Selby takes on the Crucible Curse

MARK SELBY will become the latest man to take on the Crucible Curse when he begins the defence of his first snooker world title today against Kurt Maflin.

The Curse, which has affected even the greats like six-time winner Steve Davis and seven-time champion Stephen Hendry, has ensured no first-time winner has successfully defended their crown.

Joe Johnson in 1987 and Ken Doherty in 1998 have come closest to this achievement, reaching the Final before losing to Davis and John Higgins respectively.

But the fact that only Davis, Hendry and, more recently, Ronnie O'Sullivan have won any sort of back-to-back titles at the Sheffield venue shows just how difficult it is.

Indeed, it would be a surprise if Selby was to break the mould. It is not that the Jester from Leicester has turned into a bad player - but his status as the defending champion will always lend itself to a bit of extra pressure.

And that is not always something he has dealt with, as he has admitted himself.

Still, it would be a massive shock if Selby lost in the first round to World Championship debutant Maflin who - though born in Lewisham - lives in Oslo and represents Norway following naturalisation.

Instead, Selby's biggest threat in the top quarter of the draw would appear to come from fellow-Englishman Shaun Murphy.

The 2005 world champion cued beautifully to win his first Masters title at the Alexandra Palace in January, eventually thrashing Neil Robertson 10-2 in the Final.

Murphy also seems to have an altogether much more relaxed outlook on life after a rollercoaster start to his career.

For, when the Magician won his world title 10 years ago, he was aged just 22 - becoming the second-youngest champion after Hendry.

He was also only the third qualifier ever to win and had been 150/1 with the bookmakers at the start of the tournament.

The success did not last - and was even considered in some quarters to be a complete flash-in-the-pan until the 2008-09 season brought him a UK Championship title and another Crucible final appearance.

Still, though, the lack of a second world title drove him to the verge of quitting, something he openly admits in a revealing interview on the BBC Sport website.

"There were a few dark years when I wasn't practising enough, was doing too many golf days and charity events," said Murphy.

"Then when I started putting the hard work in, banging balls in all day long, day after day, I still wasn't getting anything for it.

"Losing 6-1 to Mark Selby in the semi-finals of the Masters last year was almost the final nail in the coffin. I could have easily walked away from snooker there and then."

But, without much of a fall-back plan, Murphy persisted - and victory in the Masters meant he completed snooker's prestigious Triple Crown.

Another run of form like that over the next 17 days and the Harlow-born 32-year-old will be a massive threat - he is my tip to emerge from the top quarter.

The second quarter is dominated by the presence of Australian Robertson - the only former world champion of the section.

By his standards, the Aussie has not had a particularly great season with the Wuxi Classic - played last June - his only ranking title of the campaign.

He also seems to have got into the nasty habit of giving his opponent the initiative early on in his matches.

In the Final of the Masters, he was blown away by Murphy before he even had a chance of getting into the game.

Similarly, the Thunder from Down Under found himself 5-0 down to Graeme Dott in the fourth round of the UK Championships in York before a stunning comeback to 5-5 ultimately failed.

At least, in this respect, the marathon format at the World Championships favours Robertson - and he also has a good record against his likely second-round opponent Ali Carter.

A place in the semi finals is the least Robertson would expect of himself - but, on current form, it would be difficult to see him going past this stage.

Quarter three is headed nominally by world number three Ding Junhui - but, with only one quarter final and one semi final in eight previous Crucible appearances, the Chinese has little World Championship pedigree.

Instead, Higgins leads the way in the section with four world titles - though his overall reputation is little recovered from the infamous News of the World sting operation.

Judd Trump, then, is the talent who most people will be keeping their eye on for a run deep into the tournament - and, as the last player to start his campaign on Wednesday night, the 2011 runner-up will be itching to get under way.

In the bottom quarter, Welsh friends Mark Williams and Matthew Stevens have been paired in what promises to be an entertaining repeat of the dramatic 2000 World Championship Final, won 18-16 by Williams.

The section, though, is dominated by five-time champion O'Sullivan who, like Trump, is another relatively late starter this year.

O'Sullivan is also inevitably the bookmakers' favourite - but, following his defeat in the Final last year, the Rocket seems to have arrived in Sheffield to less of a fanfare than usual.

His absence from the China Open last month for unspecified "health reasons" suggests his mind may not be as firmly on the game as it could be.

And, in a recent interview with the Guardian, he was typically enigmatic about his future, both in the short-term and the long.

Now aged 39, O'Sullivan knows there might not be many more chances for him to catch Davis and Hendry.

Nevertheless, with his standing in the game already assured in his own right, this is undoubtedly something for the writers and pundits to obsess about, rather than O'Sullivan himself. 

World Snooker final: 'Torturer' Selby completes Triple Crown

2014 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL 

Ronnie O'Sullivan (1) 14-18 Mark Selby (3)

Session One (5-3): 77-0 (69), 64-26, 102-0 (102), 28-69, 47-68, 80-8 (63), 36-72, 66-54
Session Two (5-4): 99-24, 70-47 (52), 67-27 (63), 25-82 (55), 45-96, 131-0 (131), 87-0 (87), 9-84 (58), 9-78 (62)
Session Three (1-5): 35-81 (55), 23-77 (52), 7-84 (74), 29-89, 76-38 (50), 67-70
Session Four (3-6): 100-0 (100), 24-67, 39-64, 12-90 (56), 79-0, 0-131 (127), 14-87 (87), 56-62

MARK SELBY dedicated his first World Championship victory to his late father after he beat defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan 18-14 at the Crucible Theatre on Monday. 

The Jester from Leicester became only the ninth player in snooker history to complete a career Triple Crown of the World, UK and Masters titles. 

And he did so thanks to one of the best comebacks in years, having been 8-3 and 10-5 down during the course of the two-day finale. 

Certainly, Selby - now also back at world number one - must be credited for taking the tough route to his first world title. 

After all, he had only just qualified for the final having got the better of the in-form Neil Robertson in a 12-hour marathon. 

By contrast, O'Sullivan had earned the day off on Saturday by beating his semi final opponent Barry Hawkins 17-7 with a session to spare. 

It was the second match in a row that O'Sullivan had won prematurely after he had beaten Shaun Murphy 13-3 in the quarter finals, thus repeating the feat which he had achieved on his way to the title in 2004. 

Indeed, O'Sullivan's more straightforward build-up to the Final seemed to have given him an advantage as he went 3-0 up with his 11th century of the tournament. 

But Selby hung in and reduced his arrears to 3-2 either side of the mid-session interval before the more fluent O'Sullivan compiled a run of 63 to move two clear again. 

The final two frames of the first session were shared - and so, resuming at 5-3, O'Sullivan was again able to open a gap on his opponent in the evening by taking the opening three frames to move five clear at 8-3. 

He then responded to Selby taking two in a row by keeping him off the table for the next two frames as he restored his five-frame lead at 10-5 with runs of 131 and 87. 

At that stage, it was looking pretty ominous for the 30-year-old challenger but Selby again came up with the goods unexpectedly as breaks of 58 and 62 reduced his overnight deficit to 10-7.

On the back of a good night's rest, the 2007 runner-up came into the second day looking more refreshed - and promptly made the more assured start. 

Runs of 55, 52 and 74 brought him level with O'Sullivan before he then won a scrappy 21st to take the lead for the first time. 

O'Sullivan stopped the rot by taking the first frame after the mid-session interval following a series of poor shots by both players on the yellow and green. 

But none of those misses could compare to O'Sullivan's unbelievable error on pink which effectively lost him a 50-minute long frame 23. 

It had been an afternoon of sheer drama at the Crucible with Selby, nicknamed the Torturer by O'Sullivan, in his element as the players were called off two frames short of their allocated eight. 

O'Sullivan badly needed a good start to the evening session - and he got one as he levelled with a ton in seven minutes.
 
The speed of his break in that frame was to prove deceiving, though, as the next three frames were ground out by Selby who went in at the final mid-session 15-13 up. 

Again, O'Sullivan responded as a 49 break brought him back to within a single frame. 

But Selby had long since sensed his chance and loosened up to play some of his best snooker of the whole tournament, hitting a break of 127 in frame 30 and an 87 in frame 31.

That still left him with one to go - but, while O'Sullivan looked as if he might receive a stay of execution by going 56-0 up in frame 32, it ultimately wasn't enough.

With the balls spread in awkward positions, it seemed to be a tough ask for Selby. However, he gradually reduced his deficit as he reached the colours, knowing he would need them all.

At this point, Selby must have been shaking inside but he showed few nerves as he sunk those final few balls, his calmness under pressure in demonstration to the very last pot.

Finally, a broad smile emerged on the Jester's face as he held the silver trophy aloft. Yes, all the hard work had paid off, and now was the time to enjoy it.

At the same time, though, O'Sullivan was far from miserable. This was his first defeat in six appearances in the Crucible final - and, if the reverse had come earlier in his career, it would have no doubt been swiftly followed by a threat to quit the game.

Instead, O'Sullivan acknowledged he had still had a good tournament and reflected calmly on the excellent matchplay of his opponent.

To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, O'Sullivan - with the help of his psychologist Dr Steve Peters - has now seemingly learned to treat those two imposters, Triumph and Disaster, just the same.

And, oddly enough, the five-time champion came much closer to a real Disaster on his way back to Essex from the final as he was involved in a road accident on the M1 in wet conditions.

Thankfully, he and his six-year-old son Little Ronnie were unhurt, if a little "shaken", something which can hopefully just be put behind them in the coming days.

In the meantime, in these coming days, it might finally start to sink in for Selby exactly what he has achieved...

At last, a world champion and thus a more credible world number one than he has ever been before. Bravo, Mr Selby.

 
FULL TOURNAMENT RESULTS

FIRST ROUND
Best of 19 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	10-4	Robin Hull
	Joe Perry (16)	10-7	Jamie Burnett
	Shaun Murphy (9)	10-9	Jamie Cope
	Marco Fu (8)	10-7	Martin Gould
	Barry Hawkins (5)	10-4	David Gilbert
	Ricky Walden (12)	10-7	Kyren Wilson
	Mark Davis (13)	5-10	Dominic Dale
	Ding Junhui (4)	9-10	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	10-9	Michael White
	Ali Carter (14)	10-8	Xiao Guodong
	John Higgins (11)	7-10	Alan McManus
	Stuart Bingham (6)	5-10	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	10-8	Tom Ford
	Stephen Maguire (10)	9-10	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	10-4	Michael Holt
	Neil Robertson (2)	10-2	Robbie Williams

SECOND ROUND
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-11	Joe Perry (16)
	Shaun Murphy (9)	13-8	Marco Fu (8)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-11	Ricky Walden (12)
	Dominic Dale	13-4	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	13-9	Ali Carter (14)
	Alan McManus	13-8	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	13-7	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	7-13	Neil Robertson (2)

QUARTER FINALS
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-3	Shaun Murphy (9)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-12	Dominic Dale
	Mark Selby (3)	13-5	Alan McManus
	Judd Trump (7)	11-13	Neil Robertson (2)

SEMI FINALS
Best of 33 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	17-7	Barry Hawkins (5)
	Mark Selby (3)	17-15	Neil Robertson (2)

CENTURY BREAKS (58)
140 Neil Robertson
137 Ricky Walden, Neil Robertson
136 Ding Junhui, Marco Fu, Ronnie O'Sullivan
135 Michael Wasley
134 Stephen Maguire, Barry Hawkins
133 Mark Selby
131 Ronnie O'Sullivan
132 Neil Robertson
130 Ryan Day, Neil Robertson
127 Mark Selby
124 Ronnie O'Sullivan (x2), Marco Fu
118 Ronnie O'Sullivan
117 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump
116 Marco Fu
115 Barry Hawkins
113 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
112 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Ronnie O'Sullivan
111 Jamie Burnett, John Higgins
110 Ali Carter, Mark Selby
109 Ricky Walden, Marco Fu, Mark Selby
108 Michael Wasley, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
107 Alan McManus, Ryan Day, Judd Trump
106 Dominic Dale, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Barry Hawkins
104 Barry Hawkins, Mark Selby
103 Michael Wasley, Neil Robertson, Ronnie O'Sullivan
102 Robin Hull, Neil Robertson, Ali Carter, Shaun Murphy, Ronnie O'Sullivan
101 Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson
100 Neil Robertson, Ronnie O'Sullivan

CENTURY MAKERS
13 Ronnie O'Sullivan
10 Neil Robertson
5 Mark Selby
4 Barry Hawkins, Marco Fu
3 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Michael Wasley
2 Judd Trump, Ali Carter, Ryan Day
1 Dominic Dale, Alan McManus, Jamie Burnett, Ding Junhui, John Higgins, Robin Hull, Stephen Maguire

World Snooker: Legendary Davis turns back the clock to reach last eight

CRUCIBLE LEGEND Steve Davis returned to his 1980s heyday to beat defending champion John Higgins 13-11 in the second round at the World Championships in Sheffield.

Six-time winner Davis dominated the early stages, taking a 6-2 lead after the first session after breaks of 72 and 102, his first competitive century of the season.

Back came Higgins at the start of session two with a 78 break in the ninth frame and a tight win in the 10th to reduce his arrears to 6-4.

But Davis responded with a break of 83 in the 11th frame and a win in the 12th to restore his four frame advantage.

Higgins then won the next three frames, including a 106 break, to close the gap back to a single frame before Davis again responded by taking the last frame of the day, leaving the score 9-7.

Higgins began the third session in his best form of the match with breaks of 98 and 115 to level the scores but once again Davis recovered his position by winning the next two.

The contest looked like it was heading all the way when Higgins restored parity at 11-11 by taking frames 21 and 22 with breaks of 59 and 56.

But Davis continued the run of winning two consecutive frames to get over the line and become the oldest man in the quarter finals since Australian Eddie Charlton in 1983.

In the last eight, Davis will face contemporary Aussie Neil Robertson after his stunning comeback win over Martin Gould.

Robertson's victory would have been the main headline on any other day, but for Davis' histrionics, after he beat qualifier Gould 13-12 having trailed all the way the through the match.

Gould hit breaks of 63, 70, 80 and 116 in winning the opening six frames before Robertson belatedly responded with breaks of 71, 53 and 84 to leave the score at 6-3.

But Robertson's mini-revival did not affect Gould who won five of the next seven frames for 11-5 at the end of the second session.

At this stage, the ninth seed was in real trouble but he began the third session in inspired form with breaks of 64 and 112 to win frames 17 and 18.

The next three frames also went the way of the Australian but a solitary Gould success in frame 22 left the qualifier 12-10 ahead and just one away from victory.

It could not stem the tide, though, and Robertson took the final three frames, capping a thrilling comeback with a 52 break to win.

Mark Allen was the first man through to the last eight after a comfortable 13-5 win over qualifier Mark Davis.

Davis took the first two frames but, from then on, Northern Ireland youngster Allen dominated with a series of high breaks to win seven of the next eight frames.

Allen hit 81, 80, 63 and the Crucible's first ever 146, putting him in pole position for the high break prize of £10,000.

Davis won frame 11 but 11th seed Allen took the next four with further breaks of 59, 73 and 74 to lead 11-4.

And, despite Davis winning the final frame of session two with a break of 72, Allen quickly wrapped up the match with two centuries in the first two frames of the final session.

Allen, who knocked out Ronnie O'Sullivan last year on the way to the quarter finals, will meet 2006 champion Graeme Dott in the last eight this time.

Unseeded Dott had just as convincing a win as Allen, beating fellow Scot Stephen Maguire 13-6.

After winning a tight opening frame, Dott went on a phenomenal run, scoring breaks of 94, 110, 99, 59, 130, 60, 127 and 50 to win 10 of next 11 frames and lead 11-1.

The contest was becoming embarrassing for Maguire but the third seed at least took frames 13 and 14 with breaks of 120 and 82 to reduce the score to 11-3.

The pair shared the last two frames of the second session to confirm Dott's position of superiority at 12-4, just one frame short of the last eight.

Breaks of 75 and 77 meant Maguire won the first two frames of the third session but any thoughts of a comeback were soon dispelled by Dott after his win in the 19th frame.

In the big clash in the bottom quarter of the draw, three-time winner Ronnie O'Sullivan defeated twice-winner Mark Williams 13-10 in a tight but fast-scoring match.

O'Sullivan threatened to blitz Williams with high scoring early on and, despite the Welshman winning the opening frame, the Rocket hit breaks of 67, 87, 83 and 78 to win the next four.

In those frames, Williams scored just two points but he responded with breaks of 103, 57 and 74 to level the contest at 4-4 at the end of the first session.

The second session was also shared but this time it was O'Sullivan on the back foot, although he won the opening frame after a break of 86.

Williams won four of the next five frames to lead 8-6 after breaks of 54 and 99, and a single-point win on the black ball in frame 11.

But O'Sullivan did not crack - instead, he made breaks of 66 and 72 to ensure the final session would begin with the scores level at 8-8.

The pair each hit a 53 break to share the opening two frames of the decisive session but, from then on, it was O'Sullivan's class which showed.

A break of 104 in frame 19 was the first of three centuries in the final five frames. The others - a 111 and a 106 - came in the last two frames as he eventually broke Williams' resistance.

That is not to say that Williams failed to continue his good form. Indeed, the Welshman's 121 in the 21st frame made the score 11-10 to O'Sullivan and a final frame decider looked possible.

But O'Sullivan's superior scoring prowess came to the fore and brought a standing ovation from the Crucible crowd.

The Rocket will meet 2010 Masters champion Mark Selby in the last eight after the Jester from Leicester completely dominated seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry in 13-5 win.

Hendry, who struggled past Zhang Anda in the first round, actually held a 4-2 lead in the early stages of this contest.

But 2007 runner-up Selby won 11 frames out of 12 - including breaks of 87, 96, 72 twice, 117 and 99 - to leave his Scottish opponent rooted to his seat for long periods.

The thrashing brought to an end a poor season for Hendry who reached the quarter finals of a ranking event just once - but the dream of a first world crown for Selby lives on.

Allister Carter will also be having that dream after he beat Joe Perry 13-11 in another close match.

Fifth seed Carter hit an 88 break in the opening frame and a 72 in frame six while Perry's high break was 56 in a largely uneventful first session, which ended 4-4.

2008 runner up Carter stepped up his game at the start of the second session to take the first four frames, with breaks of 61 and 100 in frames nine and 11, to lead 8-4.

And the other four frames in the second part of the session were shared to leave Carter in a commanding position at 10-6.

Despite this, Perry launched a magnificent comeback and won five consecutive frames with four breaks over 50 to take a one-frame lead.

But breaks of 104 and 82 re-established Carter's control of the match, and a third frame followed straightaway to put him in a quarter final against 2005 champion Shaun Murphy.

Murphy ended Ding Junhui's hopes of Crucible glory for another year after a 13-10 win having spent most of the time playing catch up.

After the opening four frames were shared, Ding hit breaks of 103 and 78 to help him to three of the next four and a 5-3 lead after the opening session.

Back came Murphy with breaks of 72 and 100 to level the match at 5-5 before Ding restored his two frame advantage in frames 11 and 12.

Murphy again responded with breaks of 64 in the 13th frame and 51 in the 15th frame as well as a win in the 16th frame to level the match again at 8-8.

Ding took the lead twice again at the start of the third session with 58 in the frame 17 and 137 in frame 19 but Murphy continued to come back in the tight frames in between.

The Englishman then demonstrated perfect timing to take an 11-10 lead.

And another two frames, including a 128 break, made it four in a row for a victory which ensures his love affair with the Crucible continues.

Second Round (best of 25 frames)
Steve Davis bt John Higgins (1) 13-11
Neil Robertson (9) bt Martin Gould 13-12

Allister Carter (5) bt Joe Perry (12) 13-11
Shaun Murphy (4) bt Ding Junhui (13) 13-10

Graeme Dott bt Stephen Maguire (3) 13-6
Mark Allen (11) bt Mark Davis 13-5

Mark Selby (7) bt Stephen Hendry (10) 13-5
Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) bt Mark Williams (15) 13-10
__________________________________________________

EARLIER ROUNDS/CENTURY BREAKS
First round (best of 19 frames)
Section 1:
John Higgins (1) bt Barry Hawkins 10-6
Steve Davis bt Mark King (16) 10-9
Martin Gould bt Marco Fu (8) 10-9
Neil Robertson (9) bt Fergal O'Brien 10-5

Defending champions Higgins overcame a wobble to beat Barry Hawkins and set up a second round tie with Steve Davis.

Higgins trailed 5-4 after the opening session but picked up his form in the second half of the match, hitting two century breaks to progress.

The Scot will meet six-time winner Steve Davis after his thrilling final frame win over Mark King.

King dominated the first session but Davis won the final frame of it to trail just 5-4. King soon made this 6-4 but then four successive frames for Davis gave him an 8-6 lead.

King, the 16th seed, levelled the score at 8-8 before Davis hit a 91 break to move within one frame of victory.

A tight 18th frame went in favour of King before Davis edged the final frame, winning when King inadvertently potted a pink in hoping to lay a snooker.

Martin Gould was another qualifier to taste final frame success in this quarter of the draw. He beat eighth seed Marcu Fu in another topsy-turvy game.

Fu took five of the opening seven frames, hitting a 112 break in the seventh, to build a commanding lead but Gould won the next three with two centuries of his own.

Fu restored a two frame advantage at 8-6 by winning three of the next four frames but Gould repeated his earlier achievement of three successive frames to lead 9-8.

A vital break of 51 ensured Fu forced a decider but Gould held his nerve and hit a break of 90 for a huge personal win.

Gould meets Neil Robertson in round two after the Australian overcame Fergal O'Brien without ever being at his best.

Robertson hit a break of 106 to win the ninth frame to lead 6-3 after the opening session, having won five in a row between the second and sixth frames.

O'Brien threatened a comeback, reducing the lead to 6-5 by taking the opening two frames of the second session.

But Robertson accelerated again, taking the final four frames to seal a place in the second round.

Section 2:
Allister Carter (5) bt Jamie Cope 10-4
Joe Perry (12) bt Michael Holt 10-4
Ding Junhui (13) bt Stuart Pettman 10-1
Shaun Murphy (4) bt Gerard Greene 10-7

Ding Junhui demonstrated his championship credentials, systematically destroying Stuart Pettman in his first round match at the Crucible.

At one stage, Ding led 6-0, having hit a 129 break in the sixth frame, and a first Crucible whitewash since 1993 looked very much on the cards.

But Pettman won a scrappy seventh frame to save face before Ding won another four frames with ease to meet Shaun Murphy.

2005 champion Murphy also looked set for a big first round win over Gerard Greene but the Northern Irishman made an unlikely comeback.

Murphy led 8-1 after the first session and the opening two frames of the second session were shared.

But Greene then won five frames in a row to reduce the lead to 9-7 before Murphy finally got over the line with a break of 87 in the 17th frame.

Allister Carter also benefited from a good start against his opponent Jamie Cope, and he will now face Joe Perry.

Carter led 7-2 at the end of the first session before sharing the first four frames of session two to lead 9-4.

Fifth seed Carter then wrapped up the win in the 14th frame as Cope realised he had left himself far too much to do.

Perry won his first round match against Michael Holt in identical fashion to Carter.

He also led 7-2 at the end of the first session before sharing the first four frames of the second session and completing the job in frame 14.

Section 3:
Mark Allen (11) bt Tom Ford 10-4
Mark Davis bt Ryan Day (6) 10-8
Stephen Maguire (3) bt Stephen Lee 10-4
Graeme Dott bt Peter Ebdon (14) 10-5

Graeme Dott played some stylish snooker to beat Peter Ebdon who has dropped out of the top 16 for the first time since 1994.

Ebdon won the opening frame but Dott was in better early form and a 105 break in the second frame sent him on his way to five in a row.

After Ebdon won the seventh frame to reduce his arrears to 5-2, Dott took the final two frames of the first session to restore the lead which his dominance deserved.

It was vital for Ebdon that he got a good start to the second session and, by winning the two first frames, he duly reduced his deficit to 7-4.

But 2006 champion Dott was not to be denied a repeat victory at the Crucible over Ebdon, and he won three out of four frames for a comfortable victory.

Dott faces fellow Scotsman Stephen Maguire in the second round after the number three eased past Stephen Lee.

Maguire took the first three frames before Lee hit back to take the next two, the latter with a fine 127 break.

Maguire then won three out of the next four frames to lead 6-3 overnight before Lee made another big break, a 95, to win the opening frame of session two.

A 114 break re-established Maguire's stranglehold on the game and he reeled off three further frames without reply to win 10-4.

That was also the score for talented Northern Irish player Mark Allen against Crucible debutant Tom Ford.

Ford appeared rather overawed by the grand venue as Allen established an 8-1 lead after the opening session.

At least Ford can console himself with the fact that he won his first Crucible frame with a century.

But, by then, Allen was already 7-0 up and indeed he replied to Ford's ton with one of his own in the ninth frame.

Ford rallied to take three of the first four frames the next day but Allen's win was never in much doubt, and was sealed with a 72 break in frame 14.

Allen will face Mark Davis in round two after his fine 10-8 win over number six seed Ryan Day.

Day took the first two frames but the unseeded Davis took five of the next six to establish an overnight lead.

Welshman Day had at least reduced his task by winning the last frame of the first session and he followed it up by taking the first two of the second session to lead 6-5.

Davis then won three of the next four frames to lead 8-7 before Day levelled it up again at 8-8.

But Davis was not to be denied only a second career win at the Crucible and composed breaks of 56 and 62 were enough to secure a two-frame triumph.

Section 4:
Mark Selby (7) bt Ken Doherty 10-4
Stephen Hendry (10) bt Zhang Anda 10-9
Mark Williams (15) bt Marcus Campbell 10-5
Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) bt Liang Wenbo 10-7

Seven-time champion Stephen Hendry had to win the last three frames of his first round match against Zhang Anda to avoid becoming the victim of massive shock.

Hendry started well enough, outclassing debutant Zhang to take the first four frames but the Chinese teenager hit back to trail just 5-4 after the first session.

Zhang hit an 86 break to level the match at 5-5 at the start of session two but Hendry still showed no signs of panic, winning the next two frames to lead 7-5.

But then Zhang reeled off four successive frames to leave him just one short of a huge win before Hendry hit breaks of 89, 52 and 55 to complete his comeback.

Hendry will need to be on much sharper form in the second round against Mark Selby after the 2010 Masters champion beat Irish veteran Ken Doherty 10-4.

Selby and Doherty shared the opening four frames but, even at that point the Leicester man looked stronger, having scored two early centuries.

Selby confirmed his dominance by winning four out of the next five frames to lead 6-3 after the first session.

And in the following session, Selby repeated the streak of four frames from five to seal a place in the last 16 with a comfortable victory

Second seed Ronnie O'Sullivan was also comfortable for the most part despite a late rally by his first round opponent Liang Wenbo.

After the pair shared the first two frames, O'Sullivan struck successive centuries to lead 3-1.

Liang won the fifth frame but then four consecutive frames to O'Sullivan gave the three-time winner a commanding 7-2 lead overnight.

O'Sullivan stretched his lead further by winning two of the first three frames in session two and an early finish looked likely.

But Liang hit a fine patch form with two centuries in a run of four successive frames to reduce the deficit to 9-7 before a 73 break from O'Sullivan in frame 17 killed off the comeback.

O'Sullivan will meet Mark Williams in the last 16 after the Welshman's ultimately routine opening round victory over Marcus Campbell.

A tight first session saw Williams edge ahead 5-4 and Campbell looked set to be a real nuisance for the two-time winner when he won the opening frame of session two to make it 5-5.

But, from then, it was all about Williams who showed his class to shrug off his opponent's challenge by winning five successive frames for a 10-5 victory.
__________________________________________________
Previously on TheIntrepidReporter
*World Snooker Championship Preview

World Snooker preview: Crucible crown as open as ever

JOHN HIGGINS begins his defence today of the World Snooker Championship, hoping to become the first man to retain the title in 14 years.

Higgins' compatriot Stephen Hendry was the last person to achieve back-to-back wins when he won his fifth in a row in 1996.

Since then, there have been eight different winners at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield with three wins each for Higgins and Ronnie O'Sullivan, and two wins for Mark Williams.

After a period of six different winners in six years from 1997 to 2002, Higgins and O'Sullivan emerged as the dominant forces of the last decade.

But the championship is nothing like as predictable as during the 1980s and 1990s when Steve Davis and then Hendry ruled the roost.

And it is this unpredictability as well as the unique intense atmosphere at the Crucible Theatre which makes the next 17 days' action a fascinating spectacle.

As usual, the 16 first round ties have been divided into four separate sections. Here is the full draw and a few things to look out for in each section:

FIRST ROUND DRAW
Section 1
John Higgins (1) v Barry Hawkins
Mark King (16) v Steve Davis
Neil Robertson (9) v Fergal O'Brien
Marcu Fu (8) v Martin Gould

Defending champion Higgins is not the biggest name in this first section.

That honour still rests with Steve Davis who qualified for the World Championships for a record 30th time at the age of 52, a simply brilliant feat.

Davis could have been given a tougher draw - Mark King is the lowest of the 16 seeds - but any progress by the six-time champion would be considered a surprise.

2010 Welsh Open winner Higgins might have a few problems against Barry Hawkins who has qualified for four of the six ranking events this season.

But the Scotsman should have enough to progress, as should Australian Neil Robertson, winner of the 2009 Grand Prix.

Hong Kong's Marcu Fu is a much improved player of recent years and he should win comfortably against Martin Gould, for whom this is the first finals stage of a ranking tournament all season.

Section 2
Allister Carter (5) v Jamie Cope
Joe Perry (12) v Michael Holt
Ding Junhui (13) v Stuart Pettman
Shaun Murphy (4) v Gerard Greene

After suffering a dip in form following two devastating defeats to O'Sullivan in 2007, including a first round loss at the Crucible, Ding Junhui has enjoyed a season of recovery.

The Chinese player won the UK Championship and has finished runner-up in two other ranking events, the Grand Prix and the China Open.

Ding's form promises much for a breakthrough at the World Championships where his best result is two second round appearances, both ended by Stephen Hendry.

He will be pleased then that Hendry is in the other half of the draw this time, and indeed he should make light work of this section which is not the strongest.

Fifth seed Ali Carter reached the Welsh Open final this season but the 2008 world finalist will be pushed all the way by battling Jamie Cope.

Meanwhile, 2005 champion Shaun Murphy, and the other seed in this quarter, Joe Perry, have just one quarter final appearance and one semi final appearance between them all season.

Section 3
Stephen Maguire (3) v Stephen Lee
Peter Ebdon (14) v Graeme Dott
Mark Allen (11) v Tom Ford
Ryan Day (6) v Mark Davis

Stephen Maguire begins his quest for a first Crucible crown with match-fixing allegations still hanging over him.

His 9-3 victory over Jamie Burnett in the 2008 UK Championship has been subject to a 17-month investigation by Strathclyde Police who have now passed the case to prosecutors.

And, in a separate incident, Maguire's opponent, Stephen Lee, is currently on bail after being arrested by West Midlands police on 11th February on suspicion of cheating.

It all goes to make this a fascinating match-up, though it is difficult to believe that neither man will be affected by the allegations.

Also in this section, 2002 winner Peter Ebdon takes on 2006 champion Graeme Dott.

Ebdon, seeded 14, is favourite with Dott enduring a tough time with depression which has severely affected his form since his win four years ago.

Meanwhile, Mark Allen made a huge impression at the Crucible last year, knocking out Ronnie O'Sullivan to reach the quarter finals in a stylish match between two quick players.

The young Ulsterman faces debutant Tom Ford this year and the draw has been kind enough to suggest Allen will enjoy another good run.

Sixth seed Ryan Day is currently the highest-ranked player not to have won a ranking event.

Welshman Day will be desperate to go better than his World Championship best of the quarter finals.

But he will have to be wary against Mark Davis, who has qualified for four out of six events this season.

Section 4
Mark Selby (7) v Ken Doherty
Stephen Hendry (10) v Zhang Anda
Mark Williams (15) v Marcus Campbell
Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) v Liang Wenbo

Easily the most fascinating of all the sections, the combined number of world championships from these players totals 13.

Stephen Hendry has more than half of those and, while the Scotsman is not as formidable an opponent as in his 1990s heyday, he will surely progress against Zhang Anda.

Zhang has actually done remarkably well to reach this stage, having already had to win four qualifiers to make him one of the two Crucible debutants this year.

Three-time winner Ronnie O'Sullivan also faces a Chinese qualifier in Liang Wenbo, though Liang is much more experienced than Zhang.

Indeed, Liang reached the final of the Shanghai Masters ranking event at the start of this season, only to lose to O'Sullivan and it would only be fair to expect a similar result.

Welshman Mark Williams, who won this title in 2000 and 2003, dropped out of the top 16 in 2007-08 but regained his place in the elite for 2009-10.

Williams has done well on his return, winning the recent China Open and reaching the semi finals of the Grand Prix. On that form, he will have too much for Marcus Campbell.

Another former champion, Ken Doherty, has also seen a recovery in his form, though perhaps not to extent of Williams.

1997 winner Doherty fell as low as 44 in the provisional rankings after dropping out of the top 16 in 2008-09.

But, this season, the Irishman showed he can still compete at the top by reaching the quarter finals of the Shanghai Masters and hammering Joe Swail 10-1 in the qualifiers for Sheffield.

Masters winner Mark Selby is Doherty's opponent and, despite that win at Wembley, the Leicester man has failed to get beyond the last eight of a ranking event this season.

Sport Preview, 17-19 April (Part II)

Part two of the sport preview looks at the some "drunk men playing billiards" or at least it does in Jeremy Clarkson's world. It's the World Snooker Championships, of course.

The snooker season reaches its climax with the start of the World Championships at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield this weekend.

Three-time winner Ronnie O’Sullivan begins his title defence with a straight-forward-looking first round tie against world number 21 Stuart Bingham.

The title is considered by the bookmakers to be O’Sullivan’s to lose and William Hill has him as short as 9/4.

But this ignores the fact that no player has retained the championship since Stephen Hendry back in 1996.

In the twelve championships since then, there have been eight different winners, including relative outsiders Shaun Murphy in 2005 and Graeme Dott in 2006, making this one of the most open contests anywhere in sport.

In the most notable first round matches, Stephen Hendry faces Mark J Williams with nine world titles between them.

Hendry won the seventh, and to date, last World Championships in 1999 but has failed to win any major titles since.

Williams won his two World Championships in 2000 and 2003 but he has also suffered a drop in form and is currently ranked no 22 in the world.

Second favourite Stephen Maguire (15/2) faces a first round match against fellow Scotsman Jamie Burnett.

Both players will enter the Crucible arena under even more pressure than usual.

This is the first time they have met since Maguire beat Burnett 9-3 in the UK Championships last year.

The match is subsequently under investigation by World Snooker and even Strathclyde polie have opened an inquiry after a surge of bets on that exact result.

‘Interesting’ Steve Davis, winner of the title six times between 1981 and 1989, makes a highly commendable record 29th appearance at the Crucible.

The 51-year-old retains a top 32 ranking but is very much second favourite against Australian Neil Robertson, seeded tenth, in their first round match.

The full draw can be found here and the order of play here.

One person sure to make history is pretty Dunfermline lassie Michaela Tabb who will become the first female referee of the Final on May3-4 (best of 35 frames).

The earlier rounds take place as follows: First round (best of 19) – April 18-23, Second round (best of 25) – April 23-27, Quarter finals (best of 25) – April 28-29, and Semi finals (best of 33) – April 30-May 2.

Coverage is on BBC interactive every day from 10am.