:00:54. > :01:10.My safety's better than before and my attack is more stable, so I'm
:01:11. > :01:16.more confident now. I'm looking forward to the UK and best of the 11
:01:17. > :01:24.for a few rounds and I still like the UK championship. I win twice and
:01:25. > :01:29.good memories for me. Good evening. He was the centre of attention here
:01:30. > :01:34.this evening in York. Shortly we'll see the man who has won the last
:01:35. > :01:41.three major world-ranking titles in a row over the last three months.
:01:42. > :01:44.It's been all go here in this championship. We are going a little
:01:45. > :01:48.snooker loopy today. We are trying to keep track of 16 second-round
:01:49. > :01:56.matches. They are dotted all over this great venue. I think it's time
:01:57. > :02:02.we cued the headlines. Jimmy White made his return for the first time
:02:03. > :02:06.for three years. But it's time -- his time in this tournament was
:02:07. > :02:12.brought to an end by Stuart Bingham. He never really settled into the
:02:13. > :02:17.match. He allowed the Number Ten seed to assert his dominance with a
:02:18. > :02:24.couple of breaks. Bingham closed it out, 6-2. Let's hope it's not other
:02:25. > :02:34.three years before we see Jimmy again. Jimmy suffered a bit. He was
:02:35. > :02:40.snatching at a few. The table went a bit awkward. It dragged me down a
:02:41. > :02:46.little. A bit weird saying that against Jimmy, but it was hard to
:02:47. > :02:51.get going and I took the Mickey a bit and it gave me a kick up the
:02:52. > :02:56.back side, but it was nice to be still in the tournament. Pretty
:02:57. > :03:00.frustrating, because I was hitting the ball OK in practice. If you keep
:03:01. > :03:06.giving these guys so many chances it was like a comedy of errors for me.
:03:07. > :03:15.It's a bit frustrating to play that bad. Judd Trump met Thailand's
:03:16. > :03:27.Punjang. He came close to a maximum in the third frame. He missed the
:03:28. > :03:33.next black and with it the chance of a ?59,000 bonus. However, that
:03:34. > :03:40.setback proved to be the only downside and it was a 6-0 whitewash
:03:41. > :03:44.against an on poen nenT who potted over 39 balls in the whole match. It
:03:45. > :03:53.was a little too easy. I would liked to have been questioned a little bit
:03:54. > :04:01.more. I'm a bit disappointed to have missed the 147. An escape from
:04:02. > :04:07.Stephen Maguire. He was behind again his opponent. He came back and won
:04:08. > :04:14.it 6 - 5. I was outplayed. I got off to a good start, and then he totally
:04:15. > :04:19.outplayed me in every department. He wasn't lashing out. He played a good
:04:20. > :04:25.game and picked me apart to go 4-1. All I was trying to do was just
:04:26. > :04:35.stick in there and take a frame at a time and after that I didn't fancy
:04:36. > :04:42.spending it off. Another champion, Matthew Stevens survived against his
:04:43. > :04:46.opponent, who had been in command. The we will eshman pulled off a long
:04:47. > :04:53.pot to complete -- Welshman pulled off a long pot to complete his
:04:54. > :04:59.comeback. It wasn't great snooker, but I managed to get to six first
:05:00. > :05:03.and I'm still in, and there's only one thing to do and it's improve.
:05:04. > :05:15.The three-time winner, John Higgins also progressed thanks to a more
:05:16. > :05:24.straightforward 6-1 win over his opponent. The last few months have
:05:25. > :05:36.been a struggle, so I want to see some signs. You maybe expect to come
:05:37. > :05:44.through the first couple and it's a game you want to win. Mark Williams
:05:45. > :05:50.saw off Rory McLeod and he stuck to his task and game through it 6-3. It
:05:51. > :05:59.wasn't a very good standard at all. The first game wasn't either. I
:06:00. > :06:05.don't know what round we're in, but it's nice to be in whatever round it
:06:06. > :06:49.is. Mark, you are in the last 32. So are these guys.
:06:50. > :06:58.All in all t was a pretty eventful day, even before we got going with
:06:59. > :07:02.the evening session. In that evening session it featured James Wotana of
:07:03. > :07:06.Thailand. 43 years of age and the man who was responsible 20 years ago
:07:07. > :07:12.for sparking a revolution in snooker in the Far East. He was up against
:07:13. > :07:18.the man who now leads that revolution in snooker in the Far
:07:19. > :07:21.East. They shared the first couple of frames and we'll join them in the
:07:22. > :07:43.third. I don't believe what I'm seeing. I
:07:44. > :07:48.don't believe it. He's obviously thinking that that is a frame ball,
:07:49. > :07:52.but to go directly in off with no cushions involved, I mean it has to
:07:53. > :08:52.be close to it. Very surprising. It's been a catalogue of errors.
:08:53. > :09:04.What a frame. Seen so many balls rattling. Ding will fall over the
:09:05. > :09:06.line now. Snou he'll win the frame and -- somehow he'll win the frame
:09:07. > :09:16.and lead 2-1. It will be ding that takes a 2-1
:09:17. > :10:28.lead with the snookers. There is an outside chance here for
:10:29. > :10:30.James. Whether he goes once across or twice across the table to get
:10:31. > :10:33.this snooker in behind the black. He's going once. It's too pacey. A
:10:34. > :11:03.good line otherwise. A bit scrappy but Ding will be
:11:04. > :11:09.delighted to take a lead. It is a bit scrappy so far and Ding, who
:11:10. > :11:14.struggled a little to get back Anthony Parsons in his opening match
:11:15. > :11:19.is still to find the top fluency that has brought him so many riches.
:11:20. > :11:32.In the next frame and it's Ding 15 points ahead.
:11:33. > :11:39.These two are quite subdued toe nit and they've got a nice little
:11:40. > :11:48.knuckle off the pocket and takes it perfectly off the blue into the pack
:11:49. > :11:54.here. One of the best in the business at this shot. A lot of the
:11:55. > :12:00.victories recently have seen the splitting of the reds breath-taking
:12:01. > :12:32.at times. He always does it like that with complete control.
:12:33. > :12:37.It would be good getting the reds into play. Obviously, there's enough
:12:38. > :12:41.room between the two reds near the pocket to get on to the black in the
:12:42. > :13:15.opposite corner. An excellent chance to go 3-1 in front.
:13:16. > :13:27.This has been a frustrating session for him as well as his opponent.
:13:28. > :13:31.Once again, I was saying to you how well he plays. In six shots he's
:13:32. > :13:33.played four cannons and the white has never gone past the pink and
:13:34. > :14:19.that's the art of break building. Ding is about to make his highest
:14:20. > :14:29.break. A couple of shots away, but more importantly than that this is
:14:30. > :15:26.his frame ball. The next thing is will he make another century? 36
:15:27. > :15:47.Robertson made 51. It's only this season he has made.
:15:48. > :15:49.Robertson made 51. It's only yet this week in York, he'll get
:15:50. > :16:03.through this match and I suspect he'll get better.
:16:04. > :16:09.Different parts of the cushion are hit and no bounce at all there. It
:16:10. > :16:21.was played the way he expected it to react.
:16:22. > :16:28.There have been 47 centuries in the tournament, which includes what was
:16:29. > :16:47.played from Tuesday onwards, when it all got under way, before the
:16:48. > :16:53.television cameras were on. After he returned from the interval, Ding
:16:54. > :17:11.snatched the next. This is very tight and we're up to the colours.
:17:12. > :17:17.No escape this time. This is a question of whether James can get up
:17:18. > :18:08.and down perfectly behind the green and surely he'll win the frame.
:18:09. > :18:13.I don't believe it. That just shows you, when you get a little older and
:18:14. > :18:16.the tension becomes more and more and more and you would never, ever
:18:17. > :18:26.see James miss a shot like that a few years ago. Incredible. That one
:18:27. > :18:31.shot tells me he can't win this catch. You can't afford to miss
:18:32. > :19:07.shots like that. He would like to have been a lot
:19:08. > :19:13.straighter. He's playing with a lot of side. Has he controlled it? The
:19:14. > :19:15.cushions are bouncing on him. You can see what he thinks of that. It
:19:16. > :19:27.definitely accelerated off there. He's making his feelings known. Very
:19:28. > :19:31.rarely do you see any emotion from Ding. He's got a very good
:19:32. > :19:51.temprement. This might not reach the pocket.
:19:52. > :20:00.I think he knows the language now. He's annoyed with himself. He can't
:20:01. > :20:02.believe that hasn't won the frame there. You get very little emotion
:20:03. > :20:14.out of him usually. A very good safety shot. As I
:20:15. > :20:22.mentioned in commentary before he played that shot, he has got the
:20:23. > :20:40.raving hump. He might even play a double here. You never know.
:20:41. > :20:53.It might cut in. He's not happy, as you know. It's not an easy shot. The
:20:54. > :20:57.last two or three shots... What an extraordinary frame of snooker this
:20:58. > :21:05.has been. Good grief. Well, Ding is going to win it. He is almost as
:21:06. > :21:11.disgusted as James Wattana, but the bottom line is Ding is 5-1 up and he
:21:12. > :21:16.needs one more frame. What a frame. He's not happy. He came back and
:21:17. > :21:22.recomposed himself in the next frame and went on to make sure of his
:21:23. > :21:30.passage to the last 32. That was a knock of 66. He won over the former
:21:31. > :21:36.world number three, James Wattana. There was a discussion there. Ding
:21:37. > :21:45.will face Fergal O'Brien next and we bid a fond farewell to James. It's
:21:46. > :21:51.Ding who prevails. Didn't play well today. Difficult to find the
:21:52. > :21:56.positions. James having to lose some big frames and it's important for
:21:57. > :22:04.him, for both of us, but he always lose that frame, so a little bit
:22:05. > :22:07.complicated the way I played today. Along with Ding, Mark Allen of
:22:08. > :22:12.Northern Ireland is much fancied to land this title once again in this
:22:13. > :22:16.year. After all, he played such a brilliant part in a final a couple
:22:17. > :22:20.of years ago against Judd Trump and just came off second best. He has
:22:21. > :22:23.come so close in the UK Championship. Mark is never short of
:22:24. > :22:28.an opinion, but this season he's largely let his play do the talking,
:22:29. > :22:35.to pretty good effect. He's won two European Tour events already this
:22:36. > :22:40.season and the world number nine is warming up nicely. Tonight he took
:22:41. > :22:45.offer 56-year-old Dave, Harold, for many years a regular and the Stoke
:22:46. > :22:50.player is a ranking event winner and earned the nickname Hardman Harold
:22:51. > :22:54.because he ain't no pushover. In fact, over 45 minutes of play had
:22:55. > :23:02.come and gone in the opening frame before we pick them up and har
:23:03. > :23:27.raleed's -- Harold's already snookered his way in.
:23:28. > :23:33.He's got a choice. He could go up and down with the pink and try to
:23:34. > :23:49.get in behind the black. We'll see what he plays.
:23:50. > :24:31.That's pretty good. He's got Mark hampered.
:24:32. > :25:18.Oh, I think he thought he had that. He thought he'd knocked that in.
:25:19. > :25:27.That was He thought he'd knocked that in.
:25:28. > :25:58.coming up to 45 minutes. Whoever He thought he'd knocked that in.
:25:59. > :26:04.body blow. What about this as a shot? As he bends his knees, he
:26:05. > :26:17.almost goes to the floor. He has left the pink. I don't thi it's a
:26:18. > :26:37.natural in-off. But he could get to the corner pocket.
:26:38. > :26:45.He was concerned about the in-off and well he's left Mark Allen with a
:26:46. > :27:08.similar type shot. This may be a little thinner possibly.
:27:09. > :27:20.It will be a very relieved Mark Allen. The frame looked like it was
:27:21. > :27:23.going to be over 20 minutes ago. It looked pretty comfortable, but it
:27:24. > :27:29.wasn't in the end. The frame went on for over 46 minutes. Harold missed
:27:30. > :27:35.the pink and it will be be a relieved Mark Allen who leads.
:27:36. > :27:39.Harold will be giving himself a hard kick, having worked so cleverly to
:27:40. > :27:43.get himself back into it in the first place. However, an intense
:27:44. > :27:46.start to that match. I'm sure both players and sections of the crowd
:27:47. > :28:03.will be hoping they'll pick the pace up in frame two.
:28:04. > :28:15.It started with a fluke. That's how cliff Thorburn made the 147 years
:28:16. > :28:25.ago. There's no maximum here because he's already taken the yellow.
:28:26. > :29:11.That fluke could gain him a few points here.
:29:12. > :29:17.Couldn't really play that with much more pace because he would have lost
:29:18. > :29:18.the cue ball. Not a guaranteed perfect position. But still cuts to
:29:19. > :29:42.the left corner. It's amazing how many left-handed
:29:43. > :30:11.players switch to the right hand when they use that.
:30:12. > :30:32.A good potter, this boy, isn't he? No more reds available. It will have
:30:33. > :30:37.to be the brown. And with the white near the balk line there, it's not
:30:38. > :31:25.easy. He did play for that red. He could
:31:26. > :31:30.have done with a little more action on that and he would have been
:31:31. > :31:35.nicely on the pink. Or even the blue, but the only way to keep the
:31:36. > :31:43.break on here is if he manages to knock the yell hoe in. -- yellow in.
:31:44. > :32:10.You never know with Mark, he might just think about doing that.
:32:11. > :32:15.There's another safety shot. That perfect on the blue now to go into
:32:16. > :32:22.the bunch. That last blue he potted was a cracking shot. Yeah, he hit it
:32:23. > :32:23.beautifully. Couldn't have hit it any better. Perfect angle on the
:32:24. > :32:48.blue. The first frame lasted over 46
:32:49. > :32:56.minutes and this frame's not going to take very long by the looks of
:32:57. > :33:00.things. It all started with that fluke when he wobbled the red in the
:33:01. > :33:05.left corner pocket and shot along the back cushion behind the black
:33:06. > :33:17.there and straight in the opposite corner.
:33:18. > :33:26.It doesn't matter how skilful you are, a little bit of luck with play
:33:27. > :33:30.a big part. He may have to cannon into the reds to hold the cue ball.
:33:31. > :35:16.He has played a nice shot there. There's a really nice crisp sound
:35:17. > :35:19.when he hits the ball. Apart from the shot on the kiss on the blue and
:35:20. > :35:22.the unfortunate kiss to keep the break going, this has been
:35:23. > :35:39.excellent. When you consider how slow the last frame was.
:35:40. > :35:48.A chance of a century break now he's developed that red. He's made 19
:35:49. > :36:00.centuries this season so far. He made 30 last season. 206 centuries
:36:01. > :36:16.in his professional career. He turned pro in 2005. Well, no century
:36:17. > :36:22.break, but he's not too concerned about that. That was quite a quick
:36:23. > :36:27.frame after the long opening frame and well, Mark Allen now leads 2-0.
:36:28. > :36:34.And he was on a roll because he took the next two as well to go 4-0 in
:36:35. > :36:40.front. Three more 50-plus breaks for that. 4-0 became 5-2 when Dave
:36:41. > :36:45.Harold had more of a spring in his step, so now we are in frame eight
:36:46. > :36:47.and at Len is 25 points -- Allen is 25 points adrift and hoping to
:36:48. > :37:23.finish the job here. He'll have a choice with the next
:37:24. > :37:36.shot. Whether to play from the loose and develop the two behind the black
:37:37. > :37:41.spot. That's brought both of them into play. As long as this red
:37:42. > :37:44.doesn't block the path of the blue into the pocket, but then he can
:37:45. > :37:53.stun down to the pink and black here. He can leave the blue in the
:37:54. > :38:14.centre pocket. The red on the top cushion, that
:38:15. > :38:24.will take some shot to get it off for a colour.
:38:25. > :39:15.snookered? I think he's just OK. He might not be able
:39:16. > :39:15.snookered? I think he's just OK. He he would have to play with a little
:39:16. > :39:41.bit of so it's not straightforward. We are
:39:42. > :39:47.all square. Just tucking up and taking the blue on, but not easy to
:39:48. > :39:56.get nicely on this last frame. That was a bit of a wild one. To pot this
:39:57. > :39:59.red and get up on to the blue, even if he had have knocked that blue in,
:40:00. > :40:08.was going to be tough. He has started throwing his arm out
:40:09. > :40:09.a few shots, Dennis, Mark Allen. He's had to hit the ball hard and
:40:10. > :42:06.not timed it well. That's another frame on the board
:42:07. > :42:12.from the man from Stoke. He keeps his hopes alive, but it's a long way
:42:13. > :42:16.back for Dave, but he's still there. With Mark Allen perhaps a little bit
:42:17. > :42:24.frustrated with that attempt on the blue that let Harold back in again,
:42:25. > :44:06.but he has another chance in frame nine. Just 11 points in this one.
:44:07. > :44:17.Perfectly played. He'll want to go a few rounds better than he did last
:44:18. > :44:21.year. He lost to Marco Fu. Then he lost the year before to Judd Trump
:44:22. > :44:28.and he played well in that final. He had a few century breaks, if I
:44:29. > :44:42.remember. He made four centuries in that final, I think. The seven-times
:44:43. > :45:10.champion has got a head for of statistics! ! He has finished a
:45:11. > :45:16.little bit straight on this blue. He's going to move himself further
:45:17. > :45:21.away from the red than he would have liked. He's hit that very, very
:45:22. > :45:44.well. That's the best shot he's hit for quite a while.
:45:45. > :45:52.Another cannon on to the two reds tanned should open up everything for
:45:53. > :46:04.Mark. Any cannon on the two reds or he's unlucky not to finish on all
:46:05. > :46:07.four of them maybe? That's was all it needed. 33 in front. Looking good
:46:08. > :47:03.now. Mark Allen, world champion. We all
:47:04. > :47:07.know who he's supporting. It's a long, long time since we've had a
:47:08. > :47:13.world champion from Northern Ireland. I can't remember who that
:47:14. > :47:37.was, Stephen! Just a couple of pots away from
:47:38. > :47:55.securing this match. I think he thinks that's the shot
:47:56. > :47:58.that's won his this match and he has been by far the heavier scorer of
:47:59. > :48:09.the two and that's been the difference.
:48:10. > :48:19.He started off with the 54 break in the first and 72 in the second and
:48:20. > :48:25.two in the third. 52 in the fourth and the sixth frame he had a 70 and
:48:26. > :48:31.a 52 break. He didn't score pretty heavily. He won't worry about
:48:32. > :48:35.missing that red. In the end, it should have been easier, but it was
:48:36. > :48:43.quite comfortable for Mark Allen and he runs out a very comfortable
:48:44. > :48:50.victor in the end. Mark Allen will now meet Nottingham's Michael Holt.
:48:51. > :49:02.You've guessed it, it's the Pistol against the Hitman. We are back at
:49:03. > :49:10.1.00pm on BBC Two with Selby and Robertson.