Day 10 World Championship Snooker Extra

Good evening. We have two bites at the quarterfinal cherry for you. We

will catch up with Neil Robertson very shortly. First, to the match in

round two and a final session that did not look like it would have much

milage. The Welshman has been did not look like it would have much

dominant against the 24-year-old from Gloucester. Dominic led 7-1 and

12- four going into the session and needed only one more frame for

victory. What sort of needed only one more frame for

he summoned? Let's find out. Michael was lead breaks off. --

Wasley. Dominic Dale has played some superb snooker. He finished off the

last frame with a break of 62. It looked like Anna Taki safety shot

but let's look again. -- looked like an attacking safety shot.

Straightaway, Dominic has given himself not barred chance. The black

is awkward though. -- not a bad chance. Dominic 17 frames in our

road. He is going somewhere, I can tell you. Michael has made a couple

of 66 breaks. -- 17 frames in a row. He only has a very slight chance. He

has to win all of the remaining frames. Dominic dominated the first

session, 7-1. A good demonstration of how to play under pressure.

A couple of reds available but he will have to find the gap around the

back of those to the blue. Blue on the spot would be better. He

can pot the blue. As long as he avoids the yellow which is in the

road. He bypassed the yellow and played that very nicely. That was a

bit of a shock, really. Look at how he opened the reds. Michael wasn't

expecting that. You can tell that he couldn't believe that that went in.

50. Dominic has played some of the best snooker this year. I have not

seen a player like this since he won his crime spree. This is how he was

planning to defeat John Higgins. -- won his grand prix.

He is a very clever player. He does not build big drakes but is a safety

player. He is excellent. -- big break player. Every time he has a

chance, he has nailed it. I tell you what, he nailed that one.

He nailed the reds. Especially bridging over the reds, to rethink

Ewing there. -- terrific cueing there.

Harry Hawkins is waiting to play the winner of this match. I think that

that will be Dominic. Just a matter of winning this match. The way he is

going, he might do it in this opening frame.

He has them now. He has the pink in play. He can stun them. Michael

knows that he might not get a shot. The pink is available now. Into the

corner and the middle. Well, what was that? Did all the

hard work and then misses a sitter. The old boat hire looks a bit tight

again. It was the other day. He had to leave the arena to adjust it.

What has happened, as he showed me in the practice room, the top button

is quite proud. He keeps feeling it when he is down on the shot, he

said. Obviously, you could cut it off if you wanted but I think he

likes his shirt done up you have to do have a doctor's note not to wear

a tie. There are a few players. They can't wear a tie. How will we ever

played with the ties in the 70s, the size of them was amazing.

He played that rather quickly. He needed a little more care. Not the

easiest of shops. -- shot s. Talking of the bow ties, I remember one who

said that he looked at them and they had a tack on the back of them.

Dominic is in front, 12- four. He will not have the same enthusiasm as

when 0-0. Concentration drops a small level. That is enough

sometimes. One feels that he has plenty of scope to win this match. I

think that he would like nothing better than to get it out of the

way. It is a bit unlucky, that. He tried to develop the black and to

read them. He is still OK. He has the black and the blue. That would

be ambitious. He has the extension on the back of

his kilt. I think that Michael Wasley could

have done well in the first round. Some centuries there. He did 103, I

think it was. He was down and took off and went back on. There is a lot

to look back on even if he loses off and went back on. There is a lot

this match. Hopefully he will have learnt a lot from his experience in

the Crucible. Unlucky. Trying to bring it into play. He could have

done better than that. He is out of it. Touching balls. He has to

nominate. If he got down and played the pink, in theory, he would have

hit the blue and the pink which is why the referee asked him to

nominate. APPLAUSE.

Some of his support enjoyed without one. -- enjoyed that one.

APPLAUSE. I'm just wondering if he has blocked

this. If he hasn't, Dominic might be able to take a black double on. He

could double its into the right-hand corner pocket. He could see enough

of the other side to play the safety shot.

He has not dropped Dominic there. He can see a red but can't do much with

it. It is risky to kiss wine into the other. That is a bit more like

it. -- kiss one. That will make it awkward for his opponent. Nowhere to

go here where that white is. That is all he could do. Advantage

now to Michael Wasley. A chance now if he wants to take the raid on. A

chance that he could pot it. -- take the red on.

Another safety wasn't very good. Another chance here.

He hasn't even looked at the green. He was just going to go around and

tucked in behind the yellow but the shot is on. He is back to the yellow

but the shot is on now. That was the shot which was

available. Pot the green and then look at the red balls. He could just

take the shot across and make it land on the reds. He may be in

trouble here. He can get a thin edge and then back to the yellow, I

think. A little thin one off the red and he could get back in behind the

yellow. Swerve around the yellow. If it had

gone up the table, that would have been better. Still not an easy shot

for Dominic to pot here on the right. I tell you what, if he pots

this, look at the angle he would have on the black to move underneath

his left arm there. He would have a good chance. He has the angle now,

he could drop the red. He could move it as we show you the long pot.

Which way will he go with this? He is planning to leave it along the

cushion. If it is tight, it will make it slightly easier. If it is

tight on the cushion. It is not far off tight. That may cling to the

cushion. I think with a delicate little

screw, he can get up onto the yellow. He could hold this. Holding

on to the cushion, there. This is the key to winning the match, this

1-shot here will take him over the line.

Why is he going off two cushions? Adele is -- delicate little screw up

to the yellow. It is not so bad as it turned out. A smile to get to

this position. He tried to make something happen

there. At least he has it safe but he could be in trouble.

This is the shot that I thought he would play. A delicate little screw

and he would be perfect around the ankles. -- angles. Not quite.

Dominic just looking as the yellow passes the black. To fire up to play

his caution far off the black -- too far up. He could be towards the

green if he takes it on. Dead weight there. Couldn't have hit it any

harder. A good weight but a terrible kiss on the pink. A lot could go

wrong with the positional side of it. He could hit the colour which he

did do. He could snooker himself behind the brown. Michael is left

with a similar shot to the one which Dominic had. If he cuts of this in,

he will head up towards the brown. -- cuts this in. I don't think he

will cannon into the pink. Very clever shot from Dominic there.

He really is very knowledgeable when it comes to the tactical side of the

game. What about that for a shot? APPLAUSE.

Play into the jaws of the pocket with some backspin and get the

Greenaway and bury the black. What do you think? That sounds easy,

doesn't it? This was a terrific little shot. So delicate.

If he could have hit that harder, he would have had the snooker and find

himself behind the black again. He could raise the part of his cue and

get a screw on this one. Up goes the cue.

It's all right, but he could have done with the green not being that

close to the cushion. It gives Dominic wide target to escape from.

If that Green had bounced and come into the middle of the table, it

would have been very tough. A lovely touch and there. He could have

knocked the greenback down the table but that would have been more risky.

He needs to hold onto shot and hopes that he is not snooker to the next

one. -- snookered for the next one. You

do not see that often, players playing the other ball rather than

the cue ball. That was all he had there. He has the snooker behind

it. Dominic will hope to knock the green towards the black. He has

played this well. The black should be blocking the pocket even if it is

not. If he was right behind the green, he could take it on but... He

is a long way from it. He could play the cushion first. APPLAUSE. In

towards the blackspot area. Not taking the pocket on, surely? Years.

-- he is. He could have been waiting a long time for that to go in with

that power. Came out, though. Anywhere at the right side of the

table, as it is, it is going to be safe.

The little thin one should get him back up the table. He will not push

the green into the corner. Oh. At the moment, Dominic needs of

the green, brown, and blue. Michael needs the green, brown, blue, and

pink. He keeps trying to get behind the

brown but this time he has brought the green up. Is it going to go far

enough for him? Not quite. He needs a pot and a half to tuck the green

down when you are tucked up on the cushion. What a shot! What a

brilliant pot that is! So unlucky to finish there. You will not see many

better pots from that position. That was magnificent. He looked

disappointed but he tried to bring the pink into play. He was trying to

bring back into play as well. Need another good pot here but is playing

snooker behind the pink. He could send that behind the table and screw

into the pink. Because he knows the brown will be safe because of the

plaque. He might have got it behind the blue. Not quite. Just keep an

eye on the ground if it comes back across the table. It could go near

the corner pocket. This is playing anything one. Michael is having to

look to see if the brown will pass the plaque. It might do from that

position. That is from our camera pocket. APPLAUSE. Good judgment

there, but he will be faced with a very difficult pink. Look at that.

How accurate was that? Well, it is safe. A little smile from Michael

there. It was not all that easy that, on the cushion again. You feel

after such a good pot on the brown you deserve a better reward. He has

hit it a bit hard. Could be there all day trying to do that again. Not

a lot of choice. He cannot get in behind the black. That is a meeting.

That is amazing. To get around the back of the blue. We know the blue

was not moved. It is just the black. We are looking at the monitor. There

is a monitor they can look at. I think they are a bit closer together

than this. Maybe they are a little further apart. Let's have a look at

the original. That is where they were. In fact the blue needs to go

forward. He got around the back of the blue, so why was the blue moved?

Let's have a look at the original again. That is unlucky. Now he has

to hit it the next time because 17 is the difference. He only needs the

blue stories not having it replaced. Just pleased to win the match. --

blue. Michael Wasley, a fantastic win against Ding Junhui. He just did

not get off to a good start against Dominic Dale. But every credit to

dominate Dale. Barring sneakers he has got himself into his very first

World Snooker Championship quarter-final. Well done, Dominic.

DL in all over the pocket, that's what you do when your opponent is

needing snookers. You'd have to hit the cushion first, Dominic. He must

be feeling terrific inside. Dominic has been a professional since 1992

and now he is going through to his first ever world quarter-final. In

fact it is his second. He was in the semi- -- quarter-final once before.

To come back and do it again. Michael is displaying a trick shot.

There you go. Dominic Dale was just too strong and the end. Well done to

Michael Wasley. He beat one of the favourites, Ding Junhui. If you had

asked all told me beforehand I was going to win by that much, I

probably would not have believed you. I think I did the damage in the

first session. I played solid sneaker. The problem is when you get

a lead like that you can have a cheap generating effect on your

focus sometimes. -- degenerating. The other guy cannot win it, I can

only lose it. I have to try and keep my focus and try and pretend the

scorer is a lot closer than it is and that is easier said than done.

Back into a quarter-final for the first time in 14 years. Hard time

marches on. Now to a potentially tight game between Neil Robertson

and Mark Allen. There was a tantalising subplot to the match.

The Australian, Robinson, went in for 99 -- with 99 for the season.

Would it be 100 after this game? It would be very special to do it here.

At the World Championships. Well, Robertson led going into the

last session. As far as the 100 centuries it is just as important

for him to get to the quarter-finals. He will be thinking

about it but the most important thing is to win the match. It will

be interested to see if there is a dodgy shot, if he takes it. Probably

not today because as he has said Mark Allen is an excellent match

player. Capable of beating anyone in the world. All the statistics that

are going at the bottom of your screens, some of them favour Mark

Allen. But he is not won a century in this match yet. It is very close

on points. Only six points in it. After all these frames. There is no

problem in playing off the side. A little bit negative this but it is

too negative -- risky to go to the pork -- baulk. A little bit

reluctant putting the white in exactly the same place as it was

before to try and stop Robertson rolling into the pack. You have to

get the weight right. That is a clever shot. A good shot.

Could have a view shots like this. If you contain and safety is. He

will be looking for the opportunity to get the call bowl -- tuple in

behind the green. The fact that he is touching them, I

would be surprised if it does not try and get the cue in behind the

green now. He is not playing it. I thought he would be playing two

cushions in behind the green spot. Pretty cagey stuff at the moment.

Straightaway he has an angle on the black. He will have to play this

with a bit of pace. He did not hit as hard as they thought he might.

This red can be played to the far right corner. Looks like he is

taking your choice. Leaving the tuple where it is now would be good.

-- cue ball. It is getting to the situation now

where the safety is more and more important. I would be surprised if

he takes this one on. A very cagey start. I think they are also showing

great respect for each other. Some players getting through to the

second round that we would not expect and some players not getting

through. This is a top second-round match for both of these players.

If he had not seen these players play before, you would be thinking

they are very cautious players. The one on my left-hand side was not too

bad. I thought for a minute he had

flipped one. Mark Allen may have to make something happen then I thought

this red was in. The red is next to the pink.

That would have been perfect but heading it to ten bought the green

into play. -- to be in. That is very early in the session.

He would like to get this century done in the first frame and is

concentrate on winning. Really focused on winning the frame.

Doesn't appear to be any cannons. That was the only two red is he

appears to have had to move into play.

He may even play the canning -- can amount to those two rents.

That seem like quite a straightforward shot. Obviously he

was not that comfortable with it. He had that one quite nicely. Just not

far enough to get back on the plaque -- black.

They think there is any doubt he is thinking about making this century.

He is walking around the table, looking at things to all three

times. He wants to get that out of the way as soon as possible. He may

decide to play it for the blue here. Head seeks century breaks in

this tournament so far. APPLAUSE. He must make contact. Either side of

the two reds. But not peak. I am not sure how he is going to play it. He

is being very careful. He has played it. Like we were saying, if he hits

it peak, it is not good. -- thick. He has to be careful that the tuple

is going. He should be able to get it between the brown and the green.

Not getting any easier. Hard to judge whether it he is

playing for the black or the Pluto. Just a matter of of dropping it in

with a trace on the left-hand side. Blues to the left centre is probably

the easier pot. And excellent pot. I think that the

red next to the pink will pot. It is red disappears, you can bet your

life that he was going for the century -- if the red disappears. I

think that this could be made. I think that if you can flick it to

the other side... This is what we were talking about before. Does he

take a risk? Five reds and five blacks. It is probably worth the

risk, hitting the red to the far green pocket.

Field that it is too dangerous to give the six points away so he will

take the red and probably screw the white back a few inches. -- feels

that it is too dangerous. Couldn't have hit that much better.

That was a great shot. Stephen mentioned that it will be

very difficult to get back. I would say that it is impossible, really.

APPLAUSE. It needs to get somewhere near the fault line. There is a

chance of that it could get thin enough to come around for the red

and still get the black. It has to be thin though unless he wants to

risk the kids on the red -- kiss. Think that even if he got a half

ball on the red, he could cannon off the cushion and come back down but

it is hard to judge the pace. That is a clever shot. He has covered the

blackspot and it might do into the brown spot so it is a lot easier. To

take the black off the red furthest in the let corner. Good thinking. --

left corner. If he takes the long read on, the one nearest to him, the

one over the pocket, I can't see how that would go into the black. You

would think that he would play with the left-hand side and cannon from

left to right. The bulk is on the left-hand side cushion. Black is

into the corner. That was so close to being

absolutely perfect. Watch the white. This was a controlled shot. He was

planning not to kiss the yellow. Unlucky.

Just over on its slightly to make the black certainty. He will not be

playing the pot on the last red. 39 in it to go. Still tied it the

black. -- if he takes the black. Worst would have been putting the

black on the cushion. Now it is one of his main targets for snookering

in behind. Just making doubly certain that the

break of 59 is enough. He leads by ten points. -- 10-7 points.

APPLAUSE. It black was available, he would be

tempted to go to the left-hand side but none is available.

From a cushion straight into the pack. He would love to disturb the

red and black. Maybe feels it is too thin and angle but it looks good

from here. Is it time for the risk around the

black? The perfect angle to do that. If the kids doesn't work, he can

still do it in a way that it comes off the blue. -- the kiss.

He had to hit the red, not the black.

A little careless to catch about colour that. A straightforward

safety shot. -- a colour there. That black there is making a shot... The

shot he would normally play is offered to cushions. I am just

asking because I know that there is a crowd capacity here. The other

match has finished so they are asking for the wall to be brought up

to create a better atmosphere here at the Crucible.

Now, how did that red initiative they are? It is amazing. -- manage

to finish there. It shows you how to look at the pack

sometimes. We are playing the black year.

Cannons into the red. A nice angle on to the blue on the right. He may

play that shot. Putting it into -- putting the black into the bunch

would be brilliant. Pretty unlucky not to be online. -- on one. Doing a

lot of walking around the table at the moment. He is being careful in

every shot he plays. Understandable: This is a big match.

He plays much better when he gets on with it.

You mentioned being unlucky but this is a half ball. That is exactly what

happened. He didn't get enough. Into the cue ball that. Anything, he put

moronic, not less. A bad case was a thimble. -- put more on it, not

less. Excellent pace. It forces him to

play the? Reds on the side cushion. We all learn how easy it is to get a

double kiss on this close to the cushion. He did well. The cue ball

is running loose. He hit that one nicely while

managing to stay on the pink. From his bodies language, you can see

where the next red is coming from. Once again, unlucky with the kiss. A

very good shot he played on the pink about, trying to get something to

happen. How he managed to get through the gap, I don't know. A

safety shot again. He has to compete with Robertson in

the second department and so far this afternoon, he is not doing...

Cue power! That was beautiful. Both of us couldn't conceive of it. Our

cue action wasn't quite like that. The pace he played it, it wasn't

hard. He times it so well. This is an excellent chance to win a

second frame. Getting the pots to all four pockets. Certainly has his

business had on this afternoon, as you would expect. He is against a

good opponent. They did think I have ever seen him take as much time on

shots as he is doing at the moment. -- I don't think. That is pretty

pedestrian for Robertson, normally he is on 22 seconds. He does look

very focused. 14.

Just a fraction too low on the blue. Obviously a gap between the reds on

the right-hand side to go through if he wishes to bite he probably needs

to play a cannon on the one to the right of the blacks, really. He came

on the right line but he has hit the pink. If he is on the red, he has

been fortunate. Watched the replay. Orion smile that. He wasn't playing

for this red. If he had missed the pink, he would have been perfect

anyway. -- a wry smile. When you are in the chair, you don't think

logically like that, anyway, do you? He will have to get another four

reds and four colours to make himself safe. He is working his

socks off. To be fair, if he does not look like

missing... 32. He is doing what world number one is

supposed to in these sessions, which is stamped his authority very

early. 40.

There are enough balls on for a century but it is unlikely that we

will see a century here. The key thing is to win the frame with this

visit. He is only two shots away from doing that. I think he got a

kick that which took the pace out of it which does pot. From his body

language... He took all the pace out of the cue ball. He is nicely on the

raid. -- red. The fact that that is frame ball

means that he will get the black off this red, I think. It is very calf,

where the ball is. You will get on that nicely. You would think that

yellow to green that would be the tough shot.

He will try to lead and angle to bring the red into play. He would

like to leave it. This is an excellent snooker. 51 and counting

on this frame. It is straight. He is on the black. Just a slight angle.

He might bring it into play. Certainly be taking the pot on. It

is not surprising. He is desperate to make this century. Being

left-handed, as I said before... No century but once again, a

fabulous performance from Robertson. He has gone further clear at 11-7.

Thank you, quiet down please. Frame 19.

Once again, he is not finding the top cushion, Alan. The safety has

got to be tighter. -- Allen. He looked at the red in the right

cushion. A dangerous pot. That was brilliant. That is

brilliant. He does not look like he has missed a single pot. He has some

margin of error but he can't afford to let him lose the last two frames.

Whatever he scores, he deserves, after that red.

We will talk about being in the zone in sport. We are watching someone

right now who is there. I am going to call it early, this is

a 100 century coming up. As mentioned, it is going to

happen. You would think that he would get it but I'm not so sure. He

is just so focused on winning the frames at the minute. It is past the

70 mark that he will take it on. 17.

A little bit short of pace. 25.

So many players these days don't go after the blue enough to get out of

ball. That is obviously why he is making

so many big breaks. One time his positional play. Just coming a

little bit far for comfort there. There is not much distance between

the pink Panther pack. In the middle red are those three. -- the pink and

the pack. He was trying to line up there. Another player would see that

shot and play into the middle but I don't think that he is on... Having

another look. I suppose that if you wanted to be risky, you could play a

shot that suggested it. Not favourable going into the pink

unless he hits it full. That was and he shot. A touch of the

left-hand side. 31. The angle he has on the pink is

not favourable. It is not good. If he is dead straight on the pink.

Full stop. The reds will be well split here.

The more conservative shot is the red to the left corner with the

rest. Yes, I think you will have choice of pink or blue. When you

have that much cube power it is easy to get through the ball. He can

certainly get on the black in one pocket at the moment.

43. He would like to be on the red that is closest to that corner. 44.

If he ever did see a player in the zone, this is what he is. His facial

expression has not changed. An enormous amount of pressure on him

here. Could play the one that is nearest

the pocket. That is the one he is playing. Be great if he could kiss

the red but it did not happen. The tuple close to the cushion here --

tuple. He still does not have the cue ball

under perfect control. Now he has got to 64. We can have our fingers

crossed now and hope that he makes his 100 century. I think this

Crucible audience may or may not give him a standing ovation because

it is an amazing feat. APPLAUSE. 69. Incredible match. Nothing that Mark

Allen can do about it. Basically he is just a spectator. Should he get

three reds and three blacks he does not have to worry about that

difficult read. -- red. Neal, I am rooting for you now. A fabulous

performance. 85. He must be tingling inside, thinking this is it.

Normally he would be planning to move the red ink to paper I do not

think it will be playing that here. -- in two play. 93. Starting to

breathe a bit deeper now. He knows the significance. Come on. This is

the one. 94. Can you believe it? I knew it would happen. I knew the

precious -- pressure was so much there. It just issued what it means

is player to break the record -- shows you what it means to this

player. Unfortunate. But 12-7. Thank you. Quite down please. He just has

to get his focus back because it has been flawless so far. The last chief

frames have just been flawless -- two frames. Just wait in frame away

from victory. -- one frame away. This is his pot success rate just

for today's play. I think he has only missed two pots so far. 94%.

You can see that Mark Allen is on 79%. It is not missed many at all,

does he? -- he does not miss many. Obviously in the first round Neil

Robertson did not have the toughest of matches but in this one to get

over 90 is excellent. Here we go again and. . This is just

flawless Matchplay snooker, it really is. 25. 26. Ideally here he

would like to finish low on this thread so he can bring more into

play, and he has finished low on the red. APPLAUSE. This is so good what

he is doing this afternoon just absolutely hitting the ball as well

as he could possibly hit it. He is in that great place as a snooker

player where you do not think you are ever going to miss. He will have

to leave himself some sort of medium-range pot here, though.

If he was straight enough to halt the spot he would hold the spot here

that he is just off a bit so he cannot hold it. He will need a good

pot here to keep the break going. One good pot and it wins him the

match. So this is a big shot. Applause. Just an easy game at the

moment. As everybody who is sitting in the audience who plays this game,

they know how difficult a game it is. He has a chance again. Force is

six -- 46. 47. Place the cannon into the red and pink. Should be on 1's.

You can take your eye off the pot here concentrating on cannons. I

wasn't aware that the red was available into the middle. Needs to

get a good angle here. Can I have the radio down here please? Radio?

Someone listening to music? 55. Did not hit that as well as he would

like. May have to play this with a trace of left-hand side now.

APPLAUSE. He is still on this right to the right centre. 63. They are

just the black. -- now just. Mark Allen has done pretty much nothing

wrong. He is just sitting there. APPLAUSE. This time he needs four of

the reds to get the century. He is trying to be almost too careful at

the moment. He is looking at things that can go wrong rather than things

that can go right. 71. So that is the match over. The last frame. Does

not need the difficult read. Try to get on to be more difficult of the

two reds to make it easier to get on to the last one. He is looking at

the scoreboard all the time, making sure he does not need that difficult

one, which it doesn't. Cannot afford one more pink though. Must take

blacks. The Crucible packed arena this afternoon. They would love to

see this magnificent achievement done, just as we would hear in the

commentary box. Flawless last few rounds. Poyntz. -- Poyntz. You think

about when Ronnie O'Sullivan was down. Does not want to be straight

on this last red. A similar sort of black 30 missed on the last

occasion. -- that he missed. Come on now. Unbelievable, isn't he?

Absolutely flawless snooker. He has played perfect match play snooker.

He goes into the quarter-final, when it -- winning by 13 frames to seven.

Winning by that amount against Mark Allen is fantastic. He is a

world-class player. The toughest match for the second round you could

have. Pretty much flawless for the last few frames. If the tapes -- he

keeps playing like that there will be no one that can beat him. Played

a bad shot and left myself low on the black. I was just about to

celebrate with Stephen Hendry in the box but he will have to wait a

little bit longer. He will have a another match to try and get over

the 100 mark. Sleep well. Good night.