Monday, 1st Round, Afternoon

:00:32. > :00:41.Good afternoon. Was it a big weekend for you? I am sure it was. It was

:00:42. > :00:46.for us here in Sheffield in the opening weekend of the Betfred World

:00:47. > :00:50.Snooker Championship. Some players are nursing bruised pride. One or

:00:51. > :00:55.two may be nursing sore heads because it has been a damaging

:00:56. > :01:00.weekend for the top seeds. We lost one, two and 16. We lost three of

:01:01. > :01:06.the nine world champions in the draw. And another great world

:01:07. > :01:14.champion decided it was time for him to hang up his cue forever.

:01:15. > :01:19.It was a tough game. Under a lot of pressure. We are all under a lot of

:01:20. > :01:24.pressure. 5-1... Yes, I let him off the hook

:01:25. > :01:43.at 5-1, completely. It was a tremendous century. We've

:01:44. > :01:50.got a decider. It is 9-9. Yes, I did fancy winning the last frame. Good

:01:51. > :01:57.shot! A few sort of times, then I have a

:01:58. > :02:11.clue what I'm doing. The blue... That does end any hope

:02:12. > :02:16.Stuart Bingham has of staying in this championship, that he won last

:02:17. > :02:21.year. I dug in. I beat the world champion. Not playing at my best, so

:02:22. > :02:28.I have got to take a lot of positives of this. I I beat Hendry.

:02:29. > :02:30.It is not nice to get beat that first round. It is a year I'll

:02:31. > :02:50.remember for the rest of my life. He's playing very well.

:02:51. > :02:55.A brilliant shot. Snooker is a two-man sport. If that man plays

:02:56. > :03:00.better than you on the day, have to shake their hand and wish them all

:03:01. > :03:02.the best. I am shocked, actually. It is cool that I can win these

:03:03. > :03:12.matches. Yes.

:03:13. > :03:20.It is an unexpected miss. Just not good enough. Basically just

:03:21. > :03:33.not good enough. Alan McManus now has his chance.

:03:34. > :03:36.Stephen Maguire feels that is the end.

:03:37. > :03:44.And it is now! About to go on board and try

:03:45. > :03:49.something different. Try and improve what I'm doing. I'm just getting

:03:50. > :03:55.lost with the game and it is quite worrying.

:03:56. > :03:59.I have sort of called it a day. You have retired? I thought I would

:04:00. > :04:04.follow in your footsteps. Not going to cry!

:04:05. > :04:38.So, it was not a difficult decision? It's an emotional thing to do. I

:04:39. > :04:42.didn't know what would happen. I was going to peter out from the game. I

:04:43. > :04:46.thought it was a nice thing to do. My father passed away this year,

:04:47. > :04:51.just before the World Championships. I still played in it. He was with me

:04:52. > :05:00.from the start, so I thought, finish.

:05:01. > :05:36.I nearly cried. Only day three. Steve Davis

:05:37. > :05:40.yesterday announcing his retirement. It was fantastic and very emotional

:05:41. > :05:45.yesterday. I must admit I had a tear in my eye in the commentary book.

:05:46. > :05:48.Steve has been a legend. Probably the best ambassador we have seen.

:05:49. > :05:54.What an ambassador for British sport. I think that long overdue

:05:55. > :06:00.knighthood that has been spoken about, it is overdue. He has been an

:06:01. > :06:07.inspiration? Steve was my idol, I must admit. He was the player I

:06:08. > :06:12.looked up to more than any. He was more responsible for me playing. A

:06:13. > :06:18.thoroughly genuine man and one of the greatest we have ever seen. We

:06:19. > :06:24.will see him on the sofa with us. There have been shocked - Maguire

:06:25. > :06:28.out... It has been a high standard. It's been incredible, really. It has

:06:29. > :06:32.been an incredible start to the World Championship. We'll have to

:06:33. > :06:36.wait and see how the players who have qualified do and what sort of

:06:37. > :06:40.stamina they have left. They have come into the World Championship.

:06:41. > :06:44.They are super sharp. They have won three best of 19s. It is tough. It

:06:45. > :06:50.will be fascinating to see how we do. Three world champions out. We

:06:51. > :06:57.have Bingham out and someone else... Oh, you. Marco played incredibly

:06:58. > :07:02.well against me. In all honesty, it was as well as anybody has ever

:07:03. > :07:05.played against me here at the Crucible in the 23 appearances I

:07:06. > :07:10.have had. I didn't get a shot. He was amazing. Cue ball control... I

:07:11. > :07:16.don't think he missed the long ball the whole match. If Marco can play

:07:17. > :07:22.to that self- somebody will have to play perfect snooker to beat him. I

:07:23. > :07:26.think he's got a real chance. What about the qualifiers coming through

:07:27. > :07:33.- do you think it has benefitted, or later it may catch up? Anthony

:07:34. > :07:37.McGill had a good tournament. Won two fantastic matches. I feel we hit

:07:38. > :07:41.the wall against Shaun Murphy. I don't think he had a lot left. It

:07:42. > :07:45.will be interesting to see how the players get on in the rest of the

:07:46. > :07:49.tournament. They are super sharp. They will be OK for one or two

:07:50. > :07:53.matches. How much stamina they have after that, we'll have to wait and

:07:54. > :07:56.see. That is all to be revealed. Let a east see how it pans out in this

:07:57. > :08:07.year's draw. Last year's champion Stuart Bingham

:08:08. > :08:13.was the first seeded casualty this year, losing to Allister Carter.

:08:14. > :08:19.Then the 16th seed Stephen Maguire to Alan McManus yesterday.

:08:20. > :08:24.Ricky Walden had work to do. He's one behind Robbie Williams.

:08:25. > :08:29.John Higgins takes on Ryan Day. On Wednesday Judd Trump against Liang

:08:30. > :08:34.Wenbo. Ding Junhui has Martin Gould. Great

:08:35. > :08:41.news last night for Mark Williams, 7-2 up on Dott. It is Robertson

:08:42. > :08:45.against Holt. McGill makes waves again, this time against Shaun

:08:46. > :08:50.Murphy. This morning Fu was the only seeded playeder through to round

:08:51. > :08:59.two. Tomorrow it is Barry Hawkins against Zhang Anda. The Rocket

:09:00. > :09:04.leading David Gilbert 6-3. Allen against Mann.

:09:05. > :09:14.Wilson against Perry. Last night Sam Baird leads. And this

:09:15. > :09:19.afternoon Mark Selby aims to deliver against the Millman, Robert Milkins.

:09:20. > :09:23.Three of the 16 seeds have gone. The first shock is eight. It has

:09:24. > :09:27.happened twice before, most recently four years ago. But we have still

:09:28. > :09:32.got some way to go to match it for surprise value in this year's

:09:33. > :09:35.championship. Will we get any more shocks today? Let's see what we have

:09:36. > :09:45.on our schedule. We have been on air since 10am

:09:46. > :09:53.tracking the Rocket's deciding session against David Gilbert. Like

:09:54. > :10:00.Ronnie Higgins is trying to become the first player in his 40s to win

:10:01. > :10:04.for a time. And the 40 somethings keep on

:10:05. > :10:11.coming, Mark Williams is a two-time champion. Now he is bossing the 2 oh

:10:12. > :10:16.006 win -- 2006 winner, Graeme Dott. They will finish their contest this

:10:17. > :10:20.afternoon. While Mark Selby gets his campaign

:10:21. > :10:23.under way, the world number one arrives in Sheffield having not

:10:24. > :10:31.played a competitive match for five weeks.

:10:32. > :10:38.In table top today we are talking tables. And introducing the game

:10:39. > :10:43.which involves general knowledge and cueing - Pot Quiz. I am pleased with

:10:44. > :10:47.my form. Perhaps I should take this game up again!

:10:48. > :10:53.Fantastic! We think that game will catch on, you know! We have been

:10:54. > :10:58.bright and breezy since 10am. We were on air at 10am to see the

:10:59. > :11:05.Rocket return. The engines have been burning from Ronnie's point of view

:11:06. > :11:10.when he returned against Gilbert. Dave can consider himself

:11:11. > :11:15.unfortunate to be 6-3 behind going into their concluding session.

:11:16. > :11:19.Actually he played very, very well yesterday, poised and assured. They

:11:20. > :11:24.share the first six frames this morning on our early transmission.

:11:25. > :11:30.We left it at 9-6 to O'Sullivan. Ronnie needing just one more.

:11:31. > :11:33.Couldn't get it in frame 16. Stephen Hendry and John Virgo

:11:34. > :11:38.following an entertaining contest. THE COMMENTATOR: This is not easy as

:11:39. > :12:14.we return to baulk. Nice pot. A safety shot from Ronnie.

:12:15. > :12:18.The black is off its spot. It is a big target.

:12:19. > :12:41.If he's going to play this, the black to the same pocket, the cue

:12:42. > :12:47.ball towards the bunch, it is a touch shot. If he's playing for the

:12:48. > :12:57.blue, he has to avoid the right middle. Well played.

:12:58. > :13:04.He couldn't have played it better. He's opened all the red now. He

:13:05. > :13:10.doesn't have to play any more cans. It is all about precise positional

:13:11. > :13:15.play. Once he pots the black it will not be available to either corner

:13:16. > :13:17.pocket. That is why he's looking for red to make the black available. But

:13:18. > :14:05.it is a decent chance. He's found the gap here. The only

:14:06. > :14:09.thing is he's very strained, he'll have to play for the black in the

:14:10. > :14:18.same pocket. He'll have to avoid a kiss on the black. It's going back.

:14:19. > :14:20.I could not believe that that black went into the corner pocket. But it

:14:21. > :14:34.does, quite clearly. With the black available now into

:14:35. > :14:41.both corner, this is a great opportunity.

:14:42. > :14:50.As you say, all he can do is just keep potting balls and see what

:14:51. > :14:58.happens. I know it is an old cliche, but just one frame at a time.

:14:59. > :16:57.Striking the balls absolutely beautifully these days. Nice, tight

:16:58. > :17:07.control of that cue ball. Didn't matter if he was the wrong

:17:08. > :17:09.side of the blue because he's got red on the other half of the table

:17:10. > :17:16.that he can play quite comfortably. Look at that, he's gone ahead in

:17:17. > :18:04.balls potted. Never looked like missing. I think

:18:05. > :18:09.he's ranked in the 20s at the moment. If he keeps progressing in

:18:10. > :18:10.the game, playing like this, I don't think he'll have to qualify for this

:18:11. > :18:28.next year. In all sports it is the consistency.

:18:29. > :18:31.I have seen David play a few times and been impressed with him. Then

:18:32. > :18:38.all of a sudden, you don't see him for a season. He sort of disappears.

:18:39. > :18:41.Well, he's missed the red. He's conceded. He only needed one snooker

:18:42. > :18:53.to tie. He will settle for that will David

:18:54. > :19:14.Gilbert. Ronnie one away from victory, but now it is #-7.

:19:15. > :19:23.Ronnie gets frame 17 under way. Best of 19. But Ronnie just one frame

:19:24. > :19:26.away from victory. He wouldn't want it to get much

:19:27. > :19:33.closer than this. He will know his opponent is playing well.

:19:34. > :19:47.The last thing you know when you now your opponent is one point from

:19:48. > :19:49.victory is hand it to him on a plate. It is just what he's done

:19:50. > :20:04.here. He wanted to be the other side of

:20:05. > :20:05.the blue. I think he's dead straight. So no problem. In for a

:20:06. > :20:15.red here. I am surprised he didn't come down

:20:16. > :20:22.and play for the black. Maybe that red is just above the black. He's

:20:23. > :20:28.holding the black spot. And wants to play for that red that

:20:29. > :20:29.is just above the black before he starts thinking about potting

:20:30. > :21:10.blacks. Watch the white.

:21:11. > :21:35.Decided to play it gently. Looking for a red to continue the

:21:36. > :21:41.break. He's knocked that in. He will still have to disturb some

:21:42. > :21:57.more reds if he is going to win the frame at this visit.

:21:58. > :22:01.There it is. Snookers will be needed and the

:22:02. > :22:06.match will be over. As I say, he's going to have to

:22:07. > :22:39.bring reds into play to get to that amount of points.

:22:40. > :22:59.Made it look simple. The writing is on the wall now. Yes.

:23:00. > :23:05.You felt from that first shot when Dave went in-off that this would be

:23:06. > :23:19.the time. I think he should take great heart

:23:20. > :23:23.out of the way he's played in this match. I agree with you, he's

:23:24. > :23:29.definitely a top-16 player. No doubt about that. He's got all the quality

:23:30. > :23:34.in the world, just needs to do it more consistently. That is all you

:23:35. > :23:40.can say. And of course Ronnie O'Sullivan is the last draw he

:23:41. > :23:47.wanted after playing these tough qualifying matches.

:23:48. > :24:26.He's averaged during this match 14 seconds a shot. That is quick.

:24:27. > :24:34.Yes, yesterday afternoon he was very solid.

:24:35. > :24:38.This morning he's had a few funny shots. Concentration not what it

:24:39. > :24:44.could have been. Still very impressive.

:24:45. > :24:49.Ronnie will be congratulating him on his performance. He will wish him

:24:50. > :24:56.the best for the performance. Ronnie was up to it. A good result. Unlucky

:24:57. > :25:01.David Gilbert. You met a man on form. Anyone else you could have had

:25:02. > :25:06.a better result. It is Ronnie O'Sullivan, favourite for the

:25:07. > :25:10.tournament through to the round by 10-7. That is Ronnie O'Sullivan's

:25:11. > :25:13.60th win over his career at the Crucible. He marches on into round

:25:14. > :25:19.two. Ronnie decided not to do any press

:25:20. > :25:24.or television interviews at all afterwards. So, we don't know his

:25:25. > :25:27.impression of that opening match. World snooker say it is part of any

:25:28. > :25:33.snooker player who qualifies to be here. It is their obligation to

:25:34. > :25:37.speak to the press, so he will be reported to the disciplinary

:25:38. > :25:42.committee. There are news headlines where the Rocket is concerned. What

:25:43. > :25:48.do you make of that He's won. He's actually won his match. I mean I

:25:49. > :25:52.have never had anyone refuse to go in there when you are beat. What's

:25:53. > :25:58.going on? I don't know. The last time I won a match here was back in

:25:59. > :26:01.the early 50's and they had to call security to get me out of the press

:26:02. > :26:08.conference. I lost to Marco. I wanted to say to the press how well

:26:09. > :26:12.he played. He played the best anyone had played against me and they

:26:13. > :26:22.didn't want to speak to me. Ronnie is not saying anything. You can tell

:26:23. > :26:30.us where you felt the chief attry bouts and how Dave Gilbert stood up

:26:31. > :26:35.to him. He was unto be 6--- he was unlucky to be 6-4 behind. He looked

:26:36. > :26:38.like he would clear up. He was unlucky in that early session. Today

:26:39. > :26:42.he put up to Ronnie. Ronnie said the first match was very important for

:26:43. > :26:48.him. He will be happy to get that over with. It was a potential banana

:26:49. > :26:53.skin. Does it count as a good workout for Ronnie? Dave Gilbert is

:26:54. > :26:58.one of the most improved professionals on the tour. He's very

:26:59. > :27:01.fluent as well. That can be very intimidating for the opponent

:27:02. > :27:08.sitting in the chair, even for somebody like Ronnie. With Ronnie's

:27:09. > :27:11.class when he sees somebody like Dave Gilbert playing, he knows he'll

:27:12. > :27:18.have to step up. It was a good workout for him. It is different

:27:19. > :27:22.playing in the exhibitions, it is a different persona thinking wise, you

:27:23. > :27:26.take liberties taking the shots. It is interesting to see where Ronnie

:27:27. > :27:32.is coming from. A very good player to reach the final. You have to get

:27:33. > :27:37.back into the swing of it. You do. In that final frame Ronnie averaging

:27:38. > :27:44.14 seconds a shot. Peter, that is the average for you, isn't it?

:27:45. > :27:50.Obviously I used to play faster... The only player who plays quicker

:27:51. > :27:57.than that is another whose shot time is nine seconds. How is that

:27:58. > :28:02.possible. 14 for you! Have a habit of talking about things you know

:28:03. > :28:08.nothing about! We are about to introduce a new quiz. It combines

:28:09. > :28:12.brain power, plenty where Peter is concerned with quick cueing. We will

:28:13. > :28:19.see. It is a new quiz called Pot Quiz. We

:28:20. > :28:23.will get, to relief some of the tension that we experience across in

:28:24. > :28:26.the Crucible here, in the winter gardens, we will have fun. We will

:28:27. > :28:28.invite the players and the pundits to have a go at this quiz. We think

:28:29. > :28:41.it is a bit of a winner. So, for the opening Pot Quiz we have

:28:42. > :28:45.none other than six-time world champion Steve Davis. Do you know

:28:46. > :28:49.what you have to do here? Why me, in the first place I have to pot all

:28:50. > :28:52.the reds remaining after my questions and finish off with a

:28:53. > :28:56.black ball. So we have five questions for you. If you get five

:28:57. > :28:59.right you can remove any five reds you like and then you clear up. Of

:29:00. > :29:04.course you will be against the clock. The questions, are you ready?

:29:05. > :29:11.These are not nice. Are snooker questions. That is worse! When you

:29:12. > :29:19.won your first world title in 1981, who did you beat in the quarter

:29:20. > :29:30.finals? There's one you will not be getting. Tony Nowells. Terry

:29:31. > :29:34.Griffiths. Why player did you play most often at the Crucible and you

:29:35. > :29:37.played this player seven times. I told you we were tough. Terry

:29:38. > :29:43.Griffiths. Correct. Brilliant. To the nearest five, how

:29:44. > :29:52.many century breaks have you scored at the Crucible? 27. Unlucky. 46.

:29:53. > :29:56.You are better than you thought you were. Which player has won the most

:29:57. > :30:03.matches on tour this season? If you know this one I will get a job!

:30:04. > :30:10.What? Which player has won the most matches on tour this season?

:30:11. > :30:15.Mark Allen. Unlucky, Mark sell settlement here is one. You have a

:30:16. > :30:21.-- mark Selby. Here is one. How many of the 32 in this year's World

:30:22. > :30:25.Championship tour were not born when you won your first world title? 11,

:30:26. > :30:38.15, 17 or 20? 17. Is correct! Well done, Steve

:30:39. > :30:43.Davis. So you got two right. You can take two reds off. Any two. And your

:30:44. > :30:46.time will start - and we will put you on the clock - as soon as you

:30:47. > :30:52.strike the cue ball for the first time. I can put this anywhere I

:30:53. > :30:56.like? Anywhere you like. We will be keeping up with everything you are

:30:57. > :31:01.doing. I don't know what I'm doing! He's changed his mind. That could be

:31:02. > :31:05.trouble. OK, Steve, as soon as you strike the cue ball... Right. The

:31:06. > :31:17.time will start... Now! Good luck, Steve. I need good

:31:18. > :31:21.luck. I'm so far away from my chalk. Beautiful. What a touch. I know. I

:31:22. > :31:26.haven't played since the qualifiers. You don't need to. The other one,

:31:27. > :31:35.surely? Sorry. I'm on that now. You are right. Yeah. Three. Brilliant. I

:31:36. > :31:38.am pleased with that. Very good. So far, I'm quite pleased with my form.

:31:39. > :31:45.Perhaps I should take this game up again! Fantastic. That was screwed

:31:46. > :31:52.back... I don't know how you are doing on the clock. Nor do I. 37

:31:53. > :31:57.seconds... Goodness me! I have signed it up for that pocket. That

:31:58. > :32:03.is very good. A little bit of audience participation... No

:32:04. > :32:11.cheering! When he gets near the end, we want a "ooh". Very good. No, no.

:32:12. > :32:16.One minute. You have gone past the one-minute mark. Fair enough! Still

:32:17. > :32:20.pretty good. This is the biggest break I have made all season! This

:32:21. > :32:22.is lovely. What a beautiful touch. Did you like that? I loved it. This

:32:23. > :32:35.is very good. No! That is a stretch. Brilliant.

:32:36. > :32:42.He's slightly overscrewed it. He's got to go round the angles. I

:32:43. > :32:47.twitched! No! You have a minute and a half. You have snookered yourself.

:32:48. > :32:50.It's got worse. I just twitched. You are the only man I know who can play

:32:51. > :32:59.safe on yourself in a tournament like this! And again. You have

:33:00. > :33:09.played the best safety... It's all gone... It's all gone Pete Tong.

:33:10. > :33:20.Slow down. Don't go running there. Ready? Get ready. Oohh! Yes!

:33:21. > :33:34.2 minutes 11. I'm happy in some ways. In other ways, I'm distraught.

:33:35. > :33:47.You are leading. That's a thought. Good fun. Peter will try his hand

:33:48. > :33:52.later on, aren't you? I tell you what, you are the winner for me. I

:33:53. > :33:56.know you will win it. Peter made his 23rd appearance at The Crucible this

:33:57. > :34:00.year and John Higgins is one behind him, his 22nd appearance, when he

:34:01. > :34:05.stepped out this morning. Of course, he is trying to win the title for a

:34:06. > :34:11.fifth time. This Crucible Theatre here has, in the lives of John and

:34:12. > :34:14.Peter, and so many others, meant so much to their career and their

:34:15. > :34:19.lives. I couldn't believe how small it was.

:34:20. > :34:22.I had never walked out into the arena before, playing, which was a

:34:23. > :34:28.mistake, you should have went out and tried to gauge the surroundings.

:34:29. > :34:32.Really nerve-wracking and walking down, I was playing with my good

:34:33. > :34:41.mate, Alan McManus. I kept on looking up at the lights. People who

:34:42. > :34:46.won the title stood underneath those lights. As soon as they brought the

:34:47. > :34:54.middle curtain down that divides the two tables, I froze. Then I ran out

:34:55. > :34:59.an easy winner, 10-3. The best feeling, I think that you could ever

:35:00. > :35:03.have as a snooker player, going out with the one-table set-up. The first

:35:04. > :35:07.time I walked out there, I won, I think I played Ronnie O'Sullivan in

:35:08. > :35:14.the semifinal. And then I went on and won it. Against Ken in the

:35:15. > :35:20.final. That's the best feeling, to go out there. It is still pretty

:35:21. > :35:23.pokey backstage. The TV studio used to be in beside the practice table.

:35:24. > :35:27.That is no longer there now. You have more space around the practice

:35:28. > :35:33.tables. Nothing much else. It is still pretty much the same as I can

:35:34. > :35:38.first remember. As you get older, the nerves hit you a bit more. You

:35:39. > :35:43.don't really know how many times you will be back there playing. I think

:35:44. > :35:51.each time you do go back there, you should relish it a bit more. You

:35:52. > :35:56.have got to keep wishing that you are going to win it again. You never

:35:57. > :36:00.stop trying. It can be the best two weeks of your life, and you are

:36:01. > :36:02.playing for the world title, and if you manage to win it, there is

:36:03. > :36:16.nothing like it, the feeling. He's done it four times. But John

:36:17. > :36:29.facing Bridgend's Ryan Day this morning.

:36:30. > :36:36.Ryan has reached the quarterfinals three times. He hasn't made it

:36:37. > :36:41.beyond Round Two since 2012. These two also fought out the Grand Prix

:36:42. > :36:46.final in Glasgow in 2008 so their paths have crossed several times on

:36:47. > :36:51.significant occasions. Higgins, nine wins to Ryan's four overall. As we

:36:52. > :36:56.join it, John had a scintillating start with a 105 in the first frame.

:36:57. > :37:03.We will join them in Frame 2, it is Higgins to play, he is 13 points

:37:04. > :38:09.behind. Commentary from Dennis Taylor and Ken Doherty.

:38:10. > :38:13.DENNIS TAYLOR: These pockets are playing slightly easier than the

:38:14. > :38:29.ones in the qualifiers. This time, John's overran that

:38:30. > :38:36.slightly. I think he can screw back and avoid the pink and reds and get

:38:37. > :38:39.up for the blue. Not quite sure, you would need to be right behind the

:38:40. > :38:51.angle to see is whether he could do that. I think he is OK.

:38:52. > :39:07.He's had a quick look. I'm sure the black is available. That red to the

:39:08. > :39:15.right of the black is a bit of a distraction at the moment.

:39:16. > :39:21.That tells you, there is plenty of room for the black to past the reds

:39:22. > :39:23.so his plan would be red, black and remove that red to the right of the

:39:24. > :39:27.black. He's looking very, very sharp here

:39:28. > :39:36.this morning. He looked very relaxed in the

:39:37. > :39:38.players' room yesterday. He was there for most of the day in between

:39:39. > :39:48.practice sessions. He was a bit devastated yesterday

:39:49. > :39:54.when Celtic lost on penalties, but, to be fair, he said Rangers were all

:39:55. > :40:02.over Celtic in the first half. It used to be great when you went up to

:40:03. > :40:06.Spencer's in Stirling, where a lot of the Scottish players used to

:40:07. > :40:11.practice. Not only with their snooker rivalry, but some of them

:40:12. > :41:20.supported Celtic, some supported Rangers. All great mates.

:41:21. > :41:29.KEN DOHERTY: This has been an amazing start for John Higgins.

:41:30. > :41:48.Positional play has been top drawer. He's made this break look very, very

:41:49. > :42:01.easy. Every time he has been so close to

:42:02. > :42:02.his object ball and the shot has been straightforward. He had to go

:42:03. > :42:32.in-and-out of baulk once. He's 52 points ahead. This red will

:42:33. > :42:45.certainly compound the end of this frame. What a start this would be.

:42:46. > :42:46.John Higgins is 41 years of age. He is playing here like he did 20 years

:42:47. > :42:59.ago. His position has been impeccable.

:43:00. > :43:16.OK, he's had to go up-and-down the table a couple of times.

:43:17. > :43:26.This as good a snooker that anybody has played and we are only in day

:43:27. > :43:28.three. If he negotiates this tricky one, it could be back-to-back

:43:29. > :43:39.centuries. Hit it too hard. Hit it a bit too

:43:40. > :43:45.hard, trying to punch it out for the black. It won't bother him. Still a

:43:46. > :43:50.magnificent break of 79. He takes Frame 2 for a 2-0 lead. The world

:43:51. > :43:54.number eight has made a positive start to this campaign. In we go to

:43:55. > :43:56.Frame 3 now and Higgins with a bit of work to do. He is 30 points

:43:57. > :44:21.behind in this one. Looks to have a straightforward

:44:22. > :44:23.safety shot off the right side of the bunch to get back down to the

:44:24. > :44:35.table. I don't know whether he was looking

:44:36. > :44:39.to see if he could pot it. That's what he tried. That's what he tried.

:44:40. > :44:54.And he's pulled it off nicely. He picked this one out very nicely.

:44:55. > :44:58.It was an easy safety down the right side. He thought, I might be able to

:44:59. > :45:04.take the pot on and find a gap, and he did. Oh, that is a poor shot. He

:45:05. > :45:08.should have been in behind the green there.

:45:09. > :45:13.So fast, these tables, it is difficult to judge that little screw

:45:14. > :45:16.shot in behind the green. You can see what he thinks of it.

:45:17. > :45:42.He could have had John in all sorts of trouble there.

:45:43. > :45:48.He almost got a good cue ball. He will be disappointed the red has

:45:49. > :45:54.gone over the left-hand corner pocket.

:45:55. > :46:01.Just may be a little too straight to get back up for the brown, blue, or

:46:02. > :46:04.even the pink. He's got a little angle. He could possibly hold for

:46:05. > :47:24.the black. The pink might not be on its spot so

:47:25. > :47:28.it may be tied up after he pots it. We will find out shortly.

:47:29. > :47:38.There is just enough room there... It might still be available. He is

:47:39. > :47:41.looking at it to see if it will pot into the right corner. He is not

:47:42. > :47:43.nicely on to the red. Those plants are not on. The one to the left

:47:44. > :47:53.pots. He is back looking at the plant. I

:47:54. > :47:59.think the one at the back and to the left pots into the right corner. And

:48:00. > :48:01.the plants aren't absolute certainties, are they? There is a

:48:02. > :48:11.bit of a distance between both reds. That's OK. He's held it for the

:48:12. > :48:29.black. You would say if the black goes in,

:48:30. > :48:33.Ken, it's a frame-winner. You never really settle until the first frame

:48:34. > :48:36.is on the board. This is a bit tricky. He doesn't want to hit the

:48:37. > :49:10.near jaw with this. Pretty good. He's go round to have a look at the

:49:11. > :49:15.plant again. He could pot the black, pot the red and get a nice angle on

:49:16. > :49:20.the next black to go into those four reds. Not sure why you would want to

:49:21. > :49:27.play the plant, if he gets a nice angle... Not this black now... He is

:49:28. > :49:30.thinking a few shots ahead. Not this black, he is thinking about the red,

:49:31. > :49:41.the next black and the next red after that.

:49:42. > :49:49.He's left himself an angle on the pink. It's not the best shot he's

:49:50. > :50:12.ever played. Looks a bit straight. He's going to have to take this

:50:13. > :50:16.plant now. As I said before, it's not dead certain. A couple of inches

:50:17. > :50:20.between each ball, which makes it a little bit more difficult. You see

:50:21. > :50:25.how he is cueing up there, you are seeing where he has to hit the first

:50:26. > :50:27.red and it is to the left of the pocket, and you forget about the

:50:28. > :50:51.second red. No problem. Just the wrong angle on the black.

:50:52. > :51:05.He is a bit reluctant to play the red below the black.

:51:06. > :51:45.As you said, this will certainly settle him down, getting his first

:51:46. > :51:51.frame on the board. There is still a possible century on.

:51:52. > :51:57.Three reds and all blacks, and all the colours, 51, so still a possible

:51:58. > :52:06.century on. See how easier those reds are when

:52:07. > :52:13.the frame is over? It is amazing, isn't it? Yes. I tell you what, both

:52:14. > :52:14.players are cueing very nicely. So this could be a terrific match. It

:52:15. > :52:27.really could. John opened with a century break and

:52:28. > :52:31.followed that up with a break of 79, to lead 2-0. And it's his turn to

:52:32. > :52:51.sit in the chair for a while. Just tried to get a full-ball cannon

:52:52. > :52:55.on that red. He could still hold for the pink.

:52:56. > :53:02.A red and a pink will be enough to make 100 exactly.

:53:03. > :53:10.Needs a good positional shot from pink to yellow.

:53:11. > :53:17.The pink jumped there. That took the pace out of the cue ball, so he has

:53:18. > :53:22.a difficult yellow, if he is to make the century. That was a heavy

:53:23. > :53:27.contact. Watch the pink. It left the bed of the table.

:53:28. > :53:38.Go on, get in. No century. He won't be too concerned about that. He made

:53:39. > :53:40.a lovely break of 73 there and he's opened his account. He still trails

:53:41. > :53:48.2-1. STUDIO: Ryan levelled with the match

:53:49. > :53:52.with a 55 contribution before the interval so 2-2 now. It's the Scot

:53:53. > :54:06.with a slight advantage after the restart. Frame 5.

:54:07. > :54:14.DENNIS TAYLOR: These middle pockets are tough. If they touch a jaw at

:54:15. > :54:18.all, we have seen so many rattle the jaws and come out. This must be

:54:19. > :54:23.pretty tight as to whether this red goes into the left corner. He's

:54:24. > :54:28.coming round to have a look from the other side.

:54:29. > :54:36.I could never see from this end... I always find it much better looking

:54:37. > :54:37.from the end you are striking. He feels there is enough room. Seems to

:54:38. > :54:58.be. Loads of room. You could get a

:54:59. > :55:03.Sheffield tram through there! KEN DOHERTY: And the driver! A good

:55:04. > :55:15.opportunity here for Ryan. He just nudged the pink there. Just

:55:16. > :55:20.knocked the red into a pottable position. He is still on this red

:55:21. > :55:35.OK. Would have loved to have been straighter on it.

:55:36. > :56:05.He's overcut that one. It was the previous shot that he got a bit too

:56:06. > :56:09.much action on the cue ball, left the blue slightly more difficult. I

:56:10. > :56:27.still expected him to knock that in. This was the shot where he just got

:56:28. > :56:32.a bit too much action and just left the blue slightly more difficult. I

:56:33. > :56:36.still expected him to knock it in, though.

:56:37. > :56:44.John hasn't got an angle on the blue to get towards the reds. He will

:56:45. > :56:52.have to force it all the way around the angles. No, he had got an angle

:56:53. > :56:57.to just hold this side of the blue spot.

:56:58. > :57:33.That was the best he could manage there.

:57:34. > :57:39.He might just be OK because he thought he was going to cannon the

:57:40. > :57:42.pink and red there, Ken. If he's got the gap here, although the black

:57:43. > :57:47.won't go, he can get up for the blue. He could have been in all

:57:48. > :57:50.sorts of trouble. He is having to swerve it. No, he can stun it in. He

:57:51. > :58:01.can see enough of it. That will do nicely, if it pulls up.

:58:02. > :58:14.One more good positional shot and he is back in business.

:58:15. > :58:23.That is a better shot. Nicely on the red into the right centre. Back down

:58:24. > :58:27.for the black and he really wants that red that's to the left of the

:58:28. > :58:29.black closer to the left-hand corner pocket, he wants that out of the

:58:30. > :00:05.way. Not many pots away from securing

:00:06. > :00:09.this... REFEREE: Touching ball.

:00:10. > :00:10.He is touching the red but that doesn't matter, he is playing away

:00:11. > :00:27.from it. This was an important frame for John

:00:28. > :00:31.Higgins, after starting off so well, them all of a sudden missed a couple

:00:32. > :00:35.of easy ones and Ryan took full advantage. It is nice to get one up

:00:36. > :00:52.on the Welshman. He stopped the rot, as it were. Ryan

:00:53. > :00:54.came back strong. He's got his nose in front once

:00:55. > :01:13.more. Is Needs black or pink. This will

:01:14. > :01:20.leave Ryan needing a snooker. And safely in the heart of the

:01:21. > :01:33.pocket. Definitely changing the cushions has

:01:34. > :02:19.made a big difference to this table. Can he negotiate that last red to

:02:20. > :03:00.give himself a century? Had 12 centuries so far on day

:03:01. > :03:03.three. You mentioned about who holds the record of centuries, John

:03:04. > :03:08.Higgins did. 14 with the year you won it and Stephen Hendry made 16

:03:09. > :03:15.century in 2002 here at the Crucible.

:03:16. > :03:22.It is incredible, an incredible achievement.

:03:23. > :03:29.When you consider some players wouldn't make that in a season.

:03:30. > :03:42.Incredible feat, 16 centuries in five matches here at the Crucible.

:03:43. > :03:55.Exactly 100 if he can knock blue, pink and black in.

:03:56. > :04:01.The balls have not been coming off the cushions the way they were the

:04:02. > :04:18.first two days. He's come out of the mid-session

:04:19. > :04:25.interval and made another century break. He's back in the lead.

:04:26. > :04:31.3-2. John won the next to become two year

:04:32. > :04:35.clean. This is great form from John. Two centuries so far this match.

:04:36. > :04:38.Back into frame seven. The world number 22, Ryan Day leading with a

:04:39. > :04:45.healthy 48 points advantage here. He's usually pretty good at this

:04:46. > :04:59.type of shot. He hit that so hard. It is the only red he could leave

:05:00. > :05:06.and he's left it. One good angle on the blue here.

:05:07. > :05:12.John is looking at the pink to see if it is available. He's already

:05:13. > :05:15.looking a few shots ahead. If not, he could pop this on the

:05:16. > :05:39.blue and cannon the pink and reds. There is just enough room. That is

:05:40. > :05:52.what John was looking at a little while ago.

:05:53. > :05:56.He could do with a cue ball somewhere near enough where it is at

:05:57. > :06:20.the moment. Now he's faced with a tough pot to

:06:21. > :06:22.keep this little come back and this frame going.

:06:23. > :06:43.This has to go in. Beautifully cued.

:06:44. > :06:47.He's got a half chance now. Showing that blue going right into

:06:48. > :06:50.the centre of the pocket there. A couple of awkward red, but not a bad

:06:51. > :07:00.chance. It was so important to put that

:07:01. > :07:16.green safe from Ryan's point of view, a little earlier.

:07:17. > :07:26.He's just thinking whether he will go into the pink and two reds or try

:07:27. > :07:34.and track the lose red from under the pink into the right centre.

:07:35. > :07:49.Just a little flick there would have been nice.

:07:50. > :08:16.What will happen is the red will career into the two reds left of the

:08:17. > :08:19.pocket. It may knock it into a pottable position. Just managed to

:08:20. > :08:55.avoid the two reds. It was a terrific pot and I suppose

:08:56. > :09:02.a deserved kiss on the blue. The fact he knocked that very difficult

:09:03. > :09:13.red in, he deserves a little bit of good luck.

:09:14. > :09:21.This would be one against the head. Ryan Day was going along very

:09:22. > :10:01.nicely. He looked like he would win the frame with one visit.

:10:02. > :10:20.Will be looking for a nice apgle, possibly blue or pink off this red.

:10:21. > :10:32.A bit of a bounce. Will it hold up? Straight on the blue. From the reds

:10:33. > :11:27.on the blue. The two reds do pot into the right-hand corner pocket.

:11:28. > :11:35.21. That was a tremendous shot. He couldn't have cued that much better

:11:36. > :11:50.to get to the blue from that position.

:11:51. > :12:01.He's got an angle here if he would wish to try and move the green.

:12:02. > :12:06.He's just concentrating on the blue. He doesn't want to be dead straight

:12:07. > :12:14.because he can't get nicely on to the yellow now.

:12:15. > :12:18.So... Denis, if you can get behind the yellow when potting this blue,

:12:19. > :12:26.you could drop the yellow in and maybe move the double on the green.

:12:27. > :12:31.It is the only shot that available to him. He needs to leave the cue

:12:32. > :12:38.ball in the vicinity where it is now. Just pot the yellow, fry and

:12:39. > :12:46.leave the cue ball somewhere where the yellow is and play the double.

:12:47. > :13:12.A good effort from John Higgins, considering where all the red were

:13:13. > :13:20.when he came to the table. He's back in the frame.

:13:21. > :13:28.Yes, earlier on Ryan played a safety shot, I am sure he thought it was a

:13:29. > :13:45.good one. All of a sudden John picked out a terrific pot.

:13:46. > :13:54.He miss-hit that, totally did John. The only saving grace is it's not

:13:55. > :13:56.the pink and the black is safe from the pocket, not that the blacks

:13:57. > :14:10.going to make any difference. Oh, this is going to be difficult if

:14:11. > :14:15.he goes on the cushion - there's no way if that's straight he can get on

:14:16. > :14:23.the blue and the blue doesn't get past the black, so, a quick look at

:14:24. > :14:27.the score board... He's going to need the brown, the blue and the

:14:28. > :14:32.pink. He's got plenty of cue path. There is a straight angle he might

:14:33. > :14:55.be able to force it round. No. It was dead straight.

:14:56. > :15:27.This is a good length with the cue ball.

:15:28. > :15:38.He's coming around now. The problem is if he misses it, the black will

:15:39. > :15:42.stop the blue from going in way. And the white will be flying around the

:15:43. > :15:46.table. It could find a pocket. Maybe the middle, so he has to be careful

:15:47. > :15:53.here. Oh, he's put so much side on that

:15:54. > :15:57.and that could be costly because if John can get in behind the pink, if

:15:58. > :16:01.he can get about a foot from the pink, the black is over the pocket.

:16:02. > :16:07.So what a chance. He's got an angle to swing it around. Just near where

:16:08. > :16:15.his head is at the moment - that's where he wants the cue ball.

:16:16. > :16:17.And this looks to be absolutely perfect.

:16:18. > :16:37.All he has to do is drop the pink in.

:16:38. > :16:45.Well, a very exciting frame of snooker. Ryan Day was favourite to

:16:46. > :16:50.take it. John Higgins potted a long red and got back into the frame and

:16:51. > :16:55.he's managed to pinch it. He extends his lead, it is 5-2 now.

:16:56. > :17:01.40-year-old Higgins kept the heat on with an impressive break of 77 in

:17:02. > :17:08.the next. This match is beginning to run away from the Welshman. What can

:17:09. > :17:10.he do to slow up Scott in the ninth and last frame of their session?

:17:11. > :17:30.Let's find out. He's hit that a little bit too hard.

:17:31. > :17:36.If he could take this frame, Ryan, 6-3, it would still be, you know,

:17:37. > :17:47.way behind, but he's in with a shout. 7-2.

:17:48. > :17:53.Can he find a gap here, John Higgins, and pass this red between

:17:54. > :18:07.black and red? Well, didn't get the gap.

:18:08. > :18:11.Left himself a bit of a tester as we see the red again.

:18:12. > :18:13.Wanted to get between that blue and red there. This will test his

:18:14. > :18:33.cueing. Denis, look at that. It is the sort

:18:34. > :18:38.of shot the players practise. I remember went I used to go to

:18:39. > :18:44.sterling to play with... In fact it practiced with John Higgins when he

:18:45. > :18:47.first turned professional the at the Spens're's Club, along with Stephen

:18:48. > :18:50.Hendry, they would set that type of shot up, only the other way around.

:18:51. > :18:55.The long, straight pot and play it for a few hours at a time.

:18:56. > :19:01.Certainly Stephen Hendry used to do that and then he would play against

:19:02. > :19:12.John Higgins and they would play there all day long. John was a

:19:13. > :19:18.practise partner of Stephen. He got to be world number one in 16

:19:19. > :19:21.seasons. That was some going, Ken. No doubt one of the best players

:19:22. > :19:31.that has ever graced our game. Of course, he's won this

:19:32. > :19:38.championship four times. His all around game, his temperament

:19:39. > :19:45.as well, it is top quality. Very good in every department.

:19:46. > :19:52.He's only behind Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen Hendry in the break

:19:53. > :19:54.build department. 616 centuries before today. He's

:19:55. > :20:25.added another couple to that list. One of my very last matches was the

:20:26. > :20:29.nation's Cup before I retired. Ken was against Scotland, Northern

:20:30. > :20:35.Ireland against Scotland and one of the frames was against John Higgins

:20:36. > :20:41.and he'd never even made a maximum break in practise. I broke off one

:20:42. > :20:46.frame we played and he knocked his first maximum in. So, that was my

:20:47. > :20:50.very last competitive frame and the one before that, just before I

:20:51. > :20:57.played John, I played Stephen Hendry and beat Stephen on the pink, so it

:20:58. > :21:17.was a good way to retire. I bet Stephen was pleased.

:21:18. > :21:32.He nearly screwed into the middle pocket. Watch the cue ball.

:21:33. > :21:43.We will just saw you the white again. Just watch the cue ball.

:21:44. > :22:01.Keep your eye just too much screw and just caught the jaw.

:22:02. > :22:09.That cue shot coming up. He's got a good angle and not a

:22:10. > :22:11.great pack to go into. He could do with catching quun of ve of those

:22:12. > :22:23.red -- catching one of those reds. He's unlucky, he's got a long

:22:24. > :22:31.straight red to go at. He couldn't have hit it much better.

:22:32. > :22:39.When you hit them they just stick a little bit. The one he's closer to

:22:40. > :22:45.will go up into the corner pocket. He can screw back for the black.

:22:46. > :22:48.That's a lovely shot there. Right down his cue. He's held for

:22:49. > :23:15.the pink. That will do nicely. With the exception of those few

:23:16. > :23:17.misses I have mentioned a couple of times it has been like a

:23:18. > :23:51.masterclass. Since this championship started on

:23:52. > :23:55.Saturday, this has probably been the best performance from any player.

:23:56. > :24:03.Marco Fu was outstarnding against Peter Ebdon. That was the other one

:24:04. > :24:44.that springs to mind. He's going to have it all to do,

:24:45. > :24:53.isn't he in the second session tomorrow?

:24:54. > :25:11.Came back in one of the qualifying matches, Ryan Day, from 9-5 down to

:25:12. > :25:15.Alfie. A very talented player from London.

:25:16. > :25:38.There is pink and two red to make the century.

:25:39. > :25:55.Let's look at this shot again. A lot of top spin.

:25:56. > :26:01.Just a couple of pots away from another century.

:26:02. > :26:11.That is a thin one, but I think he can avoid it enough.

:26:12. > :26:15.A little bit of... Another match to go in-off the corner, if you watch

:26:16. > :26:19.this. Doesn't want to finish tight on the

:26:20. > :26:23.cushion, otherwise it will be a tricky black to make his third

:26:24. > :26:31.century and it is going to be left to try and cut this in. It is a

:26:32. > :26:42.very, very thin snick. Yeah! Oh! That's his third century.

:26:43. > :26:46.What a black to make that century. Look at that smile on John's face.

:26:47. > :26:54.You can see it! It's been a fantastic session of snooker. The he

:26:55. > :27:00.certainly has waved his magic wand here at the Crucible. With the aid

:27:01. > :27:07.of three century breaks he takes an a lead over Ryan Day, 7-3. Three

:27:08. > :27:11.centuries a 77 and 79 and all of a sudden 20-1, that is what you could

:27:12. > :27:16.have got on John Higgins, it is looking generous.

:27:17. > :27:21.A couple of seasons ago I thought he was tinkering out of falling out of

:27:22. > :27:25.the list. His long game was not brilliant. Boy, has he turned it

:27:26. > :27:28.around. It is like being set an examination when you play John.

:27:29. > :27:34.There is an examination paper and you have to have a revision to have

:27:35. > :27:43.a try at it. His scoring is great and the longer frames that he plays,

:27:44. > :27:49.it suits him. He has got cruisibley! It is one thing when it comes to the

:27:50. > :27:54.Crucible, when he got to the China Open and made the semi-finals and he

:27:55. > :28:00.was beaten in a decider there. He is one of the greatest match players of

:28:01. > :28:05.all times, with no doubt. There is nobody who tries harder. He has the

:28:06. > :28:08.all around game, the experience, everything. John is in with a live

:28:09. > :28:15.chance of winning the tournament this year. How significant for you,

:28:16. > :28:19.when I look through the stats, last year 25 centuries for the season.

:28:20. > :28:23.That makes it 38 this morning. Of course he's claimed two major titles

:28:24. > :28:26.this season. Does that tell you about his scoring ability and the

:28:27. > :28:30.fact he's in the grove coming in here? He obviously S it is as simple

:28:31. > :28:34.as that. I have been so impressed with him. As I said earlier to you,

:28:35. > :28:37.it is the turning around which is impressive to me. It looks like

:28:38. > :28:42.there was fits and starts of concentration. His long game was not

:28:43. > :28:46.so good. He was happy with cues. To turn that around and come here, his

:28:47. > :28:50.focus is superb and to score as heavy as he does and I will reit

:28:51. > :28:54.thor rate it, but these long-frame matches suit John Higgins. He is the

:28:55. > :28:58.stamina man. He wants to play all the long games, play the best of 25.

:28:59. > :29:03.It suits his game. Five years since he won the last of his four titles

:29:04. > :29:08.and at the age of 40, he's trying to become the oldest since Ray Reardon

:29:09. > :29:12.to win it. We have the likes of Alan McManus, Ronnie, we have Mark

:29:13. > :29:16.Williams and Graeme Dott there in their 40s and of course yourself,

:29:17. > :29:20.Peter. It seems to be no barrier, age in this sport? I don't think

:29:21. > :29:23.there S I think the players that you mention have so much experience they

:29:24. > :29:28.can bring that to the table. I think it is so difficult for the young

:29:29. > :29:35.players now, even though they are gaining experience when they come

:29:36. > :29:39.across top players in the first and second round of tournaments it is

:29:40. > :29:44.hard for them to beat them. We saw from John, he's timing the ball so

:29:45. > :29:50.well I unbelievable. It is as well I have seen him do it for a long time.

:29:51. > :29:53.He may fancy the job. They will regroup tomorrow afternoon for their

:29:54. > :29:58.deciding session of that match. But when it comes to tables, well I can

:29:59. > :30:03.clear a table, a lunch table, dinner table, when it comes to a match

:30:04. > :30:07.table I leave it to my good friends and experts here. Today in Table

:30:08. > :30:19.Talk we will talk about match tables and tables generally.

:30:20. > :30:28.I'm turning the tables on these gentlemen. We are talking about the

:30:29. > :30:37.id owe sin Cray sis of the match table. We will show a couple of

:30:38. > :30:46.things that you have not seen before. What are these? These are

:30:47. > :30:50.the templates that we use in tournament play and these are very

:30:51. > :30:55.closely-guarded. We have our security man over here. We have our

:30:56. > :30:59.top referee looking after these. These are the templates we use in

:31:00. > :31:03.all the professional tournaments... These fit into the pockets to make

:31:04. > :31:10.sure the tolerances are exact. Absolutely. This one here is for the

:31:11. > :31:14.fall of the pocket. That has to match up with that one. This one is

:31:15. > :31:19.the interesting one. Put that in there. How tight is that? You can

:31:20. > :31:22.see there, this is designed to slide into the pocket nicely and then go

:31:23. > :31:29.back out again. You can see how tight the pockets are here. That,

:31:30. > :31:33.you can see the effort I am putting in to push that in. That doesn't

:31:34. > :31:36.want to come out again. These pockets are very tight. For an

:31:37. > :31:42.ordinary club table, this would go in there. These are 3.75 inches.

:31:43. > :31:48.With no undercut. What is undercut? The cut of the pocket, what you

:31:49. > :31:53.would find in a snooker club is, the pockets would be more open and the

:31:54. > :31:59.cut would start earlier so when the ball hits that part, it would slide

:32:00. > :32:09.into the pocket. These pockets are designed to help the professional

:32:10. > :32:15.player to not pot balls. We have got the ones here, the same thing again,

:32:16. > :32:20.fall on there. And they are tight. As for the cloth, go through a few

:32:21. > :32:25.processes, what happens? These cloths are very finely shaved and

:32:26. > :32:30.you tend to find that these cloths are designed to last seven or ten

:32:31. > :32:34.days, the sort of cloth that you would find in your club is much

:32:35. > :32:38.thicker, they have much more of a nap on and they are designed to last

:32:39. > :32:43.18 months. Basically, you are trying to get the best conditions you can

:32:44. > :32:51.straightaway. Absolutely. Underneath here, there is also a myriad of

:32:52. > :32:54.table heaters. That makes a massive difference to the playing conditions

:32:55. > :32:59.because when the cloth is heated, the balls are heated as well.

:33:00. > :33:04.Everything is so much more reactive and the conditions that we have seen

:33:05. > :33:08.this week, and having played in the First Round as well, you only have

:33:09. > :33:12.to touch the ball, they are so reactive, the tables are so fast, it

:33:13. > :33:16.is all about touch control and feel. And that is what you don't get with

:33:17. > :33:22.club tables. The atmosphere is a big factor and it affects the cloth. We

:33:23. > :33:27.have played in Thailand, if it is humid, if it is wrong, the tables

:33:28. > :33:32.are wrong. The best conditions in the world to play on is where the

:33:33. > :33:36.humidity is very low, places like Beijing, where you have got places

:33:37. > :33:40.like Thailand, Shanghai, 90%-plus humidity, you get some strange

:33:41. > :33:43.results in that tournament. It is because the tables play much more

:33:44. > :33:46.difficult than normal. Very difficult to screw back, the spin

:33:47. > :33:52.doesn't stay on the cue ball. The cue ball comes off the cushions much

:33:53. > :33:57.squarer. Because you have to hit the balls harder, it makes the pockets

:33:58. > :34:01.smaller. You as a player, if you are not happy with something, you can

:34:02. > :34:07.fill a form in, or let them know, and we have - on Table 1, they have

:34:08. > :34:11.changed the cushions early. It is wonderful World Snooker are

:34:12. > :34:16.listening to the feedback from the player. There have been a lot of

:34:17. > :34:19.kicks on that table. It wasn't quite right. They have reclothed the

:34:20. > :34:23.cushions so the table should be playing better. These tables are

:34:24. > :34:28.difficult. The lads in the club, you have never had it so easy! I will

:34:29. > :34:32.take your word. Alright. Two World Champions in action over there.

:34:33. > :34:36.Three World Champions in action inside The Crucible Theatre this

:34:37. > :34:41.afternoon. Two going head-to-head. You have Mark Williams and Graeme

:34:42. > :34:47.Dott, who beat Mr Ebdon a few years back to win his first world title. A

:34:48. > :34:53.year ago, Mark Williams found himself 7-2 down at the halfway

:34:54. > :34:55.stage in his first-round match against Matthew Stevens. Today, he

:34:56. > :35:01.is the man in command. Two former World Champions getting

:35:02. > :35:11.their first-round match under way. Nobody would have applauded it if it

:35:12. > :36:05.had been done the normal way. Excellent shot. He now leads Graeme

:36:06. > :36:16.Dott 2-1. Very good shot. Excellent shot. Well

:36:17. > :36:52.played. He's given himself a lifeline in

:36:53. > :37:01.this first session. He is looking at a three-ball plant.

:37:02. > :37:11.He's played it very well. He couldn't have played it much better

:37:12. > :37:17.than that. Excellent shot with the rest. Graeme Dott will be very

:37:18. > :37:20.disappointed. Tomorrow afternoon, he has it all to do. Mark Williams

:37:21. > :37:27.leads 7-2. That is the situation. There they

:37:28. > :37:32.are. We will also get our first sighting today, right now in fact,

:37:33. > :37:36.of the world number one, Mark Selby, the 2014 champion. He hasn't played

:37:37. > :37:40.for over a month, he's all set for his opening session against

:37:41. > :37:46.40-year-old Robert Milkins, there he is, chatting away to Mark Williams.

:37:47. > :37:50.With 38-year-old Dott, 41-year-old Williams, Mark Selby is the spring

:37:51. > :38:01.chicken of the lot at 32. It is time to get them all into the arena, Rob

:38:02. > :38:07.Walker is there for us. MC: What a session of snook we are

:38:08. > :38:13.ve in prospect. New fewer than three World Champions on display, proving

:38:14. > :38:15.there are no easy matches in year's Betfred World Snooker Championship

:38:16. > :38:17.and this huge crowd are ready to receive them all with a massive

:38:18. > :38:38.reception! Please welcome first of all, a

:38:39. > :38:42.player who came through a tough match in the qualifiers to book his

:38:43. > :38:48.seventh visit to The Crucible. He enjoyed one of his most memorable

:38:49. > :38:54.experiences here three years ago beating Neil Robertson in the First

:38:55. > :39:03.Round. The the Pride of Gloucester, he is the milkman, Robert Milkins.

:39:04. > :39:13.MUSIC: I'm A Cider Drinker By The Wurzels

:39:14. > :39:20.His opponent, returning to the scene of his greatest triumph in snooker,

:39:21. > :39:23.becoming World Champion two years ago, multiple Masters winner and one

:39:24. > :39:29.of the most colourful characters on the circuit. He is the world number

:39:30. > :39:35.one, he is "The Jester from Leicester", he is Mark Selby!

:39:36. > :39:48.MUSIC: Eez-eh By Kasabian

:39:49. > :39:54.On Table 1, hoping to draw on the recollection of some of his finest

:39:55. > :39:58.moments on this special stage, winner of the title ten years ago,

:39:59. > :40:02.he's been in three finals in all, and he will believe this match is

:40:03. > :40:06.very much alive. This is his 17th year at The Crucible, he's the

:40:07. > :40:34.pocket dynamo, Graeme Dott. His opponent, one of the finest

:40:35. > :40:39.sportsmen his country has ever produced. Twice a World Champion,

:40:40. > :40:42.winner of 18 big ones in all, and quite frankly, one of the most

:40:43. > :40:45.laid-back characters the sport has ever known. But he will fire it up

:40:46. > :40:48.this afternoon, Mark Williams. MUSIC: Delilah

:40:49. > :41:08.By Tom Jones STUDIO: There is a place for all

:41:09. > :41:16.kinds of music at The Crucible, from Tom Jones to The Wurzels! We are

:41:17. > :41:22.going to stick with the conclusion of the Williams-Dott match and in

:41:23. > :41:24.the commentary box, alongside Ken Doherty, which welcome Mr George

:41:25. > :41:54.Riley. KEN DOHERTY: a fantastic session for

:41:55. > :41:58.Mark Williams. Dott took the opener and didn't get a look-in, five in a

:41:59. > :42:03.row for Mark Williams. Any way back, do you think? Well, the great thing

:42:04. > :42:09.about Graeme Dott is, he is a fighter. He is a tiger. He will

:42:10. > :42:12.never give up. He's going to have to rely on those battling qualities

:42:13. > :42:15.today. The only thing is, Mark Williams is such an experienced

:42:16. > :42:19.campaigner and the way he was playing yesterday, Graeme Dott is

:42:20. > :42:27.going to have to raise his game considerably.

:42:28. > :42:33.He's basically got to win three of he four frames in this first

:42:34. > :42:36.mini-session and that is what would be in his mind coming into this

:42:37. > :42:50.second session. Not quite sure the history of The

:42:51. > :42:53.Crucible, how many times players would have come back from a 7-2

:42:54. > :42:58.deficit in the First Round, not many I would have thought.

:42:59. > :43:01.Like you said, if there is a man to do it, it is probably this guy at

:43:02. > :43:17.the table. He might refuse the long pot. There

:43:18. > :43:25.is a big target behind the brown and green.

:43:26. > :43:41.It needs to slow up. It has a good line.

:43:42. > :43:46.Looks like he is shaping up to have a go at this red. It is fraught with

:43:47. > :44:28.a lot of danger, should he miss it. His own pot success rate is better

:44:29. > :44:30.than Mark Williams over the nine frames so far. He needs to make this

:44:31. > :44:41.count, though. Quite surprising, just looking at

:44:42. > :44:47.some of the stats, the safety success is a bit lower, 78% Graeme,

:44:48. > :44:54.88% to Mark Williams. The pot successes are unusual. They both

:44:55. > :44:55.have 90% pot success rates. Graeme Dott finds himself 7-2 behind. That

:44:56. > :45:09.is quite remarkable. He will be potting the back and

:45:10. > :45:11.screwing into the pack. He needs to get a lot of spin on the cue ball

:45:12. > :45:25.here. Didn't get the spin and that is the

:45:26. > :45:32.problem. You really have to work the cue ball. He didn't get any backspin

:45:33. > :45:34.at all. It is almost like he stunned into the pack there. There may be a

:45:35. > :45:49.red to the right centre. He wanted to play that. It doesn't

:45:50. > :46:35.quite go. So that terrific long red yields 24.

:46:36. > :46:38.Just wondering whether Mark Williams would risk this pot to the right

:46:39. > :46:49.centre. Decided against it. Went for that. The brown was always

:46:50. > :47:19.there but a bit of safety in mind. Mark Williams was introduced as "one

:47:20. > :47:25.of the most laid-back players around". What was he like to play

:47:26. > :47:32.against? He is impossible to read. I was saying in commentary to Willie

:47:33. > :47:35.Thorne that with his facial expressions, you wouldn't know

:47:36. > :47:41.whether Mark was behind or in front. The way he goes about the table, he

:47:42. > :47:47.is so laid-back, he saunters around like he's in his practice room, or

:47:48. > :47:51.on the practice table. That's a good quality to have. He doesn't seem to

:47:52. > :47:56.be troubled too much by nerves. Everybody does get a bit nervous,

:47:57. > :48:01.but he always seems to be very, very cool under pressure. Terrible to

:48:02. > :48:05.play against! He used to upset me no end.

:48:06. > :48:27.There is a mistake from Graeme Dott. That could be a costly one.

:48:28. > :48:37.He came in to the sound of Delilah by Tom Jones. When I played him here

:48:38. > :48:41.in the final, in 2003, it got pretty close, 16-16 in the final, and that

:48:42. > :48:42.was the song he was singing to himself in the chair to keep himself

:48:43. > :48:59.relaxed. I'm glad I didn't hear him! He's looked pretty relaxed so far.

:49:00. > :49:05.He's in prime position, with the red below the black. He will be trying

:49:06. > :49:20.to get on that to open the black into the left-hand corner pocket.

:49:21. > :49:28.Yesterday the standard was very, very high. There was almost a 50-odd

:49:29. > :49:31.break in every frame. Frame 3 was only 46, but every time Mark

:49:32. > :49:33.Williams got chances like this yesterday, he was making 50 or

:49:34. > :49:43.above. No huge breaks, though, Ken. The

:49:44. > :49:50.highest break is 76 in this match so far. That was from Mark.

:49:51. > :50:35.He's well poised to better that here.

:50:36. > :50:43.Just about has an angle. May have to force it a little bit. Wanted to be

:50:44. > :50:50.a bit higher on the blue. Let's have a look. He's got a slight angle.

:50:51. > :50:56.Needs a bit of right-hand side. He is coming down to have a look at the

:50:57. > :50:58.three reds above the black to the right. The bottom one goes into the

:50:59. > :51:03.left-hand corner pocket. That was a much better shot than it

:51:04. > :51:50.looked. Very well controlled. It is not the most confident

:51:51. > :52:11.approach to a shot I have ever seen. Graeme grimaced, the fact that Mark

:52:12. > :52:42.Williams was on that red. Good shot. Very nice shot. Wasn't

:52:43. > :52:49.easy, bridging over the red. Now one good pot here...

:52:50. > :53:17.Excellent shot. Right into the heart of the pocket.

:53:18. > :53:23.Well, was that a little kick we detected here? Not having the cue

:53:24. > :53:47.ball cleaned. This is missable. We will have a look at the cue ball,

:53:48. > :53:52.where it's left. This is an opportunity that Graeme did not

:53:53. > :54:23.expect. It's not particularly pleasant.

:54:24. > :54:35.That was always the danger. He went for it. No real alternative. He had

:54:36. > :54:42.to go for it and he had to play it slowly. Another little bit of slice

:54:43. > :54:58.of luck for Mark Williams. Graeme can do nothing about that.

:54:59. > :55:10.He judged that nicely. 39 points ahead, just this red to leave Graeme

:55:11. > :55:30.Dott needing snookers. This is frame ball.

:55:31. > :55:35.Mark Williams won't be bothered about the missed black as Graeme

:55:36. > :55:40.Dott says, that's enough. Another frame on the board for Mark

:55:41. > :55:42.Williams. He edges closer to that magical number ten. He leads Graeme

:55:43. > :55:53.Dott 8-2. You can contact us through the usual

:55:54. > :55:56.social media channels and this year several of you have been contacting

:55:57. > :55:57.us to say not only you are watching the coverage, but your pets are,

:55:58. > :56:12.too. Here they are. Your cats love snooker. There is a

:56:13. > :56:18.feline fascination, which I cannot explain! Peter, are you an animal

:56:19. > :56:23.lover and do your pets love snooker? That is a question I never thought I

:56:24. > :56:27.would ask! No, my mum's got a Staffordshire bull terrier but I

:56:28. > :56:32.can't say that he loves snooker. Not so sure that he likes me very much!

:56:33. > :56:35.He is a wonderful judge of character(!) I don't think so. Tell

:56:36. > :56:39.me about the way this match is going.

:56:40. > :56:45.You know Dotty probably better than most. He never ever gives up? No one

:56:46. > :56:50.of the most tenacious characters the game has ever seen. Mark Williams is

:56:51. > :56:52.cueing beautifully and this might not last too much longer. Back we

:56:53. > :57:12.go. Peter might have let the cat out of

:57:13. > :57:17.the bag there, George! Live World Championship Snooker and Peter Ebdon

:57:18. > :57:24.on pets! To be honest, I don't blame his dog not watching him play

:57:25. > :57:36.snooker anyway! Sorry, Peter. A huge kick.

:57:37. > :57:43.That final ten years ago, when Graeme won, was one of the later

:57:44. > :57:48.finishes. I remember sitting down for a roast dinner at 2.30am! It

:57:49. > :57:55.wasn't quick. He got his name on the trophy. I don't think he would have

:57:56. > :58:02.minded what time it finished at. He was in a couple of finals. He was in

:58:03. > :58:09.a final against Peter Ebdon, lost to Ronnie O'Sullivan here in the final,

:58:10. > :58:15.and to Neil Robertson. He's got a very good record here, but he's been

:58:16. > :58:19.up against it in this match. He hasn't played his best. He has had

:58:20. > :58:39.chances, but he hasn't scored enough.

:58:40. > :58:50.He's not scored anywhere near enough, Graeme Dott. Mark Williams

:58:51. > :59:20.has almost double the total points of Graeme, thus far.

:59:21. > :59:30.Pretty good at that type of shot, Mark. Just have a look at where the

:59:31. > :59:44.cue ball is left. Very awkward for Graeme Dott for his next shot.

:59:45. > :59:52.He's covered the red to the left corner, but the one the cue ball is

:59:53. > :59:59.close to, does pot into this left-hand corner pocket.

:00:00. > :00:09.Excellent shot. Didn't attempt to play for the black that time.

:00:10. > :00:23.Not quite sure what price Mark Williams would have been coming into

:00:24. > :00:39.this Championship. Didn't play in China. Didn't qualify.

:00:40. > :00:46.Well, he wasn't on the radar, having lost in the first round of the last

:00:47. > :00:51.three ranking events he had played in. He was asked the question if he

:00:52. > :01:02.could win the world title on Friday at the media day and he said no

:01:03. > :01:19.chance! No... Oh! Thank God for gravity! A laugh from Graeme. It has

:01:20. > :01:23.worked out nicely. The red closest to the cue ball pots into the right

:01:24. > :01:48.corner pocket. I wonder does he really means that,

:01:49. > :01:52.that he has no chance? Or is it maybe a bit of psychology just to

:01:53. > :02:07.take a bit of pressure off himself. I presume it's the latter.

:02:08. > :02:10.Certainly the performance in this match would have given him a lot of

:02:11. > :02:26.confidence. I'm sure when the draw came out as

:02:27. > :02:32.well, Mark Williams, when he found out he was playing a former world

:02:33. > :02:36.champion in Graeme Dott, he wouldn't have been too pleased. Some of the

:02:37. > :02:42.first round draws were the toughest you could have got, Ding Junhui, Ali

:02:43. > :02:53.Carter, from the qualifiers. But it hasn't quite worked out that way.

:02:54. > :02:57.Yes, Ali Carter said after knocking out Stuart Bingham, if I were a top

:02:58. > :03:03.16 player I wouldn't have wanted to draw myself. Graeme goes into that

:03:04. > :03:14.category as a tough first-round opponent. Absolutely.

:03:15. > :03:21.Peter Ebdon describing Graeme Dott as one of the most tenacious players

:03:22. > :03:22.around, but you can't do much with tenacity if you're sitting in your

:03:23. > :03:27.chair, Ken. Let's see one of Mark's specials,

:03:28. > :03:39.underarm. Just the black will leave Graeme

:03:40. > :05:27.Dott needing snookers once again. Very impressive stuff, this, from

:05:28. > :05:55.Mark Williams, it has to be said. Highest break of the match, for

:05:56. > :06:06.either player. Yes, I think the only thing that's

:06:07. > :06:11.missing from this match is a century. Nice to see if he could get

:06:12. > :06:51.one here. A possible 137 on. APPLAUSE

:06:52. > :06:56.Well played Mark Williams! The crowd love it. Always love a century year,

:06:57. > :07:07.the Crucible crowd. Such a shame he didn't clear the

:07:08. > :07:11.table but a wonderful 102 break from the former champion, Mark Williams.

:07:12. > :07:17.He needs just one more for a place in the second round. He leads Graeme

:07:18. > :07:23.Dott by nine frames to two. He just floated around the table there,

:07:24. > :07:27.didn't he, George? He looked like he was just in the practice area. There

:07:28. > :07:30.is one red when he is just bridging over the pack and fall money when he

:07:31. > :07:36.played this job I thought he's missed it. When your luck is in,

:07:37. > :07:42.your luck is in. He thinks that has missed! It wipes its feet. Just

:07:43. > :07:47.everything has happened for Graeme Dott in this match. He managed to

:07:48. > :07:52.smile about it even though he was on the end of it and he's on the end of

:07:53. > :07:57.probably one of his heaviest defeats here at the Crucible. But it's nice

:07:58. > :08:02.to see him have a little smile. Still a wonderful 102 break from

:08:03. > :08:06.Mark Williams. This table seems to be playing a lot better today. The

:08:07. > :08:10.players have been complaining about it a bit for the first couple of

:08:11. > :08:15.days, a lot of bounces and a lot of kicks. But they have recovered the

:08:16. > :08:19.cushions. It seems to be playing much better. John Higgins made three

:08:20. > :08:26.century breaks on it this morning. Nice break their from John Higgins.

:08:27. > :08:30.Nigel Bond made a comeback from 9-2 down against Cliff Thorburn, I don't

:08:31. > :08:35.know what year it was, but he came back to beat Cliff Thorburn 10-9.

:08:36. > :08:43.That's the only match I can remember from such a deficit in the first

:08:44. > :08:52.round. You weren't born then, were you, George? 708I was born, Kenneth.

:08:53. > :09:00.-- 78 I was born, Kenneth. There doesn't appear to be a way back, no.

:09:01. > :09:33.But that is a loose one. A good opener, but a bit of safety

:09:34. > :09:34.as well. An aggressive safety shop, purposefully into the pack of reds.

:09:35. > :12:03.He's left one. Well, he could possibly cut this

:12:04. > :12:07.redback, the one just to the right of the black, to the bottom

:12:08. > :12:13.right-hand corner pocket -- the bottom left corner pocket.

:12:14. > :12:19.That's not a bad little knuckle, as it has covered this read down over

:12:20. > :12:41.the left-hand corner pocket. He went for the plant knowing he

:12:42. > :12:54.could get a decent white. But Graeme Dott has picked it off

:12:55. > :13:15.anyway. Yeah, and this time he held it this

:13:16. > :13:22.side of the baulk line. Always trying to put it in an area

:13:23. > :13:23.somewhere... The red below the pink to the right-hand corner pocket is a

:13:24. > :13:33.possibility. Well, he didn't get into that cue

:13:34. > :14:19.ball at all. REFEREE: Foul and a miss, Mark

:14:20. > :14:28.Williams four. That miss may be costly. It's the fact that it has

:14:29. > :14:30.got so close to the yellow. That red would have been on into the right

:14:31. > :14:52.centre. The brown may come to the rescue

:14:53. > :14:59.here. Graeme has a little smile again. But he can pot this off

:15:00. > :15:03.addition, just little swerve. Not 100% sure where the cue ball is

:15:04. > :15:07.going to finish up, but just a gentle swerve off the right-hand

:15:08. > :15:14.side cushion. You don't want to over swerve this. Well played. Excellent

:15:15. > :15:38.shot. APPLAUSE

:15:39. > :15:47.No. He's really struggling out there, Graeme Dott. That's a

:15:48. > :15:54.surprising miss. That is three opportunities he has had now, when

:15:55. > :16:03.Graeme has been in. That wasn't even close. You could see, Ken, on the

:16:04. > :16:08.previous shot, he was very angry with himself, for where he had left

:16:09. > :16:11.that red. It was just that positional shot, he should have been

:16:12. > :16:15.a lot straighter on that red, because he had a straightforward

:16:16. > :16:21.blue into the left centre, just didn't get on that red the way he

:16:22. > :16:29.wanted to. Mark Williams certainly won't take liberties, you would

:16:30. > :16:31.think, being 9-2 up he might go for a view more but Mark Williams will

:16:32. > :16:44.want this match over as soon as possible. -- a few more.

:16:45. > :16:54.Oh! Another fantastic pot. You would have to say a little bit lucky, but

:16:55. > :17:03.that is well-deserved. That was a great pot.

:17:04. > :17:16.CHUCKLES Wiped its feet, didn't it?

:17:17. > :17:23.He has underhit that! He has on the hit that! Unbelievable. What an

:17:24. > :18:21.error that is. Opportunity number four for Graeme

:18:22. > :19:11.Dott to start the fight back. He has got a nice angle if he needs

:19:12. > :19:41.to go into the pack of reds here. Well, it's OK.

:19:42. > :19:56.Both players using every inch of the two corner pockets at the moment.

:19:57. > :20:04.He wanted to be a little higher on this red so you could try and

:20:05. > :20:10.disturb the two reds next to it, but he can't do that with this shot.

:20:11. > :20:14.Those two reds don't pot, so he's going to have to make a little

:20:15. > :20:20.cannon on those. He has an angle. He's just come round to have a look.

:20:21. > :20:29.He's got to Mr pink is, so he's going to glance off the outside red

:20:30. > :20:33.here. -- got to miss the pink. OK, the cue ball has gone tied to the

:20:34. > :20:46.cushion, but he will certainly be happy with that. -- tight. That is

:20:47. > :20:56.horrible cueing, that is, Ken. Well played. It was a tough shot, wasn't

:20:57. > :20:59.it? He cued it nicely. The key to those shots, particularly, is

:21:00. > :21:29.keeping your head and body very still.

:21:30. > :22:00.So, 45 ahead and just this red... Yes, well played Graeme Dott.

:22:01. > :22:31.Williams playing on. Snooker -- snookers required. Well, that will

:22:32. > :22:41.be that. So, needing to win eight on the

:22:42. > :22:46.spin, that is the first one out of the way. Graeme Dott still alive but

:22:47. > :22:49.in trouble. He trails 9-3. STUDIO

:22:50. > :22:56.Well, he is clinging on isn't he? You made a good point about the

:22:57. > :23:01.qualifiers, Peter. Do you detect that fatigue might be playing a part

:23:02. > :23:06.in this match? Well, he looked shattered there, didn't he? You only

:23:07. > :23:09.have to look at him, he looked absolutely shattered. Maybe it's

:23:10. > :23:17.just as older players. He is what player who has complained about this

:23:18. > :23:20.qualifying system but he has won six matches in qualifying in the last

:23:21. > :23:25.two years. Do you feel it is ultimately going to be a problem? I

:23:26. > :23:29.think we will find out more when it looks like in all likelihood he is

:23:30. > :23:34.going to lose and he will go to the press conference and we will hear

:23:35. > :23:38.more from Graeme. It is more down to the individual more than anything.

:23:39. > :23:42.The one problem that Graeme Dott has got here is that he is playing

:23:43. > :23:47.against an absolute master not only when the game is open but when it is

:23:48. > :23:50.gritty. If the game goes awkward or the balls go awkward, there is no

:23:51. > :23:59.better player in the game than Mark Williams. As Ken reflected, he has

:24:00. > :24:02.made a century, but his breaks, typical Mark Williams scoring.

:24:03. > :24:09.Relentless, isn't it? Phenomenal scoring. Probably the way he has

:24:10. > :24:15.played, he would be that many frames up against anyone. Back we go.

:24:16. > :24:25.COMMENTATOR: Nice break from Mark Williams. That has put Graeme on the

:24:26. > :24:30.back foot at the start of this frame. An interesting point about

:24:31. > :24:33.qualifiers. Some people would say if you win three matches at least you

:24:34. > :24:37.have a bit of momentum. We saw Ali Carter, the way he played against

:24:38. > :24:43.Stuart Bingham, a qualifier. Anthony McGill, of course, against Shaun

:24:44. > :24:49.Murphy. I suppose you do get a bit more tired when you are 9-2 down as

:24:50. > :24:53.opposed to 9-2 ahead. That does have some sort of effect on you.

:24:54. > :24:57.Particular the way this match has gone, Graeme has had chances. He

:24:58. > :25:02.just hasn't scored well and he has been getting a bit annoyed that

:25:03. > :25:08.things haven't gone his way either the luck has been against him. That

:25:09. > :25:10.can wear you out. REFEREE: Foul and a miss, Mark

:25:11. > :25:22.Williams seven. I guess the flip side to that

:25:23. > :25:30.argument is if you are playing a qualifier, you come to the Crucible

:25:31. > :25:41.battle hardened. Absolutely, your confidence is up. If a player comes

:25:42. > :25:44.in knowing that you have had a few matches under your belt, he's going

:25:45. > :25:53.to be a bit wary. This looks a better line. I think it will be

:25:54. > :26:00.interesting to hear what Graeme Dott says in his press conference. You

:26:01. > :26:04.have been in the press room, George. What have the players been saying?

:26:05. > :26:08.The likes of Ali Carter, Anthony McGill have come through that

:26:09. > :26:12.process, Alan McManus as well, who beat Stephen Maguire. What have they

:26:13. > :26:15.been saying about fatigue and the qualifying system? There have been

:26:16. > :26:19.no complaints from any of the qualifiers we have spoken to about

:26:20. > :26:22.fatigue certainly this early in the tournament. I guess if you come

:26:23. > :26:28.through qualifying you are happy enough just to be at the Crucible.

:26:29. > :26:31.We didn't hear from Ronnie O'Sullivan, because he opted not to

:26:32. > :26:36.put in an appearance to his best conference today. I'm told there may

:26:37. > :26:43.be a disciplinary process after that. Which was very odd, because it

:26:44. > :26:47.was a routine victory. There was no obvious reason for O Sullivan not to

:26:48. > :26:54.appear. I'm sure we will be reading about that in the papers tomorrow.

:26:55. > :27:04.In the meantime, Mark Williams keeping the pressure on Graeme Dott.

:27:05. > :27:42.APPLAUSE That's a good safety shot.

:27:43. > :27:49.CHUCKLES Well, that just shows you the speed

:27:50. > :27:52.of these tables. Graeme Dott was hoping to knock that read just past

:27:53. > :27:55.the middle pocket on the right-hand side and just look how far it has

:27:56. > :28:02.travelled, an extra five or six feet. I thought that was going to

:28:03. > :28:03.drop. The gravity is obviously stronger on the left-hand side of

:28:04. > :28:27.the table! He has played that nicely. Could

:28:28. > :28:32.have done with coming another couple of inches down for that red he is

:28:33. > :28:43.close to. He will come back for the black here. Well!

:28:44. > :28:57.REFEREE: Mark Williams, four. Wide that is unusual.

:28:58. > :29:08.Well, is there a possible plant here for Graeme Dott? He can certainly

:29:09. > :29:34.make the plant and he can stay on the black as well. Yeah, nice shot.

:29:35. > :29:59.Great chance, this, to claw another one back.

:30:00. > :30:10.There are certainly 20 of red is available. He doesn't have to do too

:30:11. > :30:12.much with the cue ball, it just keep it in cloaks proximity to the black

:30:13. > :30:27.every tiny pot to red. He has at least another 45 reds in

:30:28. > :30:35.the open. They should not have to worry about developing any.

:30:36. > :30:45.When you are so far ahead and the finishing line is there, do you get

:30:46. > :30:52.fidgety? You certainly do. Then your opponent decides to come back. Mark

:30:53. > :31:00.Williams will not take liberties. He wants to get out and back to his

:31:01. > :31:09.hotel and get ready for his next match. Once a player gets some are

:31:10. > :31:16.meant it is hard to stop. He won't be worried just yet. He is so far

:31:17. > :31:24.behind. He would be pressing any panic buttons. The worst thing you

:31:25. > :31:34.can do in any sport is take liberties. Sometimes it comes back

:31:35. > :31:39.to haunt you. Mark Williams is too old in the tooth to push the panic

:31:40. > :31:49.button but Graeme Dott has not played that shot very well. He is

:31:50. > :32:03.way off where he wanted to be. These are missable.

:32:04. > :32:19.He had the insurers of the red open ball. When good cannon into those

:32:20. > :32:25.bunch of reds. He does not have to hit these too hard. That will do

:32:26. > :32:49.nicely. This will be Graeme Dott's highest

:32:50. > :34:01.break of the match. That was frame ball. 63 points ahead

:34:02. > :34:27.and 59 left on the table. The cup of tea will taste nicer for

:34:28. > :34:31.the Graham. As he goes for his mid-session interval. He has put up

:34:32. > :34:34.a good fight in these last two frames. It has been an excellent

:34:35. > :35:03.break. Nice shot. Does the red below the

:35:04. > :35:13.pink pot? He tried to bring that red out. He will be hitting this around

:35:14. > :35:22.the table trying to forget. Calling all pockets! He would be bothered.

:35:23. > :35:27.He will be delighted with the 88 and the frame. The players go after the

:35:28. > :35:33.interval and its Mark Williams who still leads 9-4.

:35:34. > :35:40.He never knows when he is beaten. It is an awful long way back but signs

:35:41. > :35:44.of great improvement in the last couple of frames. A little bit slack

:35:45. > :35:50.from Mark Williams. He would have liked to have gotten that out of the

:35:51. > :35:58.way before the mid-session interval. The red he left only the middle

:35:59. > :36:03.pocket wasn't great. He has given himself more aggravation. At what

:36:04. > :36:10.point do the alarm bells ring in this situation? If a player gets to

:36:11. > :36:15.within four frames, you can win four frames against enemy. Mark will be

:36:16. > :36:21.looking to wrap it up as soon as he can. I see you have your cue in hand

:36:22. > :36:26.and that can mean only one thing. It means John Parrott is about to do

:36:27. > :36:39.his impression of Alexandra Armstrong or Leslie Crowther because

:36:40. > :36:44.it is hot quiz. Peter Ebdon it is your time to answer the five

:36:45. > :36:47.questions. Every question equals a red so if you get five questions

:36:48. > :36:52.right you can remove the five friends of the table. Concentrate on

:36:53. > :36:56.these and then you have two pot all the reds and finally the black

:36:57. > :37:04.against the clock. Steve Davis did it into bits and 11 seconds. He has

:37:05. > :37:11.just retired so I can't begin. That would be out of order. Who did you

:37:12. > :37:20.play on your Crucible debut in 1992? Steve Davis. Correct. When you won

:37:21. > :37:33.the title in 2002 who did you beat in the quarterfinal? Was it Anthony

:37:34. > :37:44.Hamilton? They could. Two out of two. What is your highest Crucible

:37:45. > :37:57.century break? I remember one year I think I shared the high break prize

:37:58. > :38:05.with 145. 144 in 19 96. Who was in the runner-up at the China open

:38:06. > :38:17.earlier this month? It was a tournament you played in. I think I

:38:18. > :38:28.got zero in the first round. Judd Trump on it. I cant remember who he

:38:29. > :38:35.bought. It was Ricky Walden. We are not allowing that. Which player have

:38:36. > :38:43.you met most times in your career? Is it John Higgins, Mark Williams,

:38:44. > :38:50.Steve Davis or Ronnie O'Sullivan? John Higgins. It is Ronnie

:38:51. > :38:57.O'Sullivan. 34 times. I must have won at least once. Did you get to?

:38:58. > :39:07.You can remove any two reds like off the table. I will take that one and

:39:08. > :39:10.that one. Your time will start when you strike the cue ball for the

:39:11. > :39:30.first time. There is no playing safe. What chance have got them? Are

:39:31. > :39:40.you ready? Starting now. One. This is brilliant. Look at this. He has

:39:41. > :39:57.snookered himself. This is a big shock. This could get there by fears

:39:58. > :40:11.they! Three. 30 seconds. You have had 30 seconds already. Oh no! The

:40:12. > :40:17.ones down the bottom should be good now. A little bit more to do when

:40:18. > :40:25.you get up this end but they will be close to the black so it's not all

:40:26. > :40:32.bad. One minute. You have had one minute. Are you putting all the reds

:40:33. > :40:41.appear to make it easier at the end? Looking good. Five reds left. Don't

:40:42. > :40:56.do that! I'm in trouble now. Left-handed, year we go. And a miss.

:40:57. > :41:03.Referee, what was that! I fancy you getting the next two. We are up to

:41:04. > :41:06.one minute and 30 seconds. Don't finish behind Steve Davis, you will

:41:07. > :41:19.never hear the end of it. This is perfect. I didn't know you could

:41:20. > :41:27.play left-handed. Quickly. Excellent. Getting ready for the

:41:28. > :41:39.black everybody. Two minutes. You have to be quick.

:41:40. > :42:04.Here we go. Two minutes and seven seconds. Peter Ebdon is in front.

:42:05. > :42:10.We have never seen him move so fast. That is the time to beat and we will

:42:11. > :42:15.have many more contenders in the coming days. Back to the serious

:42:16. > :42:19.stuff than the match on the other side of the arena which features the

:42:20. > :42:24.world on Mark Selby. That is the first chance we have had to see him.

:42:25. > :42:31.This is the man on the couple of years ago in spectacular fashion. He

:42:32. > :42:35.beat Ronnie O'Sullivan after coming back from three frames to wait down

:42:36. > :42:38.in that final. I don't know how much champagne was consumed that night

:42:39. > :42:53.but today's opponent Robert Milkins does like a cider. He has got the

:42:54. > :42:56.best walk on music of the lot. I am not getting any younger. I need to

:42:57. > :43:03.start doing well in tournaments now. I have only got a few years left

:43:04. > :43:10.probably to do well at the Crucible. This is probably one of my last

:43:11. > :43:16.chances so it's about time I started producing some good snooker. There

:43:17. > :43:23.is no place like it on the planet. As a snooker player playing at the

:43:24. > :43:26.Crucible in front of all those people, you feel they are on your

:43:27. > :43:32.back yard that close to you. It is very special. Sheffield is a nice

:43:33. > :43:38.places well. It does make you feel very special when people come up to

:43:39. > :43:45.you asking for your autograph and they realise you are a player.

:43:46. > :43:53.Probably the Neil Robertson came, that was the highlight. I played

:43:54. > :43:59.well against Mark in the last couple of tournaments. I have not had a bad

:44:00. > :44:02.career but he has had a fantastic one. He has gone from strength to

:44:03. > :44:11.strength. I am going to be the underdog but with a bit of luck

:44:12. > :44:15.maybe it will be my day. The world number one and 21 have not met often

:44:16. > :44:17.on the big occasion. That only confrontation the World

:44:18. > :44:22.Championships was in a qualifying match which Mark Selby on ten years

:44:23. > :44:27.ago. Mark has won the last three contests but don't forget Robert

:44:28. > :44:31.Milkins caused quite a stir here before, knocking out a big favourite

:44:32. > :44:37.Hugh Robertson in this opening round three years ago. He is a dangerous

:44:38. > :44:41.opponent. We are going to join them in the opening frame. Dark Selby is

:44:42. > :44:49.ten points up and commentary comes from John Virgo and Willie Thorne.

:44:50. > :44:59.Trying to plot his way out of trouble. A red has gone to the ball

:45:00. > :45:06.end with the cue ball. Did well to get the cue ball back near the ball

:45:07. > :45:18.cushion. Unfortunately the red came with it.

:45:19. > :45:24.In his previous safety shot he pushed the black to the side

:45:25. > :45:33.cushion. It will be tough to score 30 or 40 points here with the balls

:45:34. > :45:34.are. You could play the red in the middle and kiss the black down to

:45:35. > :45:59.the corner. He has got the angle. Would you play

:46:00. > :46:08.for the back. The problem is even if you get the kiss he is not bound to

:46:09. > :46:14.leave it on so it's too dangerous. Not trying to disturb the Blackburn

:46:15. > :46:25.playing on it. It would be a tough black along the cushion. He may be

:46:26. > :46:42.forced into playing for the black. That is not the best shot.

:46:43. > :46:56.He wants to play the green but is slightly hampered by the blue. There

:46:57. > :46:58.is a red the bottom of the cluster that will go to the right corner. He

:46:59. > :47:16.is OK. He plays with a very thick cue. He

:47:17. > :47:30.generates as much a spin as most people. Most people have a nine or

:47:31. > :47:52.ten millimetre cap. It is quite big that, John.

:47:53. > :48:04.We were saying why didn't he take the long red on but he decides to

:48:05. > :48:09.play the safety and as it turns out that the safety shot has set up this

:48:10. > :48:14.frame-winning chance. He has done well to get the pink in the so

:48:15. > :48:16.early. He can win this frame on pinks alone now. He will need at

:48:17. > :48:51.least six of these reds. He is one of those players that goes

:48:52. > :49:29.down and hits. Very natural. He is OK. He met the little cannon.

:49:30. > :49:31.He will probably play for the left -- for the pink into the left

:49:32. > :49:55.middle. If he gets another three reds and

:49:56. > :50:04.three pinks Mark Selby will need a snooker. This has been a good break.

:50:05. > :50:13.A series of little stands and screws. He has not had to move the

:50:14. > :50:19.white more than a foot. Very good. Yes and as we said he is very fluid

:50:20. > :50:22.around the table. It doesn't take him long to win a frame when he gets

:50:23. > :50:42.the chance. 15 seconds a shot. 52 points ahead and 51 remaining. He

:50:43. > :50:51.needs this reds to make absolutely certain. He has not got it so this

:50:52. > :51:02.frame is not over just yet. Mark Selby needs a snooker. Mark Selby

:51:03. > :51:09.won the next with a break of 54. In frame three Robert Milkins is about

:51:10. > :51:15.to edge ahead again. He's had a break of 50. Mark Selby with a 43.

:51:16. > :51:21.It has been scrappy but it is Robert Milkins on the verge of taking a 2-1

:51:22. > :51:25.lead. You can watch this one live on the red button for the moment that

:51:26. > :51:30.the man making his seventh appearance since 2002 Robert Milkins

:51:31. > :51:40.berry accomplished player and very quick player has taken a 2-1 lead.

:51:41. > :51:45.You can continue to watch that on the red button but there is mileage

:51:46. > :51:51.in the match between Mark Williams and Graeme Dott. The Welshman needs

:51:52. > :51:57.one more foray second-round appearance. The fire alarm has gone

:51:58. > :52:10.off so we will leave you in the hands of Ken and John.

:52:11. > :52:17.No alarm bells ringing just now for Mark Williams but should Graeme Dott

:52:18. > :52:27.get a few frames on the board it might get interesting. We do like to

:52:28. > :52:35.see a few twitches in the common shoe box. He is reminding Mark

:52:36. > :52:49.Williams that he is there. From 9-2 behind. Stats can often be

:52:50. > :52:54.misleading. Graeme Dott is out doing Mark in pot success and rest pox --

:52:55. > :53:43.rest pot success but he is 9-4 down. That one very close indeed to the

:53:44. > :54:00.pink. As it is it is a pretty good shot.

:54:01. > :54:14.This cue ball could be pretty good. He has left this red into the left

:54:15. > :54:24.corner. He may try and dislodge the pink away from the blue. It didn't

:54:25. > :54:28.go into the heart of the pocket. Went in on the near side and that is

:54:29. > :54:43.why the cue ball went into the pack of reds.

:54:44. > :54:50.His long potting has been good today, Graeme Dott. He just hasn't

:54:51. > :55:32.been able to build frame-winning breaks.

:55:33. > :55:45.That is a wonderful shot. Wonderful touch. Sometimes it can veer off if

:55:46. > :56:06.the table isn't totally level. He might end up playing a similar

:56:07. > :56:26.shot here. Just a containing safety shot. Just about. He has come to

:56:27. > :56:31.have a look. He has to be careful of the red over the left-hand corner

:56:32. > :57:27.pocket. Heat is not want to leave that. That is not hard enough.

:57:28. > :57:45.How unlucky is that? Fabulous long pot.

:57:46. > :57:51.He was in so much trouble he had to parties without but was very unlucky

:57:52. > :58:02.to going off in the middle. He has left the chance. That is pretty

:58:03. > :58:08.good. As you said, there is nothing wrong with his long potting but he

:58:09. > :58:12.needs the black open or the pink on its spot and the blue open as well

:58:13. > :58:36.if he is going to win the frame from this position.

:58:37. > :58:45.That is incredible. He tried support the cue ball in an area he thought

:58:46. > :58:54.he was going to be on two or three reds and he has ended up on the

:58:55. > :59:08.thing. It's hard to believe. How on earth as he done that? He is

:59:09. > :59:35.rattling in some terrific long reds but is not building on it.

:59:36. > :59:45.A similar error from Mark Williams. What has he left? He's got that red

:59:46. > :59:58.but where is the colour going to come from. Super shot. That is

:59:59. > :00:03.fantastic. He could not have hit that much better. Have a look at the

:00:04. > :00:34.cue ball here. Beautiful shot. Well, he is in no man's land again.

:00:35. > :00:40.He made part this red into the left centre, cannon into the reds just

:00:41. > :00:48.next to it and then possibly leave the red next to the blue or pink to

:00:49. > :00:51.the corner. A little cannon on this red here. Now he has left the blue

:00:52. > :01:22.into the green pocket. Is a pressure pot with the reds all

:01:23. > :01:45.over the place. Never looked like missing.

:01:46. > :01:50.Eventually he is going to have to try and get on that pink into the

:01:51. > :01:57.green pocket, similar shot to the blue he has just played. He will

:01:58. > :02:04.take this yellow and maybe go for the red that is closest to the pink

:02:05. > :02:11.spot. Get on the red next to the pink spot and if he can got -- if he

:02:12. > :02:16.has got angle... Well, that has just run on. He's having to work hard for

:02:17. > :03:06.these 14 points so far. That is actually not too bad, that

:03:07. > :03:10.little knuckle off the middle pocket, that has come nice. He

:03:11. > :03:19.wanted to be on the one on the pink spot.

:03:20. > :03:32.Almost willing the cue ball to be a bit straighter on this pink, wasn't

:03:33. > :04:02.he? Well, that's hard to believe and

:04:03. > :04:08.just synonymous with what has been happening to Graeme Dott in this

:04:09. > :04:14.match. He hasn't had the run. He has worked so hard for those 26 points

:04:15. > :04:19.with the cue ball all over the table but the position he has left itself

:04:20. > :04:23.in, he's smooth good on Allred 's. Easy to hit the red on the left-hand

:04:24. > :04:26.side of the table close to the cushion, but he would be running

:04:27. > :04:41.towards the right-hand corner pocket.

:04:42. > :05:31.APPLAUSE Pretty good.

:05:32. > :06:39.APPLAUSE Nice little tap on the table from

:06:40. > :06:48.Graeme Dott. Excellent weight on that safety shot. It has made it

:06:49. > :06:54.more difficult the fact that he has blocked the reds down the right side

:06:55. > :06:57.of the table. He will possibly try to play a little containing safety

:06:58. > :07:03.shot and leave the cue ball here on this top cushion. No. That's not too

:07:04. > :07:07.bad. Well worked out, that. Mark will want that lack back into play,

:07:08. > :07:29.I'm sure. -- that black. Again, excellent weight on the

:07:30. > :07:36.safety. He has played some good ones, hasn't he? He has had to. He

:07:37. > :07:45.has not ported a ball for 25 minutes now, Mark Williams.

:07:46. > :08:21.He may have left this red. The blue is waiting over the centre.

:08:22. > :08:26.Looks like he has a nice angle on the green just to get down onto the

:08:27. > :08:38.reds. Tried to come the other side, just

:08:39. > :08:51.didn't get enough right-hand side on it. This is a tough shot. Well,

:08:52. > :08:52.that's a fantastic shot. With the rest! Excellent shot from Mark

:08:53. > :09:18.Williams. Has Graeme Dott played his last shot

:09:19. > :09:30.in this year's Betfred World Championships? Mark Williams just

:09:31. > :09:42.coming round to see if the black bars pot. I'm sure it does go.

:09:43. > :09:55.He's had to be very patient, Mark Williams, for this opportunity to

:09:56. > :10:03.clinch frame and match. From 9-2. Graeme Dott started battling back in

:10:04. > :10:12.trademark fashion. But will he get another shot? It's very tight, isn't

:10:13. > :10:20.it, this black? He's had a few looks at it. Certainly the red below the

:10:21. > :10:22.black does pot. He would love to pot the red to the right of the black

:10:23. > :11:04.spot. He didn't like it. The only saving grace for Graeme

:11:05. > :11:09.Dott might be that red next to the black. He needs a nice angle on blue

:11:10. > :11:20.or pink here. He doesn't want to be straight.

:11:21. > :11:29.Well, he's got a little bad contact but what he wanted to do was pot the

:11:30. > :11:32.pink and play a snooker on the red, knock it up the table and play eight

:11:33. > :11:37.snooker behind the black. But he hasn't gone far enough. He got the

:11:38. > :11:51.snooker but not enough distance between red and cue ball.

:11:52. > :12:06.Needs a little bit of luck here, Graeme Dott, try and get a bit of

:12:07. > :12:07.distance between cue ball and red. That is not too bad. He would

:12:08. > :12:24.certainly settle for that. A tap of the table from mark this

:12:25. > :13:38.time. Well, he is shaping up to take this

:13:39. > :13:44.on. His long pot success has been pretty good, 80%.

:13:45. > :14:01.How does this look? Is it going to go over the left centre?

:14:02. > :14:26.Maybe a little bit too close to the green. He can... A bit awkward. Good

:14:27. > :14:43.shot. Eight points ahead. He's going to

:14:44. > :14:48.need yellow, green, brown and the blue. One good positional shot from

:14:49. > :15:08.the yellow here and it could be all over.

:15:09. > :15:17.The writing on the wall, it seems, now, for Graeme Dott.

:15:18. > :15:33.Well, it's been a magnificent performance from Mark Williams, has

:15:34. > :15:40.Graeme Dott looks on. He knows his championship for this year is over.

:15:41. > :15:43.He made a bit of a fight of it. He will be disappointed by his

:15:44. > :15:54.performance overall but I'm sure he will be back. 22 ahead now, just 13

:15:55. > :16:00.on the table. Mark Williams is going into the last 16 of this year's

:16:01. > :16:05.Betfred World Championship, as Graeme Dott gives him his hand and

:16:06. > :16:09.says congratulations, well done. What a magnificent performance from

:16:10. > :16:11.Mark Williams. The former champion is through to the last 16, ten

:16:12. > :16:19.frames to four. His 19th appearance, the 15th time

:16:20. > :16:23.he has got beyond round one but the first time for four years that he

:16:24. > :16:29.has done so. He has waited a long time. The boys described it as a

:16:30. > :16:33.magnificent performance, would you agree? Yes, he is just blessed with

:16:34. > :16:37.tremendous ring craft, he knows his way around the table. There's no one

:16:38. > :16:43.better when the balls are all awkward. He played shots other

:16:44. > :16:46.people wouldn't play. You sit there and you play him at times and you

:16:47. > :16:49.think he is in trouble here and the Bulls a shot out. When the frames

:16:50. > :16:54.are open he can do what everyone else does as well. He's a

:16:55. > :16:58.phenomenally good matchplay. I think you forget just how pre-eminent and

:16:59. > :17:04.dominant a player he was particularly in the early 2000s,

:17:05. > :17:08.2003, 2000 four. He won everything he was completely the dominant

:17:09. > :17:11.player of his era, wasn't he? Yes and he has always been a fantastic

:17:12. > :17:16.match player. It plays lots and lots of clever shots. He has two Mendis

:17:17. > :17:21.ring craft and he is a fantastic competitor as well. That is a great

:17:22. > :17:25.win for him because we all know that Graeme is such a tough match player

:17:26. > :17:30.and Mark really didn't get out of second gear there, I think he has a

:17:31. > :17:31.lot more to come. He will be playing either Neil Robertson or Michael

:17:32. > :17:38.Holt in the next round. Congratulations. Into the second

:17:39. > :17:42.round for the first time in four years. Still a bit of form in that

:17:43. > :17:48.frame, isn't there? Yes, I played quite well in that match. I just

:17:49. > :17:51.wanted to do myself justice. Last year was really bad. I've been

:17:52. > :17:55.working really hard, with my coach Lee Walker and I've played a lot

:17:56. > :17:59.better. I've made a lot of breaks and my safety was quite good and

:18:00. > :18:04.hopefully I can carry it on. You are an incredibly laid-back character.

:18:05. > :18:07.When we had a chat at the press day last Friday people were asking you

:18:08. > :18:12.what chance you have got and you even said to me no chance. But

:18:13. > :18:16.you're still a class, class act. Is that something you do just to

:18:17. > :18:19.lighten the moment, or having won it twice, are you genuinely relaxed

:18:20. > :18:25.about how you get on here? I think I'm just honest, really. I'm not

:18:26. > :18:30.going to stand here and say that I can win it, I'm not going to kid

:18:31. > :18:35.myself. But I'm still a good match for anybody. I've got as good chance

:18:36. > :18:39.as most of the competition. I'm 41 now, nearly as old as you, Rob!

:18:40. > :18:43.Eight days, you won't let me forget it! At an just enjoying it because

:18:44. > :18:49.you don't know how many times you're going to come back here. I enjoyed

:18:50. > :18:53.it out there. A word about Steve Davis, it was incredibly emotional

:18:54. > :18:55.yesterday and I'm sure you're someone who grew up watching him

:18:56. > :19:00.before you ended up playing him on the big stages. Yes, it's

:19:01. > :19:04.unbelievable what he's done, on and off the table. I was surprised by

:19:05. > :19:10.his announcement yesterday because I thought he retired five years ago, I

:19:11. > :19:13.didn't realise! But no, he is one of the best things ever to happen to

:19:14. > :19:17.snooker really, on and off the table. He has continued to be

:19:18. > :19:22.involved and there is nothing left to say about him that everyone else

:19:23. > :19:27.hasn't Reddy said, just nice things. The best of luck in the next round,

:19:28. > :19:39.always great to have you. Still smiling. Cheers! He always called

:19:40. > :19:43.Steve Davis Nug, he has always called him that, Nug. Lovely to hear

:19:44. > :19:47.great response from all the players and so many tweets of congratulation

:19:48. > :19:51.and warm wishes from everybody, it does gladden the heart a bit,

:19:52. > :19:56.doesn't it? Absolutely, we all think the world of Steve, he is an

:19:57. > :20:00.absolute legend and he's been such an ambassador. The deep respect all

:20:01. > :20:03.the players have got is just incredible and it shows what a

:20:04. > :20:07.special player he is, for everybody who knows him to feel like that. If

:20:08. > :20:14.he continues to play like this, Mark Williams, whoever gets through, what

:20:15. > :20:21.kind of game do you think he could play? As Peter says, are there a few

:20:22. > :20:25.more gears he could go to in this championship? He didn't really play

:20:26. > :20:32.when he turned up last year but I was really impressed with how he

:20:33. > :20:34.played us now. It looks on paper like it will get Neil Robertson in

:20:35. > :20:39.the next round which is another very tough test but if Mark plays as we

:20:40. > :20:42.know he can do come here is a tough match for everyone because he has

:20:43. > :20:46.got wonderful ring craft. He did mention the fact that when you get

:20:47. > :20:50.to 40, 41, you don't know how many times you will get back to the

:20:51. > :20:54.Crucible. Does that play a part in your thinking and perhaps your

:20:55. > :20:57.ambition levels? No matter what we say to the press, I think in our

:20:58. > :21:01.hearts we all still believe we can win and we think we can win the

:21:02. > :21:05.tournament. There aren't many players still playing the game if

:21:06. > :21:07.they didn't believe they could win another World Championship. Mark

:21:08. > :21:10.Williams would have every right to think he can win another World

:21:11. > :21:16.Championship because as he quite rightly says, on his day he is a

:21:17. > :21:21.great match for anybody. He probably is just so relaxed, he can walk down

:21:22. > :21:25.the corridor there and look at the list of winners and his name is

:21:26. > :21:29.there twice. No one is going to break in in the middle of the night

:21:30. > :21:33.and file your name of the trophy! Hit has won it before and he can

:21:34. > :21:36.still play. He is well still in this championship and that was a great

:21:37. > :21:41.performance from the Welshmen today. Mark Williams goes through for the

:21:42. > :21:45.first time in four years. We are going to turn our attention now to

:21:46. > :21:47.the Mark Selby Robert Milkins match. World in the one coming

:21:48. > :21:50.the Mark Selby Robert Milkins match. played a competitive match for five

:21:51. > :21:55.weeks and the last we saw he was two frames to one down against Robert

:21:56. > :22:03.Milkins. We're going to pick them up in frame four, and milking is

:22:04. > :22:05.trailing in this one 58 points -- 38 points to 51 and back we go to

:22:06. > :22:12.Willie and John. COMMENTATOR: If he gets a snooker

:22:13. > :22:17.here, Mark Selby is in big trouble. Just about got the snooker. We may

:22:18. > :22:55.have a new favourite for this frame. Mark Williams tried to get the same

:22:56. > :23:03.contact on the red, so it will be replaced. -- the thin contact. The

:23:04. > :23:08.first time around you always are on the side of hitting it too thin, you

:23:09. > :23:17.would rather missed it then hit it too thick. -- always err on that

:23:18. > :23:21.side. Played it well. Where is the cue ball going to finish?

:23:22. > :23:25.APPLAUSE Not quite the snooker, that would

:23:26. > :23:40.have been a bonus. But that is an excellent safety shot

:23:41. > :23:51.from Robert Milkins. He's certainly given as good as he gets in the

:23:52. > :23:55.safety exchanges. Yes, 85% success where Mark Selby is at 69, you would

:23:56. > :23:58.normally expect it to be the other way round. I'm not sure if he can

:23:59. > :24:04.get through to the potting angle next to the pink it might be worth

:24:05. > :24:09.taking on if he can, because he would be touching the pink very thin

:24:10. > :24:11.and getting the ball back into baulk. It must be very tight

:24:12. > :24:19.otherwise he wouldn't be playing this.

:24:20. > :24:26.Well, obviously he couldn't get to the potting angle of it. It has done

:24:27. > :24:31.reasonably well. If it trickles past the green, he has done unbelievably

:24:32. > :24:38.well. How do you like those apples? Unbelievable.

:24:39. > :24:45.Once again there, John, he hit the safety shot so thick. He was trying

:24:46. > :24:57.to get the white on the baulk cushion and the red somewhere near

:24:58. > :25:02.the left-hand side cushion. Now, obviously the blue or the brown is

:25:03. > :25:14.in the way of the one-cushion escape.

:25:15. > :25:27.It's not straightforward, this. Just trying to see what other shop is

:25:28. > :25:36.available. Is he thinking of coming off the jaw may be to try to hit the

:25:37. > :25:40.red? He will have no idea where the red or white wood finish if he hits

:25:41. > :25:44.that. Well, he's played it well. Basically what he has done is hit it

:25:45. > :25:53.with a lock of bottom to square it up. He played an excellent escape.

:25:54. > :26:00.Bottom squares the cue ball up and he would have thought for a moment

:26:01. > :26:04.it had gone safe, but not to be. Mark already looking at what kind of

:26:05. > :26:11.angle he needs on the yellow or the brown to get onto this last red that

:26:12. > :26:14.is down on the top cushion. Just watching this is gate again,

:26:15. > :26:30.excellent. But unfortunately he knocked the red safe.

:26:31. > :26:39.The brown is a good angle, the green is a good angle. Doesn't want to be

:26:40. > :27:05.straight on this next red. Needs to leave it three quarters ball.

:27:06. > :27:21.So he won't be winning the frame at this visit. 13 points is the lead.

:27:22. > :27:28.Never saw this as being a slow match, mainly because of the way

:27:29. > :27:34.Robert Milkins plays, very fluent. But no one is getting in and winning

:27:35. > :27:42.the frame in one visit. That always tends to lead to these safety

:27:43. > :27:46.battles. The average frame time is not great, is it? Some 20 minutes.

:27:47. > :28:00.Over 20 minutes a frame, that's unusual.

:28:01. > :28:13.Well, without the jaw, it's not a snooker. Robert Milkins will be

:28:14. > :28:26.wondering how long his bad luck is going to last for, here. The most

:28:27. > :28:31.obvious way to play this is to come off the right-hand side cushion but

:28:32. > :28:40.he is trying to come off to cushions, he could knock this red

:28:41. > :28:43.on. Well, it's a good hit. He has put his hand up and half apologised.

:28:44. > :29:15.What for, I don't know! Just not quite hard enough. He's

:29:16. > :29:29.just left an edge of this red sticking out.

:29:30. > :29:36.I know what he's thinking. He's thinking if he catches this half

:29:37. > :29:38.ball quarter ball there is a chance he could leave it on for the right

:29:39. > :29:50.corner. -- half ball or quarter ball. But it

:29:51. > :29:54.has been noticeable in this match that Robert has been taking that

:29:55. > :30:02.extra bit of time to think about a shot. So far it has stood him in

:30:03. > :30:03.good stead. His average shot time 20 seconds, for Robert Milkins that is

:30:04. > :30:25.very pedestrian! Well, that is a shot that I don't

:30:26. > :30:30.really know what he was trying to play because the most important

:30:31. > :30:33.thing in this situation is to leave distance between cue ball and object

:30:34. > :30:34.ball and he was never going to get that, playing it that way for some

:30:35. > :30:39.strange. These are always very difficult to

:30:40. > :31:27.keep safe. He plays it up and down. That is just about as good as he

:31:28. > :31:38.could have played. He will be pretty pleased with that outcome.

:31:39. > :32:09.For a moment Mark thought he'd got this red. Didn't leave a pot on.

:32:10. > :32:33.Another good safety shot from Robert.

:32:34. > :32:41.Another slice of good fortune for Mark Selby. This is a big swerve.

:32:42. > :33:32.Played it well. He's had a look, it's a very thin

:33:33. > :33:39.cup, this. -- a very thin. He's got it. Is he going to be on a colour?

:33:40. > :33:45.He is on a colour, he's on the green. Just over 30 minutes. That's

:33:46. > :33:50.how long the frame has been going so far. Robert Milkins won't mind that,

:33:51. > :33:53.if he can make the most of this opportunity, going into the

:33:54. > :34:00.mid-session interval with a 3-1 lead.

:34:01. > :34:14.Still just about on this yellow. Played it well, played it well.

:34:15. > :34:29.Loads of Czech side on the yellow to slow the cue ball down. -- check

:34:30. > :34:40.side. When he plays the brown, the points will be all square. That is a

:34:41. > :34:54.disappointing positional shot. That is poor.

:34:55. > :35:10.-- Robert Milkins. Good safety, but if he loses his

:35:11. > :35:18.frame, Robert Milkins, he will be disappointed.

:35:19. > :35:23.Mark, at the moment, cannot get the safety shots right. It is only

:35:24. > :35:25.because of the bit of good fortune he is getting these balls safe, it's

:35:26. > :36:09.not skill. That is a lot better safety shot.

:36:10. > :36:13.This is not straightforward to get safe. If he plays the cushion first

:36:14. > :36:24.the blue is just far enough away from the cushion to be a difficult

:36:25. > :36:28.shot. I don't think he played the pot, he played the snooker. What a

:36:29. > :36:34.good effort this is, as well. He seems to be winning the safety

:36:35. > :36:39.battles at the moment. Yeah, but unless he goes into the mid-session

:36:40. > :36:40.interval with a 3-1 advantage he won't feel like he's been winning

:36:41. > :37:11.them. I think he can hit plenty of the

:37:12. > :37:17.blue. Decided to come off the ball cushion first and nest behind it.

:37:18. > :37:24.That, to me, gives the advantage to his opponent. I will be amazed if he

:37:25. > :37:32.is not snookered after the next shot. Maybe the thin safety shot

:37:33. > :37:46.will leave it down this left-hand corner. A strange choice, that was.

:37:47. > :37:53.Well, he decided not to play the snooker and played an excellent

:37:54. > :37:57.safety. His intention must try to bring the pink just away from the

:37:58. > :38:12.cushion. Both players need blue and pink.

:38:13. > :38:33.He couldn't have played that much better, excellent shot.

:38:34. > :38:39.And a good reply from Mark. It's all about the blue now. The pink is in

:38:40. > :38:52.the open. This is a bit risky. He has played

:38:53. > :39:02.the blue nicely. Hasn't got the best cue ball.

:39:03. > :39:10.The problem here for Mark, if he decides to send the blue up and down

:39:11. > :39:14.the table he has to be careful he doesn't run the blue into the black,

:39:15. > :39:18.because that would stop the blue and possibly leave it to the right

:39:19. > :39:29.middle. You wouldn't want to be taking the pot on, that's for sure.

:39:30. > :39:35.He is going to play it cushion first perhaps and cut the blue fin, but if

:39:36. > :39:40.you cut it to thin it just stays over the pocket. He is taking a look

:39:41. > :39:46.at the pot, maybe he is taking it on. If he can't play anything else

:39:47. > :39:48.it is as good as anything. But what's the odds of him potting this

:39:49. > :40:06.at pace? One in ten. Oh, well! What a cracker. Deserves

:40:07. > :40:12.to win any frame. Robert Milkins will be distraught. He has had

:40:13. > :40:17.chances in all four frames. At worst he should have been 3-1, but Mark

:40:18. > :40:24.Selby has found his way with an amazing blue to level the scores.

:40:25. > :40:27.2-2 at the interval. What an important shot that was on the world

:40:28. > :40:32.number one and one the two of you likes rather a lot. There's no doubt

:40:33. > :40:36.for me this is the shot the championship so far. The situation

:40:37. > :40:40.Mark Selby is in, looking at this, Willie Thorne said an commentary

:40:41. > :40:45.there is only one other shot he can play to get safe. Sometimes what you

:40:46. > :40:49.do is play from there to fare, try and clip it, come off the cue ball

:40:50. > :40:53.there and come down to here. The chances are you slip off the blue

:40:54. > :40:57.slightly, because of the top ocean and you get to safety. But I

:40:58. > :41:02.thought, maybe that's not on. Yes, if you caught the blue tooth then he

:41:03. > :41:10.could have put it over the green pocket. To take the blue on was an

:41:11. > :41:15.incredible shot. -- the blue to thin. Where he hit the cue ball, it

:41:16. > :41:20.didn't even seem to be the top of the white. He was cueing down quite

:41:21. > :41:24.low. 80 touch of right-hand side and as he went through the cue ball he

:41:25. > :41:30.seemed to raise his cue ball. What an incredible shot. It is definitely

:41:31. > :41:38.worth seeing again. He doesn't look like he's right on top of the white.

:41:39. > :41:44.A touch of right-hand side. Up and straight through. If I was Robert

:41:45. > :41:51.sitting in that chair I would be sick. A one in ten chance. Not just

:41:52. > :41:56.sitting in his seat but hacked into stew on it in the interval. We will

:41:57. > :42:01.be going back live to that match shortly. If you are just coming in

:42:02. > :42:05.from work or school, hello. This is what you have been missing this

:42:06. > :42:11.morning and this afternoon. We have been an essence 10am. Two CV Rocket

:42:12. > :42:15.go through to the second round. It was not a struggle but he was made

:42:16. > :42:22.to work hard by a very game Dave Gilbert. He gave a great account of

:42:23. > :42:26.himself today. He said it was the best he had ever played in his press

:42:27. > :42:31.conference and lost, but lost he has. O'Sullivan goes through. One

:42:32. > :42:36.century from each. The 60th win for Ronnie O'Sullivan at the Crucible.

:42:37. > :42:39.Crucially he refused to do any press or media interviews afterwards and

:42:40. > :42:43.has been referred to the disciplinary committee as a result,

:42:44. > :42:52.because all players are obliged to chat about their games afterwards.

:42:53. > :42:57.And other significant results. John Higgins, 7-2 up on the world number

:42:58. > :43:05.20, Ryan Day. He hit three centuries and two other 70 plus breaks in nine

:43:06. > :43:09.frames. He is a 20 yard in one shot before this championship started and

:43:10. > :43:11.that was extremely impressive from Higgins this afternoon. They come

:43:12. > :43:23.back tomorrow afternoon to finish off that match. -- was a 20-1 shot.

:43:24. > :43:34.If all the lights trained on just one table now and it is the table

:43:35. > :43:44.that features Mark Selby and Rob Milkins. Back to Willie Thorne and

:43:45. > :43:52.John Virgo. COMMENTATOR: Mark Selby will be a bit disappointed, a

:43:53. > :43:58.cracking red, but then missed the green in the middle. We saw the blue

:43:59. > :44:07.he potted in the last frame, you would fancy him to pot any ball

:44:08. > :44:12.after that. No flashes please. Office they didn't think the flash

:44:13. > :44:18.was on, but put Robert Milkins off, facing that way. He has not had the

:44:19. > :44:26.best of luck Robert... Unless the black pots. As I said in commentary,

:44:27. > :44:31.he should have easily been 3-1 in front if not 4-1 in front the the

:44:32. > :44:35.first four frames went. But that could be a big piece of luck, I

:44:36. > :44:42.think the black might be on. I don't know. Too tight? I think if he could

:44:43. > :44:47.get to the right-hand side of the cue ball, he might be able to turn

:44:48. > :44:54.back over, but striking down... I don't fancy it. But it begs the

:44:55. > :44:57.question, what else can he do? Just run off the black fin on the

:44:58. > :45:01.left-hand side and leave the white on this top cushion, containing

:45:02. > :45:08.safety. Can't do a lot here, that's for sure.

:45:09. > :45:24.The reds are spread far and wide. Whoever gets the next chance will

:45:25. > :45:52.have a good chance to score heavily. Just had a quick glance to see if he

:45:53. > :45:56.could leave the cue ball on the ball cushion and not leave that red on,

:45:57. > :46:04.but he's decided it's too dangerous. This has all the tell-tale signs of

:46:05. > :46:08.a stalemate, really. And immediately both players look at one another and

:46:09. > :46:12.say, look, this is going nowhere. Nobody would want to risk leaving

:46:13. > :46:19.that red to the far corner pocket. So, good thinking.

:46:20. > :46:30.So, Brendan Moore is having to set the balls up. There you go, they've

:46:31. > :46:34.got, as Hazel said, the arena to themselves. All noise, the applause

:46:35. > :46:40.and everything, will be created by the two players on this table. There

:46:41. > :46:44.is nothing worse when you're playing the shot and somebody plays a good

:46:45. > :46:46.shot on the other side and there is a big raw just as you're about to

:46:47. > :47:54.hit the ball. -- a big roar. Very similar pot he left at the

:47:55. > :48:00.previous break off. This time he couldn't see enough of it to take it

:48:01. > :48:04.on. Five more frames in this opening session. But I think they might

:48:05. > :48:09.struggle to get all five in. The safety play has been very, very

:48:10. > :48:14.good. But I think they will have to take them off around 6:20pm. Could

:48:15. > :48:31.maybe get another three frames in... I have never been taken off in my

:48:32. > :48:52.life, John, in a match. Mean either. I have been booed off. Booed off!

:48:53. > :49:02.A cracking pot. Needs that cue ball to stop short of the balkline, but

:49:03. > :49:08.it hasn't done. He's not on a colour. A good, solid pot. Yellow

:49:09. > :49:26.ball. Mark Selby, one.

:49:27. > :49:29.It looks like he has snookered Robert on all the reds, but

:49:30. > :49:49.shouldn't be too difficult to escape this. A big target.

:49:50. > :49:56.Slightly hampered, would like to play at off the red next to the

:49:57. > :50:06.black and spin the white around three cushions, to, to the green. He

:50:07. > :50:38.is hampered. Not good enough, again. He's done about three times today.

:50:39. > :50:47.I thought that red would run into another ball. It turns out it has

:50:48. > :50:55.become available. Mark just having a look, if he pots this red and goes

:50:56. > :51:01.for the black, where would it go? If it doesn't hold it will be on the

:51:02. > :51:08.yellow spot, and he doesn't particularly want that to happen.

:51:09. > :51:11.Some noise, I don't know if it's a phone... Did the right thing, get

:51:12. > :51:28.up, start again. Didn't hear that well. Didn't get

:51:29. > :51:32.any action at all on the cue ball. I'm a little surprised he didn't

:51:33. > :51:38.play for a baulk colour rather than risk playing for the black. I

:51:39. > :51:47.thought he played the runs through. -- the run through.

:51:48. > :52:03.He has the red to the different. Getting down and playing it very

:52:04. > :52:15.quickly. This is tricky. I suppose, OK, wrong side of the

:52:16. > :52:21.blue, but with the yellow not being on its spot it would be easy to get

:52:22. > :52:27.up and down. Just sign, since the interval, that he's picking up his

:52:28. > :52:32.pace a little bit. Yes, I think he's realised the only reason he lost

:52:33. > :52:36.those four frames was Mark Selby stayed with him all the time and

:52:37. > :52:39.Mark Selby hasn't played well at all in the first four frames. Probably

:52:40. > :52:43.feels he will have to quicken up and dominate the game if he can.

:52:44. > :52:48.Obviously it will be tough against Selby. But you're right, a quicker

:52:49. > :52:54.pace now full stops goodness me, that's what he's always prone to do,

:52:55. > :53:00.Robert Milkins. Always prone to miss an easy one. Yes, from nowhere. Some

:53:01. > :53:06.might say it's because he got down to quick, but he is a quick player.

:53:07. > :53:12.Disappointed to have missed that. It doesn't look as though it's going to

:53:13. > :53:16.cost him anything. He's not left a red on. The red he played on cannot

:53:17. > :53:21.go into the pocket because the black is in the way.

:53:22. > :53:32.Into the fifth frame and every frame Robert Milkins has got in first.

:53:33. > :53:38.This is wedding begins to hurt you if Mark Selby keeps pinching frames

:53:39. > :53:49.off you, when you note you've had a chance. -- when you know. If he's

:53:50. > :53:53.covered the safety shot down the right-hand side of the table, then

:53:54. > :54:07.that's put Mark in a little bit of bother here.

:54:08. > :54:31.He's played that well, that was a good shot.

:54:32. > :54:55.I think he may be snookered here on all the reds. OK, can think of

:54:56. > :54:59.nestling on the red closest to the top cushion. If you can get past the

:55:00. > :55:19.green. On that virtual image, that's what

:55:20. > :55:20.you'd be thinking of. Got to be a little bit wary he doesn't run

:55:21. > :55:32.across the red. Well, OK, he's hit it, but that red

:55:33. > :55:38.to the right of the pink is available into the left middle. Is

:55:39. > :55:44.it worth having a go at? The problem is, the cue ball is possibly going

:55:45. > :55:49.to kiss into the yellow. And, he doesn't know where the whites going

:55:50. > :55:54.to end up. He needs to try and get onto the black. To clear that

:55:55. > :56:02.pocket. I think I would be playing the pot, wouldn't you? Without a

:56:03. > :56:07.doubt. It it that little bit harder to avoid the kiss on the yellow. OK,

:56:08. > :56:11.he's given up the position on the black by doing that, but with the

:56:12. > :56:19.yellow off its spot, the blue can get down to these reds. Good pot.

:56:20. > :56:29.Plenty of reds that go to the right corner.

:56:30. > :56:37.He's not played this well. That's the last thing he wanted. Just had

:56:38. > :56:46.to keep it down the left-hand side of the table. Six.

:56:47. > :56:52.As you say, with the yellow not being on its spot, no excuse for not

:56:53. > :56:59.getting position there. There are three all four red Sea could have

:57:00. > :57:03.played for. He is eyeing up here, can he get through to the red can

:57:04. > :57:16.squeeze it past the black? Surely not... He must be able to hit enough

:57:17. > :57:33.of the end red of that cluster. He thinks he can pot it. Hmm. What ever

:57:34. > :57:37.happens in this session now, whatever the scoreline is, he knows

:57:38. > :57:42.he has had every chance, in every frame so far. You do end up getting

:57:43. > :57:43.frustrated when chance after chance you don't score enough to win the

:57:44. > :58:06.frame. It looks like the blue has covered

:58:07. > :58:11.the safety back to baulk, or does it? Maybe he can just get past it.

:58:12. > :58:16.The way his body language was, I thought he couldn't get to that red.

:58:17. > :58:24.That was a simple safety. He's played it excellently.

:58:25. > :58:33.The big problem for Mark, cannot afford to hit one thick because here

:58:34. > :58:38.will hit the black. Not guaranteed to get away with this one. This red

:58:39. > :58:43.could go right over the corner. He's played it as well as he could. Yes,

:58:44. > :59:10.I agree, couldn't have played it any better than that.

:59:11. > :59:17.A straightforward shot, if he can get past the blue, down the

:59:18. > :59:23.right-hand side of the table. That's how he played it. Didn't play the

:59:24. > :59:28.pot, played it off the top cushion side cushion, and played it well. I

:59:29. > :59:31.must say, I've been very impressed with his safety play today.

:59:32. > :59:34.Amazingly enough he has had the better of the exchanges in the

:59:35. > :59:40.safety department. You can quite clearly see, in front of Mark Selby.

:59:41. > :59:44.And it appears more than that, the more the match has gone on. But

:59:45. > :59:58.sometimes the stats can be a little deceiving.

:59:59. > :00:43.That took a bit of a bounce off the cushion.

:00:44. > :00:52.Not so easy to get back into baulk this time. May have to leave the

:00:53. > :00:56.white at this end of the table, just play the red up and down, but he

:00:57. > :01:00.seems to have found an alternative to that. Just missing the kiss on

:01:01. > :01:10.the pink, trying to get it back to baulk. And once again, judged to

:01:11. > :01:17.perfection. Yes, excellent shot. It's one of those... I don't think

:01:18. > :01:22.there's a safety shot here for Mark, or a return to baulk. He may be

:01:23. > :01:25.forced into playing the pot on the right-hand side of the table. And

:01:26. > :01:30.harmony times have you done that and got your opponent in trouble, you

:01:31. > :01:36.think, and they just pull out a pot from nowhere? And he is full set to

:01:37. > :01:39.play this pot, I think. The blue in the previous frame, that was the

:01:40. > :01:42.same situation. You work out, can you get safe or is it better to go

:01:43. > :01:55.the pot? Well, he decided that he could avoid

:01:56. > :02:05.the double-kiss. By an absolute fraction. Yeah. Not the best cue

:02:06. > :02:08.ball, though, of course. Robert Milkins will hope for a better

:02:09. > :02:19.safety shot than that. APPLAUSE

:02:20. > :02:24.I think Robert Milkins's safety, he has not had a shot where he has left

:02:25. > :02:32.it more than about three inches away from the cushion, on that kind of

:02:33. > :02:39.shot. No. As you said a few times, so find this match, to be still at

:02:40. > :02:42.two each, he's not getting his rewards for that kind of safety

:02:43. > :02:49.because when he is getting the chances he's not taking them. I was

:02:50. > :02:53.going to say he has won the safety battle by Mark knocking a red over

:02:54. > :02:59.the corner but the other red has got in the way. There you see it. The

:03:00. > :03:13.red just covering the potting angle. Of course he will be very concerned

:03:14. > :03:21.about leaving that red there, but what can he do about it? Hoping to

:03:22. > :03:26.get the cover, and I tell you what, that is absolutely brilliant, the

:03:27. > :03:32.way he has played that. Well worth a tap on the table. Superb shot.

:03:33. > :03:43.Just wondering, John, with the red above the black spot will cut by the

:03:44. > :03:48.black. He can play it. Just coming to look at the potting angle now.

:03:49. > :03:54.The only problem with this, John, he's got to hit it hard enough to

:03:55. > :04:01.get the red away from where it is now, which means the cue ball will

:04:02. > :04:04.have to come in and out of baulk. He couldn't really get that top

:04:05. > :04:08.cushion. But look at this as a result.

:04:09. > :04:23.It's one of those moments where you would love to know what is going on

:04:24. > :04:32.in the players's minds will study would love to know what is going on

:04:33. > :04:40.in Robert's mind. The last five shots, Robert has been very close to

:04:41. > :04:48.the cushion and Mark Selby very close to the baulk line, and somehow

:04:49. > :04:53.he has won the safety battle. If Robert Milkins can't get this safe,

:04:54. > :04:58.Mark Selby will be favourite for the frame.

:04:59. > :05:09.REFEREE: Foul and a miss. Mark Selby four. A good effort. Obviously Mark

:05:10. > :05:21.Selby will have it replaced, but that was a good effort.

:05:22. > :05:32.The way that cue ball went there, he has the play this with an awful lot

:05:33. > :05:38.of right-hand side on. That's the line he had last time. If he leaves

:05:39. > :05:43.it a fraction too hard, he goes by the red and leaves the pot on. This

:05:44. > :06:10.looks not bad. If it reaches, it is good. But as he left the red on?

:06:11. > :06:19.Well, this isn't vintage Mark Selby by any means. There is another good

:06:20. > :06:41.chance for Robert Milkins. Well, it if he's not on the black,

:06:42. > :06:47.he's on nothing. You have to say, he had such a margin for error. Just

:06:48. > :06:56.get past the blue spot. The only thing you can't do is finish short.

:06:57. > :06:59.As you said earlier, his positional play, there aren't any stats for

:07:00. > :07:05.that but his positional play has left a little bit to be desired. But

:07:06. > :07:10.can he get through to pot the green? REFEREE: Green ball. He did, where

:07:11. > :07:23.is the cue ball going! Oh! That's unlucky! He has had a

:07:24. > :07:30.disastrous run of the ball, hasn't he, these first five frames. Saying

:07:31. > :07:35.that, he is on this red. But not quite! Once again, that is typical

:07:36. > :07:41.Robert, wondering what he is on, that is -- was a tricky shot and

:07:42. > :07:45.before you know where you are here down and playing it. Just needed

:07:46. > :07:48.maybe a second or two more thought into that, but so close to dropping.

:07:49. > :08:49.But only the head dropped. Just over two powers played, which

:08:50. > :08:53.is a bit vestry and really considering we are in the fifth

:08:54. > :08:57.frame, but there has been an awful lot of safety in this match and some

:08:58. > :09:01.very good safety. Robert has been winning every safety battle but just

:09:02. > :09:03.not scoring when he gets in. Mark Selby will think it's his birthday

:09:04. > :10:22.if he goes 3-2 in front. Seems to be getting a bit of rhythm

:10:23. > :10:26.now, Mark, because we know he is not a slow player when he gets in the

:10:27. > :10:31.balls, he plays very quickly. His shot time at the minute is about 26

:10:32. > :10:36.seconds, but normally about 20 when he is playing at his best. Belkin

:10:37. > :10:41.'s's is normally about 15 or 16 seconds. It's been one of those

:10:42. > :10:52.matches where nothing has retaken off as of yet. --

:10:53. > :12:09.This link would put him 29 points in front. -- this link. Another red and

:12:10. > :12:14.a pink or black would be sufficient. He just wants that to stop before

:12:15. > :12:21.the cushion. Couldn't have played it better. Could not have played it any

:12:22. > :12:26.better. Red and a black would put him 37 points in front with 35

:12:27. > :12:31.remaining. And it looks like he's laying it round the back of the

:12:32. > :12:51.black. Surely he can hold it for the black in the opposite corner?

:12:52. > :13:00.Well, the pink will do. It will put him 36 in front with 35 remaining. I

:13:01. > :13:07.think just roll the pink into the left middle.

:13:08. > :13:17.Well, he has missed frame ball! He has missed frame all. That wasn't

:13:18. > :13:23.the best positional shot, off that second last red. So Robert Milkins

:13:24. > :14:10.not out of this frame yet. Yes, got to hit this and get it

:14:11. > :14:16.safe. Good hit. This cue ball could go behind the black. Just a bit

:14:17. > :14:18.pacey, but is the red going to go near the baulk cushion? He will

:14:19. > :14:32.settle for that! Not too bad when they are tight on

:14:33. > :14:38.the cushion, you can use lots of left-hand side to slow the white

:14:39. > :14:43.down. Got to make sure the red doesn't go over the left-hand

:14:44. > :14:46.corner. He hit that terribly. That's probably the worst safety shot he's

:14:47. > :15:09.played and he got away with it. He hit that so badly.

:15:10. > :15:17.Well, he can just about hit this red.

:15:18. > :15:37.Oh! I thought the red was going to kiss the white then and not it in --

:15:38. > :15:50.and knock it in. Just the red needed for Mark. If he screws back onto the

:15:51. > :15:55.baulk cushion in behind the brown somewhere, it might be worth taking

:15:56. > :15:59.the red on. He knows it's going to at least jaw. I think he's thinking

:16:00. > :16:03.about that now, looking at the scoreboard. Red needed to get to the

:16:04. > :16:18.snooker is required stage. Well, he has not got the snooker

:16:19. > :16:21.behind the blue, but that pink is on the right-hand side cushion. He's

:16:22. > :16:29.got to be very careful here. He didn't avoid the pink. And once he

:16:30. > :16:33.didn't avoid the pink, every chance he was going to leave this last red

:16:34. > :16:39.on and that is all that Mark Selby needs.

:16:40. > :16:48.APPLAUSE He made certain of it. Didn't bother

:16:49. > :16:56.about position. Now 31 points the lead, 27 remaining.

:16:57. > :17:04.I think he will just roll up to the green here. No pot on. Just make

:17:05. > :17:17.certain of the snooker. Well, he's not doing.

:17:18. > :17:26.Where is the blue ball going? Where is that blue going? Well, a bit

:17:27. > :17:30.harder and it would be in the pocket. One snooker to tie, that is

:17:31. > :17:53.what is needed. Well, he has left a path to this

:17:54. > :18:27.yellow. Well... He nearly got the snooker.

:18:28. > :18:31.He has had a fair run of the ball, has Mark. He needs it, the way he's

:18:32. > :18:39.playing. He's not playing well at all. The beauty of Mark Selby,

:18:40. > :18:42.though, is that he can win a match when he's playing bad and there are

:18:43. > :19:04.not many players in the world who can do that.

:19:05. > :19:22.Just to remind you, one four point snooker to tie.

:19:23. > :19:28.He would have liked to play it harder to get closer to the black

:19:29. > :19:29.but he knew if he played it harder the yellow would be going over the

:19:30. > :19:48.middle. Every frame, John, someone has got

:19:49. > :19:53.in with a 50 or 60 break and then every frame seems to have been about

:19:54. > :19:56.safety with the last few colours. That is what happens when no one

:19:57. > :19:58.wins the frame in one visit. Just about got the snooker but an easy

:19:59. > :20:15.swerve. Yeah, it's been the middle to the

:20:16. > :20:21.end of the frame that has been taking the time and this is another.

:20:22. > :20:23.We have already had one go to the 37th minute and this one in the 34th

:20:24. > :20:42.minute now. I would say this is a typical first

:20:43. > :20:47.round Crucible match. It's hard to explain to people, isn't it, what

:20:48. > :20:55.tension you can have when you're playing at the Crucible against one

:20:56. > :21:01.of the seeded players. It's a bit of a no-win situation sometimes. He

:21:02. > :21:04.judged that one nicely. Yes, he has got the snooker.

:21:05. > :21:14.Shouldn't be a problem off two cushions, but if he misses it he

:21:15. > :21:16.could come close to hitting the pink. If he misses it, he could

:21:17. > :21:41.leave a free ball. I mean, obviously he can pot the

:21:42. > :21:50.green but if he pops the green and starts playing snooker is on the

:21:51. > :21:57.brown, he has got less balls to find the snookers behind. Trying to get

:21:58. > :21:58.in behind the black but that is a bit pacey. He needs the pink to come

:21:59. > :22:35.to his rescue. It has done. Well, he was deciding to pot the

:22:36. > :22:40.brown and then he only needs one snooker on the blue, but tempting to

:22:41. > :23:12.keep the brown in play there. Where's the cue ball going? That's

:23:13. > :23:23.the end of this frame. REFEREE: Frame conceded. Robert

:23:24. > :23:27.Milkins says his concession to the referee and he has been the better

:23:28. > :23:29.player but is behind three frames to two.

:23:30. > :23:35.STUDIO That was a 36 minutes frame and we

:23:36. > :23:41.had a 30 sex minute frame before. It's a bit more, you use the word

:23:42. > :23:45.pedestrian, then we imagined. I half suspected Mark Wood struggle in the

:23:46. > :23:52.opening session because he has not had any matchplay for five weeks.

:23:53. > :23:56.He's coming right back into the matchplay arena. That is the one of

:23:57. > :24:00.the things with Mark Selby, this will do him some good and blow a

:24:01. > :24:03.feud cobwebs away in the opening session. Obviously he will need to

:24:04. > :24:06.improve. He has pulled out of the last couple of tournaments for

:24:07. > :24:10.personal reasons and Peter, how long does it take to find your feet when

:24:11. > :24:13.you have had five weeks off in effect without competitive play? To

:24:14. > :24:17.be perfectly honest, I think that all depends on what he has been

:24:18. > :24:21.going through off the table. We all know that can make a big difference

:24:22. > :24:27.to how you approach things and how you feel mentally about things but

:24:28. > :24:30.there won't be many people better prepared for this tournament than

:24:31. > :24:34.Mark Selby. I must add that more Robert Milkins has had plenty of

:24:35. > :24:38.chances and he had outplayed Mark Selby in the safety exchanges, which

:24:39. > :24:42.you wouldn't expect, and he will be disappointed to be 3-2 down at this

:24:43. > :24:51.juncture. How dangerous is Robert Milkins as a player? Is he someone

:24:52. > :24:55.you don't enjoy facing? He is so naturally gifted it's unbelievable.

:24:56. > :24:59.He just gets down and knocks the pink in as if it is over the pocket.

:25:00. > :25:04.You mention that match with Neil Robertson and I think he came of age

:25:05. > :25:07.then. His all-round matchplay and that was brilliant. I think he went

:25:08. > :25:14.up a step there and he has been a top player since then. We will get

:25:15. > :25:16.back to the match. The current world number 21, Robert Milkins, up

:25:17. > :25:25.against the world number one. I totally agree with the studio,

:25:26. > :25:37.Robert Milkins will be kicking himself he is not in front. He could

:25:38. > :25:38.have been 5-0 up after that first session, honestly. It has been a

:25:39. > :26:32.weird match. He left a shot to nothing on. Not

:26:33. > :26:43.spotting the long ones like he normally does, Robert, as he, John?

:26:44. > :26:44.No, that was quite disappointing that one, not much pressure on it

:26:45. > :26:51.and he courted much too thin. That is a good safety shot from

:26:52. > :27:08.Mark. That is about the first time Mark

:27:09. > :27:13.Selby has found the baulk cushion! Normally he finds it every single

:27:14. > :27:17.shot! Careful here, those two reds on the right-hand side of the table,

:27:18. > :27:41.got to avoid running into them. A bit pacey with that one.

:27:42. > :28:16.Cute this nicely, though. I thought he was going to be better... Well,

:28:17. > :28:20.he can cut this red to the middle but I'm not sure where the colour

:28:21. > :28:28.comes from. In potting it, he is surely bound to run into the red on

:28:29. > :28:31.the side cushion. If he screws to miss it, he's going to go into the

:28:32. > :28:36.pack, so he's not necessarily going to get on a colour here. So in the

:28:37. > :28:52.end he just made certain of the red. Well, he's not been cueing great.

:28:53. > :28:56.Normally in practice you would knock these in ten out of ten but he has

:28:57. > :29:00.been struggling at this kind of shot. That one was right into the

:29:01. > :29:02.heart of the pocket and he has played it well. Well, that was a

:29:03. > :29:09.terrific pot. It really was. He seems to like the blue in that

:29:10. > :29:26.pocket. It's that type of shot that he

:29:27. > :29:30.played on the blue when he could have easily ducked out of it and

:29:31. > :29:35.played safe, but it just shows you maybe the fact now that he has

:29:36. > :29:41.settled into the match, he's just getting a bit more confidence. He

:29:42. > :29:45.may just play the little cannon into the red to slow the cue ball down.

:29:46. > :29:47.He can hold for the black but he might as well push the red out of

:29:48. > :29:57.the way. A little bit more purpose in his

:29:58. > :30:31.stride now, it appears. This black is a little more

:30:32. > :30:38.difficult than he wanted, nothing seems to be portable in the

:30:39. > :30:42.left-hand corner. Played for the one in the middle. -- nothing seems to

:30:43. > :30:56.be pottable. Nice angle on the blue. A couple of

:30:57. > :31:17.reds available to the right corner. 69 the target. He's got 42 of them.

:31:18. > :31:25.That's to get to the snooker 's required stage.

:31:26. > :31:31.This is normal Mark Selby pace now. He's done very well to be 3-2 in

:31:32. > :31:36.front, because he has been outplayed.

:31:37. > :31:43.Even though Selby is doing most of the scoring, doesn't seem to have

:31:44. > :31:59.been at the table. This will be the first time, if he

:32:00. > :32:06.can do it, that he will win the frame in one visit.

:32:07. > :32:34.This is his highest break in the match now.

:32:35. > :32:53.This is the normal kind of Selby played, when he gets in and normally

:32:54. > :32:59.wins in one visit. This is the first time, as John mentioned, that he's

:33:00. > :33:07.done it. Then he can concentrate on making his first Crucible century

:33:08. > :33:12.this year. One of the few players to have made over 400 centuries in

:33:13. > :33:19.competitive play, which is remarkable. That flew off the

:33:20. > :33:21.cushion, I'm afraid. He's got second prize, a red in the middle, which he

:33:22. > :33:45.didn't play for. It's a pity, but two snookers needed

:33:46. > :33:49.for Robert Milkins. It should be for- two.

:33:50. > :34:27.Now he'd like to leave that red, the one right of the pink, he would like

:34:28. > :34:33.to leave that to last, then he could play a snooker behind the pink. So,

:34:34. > :34:39.he won't be seeing this as a forlorn hope.

:34:40. > :34:49.He will now, though. He will turn around and nod. The thing is, it's

:34:50. > :34:53.not a etiquette when it's your opponent's turn to come to the

:34:54. > :34:55.table. The etiquette is to let him have his turn. Robert would have

:34:56. > :35:17.loved to have conceded there. When he missed the red he was

:35:18. > :35:22.looking at Mark, but Mark ignored him completely. I have been in that

:35:23. > :35:32.position, you cannot, but as you say, it is etiquette. But with this

:35:33. > :35:37.session going as long as it is, might as well set them up. This is

:35:38. > :36:02.the first frame that Mark Selby has completely dominated.

:36:03. > :36:13.Cueing a lot better if this frame. -- in this frame. One bad bounce off

:36:14. > :36:18.the cushion which probably cost him a century, but every other shot he

:36:19. > :36:22.has played the position perfect, which you would expect from Mark

:36:23. > :36:52.Selby. But it took him a while to get going.

:36:53. > :36:59.That has taken Mark Selby into the lead even further this time. He

:37:00. > :38:09.leads numeric for- 2. That last the highest frame break of

:38:10. > :38:17.72. But you do get the feeling, perhaps, that Rob might be stewing a

:38:18. > :38:20.bit out there. Yes, he had the better of the tactical exchanges

:38:21. > :38:28.early on and he had had chances. He will be bitterly disappointed to be

:38:29. > :38:35.4-2 town. I said to John, Mark looks like he will go off on one now. I

:38:36. > :38:40.guess when you had 54, 51, 50, you're there, your form is there but

:38:41. > :38:46.you want to be making the big numbers. In racing terms he has been

:38:47. > :38:53.needing the run. Looking a little bit better now, Mark Selby. Robert

:38:54. > :38:59.Milken 's has gone off the boil Elizabeth. I am looking at some of

:39:00. > :39:03.his results, got in the semifinals of the International championship,

:39:04. > :39:07.the UK championship and won a smaller event in Poland but yet to

:39:08. > :39:12.land a big one this season. Mark is the winner and one of the best match

:39:13. > :39:16.players in this game. He will be bitterly disappointed not to won a

:39:17. > :39:21.big trophy this season. It will be all in for this World Championship.

:39:22. > :39:26.He has come here fresh. He can find a bit of form here and be as fresh

:39:27. > :39:29.as anybody. I think we were just discussing this, an intriguing

:39:30. > :39:33.situation we are left with in the World Championship and in world

:39:34. > :39:37.ranking terms. Anyone left in the top eight now here can take over as

:39:38. > :39:42.well number one from Mark Selby, if they win the title. That includes

:39:43. > :39:52.Selby himself, provisionally ranked number seven. Selby, Robertson,

:39:53. > :39:58.Trump, Higgins. There is a lot at stake in the next few weeks. Back we

:39:59. > :40:06.go. COMMENTATOR: That was a nice little nudge on the green. I agree

:40:07. > :40:12.with what Peter and John were saying in the studio. It looks as though he

:40:13. > :40:20.has settled it now, Mark, but never rule out Robert Milkins. But he's

:40:21. > :40:23.going to go fully committed to those kind of pots, and when you do, you

:40:24. > :40:26.have to get them. So without working too hard Mark Selby gets the first

:40:27. > :40:50.decent chance. Just got into the cue ball a

:40:51. > :40:52.fraction too much. Just about on this black, but slightly hampered,

:40:53. > :41:05.could have done without flicking that red.

:41:06. > :42:20.That was about as good as he could do.

:42:21. > :42:29.Just overhit this lightly. I say slightly, but by about three or four

:42:30. > :42:34.inches. Not bound to get on the black. Maybe able to free the pink

:42:35. > :42:36.as well. The white is going away from the black, but play a little

:42:37. > :42:56.bit of check side. That's not what the doctor ordered.

:42:57. > :42:57.No, this red is tricky. It was tricky enough without being hampered

:42:58. > :43:16.by the black. Know, very tricky. Didn't get the

:43:17. > :43:23.cannon on the red as he would like. Now then, what have you got, Robert?

:43:24. > :43:34.The way he's played he probably can't believe... Once it hit the top

:43:35. > :43:39.cushion it was never going to drop. A few frames, Robert, that he should

:43:40. > :43:49.have won. He has not managed to get over the line. That is not the best

:43:50. > :43:58.positional shot he has ever played. Good recovery, though. If the pink

:43:59. > :44:06.goes, he's fine. Does it go? Well, once again, you would fancy he could

:44:07. > :44:17.play to the side of the pocket, but it's the blue, there's pressure on

:44:18. > :44:19.this. No. That was Robert bagging his cue. He's getting frustrated.

:44:20. > :44:44.You can't blame him, in a way. Mark... Has he run past the green to

:44:45. > :44:49.be on the yellow. Obviously he has. Always look for the player's body

:44:50. > :44:53.language, that will tell you if they have played a bad shot or a good

:44:54. > :44:59.shot. He would probably like to be on the brown, popped the brown and

:45:00. > :45:00.play for the red near the baulk cushion. But can he get through to

:45:01. > :45:27.the brown? Obviously not. A nice little cannon because it was

:45:28. > :45:32.in the way. Risked playing the cannon and played it perfectly. Now

:45:33. > :45:34.he is in a position for a little stun into the pack and in a few

:45:35. > :45:54.moments time he should be going 5-2. But the red to the right corner and

:45:55. > :45:59.a possible at it of the red to the middle. He is going to go for this

:46:00. > :46:14.red and hope for a baulk colour. Can't hold the black.

:46:15. > :46:34.Doesn't have to bring any reds into play. Only the pink tide up, and

:46:35. > :46:43.even that is available into a few pockets.

:46:44. > :46:47.Probably play for the blue here, as long as he leaves himself a slight

:46:48. > :47:26.angle on the blue. It's taken a while for this match to

:47:27. > :47:35.take off, but in the last couple of frames Mark Selby has been cueing

:47:36. > :47:43.very well. On the other hand, Robert Milkins seems to have lost his

:47:44. > :47:46.touch. Still needs a red and the colour. 50 points, the lead. 59

:47:47. > :48:16.available. That now puts Mark 51 points in

:48:17. > :48:21.front, 51 remaining. So the blue would leave Robert Milkins needing

:48:22. > :49:58.two snookers. We've had really long drawn-out

:49:59. > :50:03.frames in this match. Frames that went over 36 minutes, the fourth and

:50:04. > :50:08.fifth frame. The last frame Worcester short of 12 minutes. This

:50:09. > :50:13.one is just short of 11 minutes. It just shows you the difference, if

:50:14. > :50:16.someone can get in and make a frame-winning contribution.

:50:17. > :50:26.63. As you said earlier, when Mark does

:50:27. > :50:30.get it with these opportunities, he's not slow. Neither is Robert

:50:31. > :50:44.Milkins normally, but... Well, trying to play a bit of an

:50:45. > :50:50.exhibition shot. It doesn't matter, the framers over well before that.

:50:51. > :50:54.And Mark Selby is now starting to produce the type of play we expect

:50:55. > :51:00.from the world number one. He leads 5-2.

:51:01. > :51:06.72 followed by 68. Adding John Parrott is about to sum up Mark

:51:07. > :51:11.Selby's performance. We call him the Hoover, is not quite there yet, he

:51:12. > :51:16.is an economy mode. He is not at his absolute best but he... Rob is

:51:17. > :51:20.getting a little frustrated. I'm not surprised, the scoreline should be a

:51:21. > :51:24.little more reflective of his good work in this match. Absolutely, will

:51:25. > :51:29.be bitterly disappointed to be 5-2 down. He has had plenty of chances.

:51:30. > :51:34.It hasn't gone for him at certain times. Thinking back to that

:51:35. > :51:38.incredible blue that Mark Selby made into the corner pocket. Mark has

:51:39. > :51:41.gained a lot of confidence from that, telling point. We said a

:51:42. > :51:45.couple of frames ago, all of a sudden he looks like he would be on

:51:46. > :51:49.it and it looks like he's in that mode now. Champion two years ago.

:51:50. > :51:54.Came back and fell to the Crucible curse, as you all have and went out

:51:55. > :51:59.in round two. When you come back after, what was your mindset? How

:52:00. > :52:05.did you view the next opportunity thereafter? I just really looked

:52:06. > :52:09.forward to it. I lost to a very good Paul Hunter, the late Paul Hunter.

:52:10. > :52:14.What an incredible match that was, he beat me 13-12. I thoroughly

:52:15. > :52:18.enjoyed it. I have been very lucky to have some incredible times there.

:52:19. > :52:22.When you do come back, having got that Crucible curse aspect out of

:52:23. > :52:26.the way, does it for you up a bit? Are you remembering you are a world

:52:27. > :52:29.champion? Don't get tremendous reminded about it all the time

:52:30. > :52:33.because it has been and gone. No body is asking you the same question

:52:34. > :52:36.on it just goes to the back of your mind. When you turn up you focus on

:52:37. > :52:42.the first match and hope you go through, nothing worse than losing

:52:43. > :52:45.in the first round at the Crucible. The world number one, Mark Selby

:52:46. > :52:50.back for the penultimate round of this session against Robert Milkins.

:52:51. > :52:55.COMMENTATOR: The disappointing thing, Hazel and the boys, is Robert

:52:56. > :53:01.Milkins just lost his way after the 62 he made in the first to win that

:53:02. > :53:05.frame. His icebreaker spent 26 since then. He has been in the balls are

:53:06. > :53:09.numerous occasions, apart from the last two, where Selby has played

:53:10. > :53:13.great. That will be the worrying thing. He got a bit frustrated as we

:53:14. > :53:20.saw, in the previous frame, missing the boots by a considerable margin.

:53:21. > :53:22.He banged his cue on the floor. He knows he should be in this match,

:53:23. > :54:04.not trailing 5-2. That was a danger shot to take on.

:54:05. > :54:12.Once again, a slam of the cue on the floor. Does this red go past the

:54:13. > :54:21.black? He is asking the referee if it goes.

:54:22. > :54:27.If he would get out of the way, we could have a look! I've think it

:54:28. > :54:45.just goes. -- I think it just goes. APPLAUSE

:54:46. > :54:54.Could have got a double-decker bus through there.

:54:55. > :55:06.There is a red at the bottom of the cluster, that is available in the

:55:07. > :55:11.same pocket as the black. But not certain that is the shot to play.

:55:12. > :55:16.Could play a cannon. Decided to play the cannon, and played it absolutely

:55:17. > :55:22.inch perfect. That's the way to play that shot. Just watch the cue ball,

:55:23. > :55:31.hits the red and still has that back spin. Couldn't have played it any

:55:32. > :55:34.better. Not too sure Mark is playing well enough to go for the 147 here,

:55:35. > :56:37.but the reds are nice. Well, he's on this red to the left

:56:38. > :56:44.middle, but can he get back to the black? Maybe just about had enough

:56:45. > :57:06.and called to do it. -- enough angle to do it.

:57:07. > :57:50.He's not going for the maximum that he is certainly going towards a 6-2

:57:51. > :57:54.advantage here. We are going to have to leave this at the moment but you

:57:55. > :57:58.can keep watching it on the red button and online. It is almost time

:57:59. > :58:02.for us to head off on BBC Two. Remember, you can catch up with all

:58:03. > :58:07.the best moments from Sheffield on the BBC website, the app and on

:58:08. > :58:12.social media. My thanks to John and Peter for their excellent company

:58:13. > :58:15.this afternoon. Peter, great taboo in the studio, your wisdom has been

:58:16. > :58:21.much appreciated. This evening don't forget we have a lot on offer on the

:58:22. > :58:25.website and online. Two matches where their two seats are in a

:58:26. > :58:30.little bit of trouble. That will be live from 7pm this evening four

:58:31. > :58:35.stops Jason will be back at 11:25pm with the highlights problem. We will

:58:36. > :59:02.catch you all again sometime soon in Sheffield. For now, goodbye.

:59:03. > :59:06.This small, ordinary town in the middle of Italy