| Venue: Crucible Theater, Sheffield Dates: April 17 – May 3 |
| Coverage: Watch live on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four and Red Button, with uninterrupted streaming on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app. |
Mark Selby and Kyren Wilson marched into the World Cup semifinals with command victories over Mark Williams and Neil Robertson.
Selby killed fellow triple champion Williams 13-3, to win with a back-up session.
And Wilson turned five frames in a row to record a 13-8 win over winner Robertson in 2010.
Meanwhile, Stuart Bingham went through a dramatic deciding final frame against Anthony McGill to reach the final four.
Bingham will play against Selby next year, while Wilson will face Judd Trump or Shaun Murphy.
Scottish McGill looked like the most likely winner when he created a great 106 to increase the lead to 10-7 overnight.
However, the 2015 champion Bingham, who passed qualification, he responded superbly with interruptions of 85, 90 and 91 as he won five consecutive frames.
The encounter with the Seer saw then McGill beat two frames in a row to level the match at 12-12 before Bingham sensationally took the win with a 125 break.
In the remaining quarterfinals, Murphy took breaks of 85, 104 and 124 to establish a 10-6 command advantage over world number one Trump before the final session on Wednesday night.
By changing frames during the first part of the match, Murphy, who won his only title 16 years ago, produced several dazzling billiards against the uncharacteristically irresponsible Trump to stretch.
Selby shifts into second gear
Leading overnight with 6-2, Selby looked back on his best, making breaks of 96, 58 and 66 on his way to victory in the first four frames of the day.
Williams, who last won the world title in 2018, briefly rallied with 79 before Selby completed the win.
“He totally outplayed me,” Williams said. “I thought he was brilliant from start to finish. His potting was better and his safety better, which is not so easy to do.
“If Judd Trump, Kyren Wilson and others are playing well and Selby is playing well, he is in a second class of them.
“If he keeps playing like that, he’s better than anyone else in the game and I think he’ll get it.”
Wilson, meanwhile, reached his third Crucible semifinal after sending one of the favorites ahead of the tournament in Robertson, Australia.
With a match that was 8-8 overnight, Wilson, who beat Judd Trump in the same phase last year, opened with a brilliant 133-minute break before going 11-8.
Last year’s beaten finalist also won a shabby 20th frame, that Robertson should beat all five remaining frames, and a complex break of 84 when Wilson confirmed a comprehensive victory.
0 Comments