Day 3 UK Snooker Championship Highlights

this, then you'll be off to go. -- cue-ball for the green. That was as

close as he could have got to the green. Can he held himself

down the right hand side of the do that. A good positional shot

is about inch-perfect. He is close to the cushion but he has the nice

angle on the pink to get position cushion, surely could have had a

half-ball black? A bit of nerves that, for me. He did not want to

give himself another pot. A difficult shot, a thin pot on the

Williams is normally efficient on pocket with that pink. If he goes

to the pot here he should Cannon in kiss of that. That was an excellent

pot. -- a good kiss off that. He set up an opportunity and he took

it well. This is a toss you want to that happens you put your opponent

into play. There are many ways of playing this. Straight up and down

used to be the way but now it seems to be the black on one side of the

cushion, the White on the other. That is what he has played. It

guarantees getting the black safe but it gives your opponent first

chance to put distance between cue- ball and object ball. He did not do,

that surprises me. Not certain typed on the baulk cushion. That

looked just about near the baulk cross Dublin this black but there

is always a chance, where is that cue-ball going?! That is the frame!

What a turnaround. Looked like Mark Williams was going to win that

flame but judge will be a tidy it up and has won the re-spotted black.

Williams. Williams took from six with a break of 79 to re-establish

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a two frame cushion. Frame seven you can't just drop it in, it is

too dangerous because if you miss it you leave the green in the jaws

track to slow the cue ball down. It is certain. This from his all-over,

happened. Mark Williams has been plotting the balls and now we can't

pot a ball to save his life. It is Maybe born out of frustration, I

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don't know. But Joe has been handed play it into the right middle. It

is the most obvious place to play it. They should have been easier

That is another frame. You have to say that Mark Williams has gifted

his opponent. I know he will feel a bit better than the other, he has -

- is only one frame behind now. Unbelievable. Indeed, credit to him.

He is taking his chances and making things uncomfortable for the world

No. 2. Things got even more uncomfortable for Williams. Any

stages of frame nine now. -- early so that was an elementary mistake

a simple game. And sometimes, it gets so awkward. Mainly you bring

it on yourself by playing poor shots. Losing your rhythm, losing

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may take it on because, once again, he has not got the right side of

the blue. He is getting on with it, doesn't want to think too much

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spot has turned this into a very good opportunity. Despite the

pressure, you would expect him to go on to win the frame. He would

have been in these positions many times before in his career and one

thing you have to say about Mark Williams, his relaxed attitude and

freedom of play, he has got a huge on the other table, but Mark

Williams didn't flinch. He is in deep concentration, and you don't

hear anything. He has decided now to really focus on what is

happening. He has been at offer little bit. That miscue by his

opponent, that may have made the is only what he needed. Why didn't

he roll it in? He played a stun, it was a mile off. He is 49 points in

front, but there is a possible 51 remaining service from is not over

yet. -- so this frame is not over yet. That is a pretty good length

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is going to send the red pretty close to the black. It is going to

be pretty thin. That is much too thick. If you do that, chances are

you are going to lose a red. Has the brown come to his rescue? It

knock the other one out of the way. He has done it. At the back of his

mind, he would have been trying to get the road away from the pocket,

but the bonus was to pot it. Well, he has missed the pink, but he is

50 points in front and 43 remaining. So that for a couple of snooker's

he is back in front. Relief of for Mark Williams.

He seems to have recovered his composure and needs one more frame

to book his place in the second unlucky. He hit it too well. A very

clean pot. The cue ball is tight on the cushion. He cannot do much from

red? Is the one past the pink? -- on to come back for the black. He

caught the red a little bit thick coming back towards the back, which

has pushed the cue ball on to this crush Room, so another tough pot. -

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- on to this cushion. Not quite. A clinch the frame and match. -- this

is a chance for Mark Williams. There is one news read at the back

of the pack. -- there is a one loose red. He would be unlucky not

gone through this evening, he is probably thinking he had better not

take too many risks, just take what is there. He just hit that to

perfection. You would have made him to -- he would have made him

favourite to win this frame, but stranger things have happened. He

that red is because he was under tension. When he drops them into

the pocket, he get that every time, but when he is under pressure, with

pace, his grip comes on early sometimes. He is not going to get a

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could have been going back to his one of the best players in the

world, but one thing he has been blessed with is a big heart. And

you have got to have that. The pressure is on you all the time.

Nobody to help you in the sport. It is you against the other person,

and if you are not up to it, you will lose. No disrespect to his

opponent because if he loses, I feel he has done exceptionally well.

He has put up a fight, but it is banana skin has been avoided

because he lost his way completely from 4-2 in front. He just stopped

playing. He is now 57 ahead with 59 remaining but that one that he

really needs, he isn't on, so Joe made it back to the table. -- may

get back to the table. I can only assume Mark Williams played for the

road on the right hand side and under he did by a long way. There

has to roads in line with one another were never available. --

those two reds in line with one it but not quite and he will be

annoyed. Not for the first time he has looked like winning a frame and

not done so and lost it. And he is annoyed. I cannot read lips, but if

it was something offensive, we of banter, a bit of fun, to release

bit of banter, a little bit of fun, some tension. He was saying, if you

release some tension. Just said, if pop that, I will be going home. If

he does pot that, he will be going home. I think Mark also thought by

playing that he would push another He can just get to this red via the

black, but can he get safe off it? He needs to get safe, he needs to

missed the blue. Well, the plaque has come to his rescue somewhat.

The red closest to the top cushion will cut in and he only needs the

one red, so it may be worth taking the risk. He has two red balls on

the right side of the table, which are pretty safe. He is not playing

it. He is playing the snooker behind the black. Not certain about

that choice, because it gives Joe a chance here to flick off the red,

probably the one nearest to the middle pocket. As long as he

catches it thin enough, he will bring it into play and find the

safety shot, because at the worst he should have had a good cue ball.

Is he taking this on? Last chance if he is. Oh, so close, and yet so

far. And I think that will be Joe's last shot in this match. He's put

up a tremendous fight, albeit with a little help from his opponent,

but Mark Williams has been put through the wringer here, but it

looks as though he's going to come out in front. It's been a great

Williams came through in the end, a little bit of experience when it

little bit of experience when it counted. He wins 6-4.

He came out at four each, played for the red and miscued. He

probably would have made at least 40-50. He was missing and jabbing a

few and probably if he did not miss he could have gone 5-4 up. A couple

of good breaks at the last. I think you have just got to just accept

that I'm going to miss some balls. I'm probably not the player I used

to be, but I know in my stomach that I can compete with them, and

I'm going to accept that I will miss some easy balls and I can't

let it affect me. It didn't until the last. It is just that balance

of when you miss the easy ones, not to get down on yourself.

Mark Williams will play the winner of the one remaining match to bring

you news on, and that promised to be one of the more difficult

counters to call, at least on paper, between Stephen Lee and Ricky

Walden. Only nine places separated the two and there was little to

choose between them. They shared Ricky Walden again has taken the

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causes Ricky took underhit that slightly. Tried for the blue to the

middle. But this is a good chance. Five reds in the open here before

he has to disturb anything, and he is 4-3 in front, first to six. Can

he capitalise on this chance? whatever happens in this match,

should Stephen Lee come back and win it, Ricky Walden must know he

should win this game. It was similar to the game over the

weekend. Mark Davis outplayed Ding Junhui and still lost. This is the

same situation here. Ricky really should have had this match in the

bag already. It looks like he is going to have a very good chance of

these boys with regard to World rankings. Ricky is up at world

number 22. He had a great chance of getting into top 16. He will be

once again, to go into that bunch from the black is not ideal. But he

might just do it this time. He has got to generate quite a bit of pace

if he does. Much easier to go into them from the blue. That's what the

they are like that. That's the only problem with going into a pack like

that from the black. Nothing easy. That's quite tricky. Both of those

are quite tricky. The one to the left is the better one because it

wouldn't leave a great deal. That looks good to me. Well done. Now he

we've had a person winning two frames on the trot, and right at

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the right time to take a 5-3 lead He was hoping for the blue, to

cannon into the pink. He needs a couple of reds to clinch the frame,

a very important frame from his point of view. They are all tied up.

Even for one to the left of the simply because of the way he will

play this red. He will roll it in. I think I'd be playing for one of

the baulk colours, possibly the yellow or the brown to get into the

reds near the pink. He could play around for the blue but it is a

straightforward little shot. That's what he has played. Yellow or brown

will take him into the reds. It looks like the yellow will be the

better ball. The brown is a bit too straight for position, so it is the

yellow, and if this works out, he will put himself just one frame

it? A perfect break off, that was, into the bunch. He leads by 59

points, so just two more reds haven't had over a half century.

The breaks have been quite year's William Hill .com UK

right of the two reds, and he will make a century if he plays this

correctly, and he couldn't have players that have made go for 100

competitive centuries. This is his chance for 113. We mentioned

already he has already had a will be delighted to have made a

little bit of a break in this match, Ricky Walden added yet another 50

plus break in the night frame, his fifth of the match, to complete

victory over Stephen Lee who exit in the first round for the second

successive year. Ricky Walden can look forward to his first

appearance in the last 16 for the first time in five years.

I'm really pleased. It was always going to be a different game

against Stephen, such a great player, so for me to get over the

line 6-3 was pleasing. I missed a few balls but I played OK. I'm the

underdog in these kind of gains so for me to beat Stephen is a

fantastic win. While the underdog in the next game and I will keep

battling through, seeing how far I can go. But I believe in myself and

I know I can do some good stuff. After all that, the draw for the

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So that's the first round of this year's UK Championship done and

dusted. Don't forget Snooker Extra follows next, and you can see more