Shaun

Wu Yize held off a Shaun Murphy fightback to ensure he will take a slender 13-12 lead into the concluding session of their World Championship final at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

Having watched Wu deliver a succession of big breaks to pull clear at 10-7 overnight, Murphy emphatically roared back into contention in the best-of-35-frames final on Monday afternoon.

The Englishman, who was crowned champion in 2005 and is aiming to set a new record for the longest gap between first and second titles, reeled off the first five frames on offer with breaks of 76, 52, 59 and 60.

However, he was given a huge helping hand by his 22-year-old opponent, who initially appeared to be carrying the weight of the occasion on his shoulders.

With his trademark long-potting ability conspicuous by its absence, Wu repeatedly left Murphy opportunities to capitalise.

To his credit, Wu stopped the rot in the 23rd frame of the match – crafting an important break of 64 after Murphy left a red over the right corner.

That shifted the momentum back in Wu’s favour, allowing him to limit the damage.

Wu, who could become the second-youngest world champion at snooker’s most famous venue, levelled the match after a contribution of 46 and then regained the lead with runs of 60 and 61 in the final frame of the session.

It means that there will only be one frame separating the finalists when they return at 19:00 BST – the first time that has happened since 2014, when Mark Selby eventually defeated Ronnie O’Sullivan 18-14.

Wu made a scintillating start to the evening, having resumed at 4-4 after an afternoon session that was briefly interrupted by a female spectator jumping over the front-row barrier before referee Rob Spencer and security intervened to remove her.

Breaks of 82 and 103 gave him a two-frame advantage and while Murphy, who had earlier recovered from 3-0 down, hit back with a 72 it appeared as though he was struggling to stem the flow of his opponent.

Murphy, 43, who is aiming to set a new record for the longest gap between first and second titles, openly admitted that Wu had blasted him off the table at the Masters in January – albeit in a best-of-11 contest.

And having never won a match on his two visits to the Crucible prior to this year, Wu has so far has answered every question posed of him in the longer format.

The World Championship semi-final between John Higgins and Shaun Murphy is delicately poised at 8-8 after a captivating second session at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

In contrast to the opening to their match on Wednesday, Higgins appeared the stronger of the two players in their early exchanges.

The four-time world champion, who turns 51 on 18 May, ruthlessly punished a missed black from Murphy to take the opening frame with a break of 72.

Englishman Murphy, who is looking to end a 21-year wait for his second Crucible crown, delivered the perfect riposte with an 88 as he took two of the next three frames to draw level at 6-6.

When Murphy failed to convert a plant to the right middle, his error was again exploited, with Higgins enjoying a run of 57 to edge back in front.

The Scot then knocked in a wonderful break of 86 off the back of a brave long red to open up a two-frame advantage.

However, Murphy took a scrappy 15th frame and turned the tables on his opponent to restore parity when Higgins missed a tricky red with the rest down the left cushion.

Their best-of-33-frames encounter will resume on Friday at 19:00 BST, with another eight frames to be played in the third of four sessions.

China’s Wu Yize takes a 6-2 lead into the second session of his last-four meeting with Mark Allen, which gets under way at 14:30 BST.

Neil Robertson established a narrow 5-3 lead over John Higgins in a fiercely contested opening to their quarter-final.

Higgins compiled breaks of 61 and 56 to take the first frame and the fourth to draw level at 2-2.

However, the emotional and physical toll of defeating Ronnie O’Sullivan 13-12 in an all-time Crucible classic on Monday appeared to weigh on the 50-year-old Scot at times.

The four-time champion made six unforced errors before reaching the mid-session interval and was far from his best in a scrappy affair.

Australia’s Robertson, who won the world title in 2010, also failed to hit the heights despite enjoying runs of 77 and 70 and, at one point, he even had to have his chair repaired, adding to the protracted nature of their contest.

While he took the final two frames of the session, his pragmatic approach and an unfortunate run of the balls contributed to a drawn-out eighth frame that lasted almost 52 minutes and delayed the start of the evening session.

Robertson and Higgins get back under way on Wednesday at 10:00 BST.

In contrast, Hossein Vafaei and Wu Yize are level at 4-4 after an entertaining start to their best-of-25 encounter.

With both players seemingly focused on attacking snooker, Iran’s Vafaei knocked in a break of 66 to lead 2-1 before Wu underlined his status as one of the game’s burgeoning talents with runs of 90, 56 and 56 to pull 4-2 ahead.

Vafaei, who had to win two qualifiers before advancing past Si Jiahui and then world number one Judd Trump in a final-frame thriller, responded with a break of 71.

And he drew level when Wu failed to knock in a presentable long black to the top left corner, clearing the table up to, and including, the pink.

They return for the second session of their best-of-25 encounter on Wednesday at 14:30 BST.

China’s Zhao Xintong pulls off a shot emmulating the late John Virgo, potting three reds at the same time in his quarter-final match-up against Shaun Murphy at the World Snooker Championship.

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Shaun Murphy produced a superb performance to thrash China’s Xiao Guodong 13-3 and become the first player into the 2026 World Championship quarter-finals.

Murphy, a champion at the Crucible in 2005 and runner-up in 2009, 2015 and 2021, led 6-2 overnight against China’s world number nine Xiao Guodong, before winning seven of the eight frames in Friday’s first session.

It meant the 43-year-old eighth seed won his match with a session to spare.

Murphy made breaks of 93, 66, 103, 69, 115 and 103 in Friday’s session to set up a last-eight tie against the winner of the all-Chinese match between reigning world champion Zhao Xintong and Ding Junhui, with the quarter-final beginning on Tuesday and finishing on Wednesday.

“I’m really pleased with how I played. I’m delighted,” said Murphy. “It does not happen often that you win with a session to spare, because everyone is so good.

“I would not say I’m desperate to win another World Championship, but it is close.

“It’s 21 years since that clueless 22-year-old came here and nicked the trophy from everyone. Since then I’ve been trying my hardest to get the trophy again. It’s not been through the lack of trying.”

Murphy last reached the quarter-final stage in 2021, when he went on to the final and lost to Mark Selby, and said he still feels he can improve.

“I’m loving the game, loving practice and still think I can get better,” said Murphy. “The best days are still ahead of me.”