World Snooker Championship 2013 - Trump battles back against Murphy
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Former Crucible finalist Judd Trump came from 8-3 down, to shock Shaun Murphy and finish the session 8-8 heading in to tomorrow's conclusion of their Betfair World Snooker Championship 2013 quarter-final.
2005 world champion Murphy wasn't at his best for the first few frames of the morning session, but he didn't need to be as Trump's pot success was as low as 74% at a point and his long pots were non-existant as the Magician raced to a 6-2 lead.
When they resumed in the evening it seemed that former UK champion Trump had been given a new lease of life and his potting and safety improved greatly. Although Murphy won the 9th with a 91, Trump hit straight back with a 93 before winning the five last frames in a row with a top break of 118 to level the scores heading in to tomorrow's conclusion.
Judd Trump
No doubt Trump will be the most happiest with how the two sessions have worked out and I expect him to come out of the blocks quickly tomorrow, it will all come down to Shaun's safety play and consistant potting to freeze out his flamboyent opponent.
The winner of that match will set up a potential mouth-watering clash with defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan who played possibly the best snooker seen so far this season in romping to a 7-1 first session victory over fellow Essex man Stuart Bingham.
Premier League champion Bingham had a few half chances in the earlier frames but for most of the afternoon there was barely nothing he could do as O'Sullivan's pot success was as high as 98% at a point and he recorded breaks of 79, 54, 111, 60, 87, a 133 (his sixth ton of the tournament so far) and a 78 to storm to a 7-0 lead.
Ronnie O'Sullivan
O'Sullivan looked aptly human as he hit the blue off the break shot in the final frame of the session, allowing Bingham to make two small contributions to avoid a rare Crucible session whitewash and keep himself with a vague hope going in to the match's conclusion tomorrow.
Elsewhere Barry Hawkins has a great chance to send another top seed home early as he holds a crucial 9-7 lead overnight against Ding Junhui. The man that defeated Mark Selby in the second round, got off to a fantastic start, making crucial breaks when they were needed to go 8-4 up.
Ding rallied later on in the evening and made top breaks of 51, 76, 58 and a 72 in the final frame of the session to ensure he would only trail the Australian Open champion by two frames and to still give himself a decent chance to progress to the last four of the tournament.
The winner of those two will face a new face in a Crucible semi-final in the shape of experienced pro Ricky Walden or 21-year-old Welsh qualifier Michael White. It is the two-times ranking event winner who is looking the more likely to progress in these earlier stages as he holds a 6-2 lead thanks to runs of 93, 58, 59 and an impressive 113 in the 8th.
Here is how the quarter-finals of the Betfair World Snooker Championship is shaping up so far:
Ronnie O'Sullivan 7-1 Stuart Bingham
Shaun Murphy 8-8 Judd Trump
Ricky Walden 6-2 Michael White
Ding Junhui 7-9 Barry Hawkins
Today's Betfair World Snooker Championship report was sponsored by PJN SPORTS, the UK's number 1 supplier for snooker and pool equipment. Visit them at www.pjnsports.co.uk for all the latest deals and offers.
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