World Snooker Championship 2023 results: Mark Selby fights back against John Higgins
Last updated on .From the section Snooker
| Cazoo World Championship |
|---|
| Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 15 April-1 May |
| Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app |
Mark Selby fought back from 4-1 down to draw level at 4-4 with fellow four-time champion John Higgins in their World Championship quarter-final.
A compelling affair saw Higgins and Selby both open with 67 breaks before the Scot won the first frame on a re-spotted black.
Higgins, 47, then constructed breaks of 63 and 79 to twice eke out three-frame advantages.
Selby, 39, responded with runs of 70, 82 and a wonderfully crafted 103.
It leaves their best-of-25 encounter perfectly poised when it resumes on Wednesday at 14:30 BST.
Chinese debutant Si Jiahui and Scotland's Anthony McGill are also tied at 4-4 after in their last-eight meeting.
McGill made a half century to open the match but his promising start soon went awry as Si found his rhythm to compile a superb 106 break and followed up with a 58 as he took the third frame.
The 20-year-old won an error-strewn fourth frame - in which both players were guilty of missing easy pots - and asserted his control with a run of 65 to take the fifth frame.
However, the Scot crucially tightened up his safety play and will be delighted to have reeled off the concluding three frames of the session against an opponent he has failed to beat in all of their previous three matches.
Selby and Higgins serve up a treat
A mouth-watering contest between two former four-time Crucible winners more than lived up to expectations, with the first frame providing a sign of what was to follow.
Higgins, who came into the contest having lost just five frames in his first two matches, took the opener on a re-spotted black after both players had crafted breaks of 67 and then showcased their wonderful match-play capabilities.
The Scot then took the second and a protracted third, with a composed 63, after getting the better of his English opponent in a lengthy safety exchange.
A missed green though cost Higgins the opportunity of a 4-0 lead as Selby rallied with a 70 heading into the mid-session interval.
The players then traded frames, with Selby benefiting from a fluked red into the middle on his way to clawing back another frame with a half century.
With Selby growing in confidence he also rattled off the next two frames as Higgins, who failed to pot a ball in the final three frames, made some uncharacteristic errors.
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