2008 888.com World Championship

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Ladder - QUALIFYING RESULTS  - CRUCIBLE RESULTS  - INFORMATION - MATCH NOTES - PLAYER CUEFACTS

GALLERIES: No. 1 Preliminary Rounds - No. 2 Qualifying Rounds

KEN DOHERTY

v

LIANG WENBO

Round One - Match 8

(Best of 19 frames)

Wednesday 23 April 10.00

Wednesday 23 April 19.00

 

Match Notes

Good morning to everyone, welcome to the first session of this match, a match that Ken Doherty MUST win to retain hopes of keeping his place in the elite Top 16..

Wenbo will be a new names to some fans and I can tell you he's going to be a very big name in the game... he is a fabulously talented player, we first saw him in the 2004 World under 21s and he returned to win that event in 2005 ahead of two more Chinese talents.. This is the ultimate youth versus experience encounter... he's rattled a couple but they haven't dropped yet, a few early nerves... so the first scoring chance falls to Doherty and the reds are well spread already although black and pink are a bit tied up ... Wenbo won his Main Tour place as the IBSF World Under 21 champion, he's already thrilled the stalwart spectators at the World Snooker Centre at Prestatyn in the qualifiers and this season he's started making a real impact, this being his best performance and he's provisionally up to 47 in the rankings, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see him progress into the Top 32 next season and be bidding for a Top 16 place very soon... Meanwhile Crafty Ken has meticulously compiled 45 but position is getting more difficult now... Incidentally Wenbo is another of the brilliant left-handed players, a sublime potter and a superb break-builder... Having made a flawless 66 Doherty has missed frame ball red... Wenbo needs blacks with the remaining reds and he's done well so far, he's made 32 and he's faced with a hard last red down the rail with the rest... the is the first opportunity the Crucible fans have to see just how good he is, he's got the black off that excellent red, but no shot on the yellow unless he pots this long distance yellow... no that was one shot too many and Doherty slots a long yellow to clinch the frame... Wenbo has Doherty in trouble with his safety... Ken can see a red but he's chosen to play as if snookered and he's missed twice, he gets the warning - hit it or lose the frame... he hits it but at his next safety visit he's hit the pink again twice trying to escape a snooker. Wenbo's got 24 on the board without leaving his chair... Ken causes a laugh, asking for the pink to be removed from the table! He's done it again and again, that's 36 points given away now in this frame... a big cheer as eventually Doherty hits the reds and gets them safe... Doherty waves his cue above his head in triumph... congratulations to the three winners of our 888.com VIP ticket competition, Tammy Byham, Khalid Salem and Steve Starkie have their VIP day out tomorrow at the Crucible.. Watch out next week on GCS for more 888.com competitions with the chance to win some great souvenir prizes... Wenbo wins the safety exchange and can build on his 36 point lead... a good black at pace along the rail and now he's in great position... Wenbo is one of three mainland China players here this year, his young compatriot Liu Chuang set out on his dream match against Ronnie O'Sullivan this afternoon... Next season we'll see another young Chinese lad coming on tour, Li Hang won the Asian under 21 championship in Myanmar a couple of weeks ago... and there may well be a Chinese winner of the Asian Championship which takes place in Dubai the first two weeks of May, we'll bring full coverage of that prestigious event here n GCS... and here's a name to remember for the future - Anda Zhang - you heard it here first!! Wenbo makes 29 at that visit before losing position but he's got a 65 point lead but there are still ten reds on! He's pulled out another great pot red, this is a test of Ken's safety... and now Wenbo has got the red that leaves Ken needing a snooker... oh that's brought a cheer a double on the black at pace to keep the break going and he's won his first frame at the Crucible... Wenbo has a red, flukes the blue but there's nothing much on at the moment, he's tried to pick a red out of the pack but it doesn't drop in for him, a chance for Doherty... he makes 23 but he's left Wenbo in now and he's rattling in the pots... he's on to 33 now and as he reaches 57 he needs one more red.. and he's got it... and that's a cracking 76 break.. Wenbo fires in a red to get a great scoring chance in frame four, the reds are all over the place.. he's onto 50, he doesn't hang about... he's missed on 58 and given Doherty a chance to get back into the frame... only 14 from the Dubliner and Wenbo is now 49 up with 43 left on... and he's taken a 3-1 lead at the interval... Wenbo picks up where he left off before the interval... he's on the black and if he gets the pack open this will be a good chance... a bit unlucky, he's made 28 but gone in-off... Doherty has responded with 41 so far and in prime position... well he was, he's lost that good position and missed a red, but a 50 break and he's 27 ahead, although there's still 51 on the table.. Wenbo has disposed of the reds and he's on the yellow... but the green is off its spots... he's got it and just the black left, down it goes, great frame for Wenbo to win... Ken is beginning to struggle under the onslaught from Wenbo... 6 points, an error and a red on for Wenbo... a reprieve as Wenbo went in-off... a rare safety exchange now... Wenbo's narrowly missed a red along the top cushion so here's a chance for Doherty to punish him... Ken is gradually getting ahead in this frame, 31-17, it's not the easiest chance though, no easy position... and that's caused him to miss the red... Wenbo pops the long red in despite cueing down over the brown... Ken is still struggling he's moved 56-25 ahead, there's one red left but he shouldn't have missed the colour off its spot... so the frame hinges on the last red and Doherty gets a good pot so he's 32 up on the colours... and he's got the yellow so pulls a frame back... and he's encouraged by that, fluently onto a run of 22 in the next... but the breaks ends there, he's keeping it tight but it's Wenbo who forces the error from Ken and he's created a scoring chance... he's opened all the reds off that shot and great long pot to recover position... and that red was frame ball, the break is now 53... and that 68 break takes him 5-2 up, he's secured the lead whatever happens in the last two frames... Wenbo is in scoring mode again in the next... he's made 28 and run for safety... Again Wenbo wins the tactical exchange to create another scoring chance... and he's won the frame with that 51... one more frame to play, can Ken stop the rot... Not at that visit, just one red potted... here's comes the Chinese potting machine again... only 14 at his first visit but what a red to get started again, the Crucible crowd are really warming to this lad... a rare miss by Wenbo and he's left a red on for Ken... there's a bad miss by Ken, he's got away with it though... unless Wenbo cracks in another long distance red... Wenbo gets back in amongst the balls and he's scattered the pack, another frame winning chance for him... already 40-13 ahead.. and he's won the frame and what a dream debut so far, 7-2 up on the former World Champion... as he finishes in style with a 95 clearance..

Hello again, welcome back and Wenbo is so keen, he's come into the arena before the introductions! Now Wenbo gets the biggest cheer of the week as he returns, properly introduced this time... the build up must have lost something in the translation!! a little safety exchange here gives both players the chance to settled back into the match... Doherty was progressing nicely when he's got a terrible kick, it's sent the pot off line, he's got a 40 point lead but he's left a red on for Wenbo... who in very little time has made 56 and he's on the last red now... he's missed it and it's run safe... Wenbo leads 56-40 on that last red... Doherty's got the red, he's got to go up and down the table off the blue to get to the yellow... he's kissed the brown so no pot on the yellow left... Wenbo's cleared up and he leads 8-2 now... Ken's opened a 48 point lead in frame eleven, but he doesn't look fluent at all, he's under a lot of pressure, not just the score, but the prospect of dropping out of the Top 16... Wenbo's whacked a red in and opened the reds up... but he's got a horrible kick on that red, difficult black now, very thin... he's missed it so a let off for Doherty... Ken leads 59-14 on the last red, Wenbo is trying to get a snooker... he can't so Ken gets a frame back... Wenbo has whistled in 46 so far in the next frame and he's got plenty of reds still open... the break ends at 55 and although he missed the red, he's got everything safe... but now Ken is coming back into the frame just 15 behind now and he's laid the snooker on the last red... only 10 behind now and they're on the green... and still the tactical exchange continues... this frame has gone over half an hour already and still they're on the green, Ken is snookered... and he's missed it, left it and trails by 14 now... Wenbo gets the green but he's not on the brown so the safety is resumed with Wenbo 62-45 ahead... disaster for Ken, he's missed the brown, and left a free ball, Wenbo misses, he should have put Ken back in... Doherty can tied with the four colours... it's a re-spot black... the first this week... good safety so far - oh no, Doherty's gone in off... so Wenbo stands just one frame from a memorable win on his Crucible debut, Doherty stands one frame from losing his place in the World's Top 16 and actually on the provisional rankings for one year he'd actually drop out of the Top 32... Wenbo is very unlucky there, he's potted the thinnest of reds, come round the table and knocked the black in, so maybe one last chance for Doherty, he'll give it everything... commentators make a big drama out of the like of Steve Davis, Matthew Stevens, Doherty having to return to Pontin's to play one qualifying round in some events, but Ken Doherty has been playing in the Pontin's Pro Ams for the past two seasons, he won the series in 2006 so he's no stranger to the set up there... Matthew Stevens is a regular visitor to the Festivals, this year's great Spring Festival is 9-16 may, open to everyone of any age or ability... Steve Davis might need a reminder though, the last time he was due to play a qualifying match at Pontin's he completely forgot and was scratched from the China Open!... Ken has flown through this break, already on 60 and this is like an exhibition now... with potting like this, Ken's not writing himself off yet... 69 and they go off to the interval with Wenbo leading 9-4... Doherty gets the first scoring visit as they return but only makes 14... and so does Wenbo, another chance for Ken... Doherty got a kick but it hasn't cost him, a nervy miss there by Wenbo and the Irishman gets another chance and he's moved 57-14 ahead with three reds left... that 40 break leaves Wenbo needing snookers, he's got one there, easy enough to hit though, Doherty leads by 44 with 43 left... and that's another frame clawed back... the pressure will mount on Wenbo now... Wenbo gets the first red in the next... he makes 41 and leads 47-0 but now that missed black gives Doherty one last chance... he's made a mess of that, he's snookered himself on the reds and he's missed it... got it that time and safe, Wenbo leads 51-7 and 4 reds left... 8 more points for Wenbo, he's 52 up wit 51 on and Ken has left a red on, it's all over for him and a wonderful victory for Liang Wenbo on his debut...

FRAME SCORES

1. 75(66)-40(40)

2. 0-105(40)

3. 23-85(76)

4. 14-67(58)

5. 55(50)-66(38)

6. 71-25

7. 22-73(68)

8. 0-83(51)

9. 13-112(95)

FRAME SCORES

10. 55-71

11. 59-14

12. 67-74

13. 73(69)-0

14. 15-61(41)

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FRAME SCORES

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

QUOTES

WINNER

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QUOTES