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| Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 16 April-2 Might |
| Protection: Watch dwell on BBC TV and Crimson Button with uninterrupted protection on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport web site and the BBC Sport app |
Judd Trump held off a outstanding fightback from Mark Williams as he gained a final-frame decider to achieve his third World Championship remaining.
Trailing 12-5 on Friday, three-time champion Williams reeled off 11 of the subsequent 14 frames to guide 16-15.
Nevertheless, Trump, who took the crown in 2019 gained two tense frames to seal a dramatic victory.
Six-time winner Ronnie O’Sullivan leads John Higgins 15-9 going into the final session of their semi-final.
“There have been so many feelings going by that recreation,” Trump informed BBC Sport.
“I knew he would combat again in some unspecified time in the future however he [Mark Williams] performed unbelievable and I used to be simply sat there. It made it simpler for me to take as a result of I used to be not doing a lot fallacious.
“I used to be truly having fun with watching him and he was unbelievable. I used to be praying he was going to make some errors and I had all my luck within the final body. For 2 of them [cross doubles] to go your manner it’s your day.”
Williams had been enjoying catch-up since a dismal opening session noticed him fall 7-1 behind.
However an exhilarating show of potting introduced him again into the competition towards the 2019 winner, as he concluded on Friday night simply two frames behind at 13-11.
And that shift of momentum was evident as play resumed on Saturday. Whereas Trump took the opener with a composed break of 64, the Englishman snookered himself on the yellow within the subsequent permitting Williams to get his first body of the day on the board.
An outstanding swerve shot and run of 59 noticed Williams cut back the deficit to at least one body earlier than levelling the match with an exquisite 137 to roars of approval from the packed auditorium.
The gamers then traded frames as Williams made it 15-15 together with his sixteenth century of the Championship, a 138, equalling Stephen Hendry’s 20-year report for the variety of tons made by a participant in a single yr on the Crucible.
When Williams gained a tense tactical trade on the blue he edged forward for the primary time within the contest and seemed to be set to report the second greatest turnaround in Crucible historical past after Dennis Taylor’s well-known revival from 8-0 right down to win the 1985 remaining towards Steve Davis.
To his credit score, Trump exhibited all the the expertise and resilience that has carried him to 23 rating titles and helped him win all three ‘Triple Crown’ occasions to brush off a number of missed alternatives as he took the penultimate body.
A nerve-shredding finale, noticed Williams fluke a purple after being snookered however miss a troublesome blue, with Trump stepping in to make 49 earlier than lacking a routine purple with the remainder.
However when Williams broke down on 25 factors, Trump potted two astonishing cross doubles and one other troublesome purple to go away the 47-year-old needing three-four level snookers – a feat even he couldn’t accomplish.
O’Sullivan stays on track
Within the different last-four match, O’Sullivan went by the gears to maneuver inside two frames of his eighth remaining as he chases Hendry’s report of seven titles within the fashionable period.
Trailing 10-6, four-time winner Higgins gained the primary body of the day however was unable to use any severe stress on the world primary regardless of registering his first century of the match.
O’Sullivan performed with better rhythm and poise, compiling breaks of 82, 101, 121 and an outstanding 134 to increase his lead.
Play of their semi-final match resumes at 19:00 BST.
It was one other good efficiency from O’Sullivan, who has compiled a dozen centuries at this yr’s event though he was aided significantly by a below-par Higgins.
The four-time winner, who has laboured all through the match, briefly discovered his contact with an exquisite run of 103 to eclipse his earlier highest break within the match of 58.
However the Scot exhibited his frustration by slamming his cue into the ground after lacking a protracted purple within the twenty second body. The miss got here after he had failed with a comparatively simple purple to the fitting center within the earlier body, gifting it to an on-song O’Sullivan, who made the a centesimal century of this yr’s event.
The ‘Rocket’ hardly ever appeared like lacking as soon as among the many balls and offered a precursor of what was to comply with by exhibiting exemplary cue-ball management when successful his first body of the day – the sample persevering with as he pressed house his superiority all through the session.
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