There was

:28:49. > :28:51.a lot of pressure on him. Mark can only hope the red on the left-hand

:28:52. > :28:59.side-cushion will cause Marco problems. This kiss on the red has

:29:00. > :29:15.got to be taken. He got the kiss on the red. He

:29:16. > :29:23.played it firm. He has not left himself the easiest shot. He looks

:29:24. > :29:34.at the scoreboard. Any baulk colour will do off this tricky red.

:29:35. > :29:53.Good shot. Now then. This red is definitely available.

:29:54. > :30:01.Anywhere in that sickle would be perfect.

:30:02. > :30:09.That will do nicely. -- circle.

:30:10. > :30:17.We've seen some frames stolen here, this would be another one.

:30:18. > :30:27.He looks worried that he might hit them simultaneously.

:30:28. > :30:38.Oh, and he just tried to pinch a bit. Can you believe it? Another

:30:39. > :30:47.twist in the tale. Settle down, please.

:30:48. > :30:51.Oh, and he's miss today! He got a kick.

:30:52. > :31:17.That red was for frame ball. Poor safety from Marco. Well, this

:31:18. > :31:22.is unbelievable, what's happened in this frame.

:31:23. > :31:29.At least Marco can see the funny side of it. And even Mark's smiling.

:31:30. > :31:36.That red puts him 31 points in front with 27 remaining.

:31:37. > :31:44.That means Marco Fu will not get back to the table - well, will he?

:31:45. > :31:48.Tips flying off, kicks, balls missed, frames stolen. We've had

:31:49. > :31:52.everything. What we've got at the finish is a

:31:53. > :31:58.match all square going into tomorrow.

:31:59. > :32:06.It's been a frustrating session for Mark Selby. A pleasing session for

:32:07. > :32:11.Marco Fu, in one sense. But he will make sure his tip's OK for tomorrow.

:32:12. > :32:13.It looks to be glued on nicely. The last red he missed there was

:32:14. > :32:32.unmissable. APPLAUSE They're all square at 8-8.

:32:33. > :32:36.STUDIO: It certainly had drama and intrigue and unlikely events, this

:32:37. > :32:42.particular semifinal. We haven't had as many centuries. We had eight in

:32:43. > :32:48.the first of them. This one has produced two for Marco Fu. He's

:32:49. > :32:54.produced two at the most crucial time from 5-7 down to lead 8-7, four

:32:55. > :32:59.frames in a row, two centuries and then all kinds of stuff happening in

:33:00. > :33:03.the last frame. Your assessment of a topsy turvy afternoon. Missing that

:33:04. > :33:10.unmissable red is a missed opportunity, I feel! I can't believe

:33:11. > :33:14.that he couldn't see enough of the red to miss it. It looked like he

:33:15. > :33:19.was struggling get the centre of the red. We were talking about it

:33:20. > :33:24.thinking if he couldn't hit all of the red perhaps he runs through for

:33:25. > :33:28.the black. He dug down on the ball to screw back, for the blue. It

:33:29. > :33:36.looked like he was trying to get the angle to get on the pink unless he

:33:37. > :33:39.totally mis-hit it. A couple of shots he hit tentatively, possibly

:33:40. > :33:43.because of the tip situation. He hit a red not very positively. If he's

:33:44. > :33:49.playing for the pink and he doesn't hit a positive stroke, because of

:33:50. > :33:55.the tip, that is what happens, you get a bit of side. He's going to

:33:56. > :34:00.think about that red tonight. That's going to hurt him. I'm sure he will.

:34:01. > :34:05.Overall you have to say it's a session with Selby has struggled and

:34:06. > :34:09.Marco Fu has come back at him and showed particular poise and real

:34:10. > :34:12.character, after what must have been a very unsettling incident with the

:34:13. > :34:16.cue. It would have been hugely unsettling. He could say I'm

:34:17. > :34:21.delighted to have got out of the last two frames 8-8 regardless, but

:34:22. > :34:25.he had chances in most of the frames. It could have been more

:34:26. > :34:29.destructive for Mark Selby. He smiled a few times when things have

:34:30. > :34:33.gone wrong but he won't feel that smiley inside. They will be back

:34:34. > :34:38.tomorrow to play two sessions. But this evening, it's session number

:34:39. > :34:43.three for Ding Junhui and Alan McManus who has shown everybody that

:34:44. > :34:50.his game is not about tactical nous, it's about heavy scoring as well.

:34:51. > :34:55.#-2 is when -- 6-2 is when it started. Alan McManus with three

:34:56. > :35:00.centuries of his own this morning in one of the greatest semifinals we've

:35:01. > :35:07.ever seen. They resume 9 high pressure 7 in front -- 9-7 in front,

:35:08. > :35:18.Ding Junhui. Let's show you how he's perceived by his fellow pros. Two

:35:19. > :35:23.times UK champion, 2011 Masters champion and a couple of seasons

:35:24. > :35:32.ago, five, six ranking events that. Was phenomenal. How do you get

:35:33. > :35:36.better than that? He forgot to how to lose for a season-and-a-half -

:35:37. > :35:40.unbelievable. I saw him first when he was 15 or younger. He came over

:35:41. > :35:43.from China with his then management group. He was in the

:35:44. > :35:48.Northamptonshire area,ery was based at the time. He came over to

:35:49. > :35:54.practise with me. I thought, "Who is this kid? Who is this!" He made me

:35:55. > :36:00.look also-ran in the club. Phenomenal. His cue action is

:36:01. > :36:05.straight. His head never moves. A wonderful touch as well. Amazing

:36:06. > :36:09.break. Winner of five ranking tournaments in one season. Very

:36:10. > :36:14.technically minded. Over the years he's played shots that as he's

:36:15. > :36:19.getting down, he looks at his foot. As he's getting down, he looks at

:36:20. > :36:23.his grip. He's concerned with the technical aspect of getting that

:36:24. > :36:27.ball in the pocket. Ding Junhui pulls the cue back, stops with a

:36:28. > :36:31.pause, gets his eyes to the object ball. When his eyes are on the ball,

:36:32. > :36:38.that's when he fires. It's exactly the same every time. Even on the

:36:39. > :36:43.easier shots, the cue action never really changes, the simple shots,

:36:44. > :36:48.everything is cohesive. The whole action - Why hasn't he won the World

:36:49. > :36:53.Championship? That's the question. For me the answer lies firmly back

:36:54. > :36:59.in China. The amount of pressure that he is under from the Chinese

:37:00. > :37:03.media and the snooker family of China as a whole is unbelievable.

:37:04. > :37:09.You have to be there to see. It the year he won his five ranking events

:37:10. > :37:11.in one season, they considered it a failure, because he didn't win the

:37:12. > :37:17.World Championships off the back of it. There are so many other players

:37:18. > :37:22.with talent who should win it as well. He's coming up against the

:37:23. > :37:26.likes of Ronnie O'Sullivan, Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby and Judd Trump

:37:27. > :37:30.now. They're all playing at a top level. The longer it goes on, the

:37:31. > :37:34.more pressure will build. He is under pressure from China. More

:37:35. > :37:39.likelihood now he's not going to win it than win it. I think the form and

:37:40. > :37:44.the stats and those type, they point in that direction. But of course, he

:37:45. > :37:48.could rock up any time and have a 17-day period when he plays better

:37:49. > :37:56.than anyone and wins the tournament. No-one knows what's going to happen.

:37:57. > :38:01.Jimmy White has the plant. Greatest player never to have won the World

:38:02. > :38:06.Championship, but could say it is this guy. This semifinal features

:38:07. > :38:10.two who have already played three matches before they matches in the

:38:11. > :38:15.last 32 here. This match started with Ding Junhui 6-2 in front after

:38:16. > :38:27.their opening session yesterday. He made four centuries in eight frames.

:38:28. > :38:28.This morning, these guys gave us what Stephen Hendrie called a

:38:29. > :38:46.ton-fest. Quite remarkable, Ken. Five

:38:47. > :38:51.centuries in nine frames, unbelievable. He's knocked the black

:38:52. > :38:56.in. What a fabulous break it was. Junhui goes further clear and leads

:38:57. > :39:00.7-2. Wouldn't it be great if he returned with a high break to let

:39:01. > :39:09.Ding know he's not going away. Lovely shot. Very nice. Well played

:39:10. > :39:10.Alan McManus. Another ton up. I tell you, we've within treated to

:39:11. > :39:23.fantastic snooker. This game is not as easy as this,

:39:24. > :39:30.let me just explain that! Amazing. Amazing. This crowd is witnessing

:39:31. > :39:34.some of the best breaks I've ever seen. Ding Junhui absolutely on

:39:35. > :39:44.fire. He doesn't realise it's the interval. He does now. He leads 9-3

:39:45. > :39:50.and smiles all the way. Nice shot. Alan McManus gets another frame on

:39:51. > :39:55.the board. He's played it nicely. Played it lovely. Little trick shot.

:39:56. > :40:00.Hold on, wait for the black. This time it's really close. There it is!

:40:01. > :40:08.Finishes off with a trick shot. Wonderful break of 136. He takes a

:40:09. > :40:12.bow. He's cueing well now. The old tartan

:40:13. > :40:17.trousers are bringing him a bit of luck.

:40:18. > :40:25.In goes the pink. And what a frame that may turn out to be for Alan

:40:26. > :40:30.McManus. Well played. This has been a tremendous session of snooker from

:40:31. > :40:36.both players. Four centuries from Ding in the first session. Five

:40:37. > :40:43.centuries between them in this session. Go on. They want to see it.

:40:44. > :40:52.They love a trick shot. Come on! It's close, go on. Ding shakes his

:40:53. > :41:00.hand. What a session of snooker we've had. Ding Junhui leads 9 -7.

:41:01. > :41:04.Eight centuries in this match so far, that equals the most ever made

:41:05. > :41:08.in any match at The Crucible. Staggering. Five from Ding Junhui

:41:09. > :41:12.and it looks like he could break the record for most made in a Crucible

:41:13. > :41:17.semifinal. It's all going on. The story of the morning was Alan

:41:18. > :41:21.McManus, what a response from a 45-year-old Scot! The story of the

:41:22. > :41:25.tournament is Alan McManus. Every player he's played will probably

:41:26. > :41:29.have looked at the draw thinking this is a decent draw, Alan McManus.

:41:30. > :41:35.Maguire in the first round. Then Ali Carter. He's just played incredible

:41:36. > :41:39.snooker. You go through a turnament and think, Alan will you know beat

:41:40. > :41:44.people with tactical knowledge. But he's not, he's scoring as well.

:41:45. > :41:49.Again, he was when he was in his prime, now again, a very tough

:41:50. > :41:53.player to beat. It's 23 years since he was in his prime here. You played

:41:54. > :41:58.him in the last semifinal he appeared in all those years ago. The

:41:59. > :42:02.fluency has been what has taken people aback. Especially when

:42:03. > :42:05.playing against Ding Junhui, knocking in century breaks all over

:42:06. > :42:09.the place. These two players have played with a freedom that we

:42:10. > :42:14.haven't seen so much in the other match. It was only at the end when

:42:15. > :42:18.Marco Fu started to pot his way out of trouble. For a while they were

:42:19. > :42:23.getting bogged down in their own tactical game. Mark Selby is in the

:42:24. > :42:26.hole at the moment. He has to mentally recover. Marco Fu is

:42:27. > :42:28.delighted he has made a few centuries to get going. The

:42:29. > :42:33.fascination is the fact that some players seem to be playing with

:42:34. > :42:37.freedom, as we speak in the semis, and some are struggling. You say

:42:38. > :42:42.freedom but Ding Junhui has thrown everything at him. He's made five

:42:43. > :42:47.centuries and is only two frames in front. That must unbalance you.

:42:48. > :42:51.Yeah, it's worrying. You would think the tactical frames would all go

:42:52. > :42:55.Alan's way, the scoring frames, some of them are also going Alan's way.

:42:56. > :42:59.He has a great chance of winning this match. It's been a brilliant

:43:00. > :43:06.day of semifinal action. I hope that you've enjoyed sharing it with,

:43:07. > :43:10.well, the best two pundits, I think. 13 world titles between the two of

:43:11. > :43:15.you. It doesn't get much better than that in terms of show us your medals

:43:16. > :43:18.culture. Congratulations to our four players in the semis so far. It's

:43:19. > :43:24.wonderful. You can continue to share all the excitement tonight. Jason

:43:25. > :43:31.will be in the chair. Ding Junhui and Alan McManus resume 9-7 up to

:43:32. > :43:32.the man from China. I'm sure they will bring the superglue just in

:43:33. > :43:39.case. You never know! Bye-bye.