Stephen Hendry's 13-10 win over Ding Junhui, China's No1, carried him into the quarter-finals of the world championship and keeps alive his hopes of winning an eighth world title 10 years after his last.
"I know what I'm capable of but there's so many great players still involved. It's pointless talking about who's going to win it. I'm in the quarter-finals but I'm less than halfway," said Hendry, whose potting, break-making, safety play and scarcity of unforced errors were superior to any other of his displays this season.
Having resumed at 4-4, the 40-year-old seemed certain to carry a 9-7 advantage into the final session when Ding needed two snookers in their last frame before lunch only to obtain the required penalty points before clearing with 35 to level at 8-8. But Hendry won the evening session's opening frame and, with 140 and 86 in his best 90s manner, moved to 11-8.
Ding won two of the next three frames, the third with a break of 121, and seemed to have the wind in his sails until he missed a dolly red on 57 when he was closing in on 11-12. As it was, Hendry, with 38 and a green to black clearance, claimed a victory which pits him against either Shaun Murphy or Marco Fu for a place in the semi-finals. The former, unperturbed by boos as he entered the arena from a section of the crowd understood to be in sympathy with his Yorkshire-born wife, from whom he separated acrimoniously six months ago, started with a break of 115 and proceeded to a 7-1 overnight lead with two sessions to be played tomorrow.
Ronnie O'Sullivan, meanwhile, rediscovered the form and touch which had been lacking in his opening session against Mark Allen to progress from the overnight 4-4 and take a 9-7 lead ahead of the final session of their second-round match tomorrow morning.
Sharply away with 107, O'Sullivan added another frame to lead 6-4 but Allen responded with 108 and a 70 clearance from 0-60 to equalise. Through 93 from O'Sullivan and 115 from Allen, it was 7-7 before the former, with clinching efforts of 59 and 64, brought the session to a close.
The 23-year-old Allen's talent and temperament augur well for his chances in a few years but for the moment O'Sullivan remains favourite to become only the third player after Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry to make a successful title defence at The Crucible.
Ryan Day, who has appeared in three ranking finals without winning one, goes into his final session against Nigel Bond, a surprise first round winner over Peter Ebdon, with a commanding 11-5 lead. From 0-60, Day cleared with 74 to lead 6-2 at lunch and had further runs of 91, 134 and 71 in pulling away in the evening as Bond assisted him by missing several easy balls.
