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Good afternoon ad welcome to Sheffield, for this afternoon's match, which
promises to be an excellent opening session. Ali and Mark have certainly
stamped their ability in the championship so far, with Selby making five
century breaks in his match against Stephen Hendry in their round 2 match.
Sit back and settle down for an entertaining afternoon of snooker. The
players are introduced, along with
Ronnie O'Sullivan and John
Higgins who start their quarter-final match over on Table 1.
Ali comes to the table to get Frame 1
underway as both players exchange some early shots to help them settle down
in front of this capacity crowd. Mark pots the first red, before putting Ali
tight behind the yellow. Ali attempts his first try, but fails to hit
a red. The balls are replaced and attempt number two is again player off
three cushions, again it misses. The balls are replaced again, as
there are many alternatives. Ali plays a more direct shot, and ends up with
the cue-ball resting against pack. Mark in coming to the table,
attempts a slow red into the middle, and is perfect for position to keep the
break going. Mark gets the score up to 35-0, with Ali being forced to reply
with safety shots at the moment. Whoever is forced into making an error,
could loose the frame as the balls are evenly spread, with colours being in
pottable positions. Mark is first to recommence the scoring and this visit
could turn into a frame winning opportunity. The break gets to 35 before a
safety shot is played sending the cue-ball up into baulk. Only five
reds remain, and with snookers being required, Ali concedes the first frame.
The referee for the match,
Eirian Williams sets
the table for frame 2. Eirian will be the referee of the eventual
final, refereeing it for the third time in his distinguished career, which
sees him still as one of the sports leading referees. Eirian spends
his spare time, in maintaining
his website. The
frame gets started with Ali breaking-off. A reply shot by Mark gives Ali the
chance to get a start to lead the frame 20-0. Ali has left a red and Mark
takes it, to start an immediate reply. He concentrates on taking off
the loose reds to begin with. He too, misses a red, although he can take
some comfort in having scored a break of 21 to wipe out Ali's lead. Ali
cannot capitalise on his opportunities, as Mark gets back to the table to
increase his lead. There are four reds near the pink spot, slightly
open in an elongated diamond shape which may prove a little difficult to
develop as Mark takes the final loose red. The break ends 14. Ali pots the
loose red, before potting the pink, aiming to open the four remaining reds.
He knocks one of the reds out, although it does not end it the best of
positions. He recovers well to cut the red, and gets a position on the
pink. The cue-ball covers the pink spot and the pink is spotted on the
black spot. This is a great shot, as Ali can continue the break. Ali
pots the last red and a pink to get the break up to 35. He plays the
yellow, green, brown to make a break of 44. Mark comes to the table and pots
the blue, trailing now by 24 points with 13 remaining. A few safety shots is
ended when Ali pots the pink to level the frames at 1-1.
Ali starts frame 3 with a good break-off.
Mark plays a very attacking shot, and is unlucky not to pot a red. He
is lucky as the white goes back into baulk, forcing Ali to play a shot to
nothing. Both players are very cautious not to leave chances for their
opponents, and the exchange of safety shots is only concluded when Mark pots
the first red of the frame. The
GCS news
pages have stories of each match at their conclusion, and you can read
the stories of how both Mark and Ali progressed into this round along with
all of the other quarter-finalists. The break is not long in its
duration, as it ends on six. However, Ali comes to the table and replies by
opening his scoring account in this frame. The breaks get to 20, before a
bad mis-cue ends Ali's chances of getting a sizeable break. Mark returns to
the table and starts to make a break. This is a hard match for both of these
players, as neither comes into the game as the outright favourite, and
neither can claim to be the underdog, as they are not playing seasoned
Crucible veteran's like Higgins or O'Sullivan. Mark gets the points on the
board, and with 1 red left on the table, the frame score is 65-27 to Mark.
Ali comes to the table and is unlucky, as in trying to lay a snooker on the
red, with the cue-ball landing behind the brown. He cannot do anything now
to progress the frame and concedes, giving Mark a 2-1.
We get started in the frame before the
interval, and both players will be looking forward to getting into the
interval to find their composure. Neither have really managed to get
started in the match, with neither achieving a break over 50, which is very
unusual for these to heavy-potting players. Mark as with a couple of he
previous frames, get the scoring started in this frame, and it is not too
long before the break reaches 56, before a long blue is attempted, and
misses. Ali takes his chance to score some points in the frame, which
eventually translates into a break of 56 before potting the pink and black
to make a 69 clearance, going into the interval at 2-2. Our commentary of
this match recommences after the interval at 1620(BST).
Frame five of eight gets underway and
although Ali makes nine with an early chance, it is Mark who dominates the
beginning of the frame, which has been a low scoring frame with it standing
at 39-9. Five reds remain as Mark plays a safety shot to end his break. If
you get a chance to spare five minutes, you should visit the
GCS Gallery, which has pictures of the
action from the Crucible, all the players who appeared at this year's
championship and some of the sights of Sheffield. Another spell at the table
and a break of 41, ends the frame, with Mark now climbing to a 3-2 narrow
lead.
Frame 6 is started and there is nothing to
separate the two players, at the early part of the frame. The safety
play has opened the reds. Ali starts the scoring in this frame, and after
potting a red, pots the yellow to get a kiss on the brown, to end up with
the cue-ball in a good position to get the break really going. Although it
has taken some time, the break ends at 11. A safety shot is all that
Mark can manage, before Ali returns to the table to make another break,
which gets to 27 as Ali makes good use of the pink and black, using them to
keep position on the reds nearby. The break may put the frame safe
before Ali has to play a difficult one of three reds near to the side
cushion on the left hand side of the table. The break ends on 62 with Ali,
levelling the frame score for the third time in the match.
The penultimate frame gets underway on
Ali's return to the arena, and he plays a fabulous shot to put the cue-ball
tight on the bottom cushion behind the green. Ali returns to the table
after Mark replies, and although he leaves a shot of a tricky nature, it
does not stop Mark from starting a break. The break gets to 16, until Mark
sees the cue-ball end up in the back of the opened pack, having a hard shot,
as he needs to bridge over two slightly ajar reds. He pots the red,
and recovers position to be able to continue the break. A frame
winning break is possible from this visit, although as the number of reds
reduced, the break may become a little harder to keep going. A blue into the
middle gets the break past the half-century point at 52, the break continues
and passes the 70 mark, becoming the highest scoring frame in the match so
far. The is the best Mark has played so far, and it is not to be long before
we see another entry in sizzling snooker as the he wins the frame with a
break of 121.
Selby gets the last frame underway, after
a short delay in having the divided wall raised, allowing the spectators
from the now ended session in the Ronnie and John match to join us for the
final frame. Ali produces a great opening shot to pot a red, although the
shot is too good, as the cue-ball over-runs the black and ends up in a
position which means that he cannot play the black to definitely pot it,
without presenting Selby with an opportunity, and so opts to play a safety.
The frame is a must win frame for both players, as Mark gets to the table
and starts to pot balls. As the break passes the 30 stage, it looks
like it could become an opportunity to get enough points to put the frame
safe, although as with the other frames, the pivotal moment will be the shot
which opens the pack reds. The pressure is visible, as Mark misses a black
of its spot, with his break ending at 33. Ali finds a red to go into the
middle pocket, although looks to be snookered on all six colours. He
plays the cue-ball off the bottom cushion, hitting the black which is close
to the side cushion behind the yellow spot. This is a tricky shot for
Mark to hit a red and get the cue-ball safe. His first two attempts
are not successful as he attempts a two cushion escape to hit a single red
hugging the top cushion. Attempt three is the same as the first two, and the
cue-ball is replaced, with attempt four taking a different route, it gets no
better, as Mark clips the blue. Ali comes to the table and plays the red
that is available. Ali pots a pink into the middle, now taking a ten point
lead in this frame before losing position and playing a safety. The
frame is delicately poised with the score 43-33 in Carter's favour. Mark
penalises Ali for leaving a red available, and takes it, to notch up another
7 points. Selby gets another chance and makes another break to get in front
again at 54-43, with one red remaining, which does not remain much longer as
Selby takes it to get onto the pink. Only the colours remain as Selby
pots the yellow, green, excellent long brown, to get the frame score up to
70-43. Ali comes to the table, trailing by 23, requiring one snooker.
On his next visit Mark pots the blue to win the frame. The players
shake hands and go away to relax before returning at 1000(BST) tomorrow to
continue play.
Live coverage of the matches continue
today at 1900(BST) with the second session of the quarter final matches
between
Anthony Hamilton/Stephen
Maguire and
Shaun Murphy and
Matthew Stevens.
Richard Beare, the Master of Ceremonies,
welcomes the referees into the arena before welcoming Stephen Maguire and
Anthony Hamilton to Table 1 to resume their match, which sees Stephen
slightly ahead at 9-7, with the match being played to its conclusion, before
welcoming Ali and Mark to the table for the second session of this match,
with Mark leading by 5-3. Ali breaks-off in frame 9, as both players
exchange a few shots to settle themselves down. Ali starts the scoring and
it is not long before he has potted five reds and five blacks. Ali loses his
position, and cannot continue to play for a maximum, as he pots the blue to
continue the break as it reaches the mid-century point. As the break reaches
70, it puts the frame safe, with Mark requiring snookers. Ali has certainly
raised the temperature in
sizzling snooker
as the break passes the century mark. Ali over-hits on the last black with
the cue-ball ending near the bottom cushion. an excellent recovery sees the
yellow go the length of the table. He goes on to clear the table and win the
frame with a massive 144 clearance, which, if no-one beats it in the
remaining matches, has just earned him £10,000.
We are certainly in for an entertaining
afternoon of snooker at the Crucible if the matches continue the way they
both have in the opening frames. On the other Table, Stephen Maguire
had an opportunity to also make a maximum, but lost position on 96, and was
not able to recover. Mark has got us underway in frame 10 and both players
settle into the frame, playing some good safety shots, with the cue-ball
ending up in the baulk area after each visit. the eventual winner of this
match will go on to face Shaun Murphy after he came back from 11-5, to win
an exciting and at times, hair-raising match against Matthew Stevens. The
safety exchange continues, until Ali finds an opening red. He
progresses to the black, but in attempting the next red, he plays a red the
length of the table, which as it gets near to the green pocket, catches the
nearside jaw. The break ends on eight and Mark gets to the table to open his
scoring account in today's match. Mark is unlucky, as in a similar shot to
the one that ended Ali's break, his attempt at the long red, hits the far
jaw of the green pocket. After a safety from Ali, Mark gets back to the
table for another chance to make a break and it is not long before the score
gets to 31-8, as the break continues. After spending sometime to consider
his options, Mark plays a safety shot to end his break on 46. Ali gets his
chance to reduce the points, after taking a red, getting the break up to 22
to pot the last red. He plays the colours, clearing them all to snatch
the frame 60-57, with a superb break of 52 to level the frames a 5-5.
Frame 11 gets underway, Ali showing
tremendous form to take the first two, before playing an excellent shot to
pick-off a red. he is not able to do anything more at this visit, but
plays a good safety, with the cue-ball ending up in baulk. As the players
engage in a period of safety play, it is a good time to remind viewers that
the referee for this match is
Eirian Williams, who will
take a rest from refereeing after this match, to relax and prepare himself
to referee the final of this
888.com
world championship. Mark gets a chance to get the score to 5-0 in this
frame, before a poor attempt on the green, presents Ali with a good chance,
as the green thunders up the table and splits the reds even more. Ali takes
advantage of the error by Mark and makes a break of 19. He returns to his
chair, shaking his head, as he is obviously disappointed to have seen the
break terminated so early. Mark gets to the table and starts a reply.
The break gets up to 39, where mark has an awkward shot. In over-stretching,
he misses the pot. He leads 44-19, although will be sitting cautiously
as he knows that Ali is playing well, and has already taken the first two
frames, snatching the latter with a frame winning break. Ali is at the
table and soon catches Mark as the break of 24 ends, now only trailing by
one point. Mark comes to the table, snookered by the black, and has to play
an swerve to hit the remaining red. He is lucky as he snookers Ali, who
takes his time to look at the shot, but fails to make contact with a miss
being called along with a free ball being left for Mark. Mark considers the
merits of playing the free ball, although chooses to put Ali back into play
after having the balls replaced. Ali escapes and is again faced with a tough
shot a little later in the frame, when snookered by the brown and yellow
with the red down by the pink. Ali escapes from that too., and Mark is
not able to gain anything from it. He tries to force the red, but
leaves it for Ali , who returns to the table and sinks the last red to get
within four points of Mark as only the colours remain. There is a slight
delay between shots as the dividing wall between the two tables is raised,
signifying that the
Stephen Maguire and Anthony Hamilton match
has reached its conclusion. The safety tussle takes place on table 2,
now watched by the entire Sheffield Crucible. The stalemate ends as
Mark plays the white from one corner of the table, to pot the yellow ball in
its own pocket, although cannot sink the green. Which is subsequently potted
by Ali, who gets the brown to take a one point lead in the frame now at
51-50. The blue, pink and black remain. Mark looks to be
confident in taking the blue, which goes down, but misses the pink for frame
ball. Ali pots the pink and black, to take the third frame in succession,
taking the lead for the first time in the match, as both players temporarily
leave the arena.
Frame 12, the frame before the interval
commences and Mark is quick to put the last three frames behind him, he is
looking for a good run in this frame, so not as to let Ali get too much of
an advantage. He soon has the break up to 30, as the frame looks to be
getting more winnable as every red is being potted. Mark gets the break to
57, and as he returns to his chair, must be very conscious of the fact that
he has lost two of the last three frames after previously leading them.
In a lighter moment, A fly has chosen to distract Ali at the table, so he
tries to use his cue like a samurai sword to swot the fly. The audience
enjoy the star-wars impression. Ali cannot do anything but play a safety
shot. Mark returns to the table and makes a frame winning break of twenty,
jumping up and down near the left black pocket to try to make a hanging red
drop, the second light-heated moment of the match ends the frame, with the
players being level at 6-6 going into the interval.
Frame 13 gets underway as both players
take the opportunity to settle themselves back into the match after the
interval break. Ali gets the first chance to score in the fame after
potting a good red. He follows this with a black before getting onto a
red. The break could be a significant one as another black splits open
the pack. The break rises to 38 and is rapidly becoming a frame winning
chance. It is not long before Ali passes the mid-century point, but the
break comes to its end on 59, as he attempts a red along the top cushion.
Mark comes to the table and starts to make a reply. The break gets up to 49,
with the six colours remaining. Mark plays the yellow to blue, before facing
a tricky cut on the pink, which he manages to snatch the frame from Mark. He
now gets back in front.
Frame 14 is started, with both players
looking to try and pull away, to get a good lead going into the final,
although it will be difficult at this point to predict what the eventual
score will look like at the end of this second session. Both players
will be looking to make progress and get this session out of the way, as
they return to play the final session tonight, so will want to take
advantage of having as long as possible to relax between the frames. Mark
opens the scoring in this frame, but can only take a red and black from this
visit. Ali replies with a break of one, having missed the black of its spot.
Mark is back at the table with another chance, which sees him get the break
up to 47 as it looks likely to continue, to get past the point of no
comeback for Ali. A foul by Mark ends the frame, although this is now
the third frame he wins in a row.
The penultimate frame of the session gets
underway, and an unforced error leaves Ali with a good chance, but he does
not get out of the starting blocks, as in hitting the red to thick, makes it
miss the pocket. As the frame progresses, Mark manages to pot a red, and Ali
makes a break of four. Both continue to be dominated in the safety exchange
that has become prevalent in the frame until Mark finds a red that goes
straight into the black left pocket. he has to play the green in the same
pocket, which gives him the advantage of being able to follow through with
the cue-ball to get position on the next red. He loses position and the
break ends on 18. Although the players don't yet know it, it has been
decided by the tournament director, that this will be the final frame of
this session, with the last frame, being held over to the session what
starts at 1900(BST). This will give the players a good break between the two
sessions. Mark is at the table and has increased his lead to 49-4, before
snookering Ali behind the pink which is sitting jut to the right of the left
middle pocket. It results in a foul and miss. Mark has the chance to put a
red into the black right and does so, to get position on the black, which he
tries to force into the same pocket, which is fluked into the middle. He has
to play a safety match, but with four reds left, leads the frame 61-4. Ali
sends the cue-ball thundering down up the table, to blast a red into the
black right pocket. He plays the pink and then another red.
Another shot to cut the pink, is successful, although at 43 behind with only
43 on, it means we could get a re-spotted black. There is still some mileage
in this frame. A safety exchange is ended when Ali pots one of the two
remaining reds. A foul by Mark gives Ali a free ball, who plays the pink as
an additional red. Ali is slowly getting back into this frame as time
passes. The frame score climbs to 61-36 to Mark, who gets the last red to
bring the frame to its conclusion after clearing the colours to the pink to
end the session leading 9-6. Coverage of this match resumes at
1900(BST).
You join us live, as Richard Beare has
just welcomed the referees into the arena for tonight's match. Both matches
will be played to their conclusion tonight, although the match between
Ronnie O'Sullivan and John
Higgins, looks like it could be a quick finish if Ronnie cannot get rid
of the 11-5 deficit he has as he enters the arena. Our table, sees
Mark taking a lead of 9-6 going into tonight's session. There will be
an extra frame tonight, as the players did not complete the scheduled eight
frames in this afternoon's second session, being taken off after the seventh
frame, to give them an adequate break between the sessions.
Mark comes to the table to break-off in
frame 16. Ali opens the scoring, doubling a red into the middle pocket,
although is unlucky in his attempt on cutting the black into the black right
corner. Mark is left with a chance to reply and pots a red to get onto the
black. Mark continues to get the break up to 24, before missing a red,
and is not able to stamp his authority on the match at this point. Ali makes
a good try at a long red, but in leaving a red available, is punished as
Mark again comes to the table and starts scoring. The break gets up to 42 to
get a 65 point advantage in this frame, with only four reds remaining.
He gets the frame safe and does so in making a break of 89, to extend his
lead to 10-6
Frame 17 sees both players taking on risky
shots, being lucky not to leave much in the way of loose reds at the
beginning of the frame, as the reds become wider open with each shot.
Ali is first to score the points in this frame, scoring 12 before putting
the cue-ball safe near the bottom cushion. A few shots later sees Mark start
scoring in this frame, and in no time at all has passed Carter's break of
12. The break builds up until at 25 he loses position on the pink.
The safety shot sees the pink head towards the side cushion with the
cue-ball resting towards the bottom cushion. Ali plays a strange shot,
playing the cue-ball off two cushions and misses the nine reds. Mark has the
cue-ball replaced and Ali is more successful in his second try, as he hits a
loose red, knocking it to a safe position next to the blue. Mark
spends his time looking at the loose red, and plays a brilliant long pot to
put it in the corner black, before potting the brown. He seems to be a
lot more comfortable and relaxed at the start of this session, than he was
in the previous. The break gets to 25, when a mis-cue on a red ends
the break, although he does leave a slight chance for Ali, who comes to the
table and pots the red, but gets no pottable position on any colour,
choosing to play the pink, bringing it back into play. Mark is ahead
in the frame now by 54-13. After a poor shot by Mark, Ali gets to the table
with a good opportunity to reduce the points, although it will be difficult
to make a frame winning break in this visit. Ali clears the reds, apart from
one with a break of 21 and plays an excellent snooker, putting the cue-ball
behind the yellow, very close to the bottom cushion, with the red close to
the top cushion. It takes three attempts for Mark to hit the red, as the
points are now 54-42 to Mark, with 35 remaining. Mark is unlucky as he
leaves the red on in a subsequent shot. Ali pots it, and in playing the
black gets perfect position on the yellow. The yellow is potted and then the
green goes in, with Ali taking the lead 55-54 for the first time in the
frame. The brown, blue and pink are potted as Carter wins the frame.
As the table is set for frame 18, it is a
good chance to say hello to our visitors from around the world, and to
remind you that you can see photographs of all the action from Sheffield, in
the
Global Cue Sports Gallery. The frame
gets started and both players exchange safety play. The players start to
exchange negative safety, and referee Eirian Williams may intervene if there
is no improvement in this frame, ordering a re-start of the frame. Whoever
gets to score first will have a good opportunity, as the reds are spread all
over the table, providing they can get good position onto their first
colour. Ali is very fortunate to get a double fluke, potting to reds. The
break has become an opportunity for Carter as he is going around the table
taking off the reds, one after another, and gets the break to get past the
half-century, with the break ending at 64. Mark returns to the table with
four reds remaining, and requiring them all, with black balls and a snooker,
if he wants to win the match. He scores eight, before playing a safety.
The reply by Ali, leaves another red for Mark, which he pots to get position
on the black which is also potted. He tries a safety on one of the two reds,
and Ali is not able to do anything apart from playing a safety. In a later
visit, Ali pots the red to win the frame and get the score back to 10-8.
Ali gets frame 19 started, although in
Mark's first is a scoring opportunity as he pots an opening red. The break
gets to 21, before a red into the black left corner goes horribly wrong. Ali
is not able to take advantage from the position he is left in, however a
subsequent visit by Ali, does get his scoring underway in this frame, with a
break of 6. Selby produces a good fluke, with an unseen cannon off the reds,
potting another red starting another scoring visit. He then rolls the
cue-ball up to the green, which is sitting near the bottom cushion, to put
Ali in a Chinese snooker. In reply to an
email from a new
viewer, when we refer to the bottom cushion, we mean the cushion behind the
baulk line, and the top cushion, is nearest the black spot. The Chinese
snooker pays dividends as Ali misses the reds and hits the black, his second
attempt sees the cue-ball go into the left black pocket. Mark is able
to build on these two mistakes as the break climbs to 21, Mark's lead
extends to 54-11. As the frame progresses, an error by Mark leaves one of
the four reds available for Ali. He comes to the table and pots it although
knocks the pink safe and takes the blue to get a good position for the next
red. That too, is potted and after taking a black pots the next red to take
another red. The break gets to 22, before in forcing a red, he misses
the pot. Mark returns to the table and plays a good shot leaving a lot of
distance between the white and red. Both players exchange safety shots. A
great shot by Mark puts the white behind the blue, with the red towards the
bottom cushion. Ali plays a great shot to escape. In the next visit,
Mark plays a similar shot, at the other end of the table. Ali's first
attempt misses the red, although on his second try, he is successful.
As the tactical exchange continues we say a special hello to our friends in
Bahrain, the country hosting the ISBF World Seniors, and IBSF World Under21s
Championships in August 2005, which was a very enjoyable event for everyone
involved with it. Sheikh Abdulla, looks after the snooker in Bahrain
and is very interested in developing the sport, in one of the nicest
countries in the middle east. As the frame hits the 30 minute point, Selby
has again laid a great snooker. Ali makes a valiant attempt with a massive
swerve, and is very unlucky as he leaves Mark an opportunity to now take
this frame. Mark makes a break of 8, clearing the last red and yellow,
leaving Ali to come to the table with the green and remaining colours,
needing to get them along with two snookers. The safety shots resume until
Ali pots the green, getting a good position on the brown to snooker Mark
behind the black. The cue-ball is snookered although Mark is left with an
easy escape, which he demonstrates. Ali plays a good shot to get out of a
difficult snooker, but concedes after leaving the brown in a pottable
position , and leaves the arena for the interval. The players will
return a 2110(BST), after the 15 minute interval, with Selby only requiring
two more frames for victory.
Frame twenty gets underway, and both
players take some early shots, to settle themselves into what could become a
long session, with a maximum of six frames being possible. The early shots
become a prolonged exchange of safety. It looks like a re-start may be
required, if neither player does anything in the duration of the next few
shots, as we have reached a stalemate. Ali breaks the stalemate and has soon
opened the scoring in this frame as the break reaches 35 as it comes to an
end. Mark comes to the table and starts making an immediate reply, although
with few options, opts to play a safety shot. It is debatable whether
it is the right shot to have played as Ali, pots a red. A few shot
later, Mark fails to hit the red on four occasions, with the cue-ball being
replaced each time. Attempt five and six are unsuccessful, and
eventually hits the red on attempt eight. Carter plays a shot and goes
in-off having also potted a red. Selby trails 68-10. Selby pots
one of the remaining six reds, although cannot do anything to progress the
break. Ali comes back to the table and scores a break of 8. Carter picks off
another red and blue, just hitting onto a red, before Mark concedes the
frame.
Frame 21 starts, and after a couple of
shots, Ali is able to capitalise on an early mistake by Mark, and pots the
first red of the frame, although cannot develop the break. He sits
with his head in his hands at not being able to progress the scoring with
that visit. As the frames are being played, the tension is building up in
the arena. Ali has some work to do to keep the break going, as it reaches 28
as he will have two open the two groups of reds. He concentrates on taking
the loose reds around the two clusters, using the pink. The break continues
to climb as it reaches the half-century point, and as the frame evolves the
chance of winning this frame at this visit is now becoming a reality.
The break gets to 64, and as Ali is hampered by a red, faces difficult
cueing, to get a red into the middle right. Mark plays a safety but Ali
plays a fabulous long red followed by a great green, to extend his lead to
69-0. Mark is under pressure with only four reds remaining, but pots a red
and then a black, he plays another red and black, before attempting to lay
one of the required snookers. Mark gets to pot another red, and is forced to
play the pink as the black is safe on the right side cushion. He is slowly
catching up as the score stands at 69-23, although will not return if Ali
pots the last red. Ali gets the last red then a pink, before potting the
yellow and green, to get within one frame of Mark at 11-10.
Both players leave the arena for a short
comfort break. Remember, to have a look in the
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Sports Centre Forum
and add your opinion to all the latest debates and discussions about cue
sports around the world.
A maximum of four frames remain as frame
22 commences, and Ali has certainly gained some confidence during this
session, having won 75% of the frames tonight. He is quick to get the
scoring started and takes a very early chance to pot a red, but does not get
any position to be able to pot a colour and plays a safety. The stakes are
increasing in every frame, and the degree of risk in the shot selection is
reducing as the players become more cautious in mot allowing their opponent
to dominate frames. As the safety play continues, it is a quick chance to
remind you that we do have an
exclusive
competition still running, which ends in just over an hour's time at
midnight. The winner, will win a cue signed by John Parrott. Ali
breaks the deadlock as he pots a red, and then takes the blue, the break
continues, and he picks off the reds, one-by-one sees the break rise to 30.
Ali is unlucky as he misses a difficult red to end the break on 34. Mark is
left with a chance to pot a red, and keep good position to take the black.
The break continues and a good long red into the green pocket, keeps the
break alive, although the next black wobbles for some time before dropping.
The break gets to 46 and Mark has two difficult red left on the table. He
ends the break on 46. The crowd in the Crucible is starting to slowly
diminish as some people have to leave. As both players continue to exchange
tactical shots, we say a special welcome to our viewers in Beijing, who are
watching this match develop, having been up all of the night, as they are
about seven hours ahead of BST. Ali finds a chance to pot a red, which he
does, before playing the green to get down to the final red on the top
cushion. he is unlucky as he fails to pot the last red. He trails by
seven points at 39-46, before Mark plays a good shot to snooker Ali.
Ali manages the escape, but leaves the red on. Mark pots the red, and then
takes the blue. Mark is unlucky in missing the yellow into its own pocket,
although leaves a tricky yellow for Ali to swerve around. Mark pots a great
long yellow, before putting Ali in a hard shot, with the white on the top
cushion to the right of the spotted black, with the green halfway between
the blue and baulk line on the left side of the table. The safety exchange
is underway as both attempt to pot the green. Ali gets the green as the
players attention turns to the brown. Mark goes in-off giving Ali an
extra four points. Ali also pots the brown and then the blue to take the
lead in the frame at 55-54, before potting the pink. Mark now needs
the black to draw the scores and force a re-spotted black. Ali attempts the
black, although it is left in a fairly safe position. Mark comes to the
table and looks to attempt a double into the middle. He is lucky as the
black ends up on the top cushion. Ali replies by knocking the black to
the bottom cushion. Carter made a valiant attempt at the pot, but was
unlucky, although he leaves Mark with a tough safety shot. Mark gets
the black to on the far side of the middle pocket. Ali plays another valiant
attempt and black wobbles round the jaws of the opposite middle pocket. In
his subsequent visit, Ali pots the black to win the frame, making the scores
level at 11-11.
Frame 23 starts , with the match now becoming
a minor match, as it becomes the best of three, with one of the players
needing to win at least two frames. Carter is quick to score in this frame
and gets an early break of 8. A shot later, Mark finds a great shot, to cut
a red into the black left. Mark puts the cue-ball behind the yellow,
slightly nudging it off its spot. Ali fails to hit the ball, and the miss is
called, although Mark opts to take the free ball, putting the brown into the
middle right. He plays the green and gets on to a red, getting a good angle
on the blue, but then watches as the cue-ball runs long, and does not leave
him on any easy red. He finds a red to double it into the left middle and
finds perfect position on the black. The black is re-spotted on to the
yellow spot, which may not help, although in potting the next red, finds the
angle to play the blue, to then get the cue-ball up towards the top cushion
to take another red, which he achieves. The break now on 24, looks
like it could climb to a decent figure. The break reaches 48 and is becoming
much more difficult, as with one loose red remaining, he has to open the
pack after the next black. He achieves the shot to open the reds a
little, but is left with a very long pot. His luck is with him, as he
sinks the red in the yellow pocket, before potting a difficult black into
the middle right. His break ends on 64. Four reds remain as Ali gets
to the table, and Ali pots a red and black before trying to play a good
safety. It is successful as Mark is forced into playing a safety shot.
However, on a subsequent visit scores a break of 16 to put the frame well
beyond the reach of Ali.
Frame 24 gets going, and Mark now only
requires one of the remaining two, both players are now under different
types of pressure, which must be very immense at this point of the game.
Mark has a early chance, but misses the black after getting a kick.
Ali gets his chance and the break starts to build up at quite a quick pace,
reaching 25 in very little time. Mark is forced to sit in his chair and
watch as the break is still climbing and reaches 48 as he pots a red. The
following black sees the mid-century being reached, as it still continues. A
potted black gets the break to seventy, and the frame is now at the snooker
requires stage. It will be unlikely that Mark comes to the table again
as the break ends on 78. The frame scores are level at 12-12 and it
has become a one frame shoot-out...
...It couldn't get any more dramatic than
this... A hand shake between the two players and we're into the Best of 1
frame for a place in tomorrow's semi final against Shaun Murphy... and we
though this match was pure drama today, tonight we have the ultimate late
night Crucible thriller... the players are under the most intense pressure
they will ever feel... but there's a couple of good safety shots apiece,
that will help them settle into the frame rather than the situation... but
that's an error by Carter, left the white mid-table and Selby pounces on the
mid-range red... he's unlucky to knock the white to the side cushion...
another good safety to follow though by Selby... Carter can only play to top
cushion and there is a red that will go to centre... It eludes Selby but
with white travelling back to the baulk end there's no damage done... here's
another chance for Selby as Carter double-kisses the red... you can see the
nerve ends jangling as Selby missed that relatively simple red... is
anything simple at this stage of the match... good safety by Selby, pins the
white back on the baulk cushion... he's had the edge with his safety so far
in this frame... good reply this time by Carter... and by Selby, they may be
getting very twitchy on their pots, but they're hitting their safety
extremely well... Selby's caught the red too thin and he's left it close to
the pocket, a chance for Carter... down it goes and he's on yellow or
brown... it's not a good break-building chance, pink and black and green all
tied up, blue is on its spot though, but the reds, although spread are
covering each other... but with every red he'll open a path for another
one... he's taken the risk of nudging them a bit, that makes cueing
awkward... he's opted for safety... superb safety by Selby... the match time
has just gone past nine hours... well that is so so unlucky... Carter picked
out a red, produced a brilliant long pot and somehow the white threaded a
way through and into the centre pocket... oh well, what else can happen in
this match... Selby has knocked the black in from his safety shot... Carter
puts Selby back in to play from where the balls finished... one outcome of
that foul is that the black is now on its spot and goes into one corner
pocket... good shot again by Selby... Carter's looking at a plant now,
disaster, plant doesn't go and he's knuckled the white in the corner
jaws... now what's he left for Selby... there's a red to centre, not easy...
a red to corner which just goes past the black... it wriggles in and he can
see the black... well now he has a chance... the reds are widely spread, the
black is on its spot and pots into both corner pockets... Selby is taking
his time on every shot now, getting himself settled, he's opened a narrow
22-16 lead... he's got three more straightforward open reds before
tackling the two near one side cushion or one on the other side and one on
the top cushion... but he's moved along now to 41-16... the break
reaches 37 and probably the best 37 he's ever made... that's the three open
reds gone now, break is now 50 and he leads 55-16... 4 reds left... one of
the awkward reds disappears, the lead grows to 47, the remaining points
shrink to 51, he's getting ever closer... he's on the match-ball red, just
off the cushion, he needs the extension on his cue, Selby misses it, he was
stretching for that shot, a brilliant 58 but will it be enough... Carter's
covered the red near the pocket... Selby attempts to swerve and pot it but
with no success... Carter's taken on a really tough red along the top rail
and left it on for Selby... it should be all over now... so the Crucible
qualifiers is through to face Shaun Murphy in the semi final... a wonderful
achievement by the twenty-three year old... Carter will be devastated, but
he's secured his place in the top sixteen next season, as has Selby, and
we'll be seeing a lot more of both these players in the future.... Join us
tomorrow in the re-rigged one-table set-up for the first Semi Final at 14.00
BST.
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