Judd Trump has held back a lively fight from Sean Murphy to reach the quarterfinals of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible.
Trump began the final session of the former champion’s second round clash with a 10-6 lead, moving within one victory frame in support of 63 and 86 breaks.
Murphy digs deep and scores the next two frames with 88 and 72 breaks to reach at least the session mid-session interval, continuing what he left off when play resumed, reducing the 112 and 99 breaks to 12-10.
The Masters champion also entered with a great long red at frame 23, but after potting the blue, he missed the red in the corner, and Trump intervened with a 58 break, effectively securing a fierce 13-10 victory.
“Shaun was in four or five frames in his own world for them,” Trump told the BBC. “I was a bit worried, but I had to go back to that last frame and put a nice stroke on the first red and enter. By the time you reach 12-10, you’re probably starting to think about the worst.
Murphy refused to settle too calm by defeat. “Frankly, it was the best I played in the championship and I lost, and I can’t criticize myself very much.
Si Jiahui sealed his position in the quarterfinals of his second melting pot after holding back lively qualifier Ben Woollaston to seal his 13-10 victory. The Chinese player, who made his debut two years ago to reach the final four, began the final session with a two-frame lead, but dragged the level 10-10 and rocked three in a row.
