07/12/2013 UK Snooker Championship

Hello, the Christmas shopping can wait as far as we are concerned.

Here in York we started out 12 days ago in the williamhill.com United

Kingdom championship with a flurry of activity on eight tables

scattered throughout the Barbican Centre. Now it is all about events

on that table. Today we find out who will join the world number one Neil

Robertson in tomorrow's final. Will it be the defending champion Mark

Selby, who lifted the trophy 12 months ago, or will it be a man we

are growing more used to seeing in the later stages of major snooker

events like these, Chester Kumar Ricky Walden? Take your pick. --

Chester cue man Ricky Walden. I have got to take a lot of positives, we

are down to the one table situation now. It is my second semifinal. I

lost two Mark Allen, hopefully I can go one better this time and get to

the final. It is everything you play for as a kid and as a pro. These are

the times you want to cherish. Me and Mark have known each other for a

long time, playing since the junior days. He has won so many

tournaments, being in the number one spot, he is the ultimate pro. I have

got my work cut out, he is a fantastic player. I think he has got

a great all-round game. He scores very well, very heavy, very quickly.

His safety is good, he has not got many weaknesses. You put in your

day's practice, then you have to go and play high-pressure snooker, so

it does take its toll but you are glad to be in the tournament, having

a shot at the trophy. It has been a long season so I am sure everyone

will be glad when Christmas comes around so we can have a rest and put

the cue away for a couple of weeks. We could get a few more clues about

the second semifinal from their previous matches.

Selby has won seven out of ten in the most significant events, most

recently in Beijing in the spring. But Walden, who reached The Crucible

semifinal this year as well, beat the Leicester pro at this stage en

route to the first of his two major titles a few years ago. Imagine over

17 sessions stretches for them now. The shops are packs everywhere so

why not settle down with us this afternoon? Bob Walker is about to

get started. -- Rob Walker. We know the world

number one will be in tomorrow's showdown, but who will be joining

him? Good afternoon and welcome to the semifinal Saturday here at the

williamhill.com UK Snooker championship! And absolutely

cracking atmosphere here, and it should be an epic encounter.

Please welcome a player who has had a superb run here at the Barbican.

He has beaten former world champion Mark Williams, the inform Ding

Junhui, and former finalist Mark Allen en route to the last four.

Aiming for his first ranking event final on British soil, from

Flintshire, Ricky Walden! And his opponent, a player who, this

week, has been the comeback king, three times recovering in matches

where he seemed down and out. He is one of the most colourful characters

on the circuit, bidding for his second successive UK final, he is

the defending champion, here comes the Jester from Leicester, Mark

Selby! Eight friends to play in the opening

session this afternoon and we are in good company today in the shape of

two former world champions, Stephen Hendry and Dennis Taylor. Here they

are, a difficult one to call, gentlemen, isn't it?

It certainly is, Hazel. Good afternoon, everyone. Ricky Walden

won the toss and will break. The first frame, Ricky Walden to

break. Off we go, then, for the second

semifinal, and if it is anything like the first semifinal we are in

for an absolute treat. I think I got a little bit excited last night with

the comeback from Stuart Bingham. It was unbelievable, Stephen a

fantastic performance. Bringing the match back, he looked dead and

buried at 8-3. All credit to the world number one for holding himself

together in the final frame. Has not been at his best in the

defence of his title but, I will tell you what, he has hung in there,

Mark Selby, and seems to play his best snooker when he is under

pressure. I think I commentated, since Davis, almost, he is one of

the best I have seen at being able to get results when he is nowhere

near his best. Davies always had a fantastic B and C game that would

always getting through. -- that would always get him through. A

little bit short with the safety shot so the first chance falling to

Ricky Walden. One of the nicest in the game, Ricky Walden. Lives in

Chester. He is from North Wales, only a matter of eight or nine miles

from Chester. Good pots but too hard and not on

the back. A very busy player around the table, as we show you this pot.

He is always wandering around the table, Ricky. He does like a walk.

He chokes is cue more than anyone I have ever known, just a mannerism he

has. -- chalks his cue. It will be interesting to see how he does, he

seemed to run out of steam and little bit in his last match, so it

will be interesting to see how he copes today. He was leading Barry

Hawkins by four frames and he let it slip.

It was not all down to Ricky's form, Barry Hawkins came back very strong

in that game. Another chance at a long pot, a type of shot he is very

good at. He would knock that shot in eight or

nine times out of ten, but this is not the practice table.

That side view shows you how long the table is.

Right in the centre of the pocket and he has got a possible brown hair

and could go twice across the table and finish on the reds near the

cushion. If you roll is the brown in he might

be able to get somewhere near the line to drop on those reds. -- if he

rolls the brown. This is much more difficult.

He is looking at the red at the back, that goes and was probably a

better red to play on. He just was a little bit too hard there. This is

an aggressive shot early in the match.

I thought he was going to go into the pack there, he was able to play

that with a degree of safety. He would have taken the other red if he

had not been so close to the cushion, it would have opened the

bunch. Just looking to see if he plays the

safety, will he not a red over the left corner? It looks to me a four

ball plant would send the red towards the corner pocket which is

why he is not playing off the bunch. Quite a few safety shots that have

not been to his usual standard. He would like to follow through with

this red and get the black to the centre circle but I don't know if he

has got the angle for the shot. It is understandable to miss those

shots in the opening frame. This is the first time they have

played on this table since we went to the one table setup, New Cross,

so it might take a few shots to get used to the speed. -- a new cloth.

He can have a free shot at this red into the right corner. It would be a

nice one to look in. He wanted to be further past the

brown said that he could take the black and go into the reds but he

looks pretty straight on the black. He is straight on the black. All he

can do is bring the white back in a straight line and if he screws back

he might just miss the middle pocket. Only just. He does hit those

shots really, really well. That was great cueing. An exact straight

line. Any trace of side and he would have hit the green or the brown.

Yes, a lovely shot to watch. You have got to hit the cue ball right

down the bottom, six o'clock if you were imagining a clock face. We can

show you that. That is where you strike it, right down at the bottom,

push the cue through and watched that ball stop and then the backspin

takes. It keeps coming back. I don't know who made the shot but it wasn't

the greatest you action in the world there.

That was my good self. I did know it was you. I note you did. The cue

action that gave you seven world titles. Not too bad.

I was thinking about the black that Walden missed earlier. Those things

linger in the back of your mind. He has caught that one very thick.

Your macros just talking about settling down in an open frame.

Stephen Davis was amazing the way he won the open frame. He did that

throughout the 80s. -- Steve Davis. That helped to take into six UK

titles and then, yourself, you came along in the 1990s. You would get in

with a big break in the opening frame. It is so important, even in a

long match, to stamp your authority as quickly as possible. If Walden

loses this first round, the black will stick in his mind. The first

decent chance in this frame. My target would always be to win the

first session 6-2. If you have a figure in your mind, it is amazing

how it focuses you. He had a quick look to see if there

was another red available. He has plenty of tube power.

The white stops and all of a sudden, it picks up pace and spins back

through the reds. Both these layers are whether the sixth tool and it

comes in handy for this type of shock. -- six foot tall. -- this

type of shot. Just about OK. Another three or four

inches and it would have been perfect.

That was the shot. -- that was a poor shot.

From being perfect, he has lost the tube all all of a sudden. You'll

accurately could do with this blue being able to pass the red. He is

just about OK. I don't know if he is finding this

table slower than the one he played on in the quarterfinal, but he seems

to be underhitting quite a few shots.

This is how Mark played against Barry Hawkins in his comeback to win

that match. The players are just dropping behind

the yellow. He has played to move it. That could

be the end of rake unless he doubles back the yellow.

No double. Mark Selby takes the opening frame. We are in good

company in this Judeo, we have to world champions. Your observations

about Mark Selby, generally, through this tournament? His ability to win

is phenomenal. He was joking yesterday and Steve said it was only

77 and he said, if I made 77 where it matters. You will see a lot of

60s, 70s, he is not quite doing what he did back in 2008 where he was

making 100 clearances every time but it is very perfect. due nicknamed

him the Hoover. 100 breaks all the time. His style has changed over the

last five years. He has great matchplay instincts and survival

instinct. I have commentated on a few of his matches this week and he

hasn't played well at all but he keeps beating these top players. He

keeps coming back, stick thin then bash there, and eventually, your

form starts to go at some stage. We haven't seen the best of him yet. He

is in the semifinal and he is still there. Why his own admission, he won

this event and the Masters playing what he called his B game. I don't

think he has hit the high scores yet. In 2008 and 2010, I thought he

was the nominal. -- I thought he was phenomenal. He is right in the

semifinal, 1-0. He has such a good all-round game, Mark, his tactical

game is excellent. No value in taking the pot on there

because the black is tied up. There is no point in playing your

best snooker in the first round, the whole idea is to get better as the

tournament goes on. Mark has won three ranking titles.

And Neil Robertson, who is waiting on the winner of this semifinal, he

has won eight ranking titles. Ricky Walden has one two ranking

titles, one in China. 2008, the Shanghai Masters. And in 2012. So,

he is quite capable. But he works so hard, Ricky Walden,

he practices so hard, he deserves everything he gets out of the game.

He has been getting to the business end of the big tournaments.

I was given to say he had to pull his socks up but he was tying his

laces. He put everything into the pot

there. Sacrificed the safety side of it. It is a tricky brown.

He was never going to be able to control the tube all.

-- cue ball. That was a lot better shot than it looked. It looked like

a simple straight pot to the middle but he had to pinch a little bit of

the pocket to create the angle for the follow-through.

He has been around a long time. He has been world number one.

Moving that read away from the black. Moving it as soon as possible

will be his priority. He won three Masters titles to mark

and they are more difficult to win than ranking events because you have

the top 16 players. There is always one of the big three.

He seems to be cueing very well though in this match.

You could see the focus there, Mark Selby, just looking at his eyes. He

does move around slightly on the shot with his head, but that is

something he has always done. But look at those eyes, back and

forwards, from the cue ball to the object ball, then just on the object

ball before delivering the cue. Looking to see what will happen if

he goes into the bunch. It does not have to but he has got a good angle

on the pink to bring quite a few of them into play. He hit it easy

because there was a red heading towards the corner and it has gone

slightly wrong. Those three balls, if he had hit it any harder, he

would have knocked a red in. He does have a gap between the bunch

of reds and the black to steer the cue ball through. The way he is

lining up there, he may be playing a screw shot into the bunch, screwing

the cue ball back to the blue. What a fabulous shot that is, not

only to part the red button created the backspin and open the web like

that -- open the pack like that. I think when you take the risk like

that, you deserve the run of the ball and he got the run of the ball

with the cannon on the blue there. I know it is early days in this

semifinal, but it is the sharpest he has looked throughout this

tournament. As you said, Stephen, he is doing it at the business end of

the tournament, saving the best for last.

Ricky is having the cue ball cleaned. I did not detect a heavy

contact, he got a slight kick. Anyway, Ricky, you have got a chance

that you did not think you would have. Have a look at this, it is

hard to tell. It did not jump, did it?

This is the trickiest of the reds and after this they are perfect

replaced. -- perfectly placed. This would be a confidence booster,

if he could pinch this frame. He had a choice of reds, looked at

the want of the other corner but has come back to this. -- at the one to

the other corner. Very fluent in amongst the pink and

black, Ricky Walden. Almost every judge, brings the tip of the cue

back to his hand. He is a very elegant player for such

a tall lad. He has got his own little mannerism, a bit like Mark

King, bends both legs are most players keep the back leg straight

but he is more comfortable playing that way. You won't see it here

because he has got the rest. I always think in a long frame match

it is the frames that you should not win but you pinch that are important

over 17 frames. Ricky would have been resigned to be two hyphens the

road down a few minutes ago. -- to be two hyphens zero.

I still don't know whether he got a slight heavy contact there. I think

it was just a careless one. Both players will have their own

nightmare blacks that they have missed in the first two friends. --

two frames. The only ball that is a little awkward is the green, and it

is not too badly placed. The fact that the yellow is off its pot makes

it slightly more difficult. I say that because getting an angle on the

yellow to get to the green... He owned the screw that. --

overscrewed. He has got to get this spot on to give himself a chance to

get on the green. A long way from the yellow but he

will automatically stored over behind the green here if he plays

the shot correctly. He could win the frame with this shot.

Where will the cue ball finish? He got away with it, I think. It was

the position onto the blue that caused the problem, wasn't it? It

was a poor shot to leave himself the wrong end of the group. -- of the

blue. You see, that is a terrific shot. I

think you would have to say, Stephen, he has got to be probably

the best tactician at the moment in the game. Yes, definitely up there

in the top two all three. That shot was a lot better than it looked. He

could not keep the cue ball tight but he got the object ball, the

yellow, very safe. I don't think he is taking a pot on

here. No value in it by the green is. -- where the green is.

He has blocked the escape route down the right side of the table, which

would be the easier one. You would have to swerve around the black to

make the angle. If he goes the left side of the table, squeezes it

around the yellow, I think he is contemplating swerving around the

black to hit the question and then the yellow. -- to hit the question.

He has got to get past the middle pocket.

It is not all that bad. It will cut into the middle pocket but he ball

cannon into the blue, which would not be a lot of use to mark. -- to

Mark . He did not play as good a safety

shut. He has left it pot to the right centre. Not easy to get a good

angle on the green. I tell you what, Stephen, Ricky would be delighted to

see that pink going on the side cushion, that is to his advantage.

Mark unintentionally knocked it there.

He still needs the green, the brown, and the blue.

Mark all need all the colours. -- will need all the colours. This

looks pretty good. Terrific shot. Can he hit the green, can he knocked

it saves? -- knock it safe? No matter how good you are, you need a

bit of luck to knock these safe. But he hit that beautifully... He has

brought the pink back into play. That could not have worked out any

better. The perfect shot there. Ricky Walden raising his eyebrows. A

great hit on the green to bring the paint off. -- to bring the pink off.

He was just looking to see if he can hit it and send the cream off that

cushion. -- the green. That would be his plan, to double it

back up and missed the pink. -- miss the pink.

Can he get himself onto the round? It won't be easy. He might have to

use the rest here. He is slightly hampered by the pink

so he will be aiming down the cue ball here. It is sometimes hard to

create the angle, it is not an automatic positional shot, it is

tough. Where is that cue ball going? It

needs to pull up a little bit. It will not be an easy brown now. If he

pops the brown, it will put him 18 on front with 18 in the table.

Maybe he got a heavy contact here. I can't believe Ricky would miss the

pot by that much. The brown jumped a mile there. That was unlucky. It is

quite close to the brown. It makes the pot into the left corner quite

difficult to judge. If he plays little screw shot, looking at the

angle, the white will be heading towards the pocket of the pink.

He is going to get the extension to stop him using the rest. He might be

able to pull this off. He played the percentages there and

felt it wasn't worth the risk on the brown. This is a good shot. He will

take that. Does he risk playing the snooker

here, Stephen? If he can play at full in the face, he will play the

snooker. That was a drag shot, he hit the

white on the bottom, you can hit it a bit harder and take the pace out

of the shot and it gives you to control. -- it gives you better

control. That slows the all up. It stops the

ball and all of a sudden it goes forward. Amazing.

He seems to hit that very hard. He has knocked a few long ones in.

Earlier, for the first and second frame but he didn't get close to

that. A great chance for Ricky. Oh, he had fitted to thin. How can you

overcome that? -- overcut that? Amazing. It didn't look possible to

hit that too thin. It shouldn't be a problem getting on

the pink by potting the blue. Well, that was much easier than the

brown. A bit of tension creeping in in the second frame. Mark mumbling

him -- await to himself. Although it is the best of 17,

psychologically, this is such a frame. -- such a big frame. We have

seen it a few times this week with Mark Selby where he is cruising in

the first frame, and then he has missed an easy ball and all of a

sudden, it is like his focus, his concentration has left him. Now, he

doesn't look comfortable at all out there. Well, he has hit that all

wrong. But having said that, the white is close to the cushion. And

this will need extremely good during -- but cueing.

No, he cued across that. He didn't push the cue through in a straight

line. You can see the backhand coming

slightly to the right. Some early tension in this

semifinal. Coming up to the half hour and counting.

That is a pretty good shot. Normally, you try and get the object

ball safe but that time, he concentrated on the cue ball.

That is pretty good. yes, they have been missing some hot spot the

standard of safety has been pretty good. -- missing some pops.

The blue needed to keep going. If he puts the trace of the side on the

right, it will head to the left side of the table and Ricky knows that

one but pot and he could be 2-0 behind.

He has a slight angle on the pink but it will still need a good shot

to get back up to the black. He has plenty of cue power but this will

need a good one. He will have to run it around with lots of top spin. The

cube will be going towards the green pocket.

That was a pretty good effort. not easy, though. Little tester. Ricky

Mr pink. That plays such a big part. If you

play shots that and you miss it, and you don't put the black up, it

doesn't half make a difference. He has less -- he has left the shot

on to be played around the middle cushion.

He decided to play it on to the top cushion. I am not sure about that

shot. It has been a long second frame. But if Ricky Walden can sneak

this in, he will be most relieved. Mark has a little wry smile there.

Can you believe it? Psychologically, that will be a bit of a blow for

Ricky Walden. The easiest of blacks, both players

missing their opportunity there. Mark Selby will be absolutely

delighted. He goes into a two hyphens zero lead.

It is only frame two and very twitchy out there already! An

unbelievable frame. Mark Selby played a terrible shot on the black.

Ricky Walden had a chance to clean up, I don't know how long ago, half

an hour ago! It goes to show how important it is, such a simple shot.

He had the rest, the last red, anywhere low on the blue to go back

up for the yellow and it is frame over. He has given himself so much

aggravation for the last 20 odd minutes of that frame. The frame was

all over. What has that frame told us about the way that both men are

playing in this much? We talked about Selby, he missed a couple of

blacks, a couple of shots there, even the Blackie played, the safety

shot that let Ricky Walden leave the ball in the jaws of the pocket, was

a terrible shot. He looks devoid of any confidence. He missed a simple

black early in the frame. Ricky Walden, he will be so frustrated

losing that frame, honestly. Because, clearly, Mark Selby is

struggling a bit with his frame and yet Worden is two hyphens zero down

already! That is the nature of it, sometimes you can play fantastically

and still come out to -2 and wonder what has happened. I bet he cannot

believe how many chances he has had. One of the talking points is the

fact that Ricky is only in his second UK semifinal. How different a

player has he come in the two years since he was asked at this point? He

could have been in the final of the World Championships this year, he

has been playing full of confidence. When he gets in, he has a lovely,

free-flowing style. At that will have knocked the stuffing out of

him, he needs to get his first frame on the board very, very quickly. You

get very, very nervous and that is what will happen. At some point,

Mark Selby will not miss all of the balls that he is taking. You cannot

play without a cue ball! He is good, but not that good! I think we

will have two give him a new nickname.

DENNIS: That was quite funny, one of the best referees in the game and he

left the white ball in the pocket at the end of the table! You need the

white to play this game, Paul! That tells you that the second frame

has boosted the confidence of Mark Selby, he has just knocked in a very

good long pot, found the gap on the green and in a couple of shots he

could be amongst the reds near the black.

Too far for the one to the left, not far enough for the one to the

right. He may be able to sneak this and put it. -- snick this and pot

it. Four friends to be played in this little mini session before the

mid-session interval -- four frames. He almost missed that red, he hit

this very poorly. Still building, but he does not look

as confident as he might be. I don't know if he can play a

delicate screw shot to get around the black? It depends on the angle.

He did not have the angle to do that, so he needs a good kiss now on

the blue. He has not had it. He felt it was a bit too narrow to

try to hold for the black. This will be a tester, a medium

length pot, just off straight. It normally tells you how well you

arguing, this type of shot. Paul just checking whether the pink

would spot, if not it has to go behind the reds. He will have to win

this frame in one visit, Mark Selby. He struggled over the line in that

last frame after being in a commanding position at the start of

the frame. Winning this frame in one visit would get his focus back. And

it would get him three hyphens zero in front.

He has still got a possible pot to the left corner. The white stop

us... Look at the art he hit on that. -- the arc.

That was a great shot, finding the gap between the pack and the black.

Last frame lasted 35 and a half minutes, almost. This one will not

take too long. We have only been going six minutes.

He may not be able to play the cannon, he will have to unscrew back

of the cushion with a bit of left-hand side.

Slightly harder than he intended to hit it.

Too much pace, but he was not in the centre of the pocket anyway. But he

has got away with it, I think. The red next to the green, I am not sure

he can see enough of that to pot. Nothing in that bunch of reds that

goes, I don't think. I bet he is pleased to see that red

coming back and hitting the bunch. It could have easily come back over

the right corner pocket. Not even sure whether he fully

committed to the planned there if you look at where the cue ball

finished. A very good shot. Excellent shot. He

has given himself a chance. He knew if he knocks that in he could finish

on the blue, and he finished absolutely plumb on it to cannon

into the reds. He is not happy, that was not a good

shot. He needed to get into the gap. Just that gap between the five reds,

he needed to get into there. Full ball compact on the red was never

going to be good. You could say he was unlucky, but that was a poor

shot. Yes, the cannon that he wanted, as

Stephen said, was into that gap, it would have open all five balls up,

and he hit the want of the left of the line full ball. -- he hit the

one to the left of the line full ball.

Not easy just to roll to a red to leave it safe. Having to give this

plenty of thought. If he tries to get up the end of the table he is

standing that now, he would have to be very precise or he would leave

himself banged in trouble. Ricky could play the snooker of the

rednecks to the green. -- off the red next to the green. One of these

situations where he may be forced to take a pot on because a safety shot

is just as difficult. I would always hate to lose a frame by a safety, I

would always rather lose it by going for something. He could glance off

the red and leave the white tight on the cushion and he would not leave a

great deal, but he has got to try to get it back. You can see how high in

the air he is with the butt of the queue here. -- the butt of the cue

here. You can see how well he has done, it was worth the wait! To get

it back into that position, being so close to the cushion, was played

more or less like a trick shot. What a bonus, to get the cue ball

behind the black. The cannon on the brown has pushed

the rates down towards the bottom pocket. That would be quite a tough

shot. If you take the red to that middle pocket, he could finish on

the blue. He's just looking to see what he would leave if he attempts

that. I think that red cuts in, the one

near the brown. It is a thin one. The ones to the right corner, he

missed the pink exactly the same as this, more or less. Can he pushed

the Q3 straight this time? Well played. Very good shot. A glimmer of

hope on this third frame now. I don't know if he has hampered

himself slightly here. He could just you passed it. Only

just. He could just cue past it. Only just.

Because Ricky Walden is desperate to get his first frame on the board,

there is a lot of pressure in this clearance.

I think that the red that he is closest to now will pot towards the

green pocket. Now, he can play for address, the

red to the right centre ought to the right pocket. Whichever one he

fancies. From a psychological point of view,

this is a great frame for Ricky Walden.

He should have won the previous frame.

When your opponent makes a 50 bus break and you win the frame, it

always gives you a roost. -- a boost.

A 50 rate that Ricky Walden made there. Ricky Walden has his first

frame on the school ought. Well deserved indeed. A fantastic break.

Mark Selby was in, made a great break, fantastic clearance from wiki

Walden. -- Ricky Walden. It was exactly what the doctor ordered. He

has had a good run here, he has beat them Mark Williams and Egypt who had

been pummelling the opposition in the last three events. We hark back

to the World Championships. He would have loved to have one there that

day but that it lets you know that you are capable of being in these

events at the business end of it and I think he has matured and thrown

into an all-round better player. That was a great piece of snooker.

You could send Mark's weakness. You would have thought he would put the

pressure on. What happened was a superb clearance. In a nutshell,

what are key's strengths in this game? He has to keep positive. He is

fluid and he scores very quickly. He has to believe in himself. He showed

an awful lot of courage and belief in that clearance. Some other

players under the pressure may have missed it. Dixie the way the last

frame had gone. He stood up to the challenge and that will give him a

tremendous boost. We take for granted that we have seen Neil

Robertson and Mark Selby in many of these big events in the UK but this

is a huge day for Ricky Walden, he has not quite taken that step yet.

Absolutely massive. You are playing the something that could lead to a

bit of history. To get through today would be sent -- magnificent for him

today. He is equipping himself really well today. He has just let

Mark Selby no, " I am here to play. "

he had a chance to go 3-0 up. Is it that harder than he needed to have,

really. But, under the circumstances, Ricky

Walden's clearance was top draw. A little smile to the crowd there,

Mark. That is an attacking safety shot.

Look at the green and the brown now. If you get the colours like that, it

is a great target to try and get behind.

This looks pretty good, it might be up behind the yellow.

He got so much right hand side on that last shot to create that angle.

Just watch this here. If he plays the plain ball, straight up towards

the yellow, it hit the site cushion and then the baulk cushion.

That was the only side of the table that he could play for, Ricky. Red

to the left of the blue, looks very readable. Mark has looked at that

and has looked at the red to the right of the pink to try and take

the tube or back down behind the green and the round. He is pretty

good at this type of shop. To get the cue ball oval where Ricky

was looking, he is going to happen -- have to cut this very thin.

That was about the best that he could do, that line that he took.

I don't think it is much value in playing snooker at the minute

because the reds of quite an easy escape.

He has cut that then. Maybe he was thinking about that and

overcompensated. That was a good call, there.

A tester, medium-range, straight shot, screw back for the pink or

blue. When you hit them as badly as that,

it does not fill you with confidence. And where the red has

finished does not help. He did not cue that very well. It is

the type of shot that they practice. I expected Ricky to get that after

the clearance in the previous frame. He would have relaxed after getting

his first frame on the board. He will be disappointed with that

opportunity. He is OK if this read to the left of

the pink is available in the opposite corner pocket.

You could see that there was a possible planned on, not that he

would be playing for that. Lots of choices here, he can play

for the pink to the left centre, he can screw the cue ball back.

You could hear a pin drop in the Barbican Centre. What a difference

from a week ago when we started with four tables, 128 players. Lots of

noise all around the place. All the people would just sat at one side.

That is what the game of snooker is all about, the table surrounded with

spectators. Let flair. -- let off there. Missed

a feud. That was pretty comfortable for him.

The pink has tied itself up with the reds, the black is out of position.

You might have to take that plant that we spotted a few shots ago. He

has got the red to the right of the pink but you have to be very precise

to leave the pink one. He has got two choices, he takes the red to the

left of the plant, screws back to get on the blue, or he takes the

plant which will make the positional side of the shot a little bit

easier. He has looked at the possibility of

a little cannon if he takes this red but now playing it with a lot of

screw. He did well to find that gap. He really did, that is a very good

shot. He missed the red and the black by a

fraction! Not easy here. If he risks a cannon

onto the red to the left of the pink there are a few problems. You cannot

just cannon the red by the black to bring it into play. Has he hit this

to hard? He should be OK but if he screws back of this it has to be

careful not to screw the white into the middle pocket.

You have got to keep your eye on the pot, Ricky. I am not sure whether

that kicked or not. The red jumped a lot, didn't it?

Yes, but I think that sort of kit is June two not delivering the cue

properly. It has gone a bit scrappy. Since the first frame, when

Selby won in one visit, I don't think either player will be pleased

with the way they have played. The pop success rate tells you that. --

pot success rate. Last night's semifinal, a brilliant

semifinal between the world number one Neil Robertson and Stuart

Bingham, up at 93, 94, 95%, both players, with their success rate.

It looks like he is very straight on this red now to go back for the

blue. push that type of shot, that is

where the cue ball and the object ball are all in contact at the same

time. Can he see enough of this to take it to the middle pocket?

He knew he had hit that too heart, he turned away from the table as

soon as he made contact. The only problem with it ethical to

read, it would be even more difficult to get a good angle on a

colour to bring one of the difficult reds into play. I would like to play

blue to the right centre and topspin off the cue ball off two cushions to

go into those three reds. That is the most obvious shot. This looks a

more difficult one to me. It looks good to stop he is going to

have a chance with the left of the three reds.

Not quite as far as he would have liked, he has had a look at the

scoreboard, 53 ahead so he only needs this red will stop -- this

red. That was frame ball. He was not far

away. Just caught the question before the pocket. This is a thin

snake that Ricky is faced with. It is so thin, I don't think he can

cannon into the black, which you would like to do.

He did not expect to finish on the pink in such a way as he could

cannon the two reds. Got to be careful here. If he cannon is the

reds, if he hits one of them full ball it will double-kiss and he will

not be on anything. He found the gap! How did he get the

White in between the two reds? You could try that another ten times

and not poor but short. -- not pull off that shot. Well played, though.

Is it going to reach? Of course it is. Mark Selby knows his way around

a snooker table. That's why I christened him sat nabbed Selby --

Sat-Nav Selby. Clearly, it you can see that he will

get through to this red but what is he going to do with it?

He might be able to take the pot on and can in the red. It is a delicate

little cannon but could play it. He did but he didn't get the red

which was the most important part. He just needs one red. He is having

a look at the school. There are three reds left. He still only needs

the