Sunday, 1st Round, Afternoon

:00:33. > :00:38.HAZEL IRVINE: Good afternoon and a happy Easter to you. I am sure there

:00:39. > :00:44.are a constant on with the kids around the country right now. There

:00:45. > :00:48.is one. Here, we are seeking something rather different. The

:00:49. > :00:55.identity of this year's Betfred world champion. We won't reveal that

:00:56. > :00:59.until Monday first may. It looks like Mark Selby is in the mood to

:01:00. > :01:02.keep collecting world titles. What a start to the defence he made

:01:03. > :01:07.yesterday. He is the current world number one,

:01:08. > :01:09.the defending world champion, the Jester from Leicester, Mark Selby.

:01:10. > :01:16.CHEERING Played across double, got it.

:01:17. > :01:24.APPLAUSE This looks a great shot. This is a

:01:25. > :01:45.great shot. Good cueing. Right in the heart of

:01:46. > :01:53.the pocket. He really couldn't have struck that any better. But it's

:01:54. > :01:57.there. Mark Selby, in the end is a comfortable winner and gets through

:01:58. > :02:06.to the second round, 10-2. Happy to get through to the next

:02:07. > :02:09.round, happy with the scoreline. Performance, I am not happy with. I

:02:10. > :02:15.wasn't killing the frames off in one visit like I like to. I kept running

:02:16. > :02:19.out of position or losing focus and missing a silly ball. But overall,

:02:20. > :02:24.happy with the result on and through to the next round.

:02:25. > :02:29.10- to dismantling of Fergal O'Brien. Fergal is a tough, battle

:02:30. > :02:33.hardened competitor, as well as a top rope. The clinical nature of his

:02:34. > :02:38.win says much about Selby's form coming back here to vent his title.

:02:39. > :02:42.He will go back home for Easter to be with his family, and will be in

:02:43. > :02:46.round two next Saturday. But there is a lot of snooker to be played

:02:47. > :02:53.between then and now, starting this afternoon. It will be a full engine

:02:54. > :02:57.restart for the Rocket. Those engines spluttered a big

:02:58. > :02:59.yesterday, from 5-1, Ronnie O'Sullivan is one ahead going into

:03:00. > :03:05.the concluding session this afternoon.

:03:06. > :03:10.His 31-year-old opponent, Gary Wilson, gamely fought back in that

:03:11. > :03:13.match. The newcomer looks a cool and confident customer. Fabulous

:03:14. > :03:17.first-time winner in 2015, Stuart Bingham fell to the Crucible curse

:03:18. > :03:23.in round one last year. This year, he fights off another irresistible

:03:24. > :03:31.force, Peter Ebdon, the 2002 champion, back for a 24th campaign

:03:32. > :03:35.in Sheffield. He what we have got an offer from the Crucible this

:03:36. > :03:43.afternoon. Sullivan and Wilson played to a

:03:44. > :03:47.finish in their match, and Bingham and Ebdon start out in their opening

:03:48. > :03:55.session. With 13 world titles between them, Stephen Hendry and

:03:56. > :03:59.Steve Davis. Very interesting so far, emphatic victories for Mark

:04:00. > :04:03.Selby and Stephen Maguire, we thought Ronnie O'Sullivan was

:04:04. > :04:09.heading for one at 5-1, but some of the composure and character for Gary

:04:10. > :04:18.Wilson to come back. From the perspective of the perspective, a

:04:19. > :04:22.potential banana skin for the top seeds, especially if your opponent

:04:23. > :04:30.starts to enjoy himself in the arena. That is what Gary Wilson did.

:04:31. > :04:34.Was watching the action unfold, and Gary Wilson did so well by the end

:04:35. > :04:39.of the session to relax and enjoy the process. Interesting, Steve. You

:04:40. > :04:42.are in the papers this morning, Ronnie, the way he is paying, I

:04:43. > :04:47.wouldn't give him a Jos of winning this, he needs to improve. In what

:04:48. > :04:54.respect? The papers have made it more black and white and what I

:04:55. > :04:59.said. He had a century yesterday, 122. Snooker perfection. In a lot of

:05:00. > :05:05.the other friend, he was fighting with cue control, unlike Ronnie. It

:05:06. > :05:09.would break down at 40 or 50. He has not played his best for months,

:05:10. > :05:15.let's be frank. A lot of people don't like you to criticise Ronnie,

:05:16. > :05:19.but he hasn't. He knows that. Three matches at the qualifiers at the

:05:20. > :05:23.quiz will will stand Gary Wilson in good stead, but the second session

:05:24. > :05:27.of this match may be even harder for him than the first. Perhaps a few

:05:28. > :05:31.more people are saying to him that he can win it. The levels of

:05:32. > :05:37.expectation will go up a fraction. What a bruise of this is, Stuart

:05:38. > :05:43.Bingham and Peter Ebdon. Peter Ebdon, 24th campaign, never say die.

:05:44. > :05:47.How dangerous at 46 years of age can he be? If he can play his best, he

:05:48. > :05:51.is a dangerous opponent for Stuart Bingham. He hasn't done that in a

:05:52. > :05:55.main arena for a long time, so I expect Stuart Bingham to come

:05:56. > :06:01.through the match. But Peter Ebdon is a tough draw to get. You had to

:06:02. > :06:04.scrape him off the table. With the can play the same standard used to

:06:05. > :06:10.play, that remains to be seen. Stuart Bingham, 21 months went by

:06:11. > :06:19.between his world title in 3015 and another win at the Welsh Open a

:06:20. > :06:24.couple years ago. Once you become a world champion and establish

:06:25. > :06:29.yourself as a top player -- in 2015. The level of expectation is there

:06:30. > :06:33.again. A bit of respite with Wales, but now this, this is where he has

:06:34. > :06:36.performed before. He has to do it again. He is up against a player

:06:37. > :06:41.that can win ugly, and that is tough. We look forward to that.

:06:42. > :06:44.Those matches get underway at 2:30 five. Time to bring you up-to-date

:06:45. > :06:49.with what has happened in the morning session. It has been

:06:50. > :06:53.eventful. Shaun Murphy, 2005 champion, the last qualifier to ever

:06:54. > :07:00.win the title. And the new big thing in snooker, Yan Bingtao, born in

:07:01. > :07:06.2000, 17 years of age. This was the opening session, great standard when

:07:07. > :07:11.we left it on BBC Two. Three times already, Murphy 4-2 in front. They

:07:12. > :07:19.share the next two brains, so Murphy 5-3. We pick up in the last frame of

:07:20. > :07:23.the morning in the company of Dennis Taylor.

:07:24. > :07:47.COMMENTATOR: Look at that, he was right on the black.

:07:48. > :07:52.A first chance in this final frame of the first session, falling to

:07:53. > :08:10.Shaun Murphy. You've got maybe four nice,

:08:11. > :08:46.comfortable reds before having to play any cannons.

:08:47. > :08:55.Doesn't have the ankle to go into the pack here, so he will just get

:08:56. > :09:01.on the loose Rins above black there. You need is a nice angle after this

:09:02. > :09:06.red. -- get on the loose red above the black there.

:09:07. > :09:15.Hoping for a little, a slight little nudge off the bottom of the pack.

:09:16. > :09:17.Look at this. Just hoping, as the cue ball goes through, just a Nick

:09:18. > :09:25.of that red to slow it down. Playing this with pace, it requires

:09:26. > :09:44.excellent cueing. Made sure of it and left the red

:09:45. > :09:47.open to the yellow pocket. Four breads, four blacks. I am not sure

:09:48. > :09:55.whether he will try to stay on the black here. -- four reds.

:09:56. > :10:06.Well, he is and what a fantastic pot that was. Great shot. APPLAUSE

:10:07. > :10:12.He has got a wonderful angle as well.

:10:13. > :10:20.Well, Dennis, five reds, five blacks. Listen, he is a stranger to

:10:21. > :10:27.the maximum break. He has done it on five occasions, one of the best

:10:28. > :10:31.break-builders in the game. Oh... He's covered it now. Does the pink

:10:32. > :10:34.go? That is more important, never mind the maximum break. More

:10:35. > :10:39.important from his point of view that the pink pots, because it is

:10:40. > :10:41.all about the frame and to have a three frame advantage.

:10:42. > :10:54.And the pink did pot. Yeah, you could see his disappointment on his

:10:55. > :10:56.face, couldn't you. He wasn't on the black post you could see what his

:10:57. > :11:10.intentions were. He could certainly set a very high

:11:11. > :11:19.target for the rest of the players to chase here. As Dennis said, he

:11:20. > :11:26.will want to win the frame first of all, but a possible 146 on.

:11:27. > :11:38.Yeah, 122 is the highest. Ronnie O'Sullivan made that yesterday.

:11:39. > :11:51.First board is to secure the frame, obviously. That is what he is a

:11:52. > :11:56.before, as you can see. He is the wrong side of the blue slightly, but

:11:57. > :12:01.at least the reds are nicely situated.

:12:02. > :12:05.It will be a comfortable pot, you would say, to keep the break going

:12:06. > :12:21.here. Just a little bit of noise coming

:12:22. > :12:26.from behind the commentary box. Somebody is wandering past and

:12:27. > :12:30.making a bit of noise. Did they not realise there are a couple of tables

:12:31. > :12:40.with four players out here at the Crucible lips this? ? Shaun waiting

:12:41. > :12:50.until they disappear. Yeah, all quiet directly behind Ken and me

:12:51. > :12:55.now. Such a small theatre, and 970 people, as you can see, somebody was

:12:56. > :12:59.wandering backstage, having a friendly chat. The players will hear

:13:00. > :13:12.them. Yes, and I am glad he kept his

:13:13. > :13:15.concentration there. Didn't stump him too much because it was quite a

:13:16. > :13:34.pivotal time during this frame. Good stuff in this match, in this

:13:35. > :13:40.first session. Shaun 's on his way for his 33, he made one in frame

:13:41. > :13:41.four, and another one in frame five. This would be a special way to

:13:42. > :13:52.finish the session. Doesn't matter if he does break down

:13:53. > :13:55.now, he's got that 6-3 advantage. Always nice to finish with a

:13:56. > :14:09.century. APPLAUSE I was expecting that to bounce off

:14:10. > :14:11.the cushion a little bit more. This red, into the green pocket, keep

:14:12. > :14:26.white going. Oh... Such a shame. The young Chinese player Yan Bingtao

:14:27. > :14:34.did very well, but smiles all around for Shaun Murphy, he will be pleased

:14:35. > :14:35.with the session. He takes a 6-3 advantage into tomorrow's second

:14:36. > :14:51.session. HAZEL IRVINE: Great standard there.

:14:52. > :14:57.Keirin Wilson pulled away to win the last three in a row and earn a date

:14:58. > :15:03.with either Mr big or Mr Ebdon. Afterwards, a warrior spoke to Rob

:15:04. > :15:05.Walker. Congratulations, no easy match

:15:06. > :15:09.because David the auction was fired up for that one in front of his home

:15:10. > :15:13.crowd. You summed it up, really. He was spurred on by the amount of

:15:14. > :15:16.people that came out to support him. And rightly so. He has done well

:15:17. > :15:19.getting here. He held himself together well on his debut.

:15:20. > :15:22.You look as though you are hitting form at the right time. Having

:15:23. > :15:27.started the season so well, getting to the final in India, since

:15:28. > :15:33.Christmas you went on a lean run, picking up form in China. People

:15:34. > :15:36.don't quite see what goes on off the table sometimes. It is a one-man

:15:37. > :15:40.sport at the end of the day. And when you are in the lines then come

:15:41. > :15:43.and you have got to be a gladiator and stand up under pressure. I am

:15:44. > :15:47.happy my form is coming together now. I have managed to solve a fewer

:15:48. > :15:50.issues off the table, and I am getting on with it and enjoying my

:15:51. > :15:55.snooker. Without wishing to pry on that, you

:15:56. > :15:58.have had a tough things to deal with away from the table, that must have

:15:59. > :16:04.been difficult in the midst of getting into the world 16. Yeah,

:16:05. > :16:10.very much so. It's been a very tough time for my family. We've all stuck

:16:11. > :16:13.together, and it's all coming out for the good now.

:16:14. > :16:18.Even more congratulations, you know you can go deep in this tournament,

:16:19. > :16:23.good luck in the last 16. Thanks. HAZEL IRVINE: A strong performance,

:16:24. > :16:28.and a gladiator comes through under pressure, as he says. Impressive?

:16:29. > :16:32.Continuing about levels of expectation as a seed, he expects

:16:33. > :16:36.more of himself. That is a good win. Any win in the first round,

:16:37. > :16:40.marvellous here. He got to the quarterfinals last year. He has a

:16:41. > :16:43.good track record here already. He has a taste for going deep in this

:16:44. > :16:48.tournament, so he will want to repeat that. As Steve says, to get

:16:49. > :16:53.over the first round is important. It may be his third time here, but

:16:54. > :16:57.you guys have been here longer. No matter how many times you come to

:16:58. > :17:00.the Crucible, it is either reassuringly familiar or

:17:01. > :17:03.uncomfortably cost Afobe, depending on the pressure you are under. That

:17:04. > :17:07.is just that stage. Rob Walker gives us a tour.

:17:08. > :17:13.Mid April in Sheffield, only one place you want to be in those doors

:17:14. > :17:16.at the Crucible. Amazing to think how many snooker legends will have

:17:17. > :17:23.walked through those famous doors over the last four decades.

:17:24. > :17:29.One of the great things backstage here at the Crucible is, wherever

:17:30. > :17:35.you look you are reminded of the history, prestige and names. This is

:17:36. > :17:39.the champion 's board, 1977, we start with John Spencer, Davis from

:17:40. > :17:44.the 80s, Hendry, King of the 90s with his titles. Here is a quirky

:17:45. > :17:45.fact for you. Whenever you come here to the Crucible, the year that you

:17:46. > :17:58.are currently contesting always has? Every winners photo is on the wall

:17:59. > :18:02.backstage, Legends of the 80s and early 90s, and one off moment are

:18:03. > :18:07.also recorded for posterity here. How about that, last year, Steve

:18:08. > :18:11.Davis with a tear in his eye, doing that lap of honour at the Crucible

:18:12. > :18:14.after all those years as a pro, finally calling time on one of the

:18:15. > :18:19.great careers. That was a very special day here last year.

:18:20. > :18:22.Believe it or not, this is the media room, the great and the good of

:18:23. > :18:28.British journalists are finding their copy and doing their reports

:18:29. > :18:32.in here. Over there, Gareth working for BBC Wales, Jamie Broughton doing

:18:33. > :18:37.the World Service and BBC regions, and George Riley for five live, on

:18:38. > :18:41.air around every half an hour. But when all the build-up is over,

:18:42. > :18:47.when the preview pieces are written, this is the final walk that the

:18:48. > :18:52.players must take before going on to that famous stage. We can only begin

:18:53. > :18:53.to imagine how they must feel walking out there, especially for

:18:54. > :19:06.the very first time. HAZEL IRVINE: A first timer here is

:19:07. > :19:10.Gary Wilson. Here he is, 31 years old, a former taxi driver, which he

:19:11. > :19:14.gave up to concentrate on Stricker. First tried to qualify in 2004, the

:19:15. > :19:20.year of Ronnie's second victory. Now he has finally made it. The former

:19:21. > :19:24.world under 21 champion made a maximum in qualifying and knocked in

:19:25. > :19:28.seven other centuries to learn his debut. He did so yesterday and he's

:19:29. > :19:33.proved yesterday that he really is something of a cool character,

:19:34. > :19:40.because having seen Ronnie make that century, 122, to go 4-1, and 5-1 up,

:19:41. > :19:44.he's won the last three frames of the session. He comes into this 11

:19:45. > :19:50.behind. There he is, limbering up. Time for the action. We have our own

:19:51. > :19:55.Easter Bunny, more like a generous Bunny, full of energy, Mr Rob

:19:56. > :20:02.Walker, our MC. ANNOUNCER: Good afternoon, ladies and dental men.

:20:03. > :20:06.The World Snooker World Championship is up and running in style. What a

:20:07. > :20:09.session we have for you now, not one or two, but three former world

:20:10. > :20:15.champions and a debutant absolutely loving his first foray out here on

:20:16. > :20:16.the big stage. We are set for a cracking afternoon of entertainment

:20:17. > :20:41.here at the Crucible. APPLAUSE Please welcome, first of all, a man

:20:42. > :20:47.returning for a 24th appearance at the Crucible, 25-year is after his

:20:48. > :20:51.debut. Arles to you what, the ponytail has gone, but the passion

:20:52. > :20:55.hasn't. An absolutely amazing comeback against Michael Holt at the

:20:56. > :21:00.qualifiers at Ponds Forge. He has still got it, ladies and gents, you

:21:01. > :21:06.comes the 2002 champion of the world, Befalls Peter Ebdon -- the

:21:07. > :21:30.force Peter Ebdon. His opponent, returning to the scene

:21:31. > :21:34.of his greatest triumph here in 2015, this season he has been on top

:21:35. > :21:39.form, three big finals and he won the Welsh in fine style in February.

:21:40. > :21:44.Back at the Crucible for an 11th campaign, The Ball Run Stuart

:21:45. > :22:06.Bingham. And On Table One, Please Welcome A

:22:07. > :22:10.Player That Came Through Qualifying Brilliantly To Book His Crucible

:22:11. > :22:14.Debut At The Last Three Frames Yesterday Showing You He Is Really

:22:15. > :22:18.Enjoying His First Appearance Here. He has come such a long way since

:22:19. > :22:20.his days as a taxi driver on Tyneside, the pride of the North

:22:21. > :22:51.East, Gary Wilson. Finally, a player that has been

:22:52. > :22:55.thrilling crowds here for 2.5 decades, win of 28 ranking titles,

:22:56. > :22:58.the reigning Masters champion, five times a champion of the world, blink

:22:59. > :23:14.and you'll miss him, the Rocket Ronnie O'Sullivan. APPLAUSE

:23:15. > :23:21.HAZEL IRVINE: Three great champions on parade this afternoon, two of

:23:22. > :23:27.them, Ebdon and Bingham life on the red button. The opening session, a

:23:28. > :23:30.possible ten more frames to play in this one. We had for the concluding

:23:31. > :23:37.session between O'Sullivan and Wilson in the company of John Virgo

:23:38. > :23:48.and John Parrott. JOHN VIRGO: Good afternoon, everybody.

:23:49. > :23:51.The big question is, pressure on the session now for Ronnie. There

:23:52. > :23:55.certainly is after what happened yesterday, John. 5-1 A, looking to

:23:56. > :24:01.all the world like he was going to go 6-1. That was a big frame, John,

:24:02. > :24:10.going 5-2 behind kept Gary Wilson in the match. That's why we are at 5-4

:24:11. > :24:15.today. All to play for. Very interesting

:24:16. > :24:26.long pot success, a bit long for both players. I always think you

:24:27. > :24:35.need to be 60 or 70%. You have got to be looking at 90% or above pot

:24:36. > :24:41.success. The one century from Ronnie, and that sticks before,

:24:42. > :24:51.which was a key one in frame seven. It won Gary that frame.

:24:52. > :25:00.That needs to run. He has got behind the black. I am not certain he meant

:25:01. > :25:08.to play it like that, but he will settle for it.

:25:09. > :25:14.I was watching some of the snooker this morning in my room and broke

:25:15. > :25:18.off from one of the matches to see Ronnie practising in the practice

:25:19. > :25:24.room very early this morning. Damien Hirst racking bubbles up for him. He

:25:25. > :25:31.wasn't completely happy with the way he was hitting it yesterday.

:25:32. > :25:36.Make no mistake, he has been around the block a futile, Ronnie, but he

:25:37. > :25:43.will want to get this much out of the way. He will be nervous as well,

:25:44. > :25:49.just like everybody else. I was talking yesterday in commentary with

:25:50. > :25:52.Steve Davis. A lot of the matches now are played over Best of seven,

:25:53. > :25:57.but even best of 19 doesn't seem like a long match, the world

:25:58. > :26:04.champion. The bit they stalemate here, though. It doesn't look as

:26:05. > :26:07.though Gary wants to risk coming up to the Borg end. I think the red

:26:08. > :26:17.near the left middle pocket will cut. More tip tapping, could be in

:26:18. > :26:30.for a cracking again. -- the baulk end.

:26:31. > :26:39.I think it only needs for one player to look at the other. Well, I think

:26:40. > :26:49.the referee gave them the option, and looked over to Ronnie. So it is

:26:50. > :26:53.a re-rack. The frame wasn't going anywhere, no need to continue. They

:26:54. > :26:57.have played game long enough knowing that no one was going to be forced

:26:58. > :27:06.into making a shot. So it was the right thing to do. The referee

:27:07. > :27:13.Brendan Moore said the balls up. It is one of them, you put it in, put

:27:14. > :27:22.it up against the top cushion, and there is a Mark Webber pink goes. It

:27:23. > :27:31.should set them up perfectly. -- a Mark where the pink goes.

:27:32. > :27:43.Very predominant one eyed stance, has Gary. You were left side as

:27:44. > :27:48.well, were due, when you cued. Right I. I must have got a negative on a

:27:49. > :27:54.photograph wrong. I am left I'd as well. Not quite as predominant as

:27:55. > :27:58.Gary was. Very Graham Miles. Graham Miles, perhaps some of our older

:27:59. > :28:06.viewers will remember him. Some of those victories in the late 70s. He

:28:07. > :28:31.cued exactly like that. Where is this Red Bull going? In the

:28:32. > :28:35.pocket. He shouldn't have been anywhere near the blue, flicking the

:28:36. > :28:46.red as well. You would broadly say, because of that, got position, so

:28:47. > :28:57.triple whammy. -- where is this red ball going?

:28:58. > :29:04.He played some snooker qualifying, this boy, qualifying. 10-9 in his

:29:05. > :29:10.first match. I don't know who Josh Boileau is, but he must be some

:29:11. > :29:18.player to compete with him. Beating Peter lines in his second game,

:29:19. > :29:24.10-7. He beat Michael White, who ran Mark Selby to 10-9 here last year.

:29:25. > :29:29.That was a fantastic result, to beat him 10-3. He made centuries overall

:29:30. > :29:47.in qualifying, so he can definitely score.

:29:48. > :29:54.This red and one more loose red. One pot and the black to bring the other

:29:55. > :30:15.methods into play. The type of pack, this come where

:30:16. > :30:19.want to stun onto the cue ball. If you screw these, you can bring the

:30:20. > :30:23.white back up to the top cushion, a bit of style. Perfectly played. Well

:30:24. > :30:32.played. Absolutely, couldn't ask to play

:30:33. > :30:38.that any better. His contribution started with a fluke, but when you

:30:39. > :30:41.are on the ball, you have to take full advantage because it can soon

:30:42. > :30:47.turn against you. It is a good opportunity now.

:30:48. > :30:56.And even better, the pink pots through the gap and that is a help.

:30:57. > :30:58.Just got to hold yourself together here, in this first contribution

:30:59. > :31:15.this afternoon. It would suit Gary if the pink spot

:31:16. > :31:23.wasn't available and it went on the highest available, which it has

:31:24. > :32:23.done, the blue spot. A few open reds.

:32:24. > :32:37.If he gets to 68, that would be snookers required. There are two

:32:38. > :32:42.reds. I don't know if there is a plant. If so, he might look for in

:32:43. > :32:50.angle on the pink. You can see the two reds I'm referring to. I know he

:32:51. > :32:57.would love them to be, but they're not quite are they? This is not an

:32:58. > :33:07.easy pack to break up from where he is.

:33:08. > :33:16.Where is the cue ball going? Needed to catch it full, caught it half

:33:17. > :33:21.ball. A tough shot now. Needs that brown to rescue him, I

:33:22. > :34:06.think. It looks like it has. Excuse me, come down. We need this

:34:07. > :34:12.guy out. He needs to go. Martin, out. This one, here. Yeah, he needs

:34:13. > :34:27.to go. Straight out.

:34:28. > :34:32.A slight problem with someone in the audience. It looks as though he's

:34:33. > :34:35.not too well. You need to go, please, sir. Go.

:34:36. > :35:07.Yeah. Ronnie went back to his seat, just

:35:08. > :35:11.to wait until that situation was sorted out. A bit of fresh air and

:35:12. > :35:17.he will be back, that gentleman, hopefully. As you can see, Ronnie

:35:18. > :35:24.can't get through to this red, so try and swerve around it... We'll be

:35:25. > :35:28.happy not to leave it... Well... If you asked him to do that, I don't

:35:29. > :35:40.think he could. Full length of the table swerve, hit two jaws, miss it.

:35:41. > :35:54.Well, the cue ball needs to be... The cue ball is not where it should

:35:55. > :36:01.be. He swerved round the other side of the brown. Yes, he needs to look

:36:02. > :36:11.at the monitor. That is nowhere near it was. It needs to go another inch

:36:12. > :36:18.or an inch and a half... What is that in metric? I struggle! You're

:36:19. > :36:22.asking me? That's where it was. That's where it is now. That is

:36:23. > :36:42.pretty good now. OK? Yeah? Ronnie is in trying to pot this, he

:36:43. > :36:49.just doesn't want to leave this red. Has he got it safe? Well, in a

:36:50. > :36:57.fashion he will be pleased with that. Couldn't hope for much better.

:36:58. > :37:06.I think he's done remarkably well to get out of that. It wasn't easy. A

:37:07. > :37:12.nice target behind the blue ball here, you just have to know your

:37:13. > :37:18.billiards, know your angles. A lovely target behind the blue. Just

:37:19. > :37:22.double-checking if he doesn't get the snooker he doesn't leave the

:37:23. > :37:26.outside red, but it's a lovely target, and if you are playing

:37:27. > :37:28.against Mr Davis, in our studio today, you would be right behind the

:37:29. > :37:49.blue after that shot. A missed opportunity to get the

:37:50. > :37:58.snooker. Ronnie is looking... Can he get past the pink to play the Finn

:37:59. > :38:01.cut? He's looked at the potting angle. Can he hit enough of the red?

:38:02. > :38:12.Not quite. That little flick on the brown could

:38:13. > :38:27.help. That may have just covered the thin

:38:28. > :38:31.pot to the left corner. It may have looked like nothing the last shot

:38:32. > :38:35.Gary played by it were so important. If he had got in behind the blue,

:38:36. > :38:40.Ronnie would have been in all sorts of trouble. As it is, this is

:38:41. > :38:46.looking a very dangerous board at the moment. There's no safety on, is

:38:47. > :38:56.there? No... He's trying to swerve this. Can he do that to get to the

:38:57. > :39:04.potting angle? Not quite. Ronnie can cut this in.

:39:05. > :39:19.When I said there's nothing safe, a couple of reds in the middle of the

:39:20. > :39:25.table, once you get on the black you can place them cannons and open up

:39:26. > :39:44.easily but I meant nothing on the cushions. You have to be careful.

:39:45. > :39:56.He missed that by a way. And here's the chance Ronnie has been looking

:39:57. > :39:59.for. OK, Gary still has a 54 point lead, but if he had got that in, it

:40:00. > :40:20.would have been a frame-winner. Let's just see how he goes about

:40:21. > :40:27.this little break. Two reds stuck together, three in a little cluster.

:40:28. > :40:35.Yes, I think if you had a choice, you'd rather try and move the three

:40:36. > :40:42.reds in the cluster in the middle. They are sort of square on, you

:40:43. > :40:46.could send one to the cushion... I would go for the ones in the middle.

:40:47. > :40:51.He played for the two. It does surprise me, that. I think he played

:40:52. > :40:57.a double shot there, try to get the flick of that and hit the three reds

:40:58. > :41:01.thought he could hit both. Fair comment, looking at it again. If he

:41:02. > :41:09.had have done, of course, he would have brought all reds open in one.

:41:10. > :41:20.He will probably be disappointed but he has played a good safety.

:41:21. > :41:33.Surely not, there's not a plant onto the red to knock in the red, is

:41:34. > :41:35.there? Nine. I don't think so. I think he's more worried about

:41:36. > :41:49.knocking the red towards the corner. Once again, a bit thick on the

:41:50. > :42:42.safety. Another chance for Ronnie, 38 points behind now.

:42:43. > :42:51.Cleverly playing... A choice of two reds but happy to be on this one,

:42:52. > :42:56.one of the more difficult reds out of the way. The red behind the pink

:42:57. > :43:02.will be a formality. A quick glance at the scoreboard, 16

:43:03. > :43:17.points behind. Yes, and now the hard work starts.

:43:18. > :43:24.His last two reds are far from a formality.

:43:25. > :43:34.Well played, just drop this in. Just got to give these a little care and

:43:35. > :43:40.attention now. Played it well. He does play well with the other hand,

:43:41. > :43:46.doesn't he? It's amazing. We don't even notice it so much now. You see

:43:47. > :43:51.some people play with the other hand and they look uncomfortable, not

:43:52. > :43:59.Ronnie. He's got a nice angle on this black, does he dropped behind

:44:00. > :44:00.the red or can he move it? Dropped behind it are now just one point

:44:01. > :44:29.behind. Don't think the green passes the

:44:30. > :44:36.yellow. And if it doesn't, just a snooker.

:44:37. > :44:42.Wow, what a let off for Gary Wilson that is. The funny thing is, I

:44:43. > :44:46.thought if he erred on the side of being a bit firmer you would be on

:44:47. > :44:50.the brown or yellow. Not like Ronnie to make a position mistake. I

:44:51. > :45:01.thought that was looking absolutely right for a clearance.

:45:02. > :45:15.Points all square. Yellow, green, brown and blue required I both

:45:16. > :45:48.players. -- by both players. Good length for the cue ball. This

:45:49. > :45:53.yellow will pot. I don't know whether it's a situation where he

:45:54. > :46:00.doesn't feel he can get it safe. It will pot in either corner pocket.

:46:01. > :46:06.Decided to play the safety shot. And it's not bad. It's not bad. The

:46:07. > :46:10.reason it's not bad, it's not a straightforward up and down with the

:46:11. > :46:13.yellow because the blue is there. This will take a bit of thinking

:46:14. > :46:19.about, it's not straightforward to get this safe.

:46:20. > :46:29.Yes. Blue is no good, brown is in the way.

:46:30. > :46:38.If he's got the snooker behind the blue... What a shot that is!

:46:39. > :46:44.Absolutely fabulous. That was absolutely sensational. To avoid the

:46:45. > :46:49.double-kiss on the yellow and to judge it like that was just

:46:50. > :46:55.brilliant. Brilliant shot. And fair play to Gary, he gave a nice tap on

:46:56. > :46:59.the table. Just to avoid the double-kiss, and to judge it, to get

:47:00. > :47:20.tight behind the blue... They don't come much better than that.

:47:21. > :47:30.Foul and a miss. Ronnie O'Sullivan, six.

:47:31. > :47:40.Yes, trying to calm inside the pink, just to avoid it hitting the top

:47:41. > :47:57.cushion and coming to the back of the yellow. It will be some shot.

:47:58. > :48:03.There is still the problem of missing the pink here. Foul and a

:48:04. > :48:08.miss. It is going to be very difficult to

:48:09. > :48:15.do. And of course, Ronnie, even though it's a free ball, no reason

:48:16. > :48:18.for him to play this. That yellow just once moving back a fraction. --

:48:19. > :48:35.just wants. Difficult to judge, it's not the

:48:36. > :48:41.first cushion you come off, is the second and see how far it slides

:48:42. > :48:49.over. That has been the problem for Gary. Getting slightly worse in his

:48:50. > :48:57.attempt here. Ronnie O'Sullivan, six, 3-ball. Back.

:48:58. > :49:06.I think this is what he's trying to do, but he has to be so precise. If

:49:07. > :49:10.he goes the other side of the pink, he doesn't hit the yellow. Can he

:49:11. > :49:16.followed the white line this time? No, pink again. I know what shot

:49:17. > :49:21.he's trying to play, but he's given so many points away here, just needs

:49:22. > :49:26.to make sure he hits the yellow. You can try beta exact and lose the

:49:27. > :49:32.frame. And where he is finished now, Ronnie is going to take this on

:49:33. > :49:36.anyway. If he'd pot is the yellow... It was all square when Ronnie played

:49:37. > :49:38.the snooker. He now just needs the yellow to go 26 points in front with

:49:39. > :49:49.just 25 remaining. Yeah, it's been a tale of the blue

:49:50. > :49:53.ball. I know I will harp on about it but he's missed an opportunity. If

:49:54. > :49:56.Gary got behind the blue in the middle of the frame, it would be all

:49:57. > :50:02.over. Since Ronnie played the brilliant snooker behind the blue,

:50:03. > :50:07.that is probably what will win him it.

:50:08. > :50:11.Well, Ronnie will be disappointed to miss the green but still a snooker

:50:12. > :50:21.required. For Gary. First things first, got to try and

:50:22. > :50:30.get this safe. This isn't a formality.

:50:31. > :50:36.I don't think any heroics here from Ronnie, just roll the green in. He

:50:37. > :50:50.wants this frame over now. That will keep Gary Wilson in his

:50:51. > :50:57.seat. Two snookers effectively required.

:50:58. > :51:06.That was a heavy sounding contact. But as you said, a couple of frames

:51:07. > :51:14.yesterday went one way and then the other. There was one where Ronnie

:51:15. > :51:23.needed a snooker and Gary got it. That's why he's playing on.

:51:24. > :51:29.Pink and black aren't in a bad place but I have a funny feeling Gary will

:51:30. > :51:33.be snookered behind one of them in a minute. Ronnie going to try and play

:51:34. > :51:38.in behind the pink. Nothing worse when you are chasing a snooker and

:51:39. > :51:44.your opponent puts you in one. It doesn't seem fair, does it? Ronnie

:51:45. > :51:49.will be disappointed not to have got it.

:51:50. > :51:55.And of course he only has the pink and black to play the snooker

:51:56. > :52:03.behind, with the blue tight to the baulk cushion.

:52:04. > :52:13.This brown is going towards the corner.

:52:14. > :52:24.Well, it can be cut. Ronnie doesn't want to go in off the brown.

:52:25. > :52:30.That's why he played it like that. He didn't want to be hitting it had

:52:31. > :52:39.entered letting the cue ball run loose.

:52:40. > :52:50.I think that's... Dotting the eyes and crossing the Tees in this frame

:52:51. > :52:53.now. It's all about the snooker behind the blue, the one that didn't

:52:54. > :53:04.get it and the one that did. There will be no return back to the

:53:05. > :53:15.table now for Gary Wilson. After that run of three frames.

:53:16. > :53:28.A very fine player, as well. This is a surprise. Where is the cue ball

:53:29. > :53:40.going? I'm very surprised he's playing on here.

:53:41. > :53:49.Maybe he just doesn't feel settled and wants to get his cue arm going.

:53:50. > :54:14.Three snooker is required on the pink and black.

:54:15. > :54:24.There you see it, three snookers. Ronnie must be a bit bemused. But I

:54:25. > :54:30.suppose the first frame of the session, maybe he feels he doesn't

:54:31. > :54:38.have the right speed... Playing a trick shot now. One, two, three, and

:54:39. > :54:42.concedes. A strange game, but an interesting one, all about the

:54:43. > :54:47.snooker on the blue. Gary Wilson didn't get it, Ronnie O'Sullivan

:54:48. > :54:52.did. Two frames ahead, 6-4. HAZEL IRVINE: A strange end to the frame,

:54:53. > :55:00.why did he play on? I've no idea, it's not like he had shots. Only

:55:01. > :55:05.reason I can think, trying to get under Ronnie's skin or annoy him a

:55:06. > :55:08.bit. I don't know. A strange end to the frame. A brilliant shot to

:55:09. > :55:14.effectively when it. Effectively, Ronnie O'Sullivan didn't win in his

:55:15. > :55:18.trademark one visit. When it came to the critical moment... This snooker

:55:19. > :55:23.using the yellow behind the blue was amazing. A lot of players would have

:55:24. > :55:26.worried about the double-kiss. Ronnie O'Sullivan's not a gambler of

:55:27. > :55:31.a player. He must have absolutely been sure he wouldn't get a double.

:55:32. > :55:36.And the yellow over the pocket, it was going to corner pocket. It

:55:37. > :55:42.played paid massive dividends. What was a very key moment in the match,

:55:43. > :55:45.actually. Gary had a big lead, 50 points and it looked like he would

:55:46. > :55:50.go all square. A great win for Ronnie. The opening frame was more

:55:51. > :55:56.important today you felt for Gary Dan Ronnie. Yes, a massive test now

:55:57. > :55:59.for Gary Wilson this afternoon. Yesterday, first day at the

:56:00. > :56:05.Crucible, perhaps you can enjoy the occasion, be up for it, raise your

:56:06. > :56:09.game. But now, this is the real... The second session, this is the

:56:10. > :56:12.test. This is when the Crucible heats up. He is about to feel it.

:56:13. > :56:24.Back we go. I must apologise... I heard Steven

:56:25. > :56:30.saying Gary Wilkinson as well. He was the World Matchplay champion. He

:56:31. > :56:39.came to the Crucible on many occasions.

:56:40. > :56:52.Two cushion escape with pace. Not played it well. Much too full. First

:56:53. > :56:57.time here, John, playing someone like Ronnie, I think it's something

:56:58. > :57:00.you'd look forward to, wouldn't you? It's unbelievable. It is a snooker

:57:01. > :57:04.player's dream to play at the Crucible but to come out and play

:57:05. > :57:07.against Ronnie O'Sullivan... Some people might consider it a baptism

:57:08. > :57:12.of fire but he looks like he's enjoying every minute of it, and why

:57:13. > :57:16.not? And he can play. He has confidence in himself, he's been

:57:17. > :57:19.lively round the venue, looking like he will enjoy it. It is never a bad

:57:20. > :57:24.thing if you go out thinking you are going to enjoy the match. And with

:57:25. > :57:29.that scoreline, 6-4, he has settled down into it and he will fancy the

:57:30. > :57:34.job. In a way he will have been disappointed to have lost that first

:57:35. > :57:43.frame. As Steven Hendry said in the studio, a big, big frame for Gary.

:57:44. > :57:54.A nice side on view. He is on this red to the left corner, but did want

:57:55. > :58:12.the cue ball that close to the side cushion. The red is pottable. Played

:58:13. > :58:17.it confidently enough. Beautifully played, wasn't it? He's got a lovely

:58:18. > :58:23.angle here. Can go full ball into the pink or that red on the

:58:24. > :58:26.left-hand side... It can go to the left corner. He has a choice of

:58:27. > :58:30.shots, whether he wants to play the side of the pack and use the red as

:58:31. > :58:38.a stopper or go straight into the pink.

:58:39. > :58:48.Well played. How is your luck? Could have been better. You'd think he'd

:58:49. > :58:53.have a red to the right middle. As John said, he couldn't have played

:58:54. > :58:57.the cannon any better. OK, you could say he could have hit the pink a bit

:58:58. > :59:03.fuller. It looks like he's got one to the right middle.

:59:04. > :59:13.Well played. That's a lovely little shot. There was a lot of pressure on

:59:14. > :59:14.that. If you missed it it could have been frame gone. Played that

:59:15. > :59:27.beautifully. In answer to what Steven was saying

:59:28. > :59:34.in the studio, this is a pretty good response, isn't it? Yes. But needs

:59:35. > :59:45.to make these opportunities count. Trying to win frames in one visit.

:59:46. > :59:51.A nice little cannon up into the two reds you can see above the black,

:59:52. > :00:06.can't fail to be on a red. Although saying that, he'd like to

:00:07. > :00:13.have it again. Gone a little bit awkward.

:00:14. > :00:22.Not ideal on any of them. I don't know if he can just drop this in and

:00:23. > :00:26.a little cannon off it, no, we'll have two screw out. But boy did he

:00:27. > :00:31.play that well. A lovely shot. Two lovely cannons he's played. The one

:00:32. > :00:36.in the middle lovely shot to get on the black and that was beautifully

:00:37. > :00:48.played by Gary. And what a chance this is the 6-5.

:00:49. > :01:04.69 will put him in the right stage. Difficult to see a problem ball,

:01:05. > :01:06.enough raids in the open to win the frame without having to do any hard

:01:07. > :01:25.work -- enough reds. It's a tough school, though, isn't

:01:26. > :01:33.it. Ronnie tried to blow the two cushion escape, court the red too

:01:34. > :01:36.fit. It is no matter how good you are, there is nothing you can do

:01:37. > :01:46.about it. He is taking this very well. I like that he likes the heat.

:01:47. > :01:52.Arguably facing the greatest with HQ in his own backyard and he is

:01:53. > :01:56.standing up to it very well indeed. Taking these superbly well. --

:01:57. > :02:20.facing the greatest with a cue. He just paused for a minute, saw

:02:21. > :02:43.this black. Red and a colour now needed. A

:02:44. > :02:50.glance at the scoreboard. Red and a blue would do. The blue would put

:02:51. > :03:00.him 70 points in front, with just 67 remaining.

:03:01. > :03:36.Pink will do to put him in the snooker's required stage.

:03:37. > :04:02.This is his highest break of the match.

:04:03. > :04:09.This is very impressive indeed from Gary Wilson.

:04:10. > :04:45.Played that well. Purposely nudging the other red into play. So, all

:04:46. > :04:46.things being equal, we could see the sixth century of the tournament so

:04:47. > :04:53.far. Ronnie had five. This is perfect. Well, can he stay

:04:54. > :05:16.on the black here? Just, gravity took over. Did you

:05:17. > :05:22.hear at the Crucible, this for his first century. Well played.

:05:23. > :05:43.Excellent stuff. Ton up. He makes the century and that will

:05:44. > :05:46.really settle him down. Ronnie didn't get a chance that frame. He's

:05:47. > :05:55.within one again. Trails 6-5. HAZEL IRVINE: His ninth century of

:05:56. > :05:59.this campaign, because he made eight" fine, including a maximum

:06:00. > :06:02.break yesterday. Stephen, what a response given what went on in the

:06:03. > :06:06.frame prior. Through the whole match, his demeanour, and today, as

:06:07. > :06:11.I said before, but today he would find out if he could handle the

:06:12. > :06:15.pressure. His demeanour around the table, he looks completely

:06:16. > :06:18.comfortable playing at the Crucible. As you say, he is obviously

:06:19. > :06:23.confident in his scoring. He is in a rich vein of form with scoring. That

:06:24. > :06:27.last frame was very impressive. In a way, it is your worst nightmare as a

:06:28. > :06:31.C, playing someone so fresh to the quiz Ball. You hope they will

:06:32. > :06:39.crumble. That is the case, you look for them to crumble. When they

:06:40. > :06:49.don't, it puts more pressure on you -- -- fresh to the crews. As Steve

:06:50. > :06:52.mentioned yesterday, Mark Selby got what he expected from Fergal

:06:53. > :06:56.O'Brien. With Ronnie, you don't know what player is to turn up. Not a bad

:06:57. > :07:05.player has turned up now. Back we go, 6-5.

:07:06. > :07:19.JOHN VIRGO: Decent break off. Any break off that doesn't leave a pot

:07:20. > :07:23.on. The reason I said he didn't leave a pot on, although he has over

:07:24. > :07:33.Hitler's, the red is going over to the pocket. It needs to rest on the

:07:34. > :07:40.cushion. -- although he has overhit this.

:07:41. > :07:47.I would suggest, John, Ronnie already is well aware that he should

:07:48. > :07:57.treat this young man with respect. The last frame, certainly opened his

:07:58. > :08:01.eyes to that prospect. He's been a bit fortunate there, Ronnie, to

:08:02. > :08:13.leave the red there. Not good for the frame either, because not many

:08:14. > :08:34.shots you can play here. The cue ball back up to the top cushion.

:08:35. > :08:39.You can end up with one of those horrible friends where you keep

:08:40. > :08:45.playing balls up the table and bringing the cue ball back. Never a

:08:46. > :08:52.fan of those frames. They are horrible to play in. With that red

:08:53. > :09:22.being in the baulk area. That could happen.

:09:23. > :09:28.A few shots he can play here. You can drop off the side cushion into

:09:29. > :09:32.the pack. He was looking whether he could go down the table, come off

:09:33. > :09:36.the side cushion and drop the ball into that area. In fact, he is going

:09:37. > :09:44.to chip off the side of the pack and put it to the side cushion. Maybe

:09:45. > :09:49.now only has a chance to change the shape of this spring. -- the shape

:09:50. > :10:13.of this frame. He has certainly covered the red

:10:14. > :10:15.near the baulk line, forcing Derry to play a safety shot at this end of

:10:16. > :10:25.the table. It will be a tough return back to

:10:26. > :10:36.the baulk end. -- forcing Gary to play a safety shot.

:10:37. > :11:59.He found a nice path for the cue ball there. One of those that he

:12:00. > :12:23.felt was worth the risk. He's not left anything.

:12:24. > :12:29.Quite a clever shot from Ronnie, that. Try into line that red up with

:12:30. > :12:34.the green, so you can't play back to the baulk area of it, the one

:12:35. > :12:37.between green and blue. You can see the red on the left-hand side, you

:12:38. > :12:38.can run through that, but he won't want to get the double-kiss. He had

:12:39. > :12:55.to be careful with this. He did get the double-kiss. But he's

:12:56. > :13:01.not left anything easy. The aww on the left-hand side of the table will

:13:02. > :13:03.cut. -- the red on the left-hand side of the table. But it is not

:13:04. > :13:23.easy, by any means. Beautiful stuff that was. Absolutely

:13:24. > :13:28.nothing on your screens, but take it from me, that was a really tricky

:13:29. > :13:33.little shot. Beautifully played. And there's a few reds in the open,

:13:34. > :13:40.quite an acute angle in the middle of the pocket. If you look where the

:13:41. > :13:45.cue ball finished, even if it stayed in the jaws, you wouldn't be leaving

:13:46. > :13:51.anything, so he is so clever at picking out a shot. Although it

:13:52. > :13:55.looked risky, he made it look like there was little risk to it if he

:13:56. > :14:00.missed it. But now he has got it, what can he make of this

:14:01. > :14:06.opportunity? Just underhit that slightly, but I think he's OK. The

:14:07. > :14:08.red just about the black does go. Now the black will be available to

:14:09. > :14:18.both corners. Yes, yet to sit in his chair in the

:14:19. > :14:35.last frame, got a big punch from Gary Wilson.

:14:36. > :14:42.In such a position, he couldn't play the run with pace, because the cue

:14:43. > :14:50.ball was a bit wide for the blue now. If the pink goes, that is a

:14:51. > :14:53.bonus. He's opened the reds. Normally, you assume the pink

:14:54. > :14:57.doesn't go, so a tricky blue is on here. Is it go? Is it middle or top?

:14:58. > :15:22.He's got to get it. Yeah, it was a tough enough pot the

:15:23. > :15:26.way he played, full-blooded with a lot of screw inside there. He is

:15:27. > :15:36.praying as the cue ball comes down the table, he will land on a red.

:15:37. > :16:18.Just scrapping about for position, John. He can't quite get the cue

:16:19. > :16:24.ball where he wants it. Just a fraction, making the next shot a

:16:25. > :16:29.little bit more difficult. He has got to cue this well. And did.

:16:30. > :16:32.Thinking about the red when he rolled it into the top pocket, not

:16:33. > :16:35.many players would play that would they?

:16:36. > :16:43.I don't know whether it's a sign of his confidence, or a bit of

:16:44. > :16:47.frustration. Take nothing away from the pot, but I can't think of many

:16:48. > :16:51.other players that would play it. Most people would be worried about

:16:52. > :16:55.leaving it. He was just trying to play it the right way. He just

:16:56. > :16:56.played it the correct way to get it in the pocket. But it still took

:16:57. > :17:02.some cueing. This is turning into a very good

:17:03. > :17:21.match indeed. A really good match. This is the reply from Ronnie. And

:17:22. > :17:25.Gary's play has certainly woken him up.

:17:26. > :17:32.As you said after the last frame, Gary Wilson asked Ronnie a question.

:17:33. > :17:46.And here's your answer. A quick glance at the scoreboard. If

:17:47. > :17:53.he can get on the pink, then he will need just one more red, or the blue.

:17:54. > :17:59.A decent shop played absolutely perfect. A stunt on a red into the

:18:00. > :18:16.same pocket as pink. This has just been a brilliant

:18:17. > :18:22.contribution from O'Sullivan, it really has. He has seen his opponent

:18:23. > :18:27.play well. He needs to put a marker down. This has been the response.

:18:28. > :18:29.Absolutely outstanding with a couple of great shots in it, but one in

:18:30. > :18:34.particular. Trying to nudge the awkward red into

:18:35. > :19:06.play. Needs to stop short of the baulk

:19:07. > :19:11.line. Has done, so a good positional shot needed now off the brown for

:19:12. > :19:20.the difficult last red. Trying to bring it into the open. Dropped in

:19:21. > :19:22.Canada. I wouldn't say it's perfect. -- dropped in the cannon. Terrific

:19:23. > :19:35.shot. The blue for another century. He is

:19:36. > :19:41.going to play the yellow left-handed. Wouldn't you if you

:19:42. > :19:47.were that good left-handed? Didn't want to stretch for the blue.

:19:48. > :19:52.What a wonderful three frames we have had so far in this afternoon

:19:53. > :20:03.session. Top quality. And a seventh century of this year's

:20:04. > :20:20.championship. A wonderful reply from Ronnie.

:20:21. > :20:32.The previous highest break in the tournament so far is a 122. APPLAUSE

:20:33. > :20:40.Superb snigger from both players. Ronnie was asked a question and he

:20:41. > :20:46.gave the right reply. Actor two in front again now, 7-5. -- superb

:20:47. > :21:48.snooker. Pays about is running's 47 century,

:21:49. > :21:55.I make it, the season. They are beginning to fly in a in a bit now.

:21:56. > :21:58.That is seven now. Are we in for a bumper year, Stephen? I think so.

:21:59. > :22:02.Lots of balls going in the pocket that I am surprised about. Maybe the

:22:03. > :22:06.pockets are playing slightly generous. People say that is

:22:07. > :22:10.impossible because the templates are the same. I think they are going in

:22:11. > :22:14.nicely, but you normally see top players making more centuries when

:22:15. > :22:18.the pressure is on, because they start to focus and concentrate high.

:22:19. > :22:22.I wouldn't be surprised if Ronnie Knox in another couple this

:22:23. > :22:31.afternoon. OK, very tasty indeed. Two in DOS frames -- two frames.

:22:32. > :22:35.JOHN VIRGO: There will be a mid session interval after this spring.

:22:36. > :22:43.A big frame in the context of the match, particularly for Gary Wilson.

:22:44. > :22:45.Can he be as you were when they started this session? Or will he be

:22:46. > :22:56.three behind? That was the archetypal shot for

:22:57. > :23:38.nothing. That was the distance of it, but it

:23:39. > :23:39.was the quality of the cueing there. Straight through and right into the

:23:40. > :23:48.centre of the pocket. Yeah and it's something that went

:23:49. > :23:53.off for a couple of seasons, didn't it, Ronnie's long potting. He was

:23:54. > :24:00.getting very dependent on people making mistakes. He wasn't getting

:24:01. > :24:03.himself in with good, long potting. But he has done the last couple of

:24:04. > :24:12.seasons. It goes without saying, once he

:24:13. > :24:35.starts knocking the long ones in, he's very hard to stop.

:24:36. > :24:48.Not the cleanest of pots. Yeah, even Vaughany thought that wasn't going

:24:49. > :24:56.to drop for a second -- even Ronnie fought. He can thank the new cloth

:24:57. > :25:01.for that. It slides for the first day or so. Mind you, they seem to

:25:02. > :25:05.play on old class. They only have them for a feudal days now and they

:25:06. > :25:10.put a new one on. It makes a huge difference.

:25:11. > :25:18.The pockets always seem to play a little bit easier. They slide off

:25:19. > :25:24.the new cloth, rather than come off a bit square.

:25:25. > :25:32.Well, that's worked out nicely. Red towards the middle but he will

:25:33. > :25:38.settle for that. John, how well did he play it? Honestly, how many

:25:39. > :25:45.snooker players would do that? He has done so well just to hold it.

:25:46. > :25:53.He changed his mind there. You can tell by his cueing, he is in two

:25:54. > :25:56.minds as to what he should play. Even the great stand up and start

:25:57. > :26:02.again when they are not ready on the shot. A good thing, too. If he can't

:26:03. > :26:07.get a perfect angle on the blue, there is no reason why he can't play

:26:08. > :26:10.for the blue. There is a red at the baulk end. He didn't need the right

:26:11. > :26:15.angle on the blue. That is what he has done in the end. He decided, I

:26:16. > :26:19.can get on the blue, I can't get the right side, but there is a ball at

:26:20. > :26:24.the baulk end to play for. As you say, good thinking to stop yourself

:26:25. > :26:26.getting down and playing the shot. Give everything due care and

:26:27. > :26:37.attention before you get down. Yes, I think if Gary Wilson hadn't

:26:38. > :26:44.seen the real Ronnie O'Sullivan so far, he's seen him now. This match

:26:45. > :26:52.has got him focused. A brilliant break in the last frame. 124.

:26:53. > :26:56.So far in this, it looks like it is pretty ominous for Gary. That was a

:26:57. > :27:09.horrible kick. Yeah, you could see it. That has

:27:10. > :27:14.really spoilt things. A nice angle on the black there. There were a

:27:15. > :27:24.feud reds that he could have played for. -- a few reds. There is Damien

:27:25. > :27:26.Hirst, a big supporter Ronnie, and supports off the table, which is a

:27:27. > :27:34.good thing. Someone said, you don't play every

:27:35. > :27:41.day, but you are living it everyday. Once you are here for 17 days, it

:27:42. > :27:42.doesn't matter what day you are playing, the tournament is in your

:27:43. > :27:59.blood. Yeah, I think he'll play the thing.

:28:00. > :28:04.Once again, another ball that has gone very close. On a bad day, they

:28:05. > :28:09.go in, don't they. I think he's got to play the pink here. Obviously, he

:28:10. > :28:13.can pot the black, but he has not had any real control on the pupil.

:28:14. > :28:20.It is all about the positional shot here. The pink is an absolute gimme.

:28:21. > :28:30.But can you land on one? He has played the cannon. If it is right,

:28:31. > :28:36.what a shot this is right. Come on, jeez. I think he is going to split

:28:37. > :28:44.the atom in the interval, John. Wonderful shot. It is just snooker

:28:45. > :28:49.knowledge. It's a gift. He got the line absolutely into perfect, and

:28:50. > :28:52.the pace. You can hit that shot a little bit too hard, and it will

:28:53. > :29:01.come off the cushion slightly different. Just the pace of it was

:29:02. > :29:04.superb. And, well, it looked as though Gary was going to have a free

:29:05. > :29:10.frame deficit coming into the mid-session interval now. Made 100

:29:11. > :29:13.in the one frame he has won in these first four frames, showing his

:29:14. > :29:20.quality. But what a reply from Ronnie.

:29:21. > :29:32.He will be able to orbit lift there. A little bit careless not to get the

:29:33. > :29:43.right side on the blue. -- he will be a little bit miffed. Read he has

:29:44. > :29:44.lined up to play, he will be hampered by the one near the baulk

:29:45. > :29:51.on the leaning over. He has got to be careful. What he

:29:52. > :30:00.has done is left the cue ball shorter, so he is hampered by the

:30:01. > :30:08.red on the right-hand side. Still needs a red and a colour.

:30:09. > :30:15.Right in the heart of the pocket. Is he going to land on the blue? The

:30:16. > :30:27.blue will put in 69 points in front with 67 remaining.

:30:28. > :30:35.Goodness me, what a shot again. Some wonderful shots in this break. I

:30:36. > :30:42.think he's enjoying himself out there, John. Honestly, we haven't

:30:43. > :31:02.artist in the audience and we've got one on the table.

:31:03. > :31:10.There's the red just above the black, it's available. He's just

:31:11. > :31:14.about on it. The way he's playing at the moment, he's looking at all

:31:15. > :31:18.kinds of different shots. But he has missed that one. But I don't think

:31:19. > :31:24.Gary Wilson will get out of his seat. I will be amazed if it does.

:31:25. > :31:56.He's coming back to the table, but surely, that's frame over.

:31:57. > :32:08.So, let's look at this now. 66 points behind. 51 remaining. I can

:32:09. > :32:12.only assume he's hoping that he will get these two reds, the black, get

:32:13. > :32:20.in the baulk end and play a snooker on the red that's near the yellow.

:32:21. > :32:28.Because at the moment, is looking for four snookers.

:32:29. > :32:46.So, this is the plan. Pot the red, get a nice angle on the black.

:32:47. > :32:56.And when potting the black, try and get somewhere near that circle.

:32:57. > :33:08.It needs to Mr brown. -- miss the brown. You can still get the

:33:09. > :33:13.snooker, but it would've been a more difficult one if he could have

:33:14. > :33:25.missed the brown and finished near the baulk cushion.

:33:26. > :33:36.So, 50 points the lead, 35 remaining. If Ronnie missed this he

:33:37. > :33:48.would leave a free ball but not much chance of that... Well, hush my

:33:49. > :33:58.mouth! There is your free ball. So now, 46 behind, a possible 43

:33:59. > :33:59.remaining. Still one snooker needed. This green obviously counts as a

:34:00. > :34:08.red. Didn't want to be too straight on

:34:09. > :34:13.the black, he has to pot the black but how does he get to the red? I

:34:14. > :34:17.was going to say, the one thing you can't do is leave yourself straight

:34:18. > :34:21.on the black with the red behind the yellow but that's exactly what he's

:34:22. > :34:26.done here. I don't know whether there's any of it just sticking out

:34:27. > :34:28.on the left-hand side, if he potted the black and screwed back. But even

:34:29. > :34:45.then, the next shot be too pretty. There is just an egg. I'm wondering

:34:46. > :34:56.if it's a guide to potting it. There you see it, just sticking out.

:34:57. > :35:01.Needs to be on the black, though, needs to be on the black to keep it

:35:02. > :35:14.at one snooker needed. Well, at the table fitters done a

:35:15. > :35:19.good job? We will find out. He is going to have to play this into the

:35:20. > :35:25.top pocket, isn't he? Yes, otherwise three snooker is needed. Here we go.

:35:26. > :35:33.It's close, it's close... It's there! Wonderful shot! Can he hit

:35:34. > :35:41.the yellow? He played it at that pace so if the

:35:42. > :35:46.black didn't go in it would cover the pocket for the yellow, but has

:35:47. > :35:49.he run far enough? 30 points behind, 27 remaining. He can get to the

:35:50. > :35:58.yellow. Even if he can't play a snooker

:35:59. > :36:04.here, the main priority is to get the yellow say. He can't get a

:36:05. > :36:11.snooker off it... Well, he thought he could.

:36:12. > :36:20.So an interesting frame, from looking like he was totally forlorn,

:36:21. > :36:21.74 points behind. Only 30 in it now, one snooker required. Amazing

:36:22. > :36:29.turnaround. Not only has Gary got the problem of

:36:30. > :37:14.hitting this, he has to get it safe. That was a half-hearted attempt at

:37:15. > :37:17.that pot, but Gary can get through to this yellow. There is a

:37:18. > :37:19.possibility of a snooker where the green, blue and brown are. A

:37:20. > :37:43.tempting target. Good try. They are funny, these

:37:44. > :37:47.frames. You know when you have had a massive lead in one of them and you

:37:48. > :37:51.can see someone nearly pegging you back and just needing one snooker?

:37:52. > :37:58.You get a little tentative yourself in the frame, trying not to make a

:37:59. > :38:01.mistake. Yes, and as you said earlier, Ronnie has already lost one

:38:02. > :38:07.of these types of frames in this match.

:38:08. > :38:12.I mean, I was surprised Gary played on when he was so far behind, but it

:38:13. > :38:18.just shows you. Anything can happen. Court that much too thick, wanted to

:38:19. > :38:31.run the yellow into the brown. But there's no way Ronnie wants to

:38:32. > :38:34.be rolling the yellow over the corner, he doesn't want to give Gary

:38:35. > :38:37.a chance of potting the yellow and getting a chance to play a snooker

:38:38. > :38:54.on the green. I don't blame him taking a bit of

:38:55. > :38:59.time, it's not straightforward, this. Obviously he can chip off the

:39:00. > :39:09.yellow and leave the cue ball in the baulk area. Coming to have a look at

:39:10. > :39:14.it. As you said a few moments ago, it's amazing how the mindset has

:39:15. > :39:20.changed from being 76 in front and his opponent with no chance, it

:39:21. > :39:24.appeared. 74 in front, as turned out. Now we have the frame well and

:39:25. > :40:17.truly back on. That pink and black now aren't a bad

:40:18. > :40:21.target. I'm not saying for this shot... But sometimes later on down

:40:22. > :40:33.the line. He could take the pot on, this

:40:34. > :40:39.yellow here. I see no reason why not to.

:40:40. > :41:00.So now, can he get in behind the black? It's to get in behind the

:41:01. > :41:04.black pink but you could use the pink as a target. I don't know if he

:41:05. > :41:06.has the angle. But as we say, if you can't get the snooker, make sure you

:41:07. > :41:25.get the object ball safe. He's tried it, top spin and across.

:41:26. > :41:29.Oooh... That's not great. Wanted to leave that black where it was,

:41:30. > :41:32.didn't want to clip it towards the pink. But all credit to him, he's in

:41:33. > :42:16.there, punching away. Nearly a clever shot, just tried to

:42:17. > :42:20.open up the pink and black, but didn't get the green far enough

:42:21. > :42:27.away. A good pot required here for Ronnie.

:42:28. > :42:37.And that is the end of the frame now. But what a frame it turned out

:42:38. > :42:40.to be. Gary Wilson stuck in there and was only one snooker away from

:42:41. > :42:46.pulling off a shock and getting within one frame of Ronnie, as they

:42:47. > :42:49.started this afternoon's session. But Ronnie now has a three frame

:42:50. > :43:00.advantage, mid-session interval. It's been a wonderful four frames

:43:01. > :43:06.from both players, it to make a great good match. Great

:43:07. > :43:11.entertainment. Gary Wilson will be disappointed. Ronnie O'Sullivan now

:43:12. > :43:15.just two frames away from a place in the second round. He leads 8-5.

:43:16. > :43:20.HAZEL IRVINE: Easily done when you have a man like Gary Wilkinson, who

:43:21. > :43:24.still dominate snooker memories. It is Gary Wilson who is certainly

:43:25. > :43:29.putting up a good fight today. Interestingly 71 behind, four reds

:43:30. > :43:35.left on the table, would you have carried on? No, certainly not. I

:43:36. > :43:40.would not have carried on. Two snookers was my maximum. When the

:43:41. > :43:45.Bulls look like they're in a good position you might be tempted but

:43:46. > :43:49.generally, no. But in all fairness to Gary Wilson, making a fight of

:43:50. > :43:53.it? Certainly, regardless of what happens in the rest of the match,

:43:54. > :43:57.you can go away saying he gave it a good go. So many players come here

:43:58. > :44:01.and just crumble. This is a fantastic performance. And again

:44:02. > :44:05.someone who very rarely crumbles at the Crucible. If you don't want to

:44:06. > :44:08.play anybody, it's Ronnie O'Sullivan. He's too good in all

:44:09. > :44:10.departments and also very strong as a front runner and doesn't give you

:44:11. > :44:26.much. It's been a tough draw for him but he has done very well. It

:44:27. > :44:29.strikes me he's really enjoying it. Everything about his demeanour says,

:44:30. > :44:31.I like being here. In his chair he's upright, walking round the table

:44:32. > :44:34.with authority when he's playing his shots. I suggested earlier maybe he

:44:35. > :44:37.was playing on to annoy Ronnie but I have to take that back, it's clearly

:44:38. > :44:40.not the case. I think he's just loving being out there and wants to

:44:41. > :44:42.stay as long as possible. There's a shot Ronnie missed his first

:44:43. > :44:46.snooker, which get the frame going. It just shows, he still trying to

:44:47. > :44:51.win. Absolutely. We shall move on. As you know, Gary is a first timer

:44:52. > :44:55.here. Terry Griffiths famously won the title at the first attempt in

:44:56. > :45:00.1979. As for Ronnie O'Sullivan, it took him nine years to win his first

:45:01. > :45:05.in 2001, the first of five titles since then. Also a very long and

:45:06. > :45:06.hard road to Sheffield and even harder when you have do share it

:45:07. > :45:36.with a geezer like this. Last time you were in the car with

:45:37. > :45:39.this many cameras, was it top gear? No, the last time I'd done this was

:45:40. > :45:47.when we went to America and did American Hustle Foster went out

:45:48. > :45:53.there, played a bit of pool, just bouncing around in America having a

:45:54. > :45:58.good time. Was it like the pool world press at the history of pool?

:45:59. > :46:02.Yeah, like me going out there and trying to see if I could make it as

:46:03. > :46:07.a hustler on a really. Really, did anyone recognises? See if I could

:46:08. > :46:12.succeed or not and I failed miserably. I lost all the top pool

:46:13. > :46:16.players, like Archer. They were there to give me tips on how to

:46:17. > :46:21.hustle. The idea was I was going to like a normal club and find an

:46:22. > :46:26.amateur or anybody and try to hustle them, tried to lull them in. Did

:46:27. > :46:30.they have secret cameras? Yes, in the corners. A bit fly on the wall.

:46:31. > :46:35.Every time I walked in a club they were like, Ronnie O'Sullivan! I

:46:36. > :46:40.thought, how do they recognise me in America? It's like YouTube and all

:46:41. > :46:44.of that. They have everything they want on TV, you know? Shame, shame.

:46:45. > :46:50.So the hustling side didn't work out. The cameras in the car,

:46:51. > :46:54.fantastic. Top gear, you were buzzing on top gear. Didn't you get

:46:55. > :46:58.one of the best time ever? I remembered getting there and I got

:46:59. > :47:01.the best time and then they reviewed the footage and said, you just ran

:47:02. > :47:05.over the white line so we had to dock you half a second, so now your

:47:06. > :47:12.second. I was gutted. I would love to have led it, just to say I had.

:47:13. > :47:19.Just behind Simon Cowell. I hadn't done any track driving then. It was

:47:20. > :47:24.just off pure instinct, no driving training. Since then I've had a lot

:47:25. > :47:31.of track days. Really? Yeah, I'd probably hammer it. Would it be in

:47:32. > :47:35.your bucket list, Formula 1 driving? Any driving, it doesn't matter what

:47:36. > :47:38.the car is. It's just mastering the car, getting the balance right,

:47:39. > :47:43.getting it to slide and doing what you want to do. It's like playing

:47:44. > :47:46.snooker, when you get the white ball under control, using, I'm doing

:47:47. > :47:49.things with this ball that no one else can do. In a way that's the

:47:50. > :47:56.problem long time for yourself or anyone in snooker. How do you

:47:57. > :48:01.replicate the excitement? Exactly. It is such a buzz turning up for the

:48:02. > :48:04.World Championship. Is, 17 days? I find it a lot stress and pressure.

:48:05. > :48:10.When I'm playing its fine but it's the waiting around. Yes, waiting

:48:11. > :48:13.around for odd moments of panic. Then you have a fleeting moment when

:48:14. > :48:19.you win it and you're in the zone and you're flying. Don't get me

:48:20. > :48:24.wrong, a great feeling, but 17 days of it... A war of attrition. Yes.

:48:25. > :48:29.Awards the back end of it you played nearly every day. I've been 16-8 up

:48:30. > :48:35.in the semifinals thinking, this could go wrong. LAUGHTER

:48:36. > :48:40.It's not a nice feeling, you know? 16-8 up and, I can't lose this...

:48:41. > :48:45.But it's like I think, could still go wrong. It's the Crucible, it does

:48:46. > :48:49.it to you. We'll go slowly mad, snooker players go slowly mad.

:48:50. > :48:51.Thanks very much. I've got to get you out, I've got loads of affairs.

:48:52. > :49:06.-- loads of fares. HAZEL IRVINE: Very generous, did he

:49:07. > :49:10.give you a tip at the end of it? He told me I should be gripping the

:49:11. > :49:13.cue. Certainly in the driving seat at the moment in this match. You

:49:14. > :49:20.would expect him to kick on surely at this point? Yeah, Gary

:49:21. > :49:27.Wilkinson... Gary Wilkinson! You are doing it now. Gary Wilson has put in

:49:28. > :49:31.a good show this afternoon. I think the second session was always going

:49:32. > :49:34.to be the tough one. With the top players, they sought of raise their

:49:35. > :49:39.game. Ronnie at times has looked very impressive. We talked at the

:49:40. > :49:44.top of the show, I said he'd need to play better to win the championship,

:49:45. > :49:48.and he does do. What he has done this season is beat the players he

:49:49. > :49:52.should beat, comfortably. When he's come up against the other top

:49:53. > :49:56.players, he struggled a little bit. As I said before, his best game is

:49:57. > :49:59.good enough to win the World Championship was it if he can bring

:50:00. > :50:04.it every round. We will take a break now so we can get Gary Wilson's name

:50:05. > :50:10.in our heads in the next few minutes. We can talk about the other

:50:11. > :50:13.match on the side of the curtain, featuring 2015 champion Stuart

:50:14. > :50:16.Bingham. What an amazing relief it must be for Stuart. A couple of

:50:17. > :50:20.months ago he won the Welsh Open and that was his first title since

:50:21. > :50:25.becoming world champion. The expectation levels clearly have

:50:26. > :50:29.increased massively on Bigham since 2015. He looks much more relaxed

:50:30. > :50:33.having come here this time. This is his 17th appearance and he has been

:50:34. > :50:40.making waves ever since he turned up here in 2000.

:50:41. > :50:46.So, you would have thought, the year 2000 when I first came here and

:50:47. > :50:53.played Steven Hendry and beat him in the first round... What a fine or!

:50:54. > :51:00.Stuart Bingham, after 20 years, realises his ambition and he is beat

:51:01. > :51:04.2015 world champion. 15 years later, picking the trophy up myself, it was

:51:05. > :51:09.one of the memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. What a

:51:10. > :51:15.feeling! I know I can do it. That's a big key

:51:16. > :51:20.coming here, I think. But I'm not taking anything for granted. I have

:51:21. > :51:26.a tough game in Peter. You just have to get out there, settle and

:51:27. > :51:30.hopefully things go my way. He's unpredictable. Some of the

:51:31. > :51:34.shots he takes on Ahmad. But you know what you're going to get.

:51:35. > :51:40.You're going to get a tough game. -- some of the shots he makes are mad.

:51:41. > :51:45.We've had good matches in the past. I know if I can play well, I have

:51:46. > :51:49.every chance. I've picked up the trophy, the Welsh Open, in February.

:51:50. > :51:54.I've been pretty consistent before Christmas, five or six tournaments

:51:55. > :51:58.on the trot I got to five or six semifinals. In between them, up and

:51:59. > :52:02.down, but it's always nice, I think you always have a good season when

:52:03. > :52:10.you pick up trophies. I suppose 2015, I didn't know what

:52:11. > :52:13.was round the corner. Every match was new. But obviously now I've done

:52:14. > :52:20.it, you know what's happening. It's probably tougher in a way. Tough

:52:21. > :52:26.matches out there and you play well then you have every chance. HAZEL

:52:27. > :52:29.IRVINE: Stuart trying to become the 13th double winner of the world

:52:30. > :52:33.title here. Peter Ebdon has got very close as well. He won it in 2000 and

:52:34. > :52:38.ran been runner-up a few times as well. Former number three in the

:52:39. > :52:43.world, Peter, and obdurate opponent for anyone still. Interestingly,

:52:44. > :52:47.Ebdon has the better record in head-to-heads between. 7-5,

:52:48. > :52:52.including the last two occasions they've met. In we go, first frame,

:52:53. > :52:56.Bingham on a break of 21 and it's all being watched by our world

:52:57. > :53:01.winning duo Terry Griffiths and Dennis Taylor.

:53:02. > :53:09.This is a decent chance here for Stuart Bingham.

:53:10. > :53:16.Couldn't hold for the black but having to go up for the blue. As

:53:17. > :53:24.long as you are on the right side of the blue, there's no real problem.

:53:25. > :53:35.Big odds on favourite to win this match, I think. Peter Ebdon was

:53:36. > :53:39.something like 9/2. Worth putting ?2 on Peter Ebdon at that price,

:53:40. > :53:41.because he's beaten Stuart on a good few occasions. In fact, he leads

:53:42. > :54:46.seven wins to Stuart's five. Just come up a little bit short, as

:54:47. > :54:52.he did with his previous positional shot. Just making it slightly

:54:53. > :54:59.difficult for himself. One good shot here will recover the situation.

:55:00. > :55:46.A clear path through to the winning post in this opening frame now.

:55:47. > :55:54.Tremendous amount of side to make sure it didn't cannon into the red.

:55:55. > :55:59.Just a red and a colour needed. This is a very good start. For Stuart

:56:00. > :56:07.Bingham. Just what the doctor ordered.

:56:08. > :56:14.It wasn't so much about the pot, but watch the white as it hits the

:56:15. > :56:17.cushion, just could have gone in the reds but look at the side he got on

:56:18. > :57:03.that to leave himself perfect. Well, what a way to start.

:57:04. > :57:25.Possibility of a century now. We've had five centuries so far at

:57:26. > :57:29.the Betfred World Championship. A bit of work to do here to get

:57:30. > :57:35.another one. Might be snookered behind the blue. If it goes back on

:57:36. > :58:14.its spot... Needs to keep running. It's held the spot. LAUGHTER

:58:15. > :58:25.Stuart! Not a century break, but nevertheless he got one chance that

:58:26. > :58:31.was all he needed. He takes the opening frame. Is 1-0 to Stuart

:58:32. > :58:36.Bingham. HAZEL IRVINE: Stuart hasn't won a match at the Crucible since

:58:37. > :58:40.winning the title in 2015. He came back as the defending champion and

:58:41. > :58:44.went out in the first round to Ali Carter, as the Crucible curse bit

:58:45. > :58:47.him as it has bitten every first-time champion here in

:58:48. > :58:49.Sheffield. A good start and we will pick him up in the second, 25 points

:58:50. > :58:57.adrift. Not often you have 70 points on the

:58:58. > :59:01.scoreboard and your opponent can still win. 22 points he gave away in

:59:02. > :59:14.fouls. That's the reason for that. And that's a pretty good shot fare

:59:15. > :59:23.from Stuart Bingham. No problem hitting the red, but to get it

:59:24. > :59:31.safe... That's the problem. Lots of side of the cushion. -- off the

:59:32. > :59:38.cushion. Got too much side, needs a bit of luck here. And he hasn't had

:59:39. > :59:43.it. Do you know, there's a chance here, I know the blue is awkward,

:59:44. > :59:48.but if he pots this and gets nicely on the colour, he could play for the

:59:49. > :59:54.green and then pot the green and just flick the blue out. There's a

:59:55. > :00:00.few ways of going about it here. The blue is the ball that Stuart will

:00:01. > :00:08.have on his mind at the moment. And I think that's what he's played, if

:00:09. > :00:14.it bounces for another... -- far enough. The yellow, a little

:00:15. > :00:20.awkward, if he risks putting the green, the blue could go back on it

:00:21. > :00:29.spot. Not far enough to play that. And of course, you can get the blue.

:00:30. > :00:35.Yes, just picking out where he'd like to leave it. If he gets nicely

:00:36. > :00:43.on the green, he can pot the green, cannon out the blue and still be on

:00:44. > :00:47.the brown. Has he got the correct angle to do that? It looks pretty

:00:48. > :00:56.good to me. This is the key shot coming up.

:00:57. > :01:17.Couldn't have played that one better.

:01:18. > :01:23.Peter Ebdon will be devastated losing this frame, I must say. He

:01:24. > :01:41.had quite huge chances to win it. Yeah, it really will be a confidence

:01:42. > :02:06.booster for Peter's opponent, Stuart to win this. He scored 70 points.

:02:07. > :02:13.Taking that very well, I must say. Especially the blue off the

:02:14. > :02:17.condition. But Peter Ebdon, this is a friend that will hurt him.

:02:18. > :02:20.Hopefully, you can get a good bit of form back in the next frame.

:02:21. > :02:34.HAZEL IRVINE: Stuart made an 80 to go in front. A 31. 3-1 in the

:02:35. > :02:38.mid-session interval. That returns shortly. It is live on the red

:02:39. > :02:44.button and online, and we may join that one a little bit later once the

:02:45. > :02:48.conclusion of the match on the other table between Ronnie and Gary

:02:49. > :02:54.Wilson. Peter Ebdon is still a force, still competing at the age of

:02:55. > :02:59.46. What would you say is his, not legacy, but how should we remember

:03:00. > :03:06.the best days of Peter Ebdon? I don't think his sock selects and --

:03:07. > :03:12.shot selection, it has always been out there. Probably, he has probably

:03:13. > :03:17.tried harder than anyone that has ever played snooker. A brave snooker

:03:18. > :03:22.player. Can I say, Gary Wilkinson, just to get it out there and get it

:03:23. > :03:26.out of the way again. It is out there and it has gone, and it is

:03:27. > :03:29.Gary Wilson that we are watching. Peter continues against Stuart on

:03:30. > :03:33.the other table, but this is the match we have been very much

:03:34. > :03:37.enjoying. He has given as good as he has got, Gary Wilson, and finds

:03:38. > :03:41.himself in a tricky position. A lot of ground to make up. O Sullivan

:03:42. > :03:48.needs two more for a place in round two. Back to the two Johns.

:03:49. > :03:54.JOHN VIRGO: Thank you, Hazel. Gary Wilson breaks off in frame 14.

:03:55. > :04:01.He knew at the start of the match, John, that he had to play well. And

:04:02. > :04:06.he's got to really play well now. Yeah, he has done so far. The last

:04:07. > :04:11.two friends have been close to O Sullivan Vintage, a break of 124.

:04:12. > :04:15.And in the last frame, the break of 74 at the start of it. Ronnie had

:04:16. > :04:19.some magnificent shots. He hasn't done a lot wrong in the last couple

:04:20. > :04:27.of frames. He's just had to watch, Gary. Pot success in this session,

:04:28. > :05:25.98%. 93% Gary. That is top-quality snooker.

:05:26. > :05:33.Don't really see much else for Ronnie to play here. If he tries to

:05:34. > :05:40.get back to the baulk end, it's risky. You have got to cover that

:05:41. > :05:44.red up near the baulk line. I know he doesn't just like rolling them

:05:45. > :05:51.into the cluster, but I don't see what other option he is. -- option

:05:52. > :06:10.he Not touching, as you can see there.

:06:11. > :06:26.Boy Samantha, if it is a touching ball, the referee will declare it.

:06:27. > :07:05.-- remember, if it is a touching ball.

:07:06. > :07:11.I think maybe a stalemate, but if someone could get the cue ball near

:07:12. > :07:18.that circle that I have just put up, that would be a good safety. Ronnie

:07:19. > :07:24.can't do it from this shop, but that would put an end to this stalemate.

:07:25. > :07:38.-- from this shot It is touching that one and that

:07:39. > :07:39.one. You have got to play away and not move the ones you are touching,

:07:40. > :08:01.because that is deemed a foul, then. Not ideal for either player, these

:08:02. > :08:03.exchanges at the start of a frame. It is just the way the balls runs

:08:04. > :08:23.sometimes. I suppose you don't mind it or you

:08:24. > :08:28.might get less when you are 8-5 in front. Yeah, I think you can be a

:08:29. > :08:32.little bit more patient then, can't you. I think Gary Wilson would like

:08:33. > :08:37.to get on with this. Is he going to risk going to the baulk end? He's

:08:38. > :08:41.got to cover that red near the baulk line.

:08:42. > :09:18.Now, he's been a little bit fortunate there.

:09:19. > :09:30.Just looking to snick off this red that the cue ball is closest to. But

:09:31. > :09:43.he doesn't like it. And there is a possibility of leaving the room --

:09:44. > :09:49.leaving the red. You have got to be careful you don't run it in the

:09:50. > :09:53.corner. That is OK. I think he's covered the bread, although he

:09:54. > :09:56.doesn't look too happy. I think he thought it was running in the pocket

:09:57. > :10:05.and it pulled up, John. I think you're right.

:10:06. > :10:08.As I say, you have to be careful not to run it. And I think you are

:10:09. > :11:15.right, John. I thought that was quite a go,

:11:16. > :11:23.couldn't really leave anything other than the one he was taking.

:11:24. > :11:29.He's got to be a little careful, if he is going to play the shot into

:11:30. > :11:32.the back of the pack and bring the white down to the back of the black,

:11:33. > :11:37.he has got to cover the left-hand side and make sure it doesn't get

:11:38. > :11:38.left to the middle pocket. Just checking where he thinks the reds

:11:39. > :12:19.might go to. Yeah, well, safe enough, but it has

:12:20. > :12:21.got to be a good safety if you are going to get the cue ball tight to

:12:22. > :12:26.the top cushion. Chance here for Gary to try and get

:12:27. > :12:56.in behind the black. That's a very good shot. The cue

:12:57. > :13:03.ball tight on the top cushion, needing to dig down. Good thinking

:13:04. > :13:20.here. The problem ball is the red

:13:21. > :13:27.occupying in the green spot on or almost occupying it. I don't see how

:13:28. > :13:33.he can play to the baulk end and not leave a chance on the red. It wasn't

:13:34. > :13:39.as difficult as I thought. He needs it to run, though. Just. I was like

:13:40. > :13:42.you. I thought that was not available. A relative history

:13:43. > :13:51.forward shot in the end. Quite a lot of shots Ronnie

:13:52. > :13:57.O'Sullivan has played where it 0-0 with plenty of shots. That is what

:13:58. > :14:04.we have got here. Just the way the balls runs sometimes.

:14:05. > :14:14.Both players, of course, know this is a massive frame.

:14:15. > :14:23.That's not the best. He has stuck it over the middle. It's a shocker. I

:14:24. > :14:30.think he played to run that red into another one but misjudged it, as you

:14:31. > :14:36.say. And the pace, I think he played to run it into the one that was just

:14:37. > :14:43.by the left middle pocket. But he has missed it, the red has run

:14:44. > :14:47.loose. Ronnie is a little bit concerned here. He can't really get

:14:48. > :14:52.any back spin on this cue ball. He's just a bit concerned that he is

:14:53. > :14:59.going to go close to this corner pocket. And if he does, would that

:15:00. > :15:00.leave him, well, in a nice position on the black? We will see how he

:15:01. > :15:11.plays it. He had all those things in his mind.

:15:12. > :15:18.And did what we see so many times. Forgot the pot. Yeah, and if he's

:15:19. > :15:25.got in the way with it, he's had a right result. Lots of reds were

:15:26. > :15:28.running around the table and cannoning into things. He has

:15:29. > :15:32.covered the red to the middle right hand side of the table, around the

:15:33. > :15:36.middle. I don't think anything else is readily available. He has been

:15:37. > :16:11.very fortunate there. And if he's left the red over the

:16:12. > :16:18.middle, that is an awful shock. Absolutely. You don't mind playing

:16:19. > :16:20.the double, but he had to cover the Crimson mat to the right middle, and

:16:21. > :16:28.he hasn't done that. And this one was a little bit easier than the

:16:29. > :16:34.last one. This one, he can just roll it in, up and down, brown or blue,

:16:35. > :16:36.or yellow he can play for. -- he had to cover the red to the right

:16:37. > :16:47.middle. He's not made the best job of that.

:16:48. > :16:53.If the blue goes to the corner here, he is fortunate. And it really does.

:16:54. > :17:38.Couple of reds he can play on here. The reds either side of the pink, I

:17:39. > :18:26.think they are pottable in both of the Middles. Played up for that one.

:18:27. > :18:37.Straight on this red. I think he can run through for the black. Played it

:18:38. > :18:38.nicely. Well, I said played it nicely, but he overhit it a

:18:39. > :19:21.fraction. 71 is the target to get the snooker

:19:22. > :19:25.'s required. -- the snookers required. Just overhit that.

:19:26. > :19:30.I think the red immediately below the pink will pot, but he wanted to

:19:31. > :20:01.be straight on it than this. Just scrapping for position at the

:20:02. > :20:06.moment, just can't quite get it. Too short on the last red.

:20:07. > :20:12.Looking like he may be playing for one of the two reds closest to the

:20:13. > :20:33.cue ball. He didn't want the kids. So he's not

:20:34. > :20:42.out of the woods yet. He will do well to keep this break going here.

:20:43. > :21:09.I think he's just looking to play safe.

:21:10. > :21:19.Very prudent in my book, that. A 41 point lead. If he wants to win the

:21:20. > :21:26.frame in one visit, which is what he has been doing today, but sometimes

:21:27. > :21:30.you can't. 8-5, 41 point in front. Not a bad place to be. The last

:21:31. > :22:03.thing he wants to do is throw an easy start to his opponent.

:22:04. > :22:09.Just a little bit of thinking time here.

:22:10. > :22:22.There is a delicate shot that Ronnie could play. But he's looking to get

:22:23. > :22:26.onto the red just to the left of the yellow.

:22:27. > :22:29.Yeah, the last thing he wanted to do was remove the red Mac nearside

:22:30. > :22:38.cushion. That is an insurance policy against

:22:39. > :22:46.the counter clearance, so that's staying there. -- remove the red Mac

:22:47. > :22:54.near the site Making it really awkward for Gary

:22:55. > :23:12.here. Yes, and all these safer shots for

:23:13. > :23:14.Gary Wilson now are important. He knows that if he makes a mistake,

:23:15. > :23:28.that surely will be end of game. Needs to run. Needs to run. He's

:23:29. > :24:08.left it. This cuts to the middle. An surprising this from Ronnie. He

:24:09. > :24:13.won't like where the ball has finished. It could've been worse. He

:24:14. > :24:23.hasn't left anything easy for his opponent.

:24:24. > :24:30.This is the right ball to take here for Gary. Off the vision, tried to

:24:31. > :24:36.put it back in a more portable position, whilst playing it safe.

:24:37. > :24:48.Well, it is not really more portable. The green being over the

:24:49. > :24:52.pocket. He has left another red to the middle. He can't afford to be

:24:53. > :24:57.leaving pots on. If Ronnie Knox is in and get on a colour, surely that

:24:58. > :25:01.will be the end of the friend. You can't afford to give away those

:25:02. > :25:10.chances. He will finish nicely on the blue.

:25:11. > :25:19.Just pot the blue, little cannon on the red just above it. Leaving the

:25:20. > :25:31.other red to the opposite middle. Doesn't look like a problem.

:25:32. > :25:37.He's always had the upper hand in this little safety, hasn't he, John.

:25:38. > :25:45.Gary has always looked more likely to make the mistake. 2-3 times

:25:46. > :25:48.leaving reds to the middle. I know exactly where you are coming from.

:25:49. > :25:53.When they have been playing safety, Ronnie hasn't left him a sniff of a

:25:54. > :25:58.pot. Where as Gary has left a few opportunities.

:25:59. > :26:27.You can't keep leaving these half chances. Not at this level.

:26:28. > :26:33.63 ahead, 75 remaining. That equates to a red and a colour to get to the

:26:34. > :26:36.snookers required stage. Something in the audience that put Ronnie off

:26:37. > :26:48.there. Just someone oblivious that there

:26:49. > :26:49.was a world snookered image of another time. It is amazing that

:26:50. > :27:01.some people forget. -- oblivious that there was a World

:27:02. > :27:16.Snooker Championship on at the time. This is what makes the atmosphere.

:27:17. > :27:20.You have said it before, John. There is something about the Crucible, it

:27:21. > :27:27.is horrible to play in, but the atmosphere it creates is incredible.

:27:28. > :27:30.If I was Ronnie, I would clear up here, or Gary will come back for

:27:31. > :27:35.snookers. Ronnie will be just one frame away

:27:36. > :27:44.from a place in the second round. But it hasn't all been plain

:27:45. > :27:49.sailing. I have been hugely impressed with him in the last three

:27:50. > :27:52.frames, John. Hugely impressed. We have seen a lot of snooker from him

:27:53. > :27:58.over the years, but he has gone through the give box in the last

:27:59. > :28:01.three frames. Breaks of 124, 74, and really good matchplay in this one.

:28:02. > :28:06.Certainly better than his opponent, he hasn't given him a sniff of a

:28:07. > :28:11.chance. He's definitely been focused. And I don't subscribe to

:28:12. > :28:17.the view of Ronnie not being in the right place to play good snooker

:28:18. > :28:22.this year. The big tournaments come out of the big players. Of course,

:28:23. > :28:28.he has still got goals to achieve. If he wins it this year, he will

:28:29. > :28:35.equal Steve Davis's record. Still got eyes on Stephen Hendry's seventh

:28:36. > :28:40.championship. And when he came into this session, this afternoon, just

:28:41. > :28:47.one frame in front, I was thinking, he will have two produce. And as you

:28:48. > :29:17.say, he has. It's been a pleasure to watch. -- have to produce.

:29:18. > :29:23.Of course, when I mention records, of course, if he wins it this year,

:29:24. > :29:36.he also because Ray Reardon's six times championship wins. So a lot to

:29:37. > :29:42.play for the tempting. But this has been absolutely superb. Lovely frame

:29:43. > :29:44.of snooker. Ronnie is now one frame away from a place in the second

:29:45. > :29:57.round. He leads 9-5. HAZEL IRVINE: Ronnie O'Sullivan

:29:58. > :30:07.rolling onto mountain. He is very focused, and has been all afternoon.

:30:08. > :30:15.Yeah, he looks as if he is here to do a job and get through a match

:30:16. > :30:21.that could have been a banana skin. This afternoon, he has really looked

:30:22. > :30:26.up for the job -- rolling onto round two. Friday night was a marvellous

:30:27. > :30:31.occasion, and he was in expansive form, in there with Ray Reardon, we

:30:32. > :30:34.had a chat. He seems to have an appreciation for the occasion and

:30:35. > :30:39.his part in the history of this great event. As he's got older, do

:30:40. > :30:44.you sense and acceptance level, a maturity coming back here now? He

:30:45. > :30:49.certainly looked really well axed in what was something that was a bit of

:30:50. > :30:53.a new experience for all of the players contracted to turn up for

:30:54. > :30:57.certain parts of the day, and also asked if they would come along to

:30:58. > :31:00.the 40 years of age. Most players said it would be a good thing, so

:31:01. > :31:07.they came. But Ronnie was in relaxed mode. I think he still has upset and

:31:08. > :31:10.downs, from the interview, which is currently happening. Exciting to

:31:11. > :31:14.know how he will be if he comes into the studio. But from that

:31:15. > :31:17.perspective, I think he still has ups and downs in dealing with the

:31:18. > :31:23.outside world away from the table, but on the table, how relaxed as he

:31:24. > :31:27.cope with a dangerous opponent? You can't ask for more than that from

:31:28. > :31:30.somebody who people have half written off as perhaps not as good

:31:31. > :31:34.as he used to be. But all of a sudden, he has Steve Peters to get

:31:35. > :31:41.him right and he looks very black stand focused. For me, Steve Peters,

:31:42. > :31:42.with whom he has worked with for the last few years, he has been there

:31:43. > :31:56.from the start. Is that normal? Not always. It was a

:31:57. > :32:00.statement of intent. If I was Ronnie, as I've said, he hasn't

:32:01. > :32:05.played well in the last few months, hasn't won the tournament is entered

:32:06. > :32:09.this season, not a lot of success since the Masters. I think he

:32:10. > :32:14.appreciates the big events, wants to win the big events. At the end of

:32:15. > :32:18.the day, he is a winning machine. He wants to win here badly. On the

:32:19. > :32:21.verge of winning this one, let's get back.

:32:22. > :32:41.COMMENTATOR: Played it confidently enough to stop this side of the

:32:42. > :32:46.balkline. A choice of pork colours. -- baulk colours. He's played really

:32:47. > :32:50.well at the championship this year, Gary Wilson, he really has. In the

:32:51. > :32:53.last few frames he's run into the real Ronnie O'Sullivan. He would

:32:54. > :32:58.have given a headache to plenty of players in this tournament, the way

:32:59. > :33:04.he's played. Of course, he's not out of it, it's just asking to climb a

:33:05. > :33:05.mountain to win the next five frames against Ronnie. But he has played

:33:06. > :33:32.well. Actually reached the final of the

:33:33. > :33:38.China open in 2015. Beaten in the final by the world number one, Mark

:33:39. > :33:44.Selby. Took some big scalps along the way to get to the final.

:33:45. > :33:49.Including, I think, Judd Trump, in that one. He's beaten some good

:33:50. > :34:15.players. He couldn't have hit that any

:34:16. > :34:19.better, that's perfect. Just needs a full ball cannon on the top red at

:34:20. > :34:30.that apex with plenty of pace and then you need a bit of luck.

:34:31. > :34:53.Could not have played it any better, nobody could. Good shot.

:34:54. > :34:59.He's 31 years of age now, Gary Wilson. They used to say, in the

:35:00. > :35:04.early days, you didn't reach your peak at snooker until you in your

:35:05. > :35:12.mid-30s. When you'd learned your craft. It's not all about potting.

:35:13. > :35:17.He had six years off the tour. It's well documented he started doing a

:35:18. > :35:22.bit of taxi driving. I first met him, he came on big break, his

:35:23. > :35:30.parents wrote in and he came on as a guest when he was about seven. And

:35:31. > :35:34.here we are, 24 years later. But obviously has the ability, but

:35:35. > :35:38.sometimes you have to find yourself, so you can produce when you are

:35:39. > :35:45.under pressure. What he's shown me in this match, he's on the verge of

:35:46. > :35:52.being able to do that. So keep your eye out for the name. It's Wilson!

:35:53. > :35:57.I also think, John... When you've been on the circuit, lost your card

:35:58. > :36:00.and come back again. You are sure to appreciate it a lot more and make

:36:01. > :36:04.the most of it. You have more experienced about what happened. The

:36:05. > :36:07.finest example of that was the Aussie, Neil Robertson. Came over

:36:08. > :36:11.the first time, lost his card and didn't look like he was going

:36:12. > :36:18.anywhere, then came back and what a player he has been. Winner in 2010,

:36:19. > :36:26.winning lots of events, the Masters, and so on as I can happen. Just back

:36:27. > :36:29.again. Sometimes eight week to your cue action some confidence from and

:36:30. > :36:41.you can come back a different player.

:36:42. > :36:48.Unintended kiss on the second red. Ruined his position slightly because

:36:49. > :36:53.he has to go in and out of baulk, so the cue ball will have to travel a

:36:54. > :37:00.bit of distance. This is when the positional side can go wrong.

:37:01. > :37:12.He's had a couple of, the red closest to the right corner, he's

:37:13. > :37:15.had a couple of opportunities to pot that. I can only assume the black is

:37:16. > :37:28.not available. Back up for the blue and a nice

:37:29. > :37:42.sporting angle. -- a nice potting angle.

:37:43. > :37:58.Obviously not, back up for the blue. As you see, the pink doesn't go.

:37:59. > :38:29.Another three reds and three colours, you think, would take him

:38:30. > :38:33.past the snookers required stage. We will say it is very difficult to do

:38:34. > :38:41.it with just the blue and baulk colours to play with. They have two

:38:42. > :38:46.player little cannon here. -- to play a little cannon here. This is

:38:47. > :38:53.the first thought of shot in this break where he has a bit of a

:38:54. > :38:57.quandary. Yes, and there you go. Trying to hold it, didn't quite have

:38:58. > :39:19.the right angle and consequently completely mis-hit that.

:39:20. > :39:26.I think there's a positivity that Ronnie could play this red to the

:39:27. > :39:30.left middle. As we know, the black and pink aren't available but he

:39:31. > :39:36.could play a little cannon and bring the black into play.

:39:37. > :39:42.Well, he got the cannon on the red next to the black but it hasn't put

:39:43. > :40:06.him on a colour. Wanted to cannon the black and the red.

:40:07. > :40:15.Just got to be a little careful with this safety shot, Gary. Chipping a

:40:16. > :40:18.red towards the corner... Played it a bit thicker, good choice of shot,

:40:19. > :40:49.that. Well played. Very well executed safety from

:40:50. > :42:02.Ronnie. A little bit thin, but at first

:42:03. > :42:05.look, no harm done. Ronnie will be trying to get this one off the

:42:06. > :42:16.cushion here. Wasn't really expecting to make that

:42:17. > :42:19.pot but didn't want the cannon on the colour, because that cue ball

:42:20. > :42:23.should have been down by the baulk area. Took a slight chance playing

:42:24. > :42:39.it the way he did, and because of that, he's left the pot on.

:42:40. > :42:47.And now he's knocked that in, nicely on the black, two reds nicely

:42:48. > :42:51.available for the same pocket. He's hanging on in their, a good reply,

:42:52. > :43:15.this, from Gary. There you see it, 60 ahead, just 51

:43:16. > :44:04.remaining, no way back to the table now for Ronnie.

:44:05. > :44:12.That's a pity. Anyway, it doesn't matter, frame well and truly over.

:44:13. > :44:24.Good effort! Well, he's keeping his hopes alive. He's going to make

:44:25. > :44:28.Ronnie have to win this. Gary Wilson did well, still trailing by three

:44:29. > :44:34.and Ronnie one frame away from a place in the second round. 9-6.

:44:35. > :44:41.There are plenty of ways to enjoy our coverage of this year's World

:44:42. > :44:46.Championship. Steven Hendry brings a great

:44:47. > :44:51.championship to an end. Great features and more on the BBC

:44:52. > :44:55.sport website. Radio five live will bring new

:44:56. > :45:00.updates throughout the day. Steve Davis continues his tapestry

:45:01. > :45:06.of titles. You can join in association

:45:07. > :45:12.conversation via social media. Ken Doherty!

:45:13. > :45:14.Live action on the BBC sport up, mobile phone, tablet and connected

:45:15. > :45:22.TV. John Parrott lifts the world title.

:45:23. > :45:26.As well as our live coverage on BBC One and BBC Two, we are on the red

:45:27. > :45:30.button. Join Hazel and the team from 7pm tonight and for this evening's

:45:31. > :45:35.matches, just press red. HAZEL IRVINE: Morning, noon and night at

:45:36. > :45:39.the Crucible and the 1st of May. This man would love to be involved

:45:40. > :45:43.for as long as he possibly can. He looks so calm. That has been a

:45:44. > :45:47.feature of his demeanour the whole way through and clearly he has not

:45:48. > :45:54.given up. Fighting a bit of a losing battle here, Gary Wilson. But on his

:45:55. > :45:58.debut, 31 from Tyneside, is making a very good fight of this, Steve? He

:45:59. > :46:02.certainly is. The only question would be from Ronnie O'Sullivan's

:46:03. > :46:09.perspective it if it's good to get a work-out or not. What would you

:46:10. > :46:12.prefer? Easy, get it over and about. Leave the Crucible for a few days,

:46:13. > :46:17.let everyone else let out, relax and come back for the second round.

:46:18. > :46:21.Enjoyable so far, three centuries, two from Ronnie and one from Gary.

:46:22. > :46:27.Ronnie still needing another one to get over the line and into rounder

:46:28. > :46:33.two. Back we go. COMMENTATOR: You, Hazel. I can't believe you asked

:46:34. > :46:44.that question to Steven Hendry, easy round or tough opening-round! Easy,

:46:45. > :46:49.no contest. Needs to stop short of the baulk line. Just went back a bit

:46:50. > :46:53.too far. Good pot. Just a bit too much pace.

:46:54. > :47:03.He is looking at the potting angle on the green. Will have to play this

:47:04. > :47:11.with a lot of pace. And he played it beautifully. In fact, if you were

:47:12. > :47:16.being picky, I think he played it to do well. Don't be too picky! How

:47:17. > :47:30.well did he hit that?! Well... Oh and as soon as he hit it

:47:31. > :47:34.he knew he didn't hit the middle of the ball. A bit of unintentional

:47:35. > :47:36.left-hand side and pushed the cue ball, that's why he hit the pot

:47:37. > :48:02.thick. He knew as soon as he hit it. Well done. Lovely opening red,

:48:03. > :48:06.tricky, blind pocket. Add to control the pace of the cue ball to make

:48:07. > :48:19.sure he stayed on a baulk colour. These are positioned very nicely.

:48:20. > :48:25.Yes, the type of situation where you don't have to bring the reds into

:48:26. > :48:29.play, because it is quite enough in the open as it is. The black is

:48:30. > :48:31.available into both corners. The blue is nicely on its spot. A good

:48:32. > :49:00.chance. So, what is Gary Wilson thinking

:49:01. > :49:05.about the moment? I can assure you he not about winning the match just

:49:06. > :49:09.yet, too early, three frames behind. So when you are in this situation

:49:10. > :49:14.you are trying to make the most of your opportunities and just keep

:49:15. > :49:17.plugging away. He's under no extreme pressure yet, because it doesn't

:49:18. > :49:23.look like he's going to win this match. It will only be if he gets

:49:24. > :49:27.9-79- eight Annie will start he can win it. At the moment he's probably

:49:28. > :50:14.playing with a little bit of freedom.

:50:15. > :50:25.Not the best. That cannon was always on, was Nick? You had to play it a

:50:26. > :50:35.little more firm to make sure you screw the cue ball back a bit. He

:50:36. > :50:36.has the red to the corner pocket but it shouldn't have been this

:50:37. > :51:13.difficult. Now, I think the one just above the

:51:14. > :51:17.black, to the left of the black, is available into the opposite corner

:51:18. > :51:26.that he's playing this red. In fact, I think it's the red he played for a

:51:27. > :51:29.couple of shots ago. When we look from behind the pocket, we will see

:51:30. > :51:38.if there is a red available. There it is, the one on the left. This is

:51:39. > :51:49.impressive, John, isn't it? Yes. Doing very well here.

:51:50. > :51:57.25 more points until the snookers required stage.

:51:58. > :52:01.A little cannon here, just click the left-hand red out and leave himself

:52:02. > :52:26.on the other one. A change of plan on the positional

:52:27. > :52:33.play. Can play on this one, but so good he landed on it he thought he'd

:52:34. > :52:39.take it. Five hours match time. Didn't see a lot of the first

:52:40. > :52:43.session, the Thursday night friends, but we have been treated to some

:52:44. > :52:47.excellent snooker in this second session, no doubt about that. A

:52:48. > :52:50.couple of reds, a couple of colours, and he will be over the winning line

:52:51. > :53:12.in this frame. Yes, I can certainly see why he

:53:13. > :53:16.qualified. Nice touch, good break-builder, what you call a very

:53:17. > :53:20.clean Potter. Everything seems to go in the middle of the pocket. All in

:53:21. > :53:34.all, quite impressive. And not afraid to be out there,

:53:35. > :53:38.either, which is the biggest thing. Already made 100 break in this

:53:39. > :54:20.session, in frame 11, he made a break of exactly 100.

:54:21. > :54:29.Seems like only that awkward red near the left-hand side cushion is

:54:30. > :54:35.going to stop him making a second century in the match. Ronnie has

:54:36. > :54:40.made two. But it just shows you, John, what a fine line... Ronnie

:54:41. > :54:43.played that tremendous green, missed the red in the corner and had to sit

:54:44. > :55:03.down, frame over. Good stuff. He can just drop this in the middle.

:55:04. > :55:09.Guaranteed to be on a baulk colour. It's there. And deserves a century.

:55:10. > :55:16.This has been a wonderful contribution.

:55:17. > :55:22.As I say, he's not quite at that stage yet where he's thinking he's

:55:23. > :55:26.going to win this match. He's just trying to win one frame at a time at

:55:27. > :55:32.the moment, just trying to peg back Ronnie's leader. The pressure will

:55:33. > :55:38.come later on, if he's still in the match. Superb. A wonderful hundred.

:55:39. > :55:51.Yes, and we saw Ronnie make a 124. ... Gary, there was a chance, you

:55:52. > :55:57.could have beaten that. But he has won the frame and wants to get on

:55:58. > :56:02.with the next one. He has reduced his deficit now to just two friends.

:56:03. > :56:07.Gary Wilson putting up a fight here against Ronnie, 9-7. HAZEL IRVINE:

:56:08. > :56:11.He sure is. That is the second of this match, in terms of centuries

:56:12. > :56:19.and his tent since he started qualifying last week. This is the

:56:20. > :56:22.world number 59. What does it say? Firstly, a bit unfortunate he has

:56:23. > :56:25.drawn Ronnie O'Sullivan in the first round. Again someone else he might

:56:26. > :56:30.have even been better placed at the moment. It shows you how tough it is

:56:31. > :56:33.to stay on the tour. To get down that far in the ranking list, you

:56:34. > :56:37.must played some bad stuff as well, but still nice to produce something

:56:38. > :56:43.like this at the Crucible. It gives you heart. Two last 16s in Northern

:56:44. > :56:47.Ireland and China. Those are the sort of standout features of his

:56:48. > :56:53.season. He was struggling a bit to stay on the tour but what do you

:56:54. > :56:57.make of the way he has stuck to his task today? You can say when he goes

:56:58. > :57:06.9-5 down he has nothing to lose and can relax. But the other side of the

:57:07. > :57:09.coin, could just give up. He wants to stay out there as long as

:57:10. > :57:14.possible. He's doing in the best possible way. One visit staff. Yes,

:57:15. > :57:18.he is still in it and it's not done yet.

:57:19. > :57:47.Maybe a few twists and turns before we get to the end of this match.

:57:48. > :57:56.Oooh. Found a plant. In all honesty, if he thought it was a plant, you

:57:57. > :58:10.should have made certain he left the cue ball short of the baulk line.

:58:11. > :58:19.Yeah, they look easy when they roll them dead weight. As I say, though

:58:20. > :58:22.it was a three, four ball plant so we couldn't guarantee it, so he was

:58:23. > :58:28.more concerned with the cue ball. I was just going to say, to roll tight

:58:29. > :58:31.behind the brown, it's not easy on this cloth. And you're worried you

:58:32. > :58:35.don't quite reach. We've all done that when you come up just short and

:58:36. > :58:43.it's your shot next anything, why didn't I hit it harder? He has the

:58:44. > :58:46.snooker, though. Easy enough to hit. Did he hit it hard enough? Lovely

:58:47. > :59:31.touch! Need a good cue ball here. There are

:59:32. > :59:38.a few breads sticking out. They could be possible if you don't get a

:59:39. > :59:39.good temperament. -- a few reds sticking out. That is absolutely top

:59:40. > :59:54.drawer. A proper match, not a lot of tapping

:59:55. > :00:01.on the table for good shots, is it? Both at it here. Two players very

:00:02. > :00:05.focused, giving their all. He has a shot, Gary, off the side of the

:00:06. > :00:10.pack. But he knows it will be dangerous, opening up the reds. He

:00:11. > :00:14.may have to play it, and if you're playing the shot, you simply have to

:00:15. > :00:24.get a good white. Doesn't want to catch this too thick. This looks

:00:25. > :00:29.pretty good. A little bit pacey. He's left a red for running into the

:00:30. > :00:43.left corner but it still needs potting.

:00:44. > :01:01.Clean, needs a little kiss on the brown. He didn't get one, I don't

:01:02. > :01:05.know what the potting angle is. It can't be too bad. But at the moment,

:01:06. > :01:10.the black is out of commission. Bubbly not the best rate building

:01:11. > :01:18.opportunity, but he will settle for getting the first chance. --

:01:19. > :02:08.probably not the best break holding opportunity.

:02:09. > :02:14.Wanted it straight but he played it well. Decelerating, just the right

:02:15. > :02:33.side of the blue line. Not going to be an easy break, this,

:02:34. > :02:37.is it, John. The black is tied up, he will have to keep going up for

:02:38. > :02:44.blue. Unless he can develop pink or black somehow, this is going to be

:02:45. > :02:49.hard work. He's asking for the cue ball to be cleaned again. I don't

:02:50. > :02:57.know what it is. Sometimes when they brushed the table, they get a bit of

:02:58. > :03:04.air from the brush, maybe it is a bit of static getting on the white.

:03:05. > :03:08.But the way this match has gone, John, I think it is one of these

:03:09. > :03:12.situations that Ronnie will be thinking here, just build up a big

:03:13. > :03:19.lead. This is the one that takes into the second round.

:03:20. > :03:26.Normally, you see Ronnie in these situations immediately looking for a

:03:27. > :03:30.way to bring them back into play. I am not sure that is necessarily

:03:31. > :03:35.going to be his plan at this visit. He is cherry picking. Taking the red

:03:36. > :03:38.match away, getting some points on the board before having to play that

:03:39. > :03:42.sort. You make breaks at that. Sometimes you play on one ball.

:03:43. > :03:47.Sometimes an opportunity presents itself to get the black out, and

:03:48. > :03:49.that can happen when you make these breaks will stop at the moment, he's

:03:50. > :04:06.just cherry picking. Just about perfect. He's looking at

:04:07. > :04:13.a plant in the middle of the red Mac. A couple of loose reds that he

:04:14. > :04:17.can play on. But he obviously thinks it is a certainty, this plan. He

:04:18. > :04:22.would like to have come a little bit straighter on it, and then he could

:04:23. > :04:31.have played for the pink. So he's having to play Plan B.

:04:32. > :04:37.But injured perfect once again. Couldn't have placed it better with

:04:38. > :04:45.his hand. Will he risk playing for the plant this time? Yes, John. Take

:04:46. > :04:48.two. He just wanted to leave a specific angle. That looks better

:04:49. > :04:51.than the first time. Oh, yeah. Lovely. He will play a stun here,

:04:52. > :05:15.and keep himself on the pink. Another 32 points, or 33 points to

:05:16. > :05:24.get to the snookereds required stage. He's taking these patiently

:05:25. > :05:28.-- snookers required stage. He has stepped away from the table, because

:05:29. > :05:36.I think the pink spot isn't available. He is leaving the table

:05:37. > :05:42.to the referee, Brendan Moore. Place the pink. Sit down, wipe hands. Let

:05:43. > :06:14.the gloved hand to its work. Now, he has a choice here.

:06:15. > :06:18.Obviously, he has been picking off loose reds. He could play a cannon.

:06:19. > :06:28.But once again, deciding to play on the back one. He will have a chance

:06:29. > :06:34.to break those up. But he keeps just accumulating points. Beautifully

:06:35. > :06:39.played. Look at that shot with a bit of side. Absolutely inch perfect.

:06:40. > :06:46.Wonderful. APPLAUSE Yes, this was leaving himself

:06:47. > :06:52.purposely low on that, in potting it bringing the other reds into play.

:06:53. > :06:57.Gary Wilson in his chair, his head dropped slightly. I think he

:06:58. > :07:04.realises his race has been run now. But he knows the ability of Ronnie,

:07:05. > :07:06.and he has played absolutely sensational in this second session,

:07:07. > :07:15.he really has. As I say, remember the name, because I think we will be

:07:16. > :07:19.seeing a lot more of him. Ronnie's cue ball in this break to get on the

:07:20. > :07:25.blue has been absolutely sublime. Every single shot has been to the

:07:26. > :07:30.inch the right side of the blue. A phenomenal bread. We saw 124 earlier

:07:31. > :07:34.this afternoon, but this has been better. Yeah, his cue ball control

:07:35. > :07:44.is just magical. Gary Wilson... I nearly did it. I

:07:45. > :07:50.had gone the whole day and not done it. Gary Wilson morphing himself

:07:51. > :07:53.unlucky to have got Ronnie O'Sullivan. There are players this

:07:54. > :08:00.week in the draw who he could have knocked out. But the Rocket has been

:08:01. > :08:05.vintage this afternoon. You can see that look of determination on

:08:06. > :08:10.Ronnie's face when that frame and match ball went in.

:08:11. > :08:24.You can see it. And you tell me he is not up for this title. I think he

:08:25. > :08:29.is. He is dotting the eyes and crossing the Tees now.

:08:30. > :09:01.This is what they have come to see, and this is what he can produce.

:09:02. > :09:09.The century looks likely now. You won't see a better break made over

:09:10. > :09:12.the 17 days than this. When he came to the table, I didn't see you

:09:13. > :09:17.making a century. I have said it many times commentating on him, but

:09:18. > :09:19.this has just been superb. Lost the cue ball a little bit, but he is

:09:20. > :09:29.left-handed. Who cares? Those pockets looked like manhole

:09:30. > :09:32.covers at the moment. He is geeing himself up. I have watched him in

:09:33. > :09:37.between shots here. What a shame that is.

:09:38. > :09:50.Look at that. That's what it means to him. He was under pressure there,

:09:51. > :09:55.but he came out and produced. Fantastic to see. Gary Wilson, we

:09:56. > :09:56.take our hats off, but Ronnie O'Sullivan is buzzing and is through

:09:57. > :10:06.to the second round. He wins 10-7. HAZEL IRVINE: What a final break. A

:10:07. > :10:10.pity he didn't get the century at the end, but he is buzzing. The

:10:11. > :10:19.shots at the end told us an important story. Without doubt. He

:10:20. > :10:25.is here to win, obviously. I think this afternoon, I have

:10:26. > :10:31.watched a bit of snookered visit, and I think that is the best I have

:10:32. > :10:34.seen him play everything together. Focused, safety, potting, positional

:10:35. > :10:38.play, everything this afternoon was the most impressive I have seen from

:10:39. > :10:42.him for a long time. That is what I have said in some interviews, he

:10:43. > :10:45.needs to play a lot better to win this champion ship, because I

:10:46. > :10:50.haven't seen that. We saw the desire and hunger, we saw Damien Hirst, his

:10:51. > :10:54.great friend sitting there, and a real date at the end. Don't

:10:55. > :10:58.underestimate how difficult these first round matches are and how much

:10:59. > :11:02.they mean to a player who is a favourite to get through. Because he

:11:03. > :11:05.was put under severe pressure there. It would have been easy to look over

:11:06. > :11:11.his shoulder and panic would have set in. But I think he realised the

:11:12. > :11:14.significance putting away a dangerous opponent on the day,

:11:15. > :11:19.regardless of who he could have drawn in the draw. At that shows it,

:11:20. > :11:25.doesn't it. It does. We were talking through that much about how positive

:11:26. > :11:28.a work-out it is to have in the first round. You were joking about

:11:29. > :11:32.having it easy in the first round, but that has got to be a

:11:33. > :11:36.constructive game for him. It is nice to have an easy match, but you

:11:37. > :11:40.don't know how well you are playing under pressure. It is nice to get a

:11:41. > :11:44.few tests and pass those tests, which he has done with flying

:11:45. > :11:49.colours. Significantly, you both had scares in round one, and it seems to

:11:50. > :11:53.have spurred you on. What impetus can it gives you, coming through a

:11:54. > :11:56.test like that? It is a joy to get through and you can relax into the

:11:57. > :12:01.tournament. But when you have a tough match, and I have had some

:12:02. > :12:08.tough matches over the years, 10-8s, denied the nines, but you are in the

:12:09. > :12:14.mode of it being highly competitive. Then comes the next match, best of

:12:15. > :12:19.25, a lovely relaxed situation to be in. From ball one, you are more on

:12:20. > :12:25.it and if you have a 10-1 or 10-0, and your opponent starts to improve.

:12:26. > :12:28.From that perspective, Ronnie O'Sullivan will be delighted when he

:12:29. > :12:31.goes back to his hotel room to night and assesses the day. He is going to

:12:32. > :12:38.be playing either Shaun Murphy or Yan Bingtao. That will start on

:12:39. > :12:42.Thursday. He is in the top half of the draw, and wow, this is something

:12:43. > :12:47.to behold because in that top of it is absolutely loaded. You have got

:12:48. > :12:52.the world number one Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, a former winner,

:12:53. > :12:56.Marco Fu, you have Shaun Murphy, Ronnie, Liang Wenbo, the English

:12:57. > :13:02.open winner, and also Ding Junhui, the man who of course was runner-up

:13:03. > :13:08.here. This is great for us, but as a player, when you assess the look of

:13:09. > :13:14.that, what do you think? Going by Ronnie's play this afternoon, other

:13:15. > :13:18.players will have to take notice of that. His best game is still the

:13:19. > :13:24.best. I know Mark Selby as world number one, but Ronnie at his best

:13:25. > :13:31.is this. He has certainly put a marker down. And for you? That half

:13:32. > :13:35.of the draw, that would grace any last 16 of an event. You wouldn't

:13:36. > :13:39.argue at that. I am sure the BBC or any TV company would say it is a

:13:40. > :13:42.good line-up, not just the top players and seeds, some of the

:13:43. > :13:48.qualifiers coming through our dangerous as well. That's why there

:13:49. > :13:52.seems to be, this year, an imbalance in the top after the bottom half, it

:13:53. > :13:55.may be reflected in the betting. But make no mistake, the players in the

:13:56. > :14:00.bottom half are excellent as well. Absolutely they are. We will see

:14:01. > :14:06.them shortly. We have the ultimate Crucible winning combo, seven

:14:07. > :14:09.titles, six titles, Steve and Stephen here, but you couldn't get

:14:10. > :14:13.enough of winning, obviously, this wonderful trophy. But to be part of

:14:14. > :14:17.the compelling history of the Crucible over 40 years, a

:14:18. > :14:28.once-in-a-lifetime win, it is really poignant.

:14:29. > :14:37.A former best conductor and insurance agent, and is now a world

:14:38. > :14:40.class superstar. The words my father told me once, he said, when you get

:14:41. > :14:43.older, boy, life is all about memories.

:14:44. > :14:47.I thought, what the hell is he talking about?

:14:48. > :14:52.Dennis Taylor concedes will stop I knew then.

:14:53. > :15:03.It set me up for life in the game. The world title for the first time

:15:04. > :15:07.goes across the water. I am sure you will agree, he is a great champion.

:15:08. > :15:16.He grinds very hard. It's amazing, every player's

:15:17. > :15:21.ambition when they turn professional is to become world champion. It's

:15:22. > :15:28.just impossible to put into words how I felt after being a

:15:29. > :15:34.professional the 13 years, to eventually roll the black in. I

:15:35. > :15:38.think it said it all the way, the way I reacted. The crowd here at the

:15:39. > :15:45.Crucible are going mad for Bradford's Josh Johnson. I showed no

:15:46. > :15:51.signs of ever threatening to win the title. My thoughts really was I hope

:15:52. > :15:58.I don't get completely destroyed. I just didn't want to make a fool of

:15:59. > :16:04.myself. Doing it and having my father there

:16:05. > :16:07.as well. My good pals and my wife were there. It was a special

:16:08. > :16:10.feeling. I would like to have enjoyed it more, but you are so

:16:11. > :16:21.buzzed up at the time, you tend to forget about that. Ken Doherty

:16:22. > :16:26.thoroughly deserves the Embassy World Championship title. It still

:16:27. > :16:32.gives me goose bumps talking about it because it wasn't only the magic

:16:33. > :16:39.of winning the trophy, it was the magic of taking it back to Ireland.

:16:40. > :16:53.Well done, Peter Ebdon, you are the Embassy champion of the world. 2002.

:16:54. > :16:58.And a big rising star is born here. Shaun Murphy has beaten Matthew

:16:59. > :17:16.Stevens to win the Embassy World Championship.

:17:17. > :17:24.To win it, being the first Australian to be world champ, a

:17:25. > :17:30.first overseas champion, it is great to join those players in history.

:17:31. > :17:37.It's a lap of honour and enjoy every minute of it, Stuart. You deserve

:17:38. > :17:46.this world title that you've waited so long for.

:17:47. > :17:52.Ronnie O'Sullivan is back in the house after a very, very good win.

:17:53. > :17:56.He was awfully hard to shake off, what can you tell us about that

:17:57. > :18:01.performance today? I am happy to be here. It is nice to be in Sheffield.

:18:02. > :18:06.I am looking forward to being around the venue. If I don't win, I will go

:18:07. > :18:11.back to London and do a bit of Eurosport. I am in a no lose

:18:12. > :18:15.situation. The future looks good. You showed us what it means to get

:18:16. > :18:21.over the line. Gary wouldn't go away. The two of you, two centuries.

:18:22. > :18:25.Look at that. It was a comment on how you were feeling at that time.

:18:26. > :18:30.Just thinking about being happy to be here for another 4-5 days.

:18:31. > :18:33.Sheffield is a great City, great place, great bars. You just want to

:18:34. > :18:39.be around it. I will tell you what was great, the gala celebration,

:18:40. > :18:43.Friday night. Out on the floor with Ray Reardon and that amazing parade

:18:44. > :18:47.of champions. I wonder, how much did it resonate with you, being part of

:18:48. > :18:54.the parade and the history? It was great. You had all the champions

:18:55. > :18:57.there, apart from Mark Williams. You can forgive him, because he didn't

:18:58. > :19:00.qualify for the World Championship, so he must have been feeling sore.

:19:01. > :19:12.It was great to see Stephen Hendry and Steve, Steve was clapping Steve,

:19:13. > :19:17.you know! Who is the biggest dog? Hendry was, and then it was Steve.

:19:18. > :19:22.Did Ray give you a hug when you met him? Yeah, yeah, I love Ray. He is

:19:23. > :19:28.such a beautiful man. Such a funny man, such a great player. He is an

:19:29. > :19:33.amazing guy. It went beyond smoother with me and Ray. He is just a great

:19:34. > :19:37.guy. You were talking about when Ray was helping you in 2004 when you won

:19:38. > :19:42.the title with him. You looked beyond that. The number of times you

:19:43. > :19:47.won it there after. I read about the best one for you, was it 2012? What

:19:48. > :19:52.made it so special for you? I think, mentally, the first three I won,

:19:53. > :19:57.mentally I wasn't great. I just managed to win it through moments of

:19:58. > :20:05.inspiration and a bit of luck where the opponents fell apart a bit. But

:20:06. > :20:10.2012, it felt like, when I look back at it, there was no way I was going

:20:11. > :20:13.to lose, unless John was on his A-game, or Hendry was on his A-game.

:20:14. > :20:17.No one was going to beat me. That was a nice feeling. I had my little

:20:18. > :20:21.boy there. I didn't think he would ever get to see the lift a trophy,

:20:22. > :20:25.because in 2000, I was having to check in because I was that bad. It

:20:26. > :20:29.was a special, special moment. You came back the next year, almost

:20:30. > :20:33.bring the season, and did it again. You have talked a lot about Doctor

:20:34. > :20:39.Steve Peters and your relationship with him. He has been around already

:20:40. > :20:42.at the venue. He able to fit his schedule to yours this time? Is the

:20:43. > :20:46.plan to have him here all the time if you can? I speak to him a lot on

:20:47. > :20:51.the phone because he is so busy. I do the homework. I live what he has

:20:52. > :20:57.taught me, basically. He said to me the other day, I am topping you up.

:20:58. > :21:03.He says, one or two things. I took them into today's session, and it

:21:04. > :21:06.really, really helped me. He will be with me until the day I stop

:21:07. > :21:10.playing, because I think I know it all, but then he says one thing, and

:21:11. > :21:15.I say, OK, we have got to stay together. Have you got triggers in

:21:16. > :21:19.your mind now that you can call on? I have tools. He had it naturally,

:21:20. > :21:23.Steve had it naturally. I wasn't blessed with that. I am blessed with

:21:24. > :21:29.other things, but I wasn't blessed with the ability to tough it out.

:21:30. > :21:33.And a game like that, maybe seven years ago, I would have been

:21:34. > :21:38.thinking about going out and partying. I can say this, you are

:21:39. > :21:44.getting on now, let's face it, but you keep yourself in good nick. You

:21:45. > :21:48.are still training, you are keeping yourself in good nick by boxing.

:21:49. > :21:52.Isn't that dangerous? Not if you are any good. Are you any good? I am

:21:53. > :21:57.useless. It is good crack. I like anything, it is adrenaline -based.

:21:58. > :22:02.It is good fun. What is your plan for the next few days, will you go

:22:03. > :22:05.home? I don't know. I will have to go to the chemist to get some night

:22:06. > :22:10.nurse, because I had to walk from the Crucible to hear and it is

:22:11. > :22:13.freezing cold with the rain. I was sweating, and I thought I could get

:22:14. > :22:17.pneumonia. Have you thought about the players walking from there to

:22:18. > :22:27.hear? We will give you a Coke next time. -- coat. He can pop some

:22:28. > :22:32.balls. A few good ones are in here, Ronnie. We will let you continue to

:22:33. > :22:35.do some spectating, five times, seven times, six times champions,

:22:36. > :22:40.not often we get that in the studio. Great to see you all. We have been

:22:41. > :22:45.watching two one-time champions so far, Stuart Bingham and Peter Ebdon,

:22:46. > :22:48.and last we saw, Stewart had a 3-1 advantage going into the mid-session

:22:49. > :22:53.interval. Eat it at the next to make it 3-2, and we will head into frame

:22:54. > :22:59.six in the company of Dennis and Terry.

:23:00. > :23:07.COMMENTATOR: I think he is taking this red on, is the? What a great

:23:08. > :24:10.shot! -- Izzy? This is tough, he is so tight in

:24:11. > :24:14.behind the green that he has got to go at least twice across the table,

:24:15. > :24:22.if not in and out of the walk area. You can see them. And with the reds

:24:23. > :24:34.as they are, he will do well to land on one and keep them safe.

:24:35. > :24:44.How did he find the gap there? If he plays the same shot again and fits a

:24:45. > :24:52.red and get it say, it will be a mini miracle. -- and gets it safe.

:24:53. > :25:00.Twice across and through the gap. It nearly flicked the red. Well, if he

:25:01. > :25:11.gets out of this, he might be changing his nickname 'Ball-Run'

:25:12. > :25:17.Bingham to... Let's see. I will tell you what. One comes a natural pot at

:25:18. > :25:18.the back of the four reds. He was in a virtually impossible position

:25:19. > :25:55.there. The red does go, the one I

:25:56. > :26:01.mentioned. I am concerned what will happen, the cue ball, playing with

:26:02. > :26:06.what looked like top spin. He has changed his mind now.

:26:07. > :26:13.Just stunned it in, but difficult to judge. And what a test he is faced

:26:14. > :26:26.with here. Now, this is quite difficult from

:26:27. > :26:38.that position. Oh! That was close. He thought he'd

:26:39. > :27:00.got that. He cued it very well. At least we are getting a smile from

:27:01. > :27:09.Peter. You don't usually get much reaction.

:27:10. > :27:18.And already, 20 points in front, easy black, and look at the reds

:27:19. > :29:10.he'll not get a better chance than this.

:29:11. > :29:23.Playing for the red in the left-centre.

:29:24. > :29:30.A little bit awkward, those four reds, although they go into one

:29:31. > :29:35.pocket, there are a few covering the others, and there is one this end to

:29:36. > :29:37.pocket. Stuart would be really disappointed if he doesn't clinch

:29:38. > :30:08.the frame here. Leave the cue ball on the left-hand

:30:09. > :30:12.side of the table here. Three of the reds will go to that right corner

:30:13. > :30:38.pocket. He's played that nicely. Making absolutely sure, it's very

:30:39. > :30:50.important for Stuart to get this frame after leading 3-0.

:30:51. > :31:04.Just checking the scoreboard. The black world make absolutely certain.

:31:05. > :31:14.Peter, with that black he almost knocked in when the white was tight

:31:15. > :31:17.on the cushion. But I think he did know, you could tell with the body

:31:18. > :31:24.language, when the black state over the pocket, he felt he was can make

:31:25. > :31:40.enough of this to win the frame, and he was right.

:31:41. > :31:52.The second frame was the longest frame, almost 32 minutes. Stuart has

:31:53. > :31:58.had breaks of 91 and 80. Peter's highest, 43. But he's been playing

:31:59. > :33:21.quite well, Peter. A good break from Stuart Bingham

:33:22. > :33:28.after Peter Ebdon missed the black. Two frames in front again, leading

:33:29. > :33:34.4-2. Three breaks of 70 and above so far from the champion of two years

:33:35. > :33:46.ago. In the balls again with 28 as we pick it up again.

:33:47. > :33:52.Plenty of loose threads available, doesn't even have to think about a

:33:53. > :34:02.cannon at this stage. -- loose threads. 34 in front, so he'd have

:34:03. > :34:42.to do something precarious here to lend this break.

:34:43. > :34:56.Didn't need too much pace on that one. On two into the right corner,

:34:57. > :35:01.but made the choice of playing one with the rest. Better angle to get

:35:02. > :35:36.on the black. Once again, just dislodging a few

:35:37. > :35:43.reds a few inches. He's having a look around, but this is a great

:35:44. > :35:53.chance to go three frames in front once again.

:35:54. > :36:45.He has slightly overrun that one. Awkward now. Over the red. Looking

:36:46. > :36:47.down the line of the shot, rather than being more level, but he has

:36:48. > :37:01.managed it. I think he was helped with the size

:37:02. > :37:06.of his hand. Stuart, it's amazing, he can pick something like half a

:37:07. > :37:13.dozen snooker balls up in one hand. It's a bit of a party piece he does.

:37:14. > :37:24.It came in handy there, bridging over the red.

:37:25. > :38:06.Frame already safe, as the game finishes on the other table.

:38:07. > :38:15.He's come back well, Stuart Bingham. After being 3-0 up and being pegged

:38:16. > :38:18.up to one frame. He is back in the driving seat again. Back three in

:38:19. > :38:36.front. But make no mistake, Peter Ebdon, he

:38:37. > :38:42.never knows when he's beaten in a match. He's only three behind, it's

:38:43. > :38:46.the first attend so there's a long way to go. But he could do with at

:38:47. > :39:10.least one of the two remaining frames.

:39:11. > :39:17.We've had seven centuries and we are in the two of the Betfred World

:39:18. > :39:23.Championship. The chance of another one here. He has made 40 centuries

:39:24. > :39:27.this season, compared to 19 last season. It shows you the improvement

:39:28. > :39:31.of Stuart's game in the last 12 months.

:39:32. > :39:50.And there's another lovely century break, taking his total to 329.

:39:51. > :39:59.Lots of reverse side to get up towards the yellow.

:40:00. > :40:07.Can he stretch around? He's quite a tall lad but he's going to be the

:40:08. > :40:27.extension, I think, to reach this one.

:40:28. > :41:06.The highest break so far is 124. Ronnie O'Sullivan made that, along

:41:07. > :41:11.with a 122. That cannon on the pink means he will have two double the

:41:12. > :41:18.pink to overtake Ronnie's 124. Not to be, but that's not going to be

:41:19. > :41:23.the highest break, but a very timely century break from Stuart Bingham.

:41:24. > :41:30.He extends his lead and is now three in front, 5-2. HAZEL IRVINE: In

:41:31. > :41:37.fact, Peter took the eightth frame to reduce the arrears to 5-3. They

:41:38. > :41:42.are in the last frame of the day. It continues live now on the red button

:41:43. > :41:46.and via the BBC sport app and website. Trying to get back within

:41:47. > :41:51.one frame, because they will be coming back tomorrow morning to

:41:52. > :41:54.finish this off. Bingham is 5-3 in front and they will finish off

:41:55. > :41:59.tomorrow morning. At seven o'clock, the next session of snooker is a

:42:00. > :42:08.cracker. It features Marco Fu, one of the men of the season, against

:42:09. > :42:10.Luca Brecel. Marco won the Scottish open, beating one final and made

:42:11. > :42:14.three major semifinals, including the Masters. Luca has tried for five

:42:15. > :42:21.years to get back to the Crucible after being the youngest ever to

:42:22. > :42:26.qualify here. Mark Allen and Jimmy Robertson also on cue. Full coverage

:42:27. > :42:30.of Marco Fu and Luca Brecel at seven o'clock on the red button. The man

:42:31. > :42:32.who is creating all of the headlines today's Ronnie O'Sullivan. He has

:42:33. > :42:37.just gone to his press conference and he is once again not happy about

:42:38. > :42:42.discussing the match he has just played. This is a stance he taken

:42:43. > :42:46.since the Masters. He has a bit of a feud going with the governing bodies

:42:47. > :42:59.of the sport. He doesn't want to get himself into trouble, so he is going

:43:00. > :43:01.to avoid all conversation. What we make of his stance? He is personable

:43:02. > :43:04.and happy to chat about other matters around the sport when he

:43:05. > :43:06.comes here? Sometimes at the press conference you open your mouth too

:43:07. > :43:08.much. If you've lost, it can be a problem. Perhaps he's doing

:43:09. > :43:11.something he thinks will get him into less trouble. Your perspective?

:43:12. > :43:18.Sometimes you didn't have a lot to say? Lots of one word answers... The

:43:19. > :43:22.thing to focus on is how focused he was on the match today and how

:43:23. > :43:26.focused he is on winning the World Championship. Very impressive this

:43:27. > :43:30.afternoon. Extremely impressive, as was Gary Wilson. What a match he

:43:31. > :43:35.gave him. A very eventful afternoon. Thank you for sharing it with us.

:43:36. > :43:37.Join Jason on the red button for live coverage continuing on the BBC.

:43:38. > :43:41.Catch you tomorrow, bye-bye.