Mcgill in tight tussle with Bingham as Scot bids to reach semis
Anthony Mcgill produced breaks of 126 and 83 to remain locked on level terms with Stuart Bingham at the evening mid-session interval of their World Championship quarter-final.
The world No 16 pulled off the result of this year’s tournament so far to secure his place in the final eight, stunning defending champion Ronnie O’sullivan in a 13-12 thriller.
And the 30-year-old Glaswegian came out of the blocks quickly against Bingham, edging two tight frames with scores of 58 and 71 - including a break of 59 - to take a 2-0 lead.
But 2015 champion Bingham responded in brilliant fashion, reeling off breaks of 60, 64 and 122 to take a 3-2 lead before Mcgill took the sixth frame with his own break of 64.
Having registered his 500th century of his career in winning the fifth frame, Bingham added another to his collection in the seventh (108) to edge ahead again.
The morning session finished as it started, though, with Mcgill pinching the eighth frame to level the scores at 4-4 before they returned to slug it out in the evening session. Bingham initially opened up a two-frame lead with scores of 98 and 103 - making a break of 83 in the latter - but Mcgill made his first century in the 11th before also taking the 12th frame.
The other evening session was also tightly poised, with Neil Robertson leading Kyren Wilson 6-5 having won their morning session 5-3 thanks in no small part to two centuries.
Meanwhile, world No 1 Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy were locked at 4-4 at the conclusion of an enthralling opening session in their World Championship quarter-final.
The quality on show from 2019 champion Trump and Murphy, the world No 7 and 2005 world champion, was of the highest standard from the very first frame.
Every frame but one featured runs of 67 or higher as the pair slugged it out at the table, with Trump edging 4-3 ahead before Murphy took the last frame to level at 4-4 overnight.
The two players last met in February 2020 in the Welsh Open, where Murphy prevailed 5-3 in the quarter-final, but it was Trump who landed the opening blow at the Crucible.
Murphy had an excellent starting red and a couple of openings but could not make either count as Trump pounced with a break of 87 to take the curtain-raising frame.
But when the Bristolian missed a red into the left middle in the second, Murphy made no mistake as he levelled the scores before they split the next two frames with 79 and 68, respectively. Murphy also took the fifth frame before Trump took the sixth and seventh frames, compiling an excellent 105 in the latter, only for the ‘Magician’ to take the day’s final frame.
On the other table in the
afternoon session, Mark Selby was in formidable form as he opened up a commanding 6-2 lead over fellow threetime world champion Mark
Williams. Breaks of 56, 121, 63, 90 and 76 from Selby left Williams, bidding to become the oldest semi-finalist since Ray Reardon in 1985, reeling
before he responded with 111 in the day’s final frame.
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