Day 8, Part 1 UK Snooker Championship

Good afternoon. This year's the knighted Kingdom Championship gets

better and better with every championship. We are all buzzing

with the memory of last I's first semi-final, in which Shaun Murphy

came back like Superman they gazed Ali Carter. He is the first man

through took tomorrow's final. Today, we will find out who will be

joining him. Will it be Mark Davis or Mark Selby? Time to roll the

Mark Selby, a convincing winner, 6- 3. Mark Davies runs out a very

It look like it was a long way back for Mark Selby, but he finished up

Mark Davies comes through against John Higgins and reaches the

Neil Robertson must be shell- shocked, four-0 up, but the fist

pump from Mark Selby it shows you all. He is somehow in the semi-

final. Mark Davies has played superbly well and he runs out a

If you are thinking who is Mark Davis, that is perhaps not

surprising. After 21 years as a professional snooker player, the 40

you rolled from Hastings is through to the first major semi-final in

this game on British soil. -- 40 year old. Mark and his family was -

- were due to be at a musical this afternoon. They had booked their

tickets not expecting to be here this afternoon. Yesterday, John

Parrott caught up with him. You are right at the UK Championship, fair

to say, a little bit by the back door. Yes, I got in because we

Ronnie O'Sullivan took a bit of time off and Stephen Lee has his

problems. Unlike have got in there on merit and probably, but I think

I have justified it this week. It is new territory for me, being here

as a seeded player. It was a little bit strange in the first match.

have made the most of it, what has your form been like? I have been

playing pretty consistent for the last couple of years, to be honest.

I have been getting close to the top 16. Hopefully, I will get into

the 16 by right this time. The have been a professional for quite a

while, twenty-one years or something. Where has improvement

come from? I think it is doing our bit of work with Terry Griffiths.

By manager brought him on broad and with the amount of tournaments that

we have now, back in any help to keep you shot. You are playing

against the top players all the time. Your semi-final opponent is

one of the most experienced and best players in the world. It will

be tough. Yes, it will be very tough. Mark is up there as one of

the best players in the world and has been for a long time. I have to

play at least as well as I have this week, and probably a little

bit better, to have any chance against him. It is new territory

for me, so there is still the experience. I had a look at the

venue before the session started and it looks really good. We wish

He is one of the players that has exploded up the rankings. He is he

is one of the players there you have to really scraping off the

table, he will do anything to win. Great tactical play, all round game.

He is a tough player on the table. He never gives in, so he is always

hard to play against. Competitor, he never gives up. He has won a lot

of matches coming from behind. is probably one of the hardest

players to beat. He has a level of consistency that is far better, I

would think, than anybody else just now. He is a great player, a great

that, a great professional. A good ambassador for the game. Mark Selby

is the world No. 2 but could regain the top spot if he books a place in

tomorrow's final. Everything points in his favour, not least his record

A but we have seen had brilliantly Mark Davis has played this week. We

know this old story about like beginning at 40, he is living proof.

What is the story? I think the reason is... I haven't got a clue!

I do not know why it in this game what has been proven that players

have their best years at 30, and most players are crumbling when

they get their forties, why a person like Mark Davis all of a

sudden will have the best years of his life. Obviously, all the

different tournaments, and the prize money. If anybody has got the

answers, a bright to to me, please! Mark Selby has had to come from

behind in his matches so far. He freely admits that he asked it out

of the starting blocks without stumbling. Yes, but he also he

might feel like he is bullet-proof. If you can come back from four down

against Neil Robertson, how does that make you feel? If you do get

off to a good start, that is fantastic. Perhaps the catalyst for

him getting a good start is that he has at best of 17 match today.

Selby is 8 double Masters winner and is desperate to win gone of

these big prizes in the ranking events. If he keeps putting himself

there of their about. They are so many good players around. But he if

he keeps getting himself to the final stages, somewhere down the

line he will convert. And Shaun Murphy will need a rest after the

last night's amazing stuff. superhuman performance and an

unbelievable match. He does need a rest because if he had gone into

the final after an exciting match like that he might have had some

sort of reaction. He can deserve that day off. It is the second

semi-final of this year's williamhill.com United Kingdom

championship. Overtook rock Walker. Good afternoon, ladies and

gentlemen. What an atmosphere we have here in the York Barbican.

Yesterday's semi-final was sensational and we have another

classic in store here. What an afternoon in prospect. Please

welcome a player absolutely flourishing into his for teas. He

has beaten John Higgins and Matthew Stevens already this week. This is

his third ranking event semi-final of the season. But this is the

biggest match of his life. Please MUSIC: "Don't Stop Till You Get

What is going on? You have been around 21 years, and suddenly

you're on the big stage go for a massive final. I don't know! It is

amazing. I should have started when I was 40, shouldn't I? Probably the

other 20 years I wasn't rubbish! This is the sort of match that you

want. Your phone must have gone nuts this week, knocking out John

Higgins. Yes, my family have been me and lots of support and some

have come up today. I have not had a chance to think about it too much

because you have a match the next day. Ladies and gentlemen, Mark

His opponent, one of the most colourful characters on the circuit.

They should be calling him the comeback came this week after his

wins over Ryan Day and Neil Robertson. Bidding for his years --

A change of walk on music. Are we expecting a long want? How much

confidence the take from Neil Robertson? He is an amazing major

championship performer. Obviously, he is a class act and to come from

4-0 down, I have to take confident. But to beat him from any score, I

would have still taking confidence. It is gate be a great match, it

ladies and gentlemen, Mark Selby. Stephen Hendry and Dennis Taylor

have teamed up again today, hoping for more of the same as they sought

DENNIS TAYLOR: It this match is anything like yesterday evening,

you are in for a treat. We have only just recovered. A big day for

Mark Davis, his first major semi- Mark Davis gets the first frame

He got a terrific reception when he walked into the Barbican here. As

That is Mark pot my wife, Vicky. She probably did not think she was

going to be here today, the way REFEREE: Can you please adjust your

earpieces, please, for the volume. The referee asking the crowd to

adjust their earpieces. Sometimes you can just hear the noise coming

That was a pretty attacking safety The one to the left corner is

pottable but he would have to get He nearly potted in both corner

pockets there! Mark Selby will be looking to stamp his authority

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early in this match. He will know Totally mishit. Look where the cue

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It is that time of year again. It is that Willie Thorne and John

He has come too far for the blue so the angle is more acute than he

Again, the red is a more acute angle so he will probably have to

The so-called red is blocking the If he had got nearer to the pink he

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could have removed the red that is That is a horrendous cake. -- kick.

It took all of the pace out of the The white would have come off the

cushion and into where the circle he's showing and he would have been

It is a while since we have had the Davis been a semi-final! He will be

in the studio listening to that! How many times has he won this? Six

times, Steve Davis has won the UK Championship. And you won it five

or six times? 5, so you will have come out of retirement to equalled

his record. That is a good safety. We have seen this week that Mark

Selby has won most of his matches coming from behind, so he will be

He caught that to thick and that is why he has pushed it across to the

There is an extra incentive for Mark Selby. If he wins this match,

A little bit more pace and he would have been on a shot, but it is just

a safety shot now. He was at world number one, and that is just

because of the consistency. He has yet to win a major. He has won a

couple of ranking events, but he is due to wind one of the pick three,

the world, the UK and the Masters. It is probably fair to say, given

how good a player he has, that he is an under achiever in his career.

He should have won one of the big The reason why that was an

extremely good safety shot is because the yellow is tight against

the cushion, so he had to get up against the cushion. He has blocked

He has had a look to see if he can see enough of that red to get up

around the back towards the safety A similar shot is available to Mark,

but with the red next to the blue, He would have to for Boyd the black

and red, and it is a tricky situation. -- and four eat that

What about that for the shot? He could not see an easy safety, so he

They are not that easy when you what that close to the object ball.

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That was very fortunate. He played It is always nice to win the first

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If I'd was playing someone in a semi-final who was more

inexperience, I would be thinking I can win this match in the first

session. Really put the pressure on them, because they will not feel

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comfortable until I get the first He has come up and bit short and

The red and pink would put him 36 in front. Didn't neen the canon on

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That is a good effort, 48 break. Without a snooker it would give

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Mark the opening frame. Be it is It looked as if Mark tried to

develop the yellow this, but he has nod y where the red was going to go.

Might have within better off leaving the yellow there, and

getting the chance to pot the red and a high value colour, then he

That looks close, what a lovely Mark signals to the referee he does

concede the frame, so Mark Selby with the aid of that 48 break,

opens his account, and he leads 1-0. And you mentioned there Steven,

about Mark Davis won't settle down until he gets his first frame on

the board. He was a bit unlucky. He looked to have settled but then he

got a terrible contact on the blue. This was very unlucky. Mark would

have been thinking, give me a nice chance in the first frame, get my

cue arm going, a chance to win the frame. And there is nothing you can

do about that. Really unlucky. Mark Selby did what he had to do,

and it was a nicely compiled 48 break, he looked in complete

control there, and that last red he knocked in, Haye a beautiful shot

of the red coming down to the pocket. This one here now. This was

There is that fantastic trophy that Stephen Hendry has won on five

occasions. Unusual experience for Mark Selby, the la two matches,

breaks off 1-0. Ryan day went 3-0 behind. Against Neil Robertson went

4-0 behind. So he will be happy to They played each other six times

and Mark Selby has won all times, but it is a different Mark Davis

The players are getting younger all the time. Luca Brecel was one shot

away from winning in the quarterfinal. Mark said he

attributes his improvements to the amount of tournaments we are

playing these days, the PTC tournaments. It is becoming more

familiar playing against the top player, and so they aren't so

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Totally mishit, which can happen when you are playing with lots of

side. But he has been fortunate, once he did catch it thick and

bring the red up the table, he Hello, hello! It was still a good

shot any way, because he had the That is tighter in behind the green.

I wonder if Mark can get to the two reds, as we show you this trick

That was usual for Mark Selby. He It is tricky when the cue ball and

This is what was attempting. He They recover the table for the

semifinal, so these two haven't played on it yet, so perhaps that

was the reason for Mark not to Mark Davis hasn't judged that right.

He will have to play that with a He didn't judge it. Maybe he

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Lovely shot there by Mark Selby, using the pack to control the cue

ball and leave himself on this red He might have to play the canon

He is on two easy reds, but the black has gone a bit nearer the

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He looks very focused. When he came out, and in his interview, he was,

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For the top players, they are there He won his second Masters title

against Ronnie O'Sullivan, he won the last four frames to win that

The Masters is one of the most difficult tournaments to win. It is

Mark, just one mistake in this frame and he tried to pot a red

when he needed a touch of side to bend it, and he didn't, he caught

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He has every chance of making his Neil Robertson also made five

Fantastic play from Mark Selby. That is his fifth century this year,

and his 273rd in his career. Very clinical. Cueing beautifully, and

So Mark Davis knows he can't afford many mistakes against a man in this

He has potted the lot and Mark Selby, with that break of 121,

takes the second frame. It is now 2-0 to the man from Leicester. That

is much better from Selby's perspective. It has not been plain

sailing for him in the early rounds, impressions? He looked like he

played his way into the tournament. He was behind against Ryan Day, his

A game wasn't there. It is today. He is in Hoover mode. As for Mark

Davis, opening observations, he doesn't appear to have done a whole

lot wrong. He has done enough, the stakes are raised. The tricky red,

perhaps he talked himself into it going, you can sometimes do that,

but generally, the questions obviously will be asked of Mark

Davis. It is a one table set up, it is the semifinals of a massive

event. Where he hasn't been before. Also, has he settled? And you have

to fight very hard against settling for this being a good performance.

You need to be very mentally strong to be able to go, no, this is just

another match and gore to -- go for it. He has Terry Griffiths in his

corner as a coach. He will say it is just another match, but it is

difficult in a one table set out. The other thing, I don't care what

players tell you, when you have a poor head record, it is 6-0 to Mark

Selby, I would want to play someone I could beat every day of the week.

It is the best of 17 but Mark Davis needs to get going. He certainly

does, Hazel, but is he going to get the chance? You would think he

would have to get a few, but not Pretty good shot, because Mark

Selby comes off the left side of the reds, that one he is going to

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He doesn't want to curb his natural game. It is important to play his

He is thinking about this long pot. He is thinking "If I take this on

can I leave myself on the black?" if he took it on and didn't get the

canon, he could finish up in the Well, he did take the pot and and

he didn't get the canon. He would have been snookered on every colour

He will need the spider to get over those reds. If it is dead straight,

he might be able to just force a little angle to get out on the

black. He might need the extended -- might. He needs to pull up. Just

He is working out which canon to play. If he canoned the red above

I don't think he is on anything. He tried to canon the left of the two

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That was very tight. He hasn't done John Parrot was talking about the

six victory Mark Selby has over Mark Davis. Four them were in PTC

events. Twice he has beat him in the Australian Open, 2000 11 and

2012. They were fairly close. Mark Selby came out in the top five on

The crowd really getting involved here! They thought he had fluked

that but he hasn't and it staid over the pocket. He couldn't see an

easy path back to baulk area. Screwed back in there but you never

know what is going to happen with He did well to find that gap

When you are playing well, that Mark Selby could play that another

10 times and he would cannon He may be able to take the blue to

the left and swing it around the Once again, it was a good shot. He

did well to find the cap but the couple of little cannons that he

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For Mark Selby it is as though he is getting his reward for coming

back from behind in two tough matches. He is getting nice

He is terrific to watch when he is like this. He moves his head

slightly, but eight few seasons ago Once again, the red that he missed

has not left an easy opportunity He has not left anything. It was

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Both players looking to see if Mark is looking long and hard again

but that does not seem to be any He caught it a little thick. Has

the blue come to the rescue? He The difference was that Mark Selby

was able to get his hand on the table. The white finished up there

because of this side that he had to play. Lots of right-hand side just

You start to see problems that are not there at this stage, when

you're desperate to get a frame on He has come around the table and

come up a little bit short. In his earlier matches he would have just

got down and played that little The problem will be the three reds

that do not pot. He will have to He might have covered it this,

That happened with a similar shot in the opening frame when he caught

a red. You can do-it-yourself that There is no doubt that if he is

relaxed and place his normal game, he is good enough to win this match.

But there is no doubt that at the We know that those shots are not

easy. So, another chance for Mark Davis, and put good chance. -- a

He hit it on the wrong side. I think he played to hit it on the

left side. This may just go into If he had hit on the left side,

That can happen when you of that close to the object ball. It is

difficult to judge it. You are not looking at the pocket inOffside,

you just have to judge it. -- in That is not the best shot that he

has ever played. He played to be on the blue but now he will have to

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He may be hampered by the yellow Worrying signs for Mark Davis. He

needs to get the frame on the board quickly, or the match can start

You plan that the many sessions off four frames. 3-1 would be nice, but

He has not missed very much. Just a couple of little mistakes, but he

was not punished for it. It does not matter about the pink. It is

the best possible start for Mark You can just see perhaps a little

hint of unease in Mark Davis. You talk about a couple of shots in

which she thought he was almost talking himself into them. It is

the type of shot where you tell yourself it goes but it does not

really. If you were in a better frame of mind, you perhaps would

have there clearer head and cut your losses. Then, he played a bad

positional shot and drop on the red and I immediately thought, that

does not go. You can sense again, he has half talked himself into it.

If you make the wrong judgment, you look like an idiot. He is basically

portraying a little bit of panic. To some degree. Both of those shots

that he took on had been played with a little bit of side, but both

of them it look like he more or less play them straight. A couple

of you have noticed something. It is underneath the table. It is a

little electronic device, and you are wondering what is this? It is a

coin operated game! No, it is a thermostat and it keeps the

temperature of the a slate constant. If the slates of cold, moist he can

get into the cloth and then they play with more friction and when

you put the spill on the balls are does not last as long. So, humidity

is a killer for a snooker player. How do you counteract that? You are

playing all over the world, in the Far East, where this humidity

levels are much greater. humidifiers are good. We played in

Thailand. We played one tournament in February in their stormy season.

We had one of the machines there and five gallons of water came out

DENNIS TAYLOR: Yes, with a damp cloth, you cannot get the ball to

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REFEREE: Touching ball, you have to He actually played for the red that

is closest to the black there. He mishit it but he is still on this

He has a nice angle if he chooses to go into the pink here. All week

he has been playing quite aggressively when he gets into

But this time he played for the red next to the black. At the moment,

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there are probably four reds The two reds that are to the left

of the pink, one of them will definitely pot to the left corner.

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He struck that very well. When you have a little bit of tension in

He deserved to be on a red into the He was unlucky not to bring more of

the reds into play when he hit that The mid- session interval is coming

He needs a good angle on the black to bring a few more reds into play.

If he can achieve that, he can go to the interval with the frame on

The team talk with his coach, Terry, will be a lot easier if he can get

Very well played. The white stopped He perhaps could have done with a

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Again, just a little bit short. But Considering the chances that he

missed in the previous frame, he is showing great temperament. Mark

already needing a snooker, so one The fact that he has done this from

one visit will do wonders for his confidence. He got a kick there,

but it does not really matter. A bit unlucky with the heavy contact.

Mark has come to the table but he I must admit, I would have the

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It has not got the same ring about He will have to pot a lot to balls

to concede a frame. You are not He was careful not the hit the

black there. He needs five four point snoobers but he might need a

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dozen, because your opponent is I am surprised Mark hasn't conceded

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and headed off for the interval, to I think I have seen the occasional

match, where a player has won needing four snookers. But you

could have to go back a number of years to find a frame where a

Snookers. It mayed have happened with John Spencer many moons ago. -

I am sure there is somebody out there, Steven, that will know, they

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We could call this a mini Mark will try and clear the colours

up here, that will save him having The first four frames have been

What a response from Mark Davis in this fourth frame. Every credit to

him. So Mark Davis w the aid of a terrific 76 break, gets his first

frame on the board and we go to the mid-session interval, it is 3-1 to

Mark Selby. HAZEL IRVINE: Well he is off and running, and I am sure

that is a relief to him. Why do you think Mark Selby played on despite

requiring five snookers? No idea. I don't think I have ever seen a

frame from that many behind. I don't know whether he thinks he is

saying it is going to be hard to get over line. There was no point.

He was never going to win it. Mark Davis is not going to miss that

amount of snookers, so I don't know. If you are 49 behind, you can win

with one poor shot from your opponent, and you get a free ball

and you play the black, and you have 43 points with the black and

perhaps if he has played a foul and hit the black, that would be 50

points, there are freak situations that can happen, but that doesn't

happen. That is a one in 10,000 chance to win against another

professional with 52 points needed. Maybe it was a question of saying

you will have to play very well and keep potting if you are going to

beat me. I am sure you have your opinions at home. We have been

going on about last night's concluding session of the semifinal.

It was brilliant. If you missed it, he is -- here is a recap. Shaun

Murphy found himself at the start of the session, remember there were

nine more frames potentially to play. He was 3-0 down, and well,

This match poised, and as always, the opening frame is going to be so

important. Ali having a two frame advantage. 6-3 to Ali Carter. What

a response from Shaun Murphy, he is two behind. What about that for a

He only need one for flame for a -- for a place in Sunday's final. He

just got the one chance and that was all he needed and Shaun Murphy

He is only just one behind, 8-7. There is the red and there is the

Shaun Murphy breaks off in the Well, he has give his head a good

That is in the middle of the pocket. He is called the Magician, he has

waved that magic wand here. He was four frames down, and he won 5 --

five frames in a row to defeat Ali Carter nine frames to eight.

I can't believe it. Like the Luca match, a few times I thought I

without. As soon as he got to eight, to be fair I thought I won the

match. I don't think he threw it away, I thought it was a really

cracking game. You know, he has played unbelievable there, he has

potted long ball after long ball. Like silly shot, he cues them in

straight as a die, he has a ram rod cue action. He knows I'm not a mug,

but that is why he was at his best at 8-4. He played some great stuff

there, you can't, you can't, you know, you can't take that away from

him, there is only one winner in this tour tournament for me and

that is him. I looked at the role of honour and saw the names on that

trophy, there are serious names on there, of the people that have one

it more than once, that is a smaller group. They are the people

who will go down in history. If I had the chance of joining that club,

I would be over the moon, but whoever I face in the final, won't

make it easy, they will look for their first UK title andly have my

hands full. It was like a snooker Superman emerging from after the

interval, winning five on the trot. What was your reading of the way

the match turned round? interval saved that match. It was

8-4. There was only one winner. Ali Carter was playing him all over the

place. Interval came, came out and Shaun just decided to be so

positive and go for everything. His long game was magnificent --

magnificent, as he said he won that match. Ali Carter didn't give it

away. That is as good as I have seen Shaun Murphy play because of

the circumstances. He seemed to achieve the most incredible focus

and concentration, he was untouch sh in the last few frames. How

difficult is it for him to get himself into that state again. It

is really achieved? He is at the stage where he is not going to be

sort of reacting to exciting big matches like that. He is a complete

professional in as much has the is a match, it has gone "I am looking

forward to the final." He can regroup. Another player may be so

excited by what has happened they have an anticlimax moment. The

interesting thing, I think for me, would be as we mentioned at the top

top, Mark Selby feels he is bullet- proof at the moment. I think Shaun

Murphy does. What happened when these two immovable objects collide

if Mark Selby gets through. look at the match from Ali Carter's

perspective. Didn't do a lot wrong what could you say to put this in

context for him? Keep playing the same way as you are. It will come,

your turn is round the corner. I mean he lost in two world finals,

it has taken O'Sullivan to beat him twice, his performance, he has no

regrets, he missed one red with the rest in a session of five frame,

the final frame, that is the only thing that he did wrong he didn't

have any chances to look at. Murphy played magnificent. I think,

obviously Ali today, you know he may look at it and think that is

one that god got away. I did have a chance in the last, and players are

very critical of themselves, we look and say grow are going to miss

some, but the rest, the red with the rest will be haunting him for a

while, and another -- and other shots come up. It does take a

player like Shaun Murphy to be able to punish a player of the standard

of Ali Carter. It is a fascinating encounter when two of best play

each other. So many good players vying for the major, so you wait

your turn but you never know when it is going to come. You need a bit

of look. Luca got a pink in, he is going home. That doesn't happen, so,

even as well as you play, as good as you are, you need a bit of luck

to get there. As you mentioned Shaun Murphy has been involved in

two final frame deciders to get to this final. He isst resting up

today. That has to go down as one of the classic matches, and there

have been so many others, we will replay that one over the next few

year, I wonder if you remember another incredible cavalry charge

from 2009. Semifinal John Higgins, Wizard of Wishaw, John Higgins.

the 2009 UK Championship Higgins has a tough passage, Vickerys over

Jamie cope and Ricky Waldren, he found himself in the semifinal

against Ronnie O'Sullivan. Bling and you will miss him. It is the

Rocket, Ronnie O'Sullivan. against him was the awesome Ronnie

O'Sullivan who was in awesome form beating Matthew Stevens and Mark

Selby. A fabulous match and two Unbelievable and it is amazing.

double whammy is the in-off. That was huge. And this black is all he

needs. He now leads by four frames to one. So much in the ascendancy

at the moment. When you start New Yorking those in, -- when you start

That is as good a session of snooker as you could wish. John

Higgins is leading by six frames to two. John Higgins was brilliant all

afternoon, he was 8-2 in front in the evening. Something happened to

Ronnie, whether he thought he had lost or couldn't win, he relaxed

and all of a sudden the match Superb opener. Ron you -- Ronnie

looks up for it, and if he is, anything can happen.. His back was

against the wall. What was the Rocket do? He clears the table with

a break of 134 and keeps himself in Incredible. He nominated the brown.

He is in a terrible position here. REFEREE: Foul, and a miss. Ronnie

He is so close. REFEREE: Foul and a miss. John Higgins four. He has

given 24 points away. He has fouled the red. Oh well. As I went to get

down on the shot, my hand that was bridging me touched the black and I

I said, I owned up and said I have hit the black. I assumed that it

was an open table, or he John would have the choice to put me back in

and play the shot. I didn't call a misbecause he was preparing for a

shot and fouled the black, so a shot has not been played. So the

letter of the law says I cannot call a miss. It has never happened

before, because the rule also have to look at that. Big January has

never had that before. Big Jan. There is a section to say the

referee is able to make a fair play rule. Although John lost the

advantage, that is the let over the Decision. REFEREE: Foul. So that is

the concession, lots to talk about as Ronnie O'Sullivan pulls another

one back. John Higgins may be a bit bemused and confused. I don't know

what happened in that frame and he is not happy about it. He only need

-- needs. Sort of an angle on the blue does he have? It need to run

an inch more. He can pot the blue and hope for the pink. -- needs.

All he needs is the pink. So that pink that John Higgins missed in

the mid pocket, kid -- did he get a little kick, I doesn't matter. This

semifinal is still alive. It is quite incredible. Ronnie O'Sullivan

takes the frame and he is now just Oh, he has canoned the pink. He

didn't want to touch the pink. It is end of break. The shenion is

unbearable. -- tension is Is it going in? Well, it is quite

amazing. John Higgins looks to the heavens, it is amazing what is

happening out there. It doesn't go in, but we are into a deciding

frame. Absolutely amazing. Ronnie O'Sullivan has fought his way back,

John Higgins, he needs to have a word with himself because at the

moment Ronnie O'Sullivan is in the There is a certain amount of

pressure even on the great Ronnie O'Sullivan. Geneist US or no genius,

pressure plays a big part. I can safely say, John, this is one

of the finest matches I have ever watched. This is far from easy.

That is brilliant. That is This for a place in the final.

looked down-and-out, he looked beat, but he somehow dug deep, dug very

deep, and John Higgins deservedly now goes through to the final. What

a performance, what a match. And what a great game for snooker.

Higgins had a lot to put up with, 8-2 ahead, showed tenacity to go

through the line, but I think it affected him in the final, he never

looked the same and Dean ran out a deserving winner. -- Ding. We were

amazing by that, it makes me think, we have seen some brilliant sports

here sh watching this game of snooker, haven't we. It must be

said it seems like a lot of the classic matchs include John Higgins

or Ronnie O'Sullivan. Great that John Higgins is still playing the

game, upsetting that Ronnie has decided to take a sabbatical,

because he can produce astonishing stuff. Earlier in the Championship

Barry Hearn, the chairman, he has maybeed opened the door to runny

coming back, Ronnie has decided not to play in any event until the end

of the season. He said he had a private meeting. They spoke about

the possibility of him coming back for the World Championship, we are

not sure what the closing date is, said Barry, but I will call him

mainged sure he know, then it is his decision. We know how much

interest it will generate. How likely is it, John? I would be

ering more on the side he does do it. I think he does, I think the

fact he is seeded number one because he is the current holder,

is a big thing, he hasn't got to qualify to get in. He won't be

match sharp, that is the only bad thing but he will be playing plenty

of good players in the club but it is not the same at turbine out. I

hope he does play. We know how desirable it would be from a fans'

perspective, but how dusierbl would it be from Ronnie's point of view,

because as Jono, he is really putting himself on the line, having

not competed for a full season if he were to change his mind? It is

down to Ronnie, if he can revel in the challenge, of turning up for

the Championship. He is not in a situation where he feels as if he

can enjoy snooker, but perhaps after Christmas, a fresh

perspective on thing, things might change and he might go, "I fancy

doing that." That is the point I was going to make, when you have

played as long as he does, something it is something different

what a test for him. To turn up and go and win it, that many might be

the challenge he wants. Mission Impossible. Mission possible. Only

he can be the judge of that. That is for more discussion from

Ronnie's point of view, for now this is the battle of the Marks. Mr

Davis, Mr Selby. At the moment it is Mark Selby, 3-1 in front. We

have a change in the commentary box as we say hello to two men we

remember, but right now, we know exactly it is Mr Hendry and Mr

Taylor. Am I getting confused, it is still you guys. We are still

here. Still here waiting for the second half. In the final, we will

So Mark Davis gets the frame after the mid-session interval on the way.

As I passed the practice area, there was no Mark Davis, but there

was a Mark Selby on the practice I remember it was great to have

somebody who had been out there and That white is almost touching the

He has to be careful he gets the Touching, is that going to help the

situation? Is there a path? Is REFEREE: Foul. He touched the reds

with the cue. He was concentrating that much on making the plant, and

he just caught the threads with the You can see the red just move there

and Mark call foul shot, the same Play another four frames in the

session and Mark Davis will be able to win the session. He will not

want to do any worse than share the He will be trying to get us level

That blast safety shot has certainly spread the reds around

the table. It is going to be difficult. He will have to hit it

past the blue very thin to get back He played that well. That is a

The shot of the match so far. don't usually say a safety shot is

the shot of the match but on this occasion it was because he had to

On first glance, there is not very much for Mark. Only the one red

will pot past the black and that is not very inviting. It looked not

quite as difficult as the shop Mark That is not bad. Previously we saw

that all reds were covering each Just enough room to get past the

pink and get the white up into the I think he has got a bit of a

problem here. At first glance, I concede an easy way back down the

table. He will have to find a very Well played. REFEREE: Foul. Mark

COMMENTATOR: but once again, it might only cost him four point

because of the way the reds are situated. There is one red he can

He did not find the gap to get back up to the table. He just hit that a

little bit thin. It caused it to cannon into the red. Had he had

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potted this, he would have missed 8th of there are a few of the reds

available around the black spot He is going to have to work hard

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 41 seconds

He might still be able to get the If he is straight on the pink, he

has got a bit of a problem. He has finished absolutely dead straight

so he cannot do too much with the cue ball. He wanted a slight angle

then he would be able to stun the pink in and finish on the red that

is to the right of the blackspot area. That is not available to him

now. The only possible pot would be a difficult one into the middle

pocket. If you are slightly off straight, you can force an angle on

these very fine and responsive cloths but that one was absolutely

It is the red into the middle pocket, which looks easy from that

shot. But it is quite an acute angle. That was a nice shot he

played. The ones we do have to follow through are not quite as

easy to did sometimes. This red was a tricky shot to get on. It looks

simple enough but if it just goes an inch too far or two short, it

Always difficult. Very tight, the middle pocket. You have got to be

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I think his judgement of pace was spot on there. He could not have

got it any tied on the cushion. I don't think it goes past the black

but he can still play safe off that one. It is much easier to play off

that on the one near the cushion. The one near the cushion is more

That was pretty good. It went close behind the yellow. It is always a

bonus when you get in behind the You are playing to get the white

tight on the cushion and use the yellow as a stopper but that well a

little bonus. -- was a little bonus. REFEREE: Foul and a miss. If Mark

can't put this in such a way that he will not leave anything, it is

That looked pretty good. Has he covered it? at one stage were not

set off, I thought he was in the pocket right down the line of the

He may have to bend it around the pink or come off the cushion. If he

comes off the cushion, it is so difficult to judge have to pot this.

It was not a nice shot he was faced He has just gone off the boil a

little bit in the last couple of frames, Mark Selby. You could see

that he was not going through in a He is looking at this red down the

cushion past the black. Well, that is as good a shot as you

will wish to see. Cued that beautifully. Just a couple of reds

batter available and then you have got those six reds that are near

the cushion behind the black spot and the one tight on the right side

He played that shot well. He was always wary of the cue ball going

behind the pink. That was nicely The two reds below the black - if

you could screw into the right hand side of those, it would be nice

cannon to play. That was the red he To take this pot on, he will need a

bit of good fortune because I cannot see him being able to avoid

cannoning into one of the other reds. There is a slight gap but I

Look at the problem he is faced with now. He tried to find the gap.

He could not and has not a red over the pocket so he has got to get it

safe somehow. He would rather have seen that red dropping the pocket

because he has got quite a problem now. Somehow he has to cover the

Normally, when the blue is on its spot, it helps a bit for him to

take the white into the jaws of the right corner pocket and and have

the blue as a stopper because the If he could play the black and get

in tight behind the reds here, even I DEC and he could even have a go

at potting the green because he can't get past the red to the

potting angle. He is looking at the possibility of a double on the pink

and black. He has got to pull something remarkable off two not

He tried the double. He has left a gap through for that red. It was a

terrible situation. I don't know if the pink or blank potted but he is

on the black now. It is an easy shot to play for. Before I think

That was a good point you made. When he tried to double the pink,

the pink and black were tied up. Once he took a double on, he was

freeing those two high-value The cue ball may be going into the

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right hand side of the three reds. Now then, Mark Selby has made the

mistake there we have to see Mark Davies make earlier. He thought

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that red would go and he has put it What about that for cueing? That

was a John Parrott special. He used to be the best in the business for

Of his the going to be tough to win the frame at this visit. Two reds

on two different cushions. -- I don't think that red pots to the

Slightly thicker contact if the red stayed there on the pink and the

red would have finished up and a pottable position. Very awkward

Even if he dropped Ryton behind that red, it does not look on. We

Perfect. An excellent positional Good control the cue ball using the

He tried to force an angle out onto the black. He has missed what looks

to be a pretty straightforward shot but at that pace, they can be

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The longest frame of the match. 28 minutes. The third frame lasted

Nothing wrong with Mark Selby's long potting. He has missed a few

shots that you would not expect from that will give Mark Davis a

little bit of hope. The -- and that will give Mark Davis a bit of hope.

The table did not turn off. We saw a few balls drifting when we had

On this type of shot, the brown looks to be in the way. You can

always go in the middle pocket from REFEREE: Foul and a miss.

He definitely does not want to hit the red on that side because it is

You might see a few points lost here because as soon as he hits the

red, he will stick it up over a I am wondering if the natural angle

is there. He will have to go very, very close to the brown to get

He has to play this at pace to make sure the red comes well away from

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He might get a few points from the Where is the red going? There was

always the problem. You have to just hit and hope you can somehow

It was unfortunate to stick the red over the corner pocket. It was a

He has had to fight hard for this frame. Mark Davis looked like he

It was that telling shot when he landed in behind the blue that has

paved the way for this. He'd left himself with a terrible problem. He

finally resolved it but it was a bit unlucky to push the red right

No breaks in this frame but that doesn't really matter. It is all

about winning the frame. Mark Selby takes the opening frame of the

A little bit twitchy from both men in that frame. The worrying thing

for Mark Davis is that Mark Selby is not actually playing brilliantly

and his head. Early on in the match, he made the century break but other

than that, a bit patchy. He missed some reds I did not expect him to.

If he is not playing at his best and is starting to pull away, you

have got to be worried. He asked a few questions of Mark Davis and you

said it could be a key frame for Mark Davis. You would want Mark to

get back on to level terms. 5-3 at the interval is something he would

be hoping for. At the interval, it is going to be 53, 6-2. Tough to

get 4-4. There is a massive gap in I think Stephen made a very good

point in commentary. Wanchope open the pink and the blackout, there

shot does not work for you, you have opened it out for your

opponent -- once you have opened the pink Humbert black out. Each

you are going to have to leave your opponent with the shot, try to make

it as difficult for him as possible. There was the brief snooker that

Mark Davis had to get out of an you were suggesting there may have been

an alternative route. In the end, Mark proved that he played the

correct shot. It was an excellent snooker from Mark Selby but did

open up the frame. He did some damage, and now Mark Selby, with

that three frame cushion. It is eight frames this afternoon and a

Mark Selby breaks off in the knowledge that he will not go in

behind at the end of this afternoon's session. But he will be

Just showing there that he is a He has forced an early error from

Mark Selby. He is quite fortunate that he has taken the red right up

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Surely he has not left the red? If So, instead of having Mark Selby in

trouble with Cup last safety shot, the choir he has finished up. --

If he got the spider out, and there is a possibility of using that line.

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It is a long way to travel, but I He may not take this red, it is a

tough shot. The careless safety that Mark Davis played, it is

amazing the number of players, and I was guilty of this, do not put

the same concentration into the safety shot as you do go into the

pot. It is definitely going to cost him here. It was just a

straightforward shot and it was He has to go close to the corner

pocket and try to find a path past the blue. He got too close to the

blue at the last attempt. He has to go slightly to the right of the

It is just a sliding a little bit from the Third cushion. He will be

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You sense that Mark Selby is going to get stronger as the match goes

on. Now that he has that three frame advantage, he will take a

little bit of stopping. As John Parrott mentioned, he is not at his

But as one of the best players in the game, when you smell blood, you

go for it. He will know that he can virtually win this match in this

It is a whole new experience for Mark Davis, the first time in a

This one shot has opened the reds up in such a way that he could

But he let that slip away. I was surprised he did not play the red

I think it is a sign that he is not as confident as he normally is. He

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has missed a couple along the The red was a lot more difficult on

that occasion. It would have been He has not really dropped on a

colour. Going back, that is where he was the previous time. He could

have stunned back for the black. But he played up for the blue and

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Although he is 43 ahead, he has to He thought there was a gap, but

He is back in now with a very good The yellow was the better ball to

He has underhit that one. But should still make the pot to the

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He was able to screw across to the He is putting so much into this,

The reason he would like to finish the semi-final early is the final

But we have seen a few comebacks this week. This match is a long way

from being over. Yes, and a couple He definitely looks very focused

over. And the fact that he went on the practice table at the mid-

session interval told a story as Two more frames to be played in

this session. Mark Davis could do What a terrible kiss that was! Not

that it matters. He started with a break of 35 and finished it in

style with a clearance of 81. Mark It was interesting to here Stephen

Hendry picked out some points about the positional play of Mark Selby.

You would expect from Stephen that he would know exactly what

positional shot to play. Once you get amongst the balls you do not

want to get out of position and you do not want to let your opponent

come back to the table. But Stephen spotted a shot that perhaps Mark

The lower of the two balls is the one that Mark Selby took on where

he failed to take on the red by the blind pocket with the second --

blind pocket with the second -- with the first position. Who knows

why it Mark decided to go down for the blue and then come back up to

what was roughly the same shot. When you're on the table and you

will play positional shots, what to make you choose one or the other,

nobody really knows. What goes on in your mind in order to choose

between two 5050 chances? Is there a case for standing back and

thinking, let us look at this more analytically. But sometimes in the

flow of the you make a decision and with hindsight you think, why did I

do that? But Mark Davis did not punish him bomb that occasion, no

real damage done, and lesson not really learned. And different

people see things differently. 5-1 down now, and how to read his for

Mark Davis? If he does not win at least one of the last two frames,

DENNIS TAYLOR: Mission impossible, it we will have to call for Tom

If he keeps knocking balls like that in, the colour of the money

maybe �125,000, which is the prize That was unlucky. He could not hit

it any harder than this. He just But have a look at how that

finished. The white could have finished anywhere. But he has got

an angle on the blue to go into the pink and reds. He has already held

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 41 seconds

He is on a red, although he has He has the angle now to hold for

the two reds to the left of the pink spot. This is turning out be

It is a tough sport. Mark Davies broke off, and it was not bad. Mark

Selby pots this phenomenal long red and Mark Davis has to sit in his

chair and probably looks like There was a plant even though there

was a little bit of distance between the two reds. Everything

going along very nicely for Mark I think the shot where he knocked

the blue over the middle pocket accidentally is the one that will

That was the first slip up, leaving himself on the wrong side of the

And Mark Davis is back in it. may just be a gap through to read

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In his earlier matches, from the He doesn't have to play any cannons.

He chose to drop on the red in the cushion. It was a bit high, the

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There seemed to be an acute angle He would have to play this whipped

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A couple of times, he did not get This is the way Mark Davis has

played throughout this year's UK Championship, showing a lot of

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Very well played. Knocking the pink He has been frozen out quite a bit

bored a reception he gets from this crowd. That was a fabulous break of

80. -- quite a bit but what a reception. What a big frame for him

to take. He must be absolutely delighted. You can detect a little

smile. Mark Selby missed a trick. He had a bit of good fortune when

he potted a very difficult red and just look at what happens to the

blue. He did not mean to kiss the blue. He held his hand up to

apologise but any made a bad error, not getting on the blue. This is

very careless. A simple shot to make sure the white goes higher on

the blue. A careless shot. Forced to play the much more difficult

brown. He actually played fantastic positional shot here but the brown

does not go. What a clearance from Mark Davis. 5-1 down, it is easy

Mark Selby knows that the next frame is a huge frame, as does Mark

Davis. If he can get out of this 5- 3, he could come out this evening

If Mark Davis was to win this game, I would hazard a guess he would be

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The fact that he is playing so well - it is amazing how the run of luck

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Next safety shot, might even open up a few reds? There may be a plant

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 41 seconds

That must have been pretty tight. There was not much room. He potted

it in the right side of the pocket. Doesn't come any better than that.

He would like to take that every game. He has landed in no-man's

A good like he had finished on absolutely nothing and all of a

sudden, he is looking at a little If he could play it with a bit of

left-hand side, he could straighten He thought he had got done nothing

and then all of a sudden, this one It did not look on. We have said

sometimes when you are almost straight, you can force an angle.

That is what he tried to do. He did well in the end not to run it in

after the blue. Smiles all around - A great pot but did not get the

cannon. He was trying to bite the cue after seeing whether White

finished. -- where the white He cued up beautifully. When the

white was going to finish where it did, he was pretending that he

I must admit, I did not spot that safety shot. There is a possible

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He should be able to play for the black off this red. He has to be

careful he does not do the same He is using the rest so it makes it

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APPLAUSE this time, he has not He needs the extended rest and the

extension on his cue. That is like a telescopic extension. That could

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reach right out into the St! -- Jim Meadowcroft, a great player and

commentator endorsed the first cue extension. He has not been too well

but I never used to watch us. I hope you're not feeling too bad,

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 41 seconds

A four frame advantage would be Mark Davis is still in with the

shot even if he loses this frame. It will be a tall order. But 7-1,

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It has been pretty good day at the Office for Mark Selby. Not right on

the top of his form but he has been He has got himself 51 in front. Has

he dropped on the green or brown, Mark Davis would have come out and

He looks a little bit annoyed with himself. He wanted to finish it

there and get off and relax before this evening's session. Not like

him but he did look a bit annoyed He potted the red into the left-

hand side of the pocket, which meant that the positioning went

astray. We are perfectionists and all like to hit the ball as well as

we can. One of those shots where he did not strike nicely and it annoys

This one along the cushion and Mark Davis will concede, you would feel.

He will wait until mark has finished up the table but it looks

as though he has taken the double It is the first to nine in the

semi-final so Mark Davis has to win at least the merit 7-2 tonight. A

Getting his bits and pieces together and he will go off and

have a bit of 80. He is 6-2 down but if he can get off to a good

start this evening, who knows? We have seen Shaun Murphy win 5 frames

Not a lot of big breaks so far in this semi-final. That is a little

Mark Selby had a break of 81. He This crowd have thoroughly enjoyed

Mark Selby will be well pleased with that session. In the end, he

wins it 6-2 but it is still all to STUDIO: Mark Selby needs just three

more to get into his first UK championship final. That is

tomorrow but this evening we will have the second session for you.

Assess the way Mark Selby has played this afternoon on a scale of

1-10. Well, 7. But more importantly, I think he has done his job, really.

Without much of a scare, he has done it. If he had tried to predict

it, you would have said he would end up the session winner. He would

have been happy with 5-3, delighted with 6-2. I think he is in the sort

of frame of mind that he is still efficient enough that he will get

over the line tonight. To what extent do you think that the

occasion might have played a part in Mark Davis's performance?

would have to ask him that one. It is a big day for him in his snooker

career. Mark Selby is much more used to being out there in the

auditorium so it may have had a bearing. What will be disappointing

for Mark Davis is that Selby has been good in a couple of frames but

overall, I agree with Steve - it has been a seven or eight

performance. Mark Davis has given himself a squeak. 7-1 would have

been impossible but 3-1, 75 at the worst. -- 7-5. This situation he

now finds himself in, nothing to lose. It takes the heat off a

fraction in some ways. Perhaps when he goes into his first semi-final

in a major event, even if you try it two all 3% more -- 2% or 3% more,

it makes a difference. It is not impossible. We saw it last night

with Shaun Murphy. That cue for your company today.

And thank you for doors. We will return on BBC Two this evening at

7pm with the final session of our semi-final. We know you have a lot