Snooker

Carter's temper didn't help him. The frame where he got 60-odd, and then Selby cleaned up to pinch it was superb stuff.

Walden looked invigorated after a lacklustre end to his 1st match. Hope he secures his revenge.

Ronnie now in desperate trouble at 11-9 down.
Missed a crucial red in frame 20 when taking his eye away from the pot before striking the cue ball.
Needs to win 4 out the last 5 frames.
A shock now very much possible.
Can Ronnie come back?

When champions have their backs up against the wall they come out fighting.
O'Sullivan has triumphed 13-11 by winning the last four frames and finishing the match with a century to boot.
Outstanding stuff from the defending champion in terms of character and resolve as he was never in front until he took the lead at 12-11.
Every champion has one real tester and maybe this was Ronnie's.
Could he go on to claim title number six and equal Steve Davis and Ray Reardon?
Time will tell.

Barry Hawkins with an excellent fightback this afternoon to beat Ricky Walden 13-11 and seal a last eight spot.
Recovered well from a 9-6 deficit to win 7 of the last 9 frames.
For me he is the most improved player of the last 18 months and could have a say in this years championship.

Damn

Ken Doherty has had a mini fightback from 10-3 down to 10-6 down against Alan McManus.
Both men struggling in the evening session at the moment. Misses galore. However if Ken keeps on winning frames then his opponent will really be very concerned.

Shaun Murphy v Marco Fu and Neil Robertson v Mark Allen both tied at 4-4 after their opening sessions.
Dominic Dale resumes at 7-1 up against Michael Wasley and Judd Trump at 6-2 up against Ryan Day this afternoon.

Compared to laughter-makers like Maguire and Hendry, Alan MacManus is like Tommy Cooper.

The old characters of the game are sorely missed.
Good old Bill Werbeniuk with his loads of pints a match, Ray Reardon, Cliff Wilson, Alex Higgins etc.
Even John Virgo doing his impersonations .
Aaaahh those were the days

The only impersonation Virgo does these days is a bitter old misery who wants to lick Stephen Hendry's ass.

Nice to see the Robertson-Allen match looks like going the distance