World Snooker Championship 2023 results: Four-time world champion Mark Selby beats Matthew Selt 10-8

1 year ago 49

Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 15 April-1 May
Coverage: Watch unrecorded connected BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted sum connected BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app

Four-time satellite champion Mark Selby survived a spirited fightback to bushed Matthew Selt 10-8 and scope the 2nd circular of the World Championship.

Meanwhile, erstwhile champion Shaun Murphy suffered a 10-9 upset astatine the hands of Chinese debutant Si Jiahui.

England's satellite fig 2 Selby led 6-3 overnight but was forced to enactment hard for his triumph successful Sheffield arsenic qualifier Selt battled backmost to 9-8.

But Selby, a Crucible champion past successful 2021, dug heavy to deservedly progress.

"I felt similar my attraction was non-existent," helium told BBC Sport.

"I was coasting astatine 1 stage, but you power disconnected for 1 infinitesimal and this crippled comes backmost to wound you.

"When you get nether the weapon present you tin ever buckle. At 9-8 I wasn't enjoying it, truthful I was gladsome my crippled managed to clasp up nether the pressure.

"I felt the lone clip I switched connected was successful that past frame. I was pleased with the mode I held myself together."

Selt, 38, who had to triumph 2 qualifying matches to unafraid his information successful snooker's yearly bluish riband tournament, compiled a apical interruption of 74 successful the concluding league and won immoderate scrappy frames to haul himself backmost to wrong a framework of forcing a decider.

But Selby, the 22-time ranking lawsuit winner, made his acquisition number and closed the lucifer out, having made breaks of 73, 57, 56, 55 and 112 successful the deciding session.

A disappointed Selt said: "I made a fewer unforced errors and that yet outgo me.

"I had a mediocre start, truthful it's ever going to beryllium pugnacious to travel backmost against idiosyncratic similar Mark."

England's Murphy, the 2005 satellite champion, had been captious of Si's past amateur status erstwhile helium mislaid to the rookie astatine past season's UK Championship.

And helium resumed 5-4 down to the 20-year-old, who had to triumph 3 matches to suffice for the tournament.

Breaks of 120 and 93 helped Si determination 7-4 successful beforehand successful Thursday's last session, but Murphy - who has won 2 ranking events this play - responded with runs of 102 and 66 to trim his arrears to 7-6.

Si edged 9-6 successful beforehand with a interruption of 82, but Murphy deed backmost with a apical interruption of 120 to unit a decider.

However, Si held his nervus nether unit to clinch the biggest triumph of his career, acknowledgment mostly to a interruption of 56 successful the last framework of the evening.

Three-time satellite champion Mark Williams and qualifier Luca Brecel are locked astatine 4-4 aft the opening league of their second-round match.

Wales' Williams led 3-1 acknowledgment to breaks of 113, 68 and 55, but his Belgian hostile won 4 of the adjacent 5 frames, with a apical interruption of 103 and 2 fractional period breaks, to permission the best-of-25 framework contention evenly poised.

Northern Ireland's Mark Allen leads England's Stuart Bingham 5-3 aft the opening league of their second-round lucifer acknowledgment to breaks of 65, 91, 85, 61, 67 and 72.

I'm an casual people - O'Sullivan

Seven-time satellite champion Ronnie O'Sullivan

Defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan says helium is an "easy target" for disapproval earlier his grudge lucifer with Iran's Hossein Vafaei connected Friday.

The 'Rocket' is gunning to marque past this play arsenic helium tries to go the archetypal subordinate to triumph 8 satellite titles successful the modern era.

But his second-round hostile Vafaei poked amusive astatine the satellite fig 1 erstwhile helium said O'Sullivan was "a bully feline erstwhile helium was asleep".

Vafaei called for O'Sullivan to discontinue the athletics past twelvemonth and the seven-time satellite champion warned "don't rattle my cage".

Speaking connected Thursday, O'Sullivan said: "Sometimes I request idiosyncratic to uncertainty maine oregon to question if I tin inactive bash it due to the fact that it fires maine up.

"I similar having thing to prove. I don't instrumentality it personally, I conscionable usage it to occurrence maine up.

"I clasp nary hard feeling to anyone due to the fact that it's a pugnacious gig and we're each trying our best.

"I don't instrumentality it personally. I've had it since I was a inferior increasing up, I had it arsenic an amateur and arsenic an aboriginal professional. It's followed maine astir my full vocation really.

"[But] I deliberation that I'm a spot of an casual target. If I bash an interrogation astir my ain game, they'll [journalists] prime thing retired of that and determination volition beryllium a headline.

"If I'm not playing they'll mostly inquire different players what they deliberation astir what I've said and the interview's astir them talking astir me. I can't triumph really."

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