The world No1 – and keen Leicester City fan – overcame a nervy spell in the evening session to retain the lead over the Chinese player and seal his second title
10.24pm BST
Some insta-reaction on Twitter …
Hats off to @markjesterselby what a champion! Well deserved in every way possible!
What's impressed me tonight is @welshref shouting to crowd turn off your mobile phones! , I myself and turned mine off at home!
@nr147 If only we were allowed to bet
10.19pm BST
There’s moisture welling in Ding’s eyes as he gives dignified testimony to Hazel Irvine. The 6-0 deficit in the first session must have taken a huge emotional toil.
As for the champion? “Thank God I’ve got a decent B-game to fall back on.” Selby isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but he’s a fantastic match-player and a worthy champion.
Can someone please pass me the hoover! #bbcsnooker #getoffmycarpet
10.07pm BST
AND IT’S THERE.
Ding needs snookers, but he’s not going to get chance to make them, and he knows it. Handshake time.
10.06pm BST
Selby looks like getting home with four frames to spare.
For my part, I look like getting home with at least two trains to spare. It’s 67-0 to Selby, with 67 left on the table. One more ball …
10.02pm BST
Selby’s armed with the experience of having been in this position two years ago, and he’s wearing the pressure extremely well. A wobbly old red aside, the balls are being put away cleanly.
Is this the last table visit of this year’s championship? It could be. He’s already 39-0 up in the frame.
9.58pm BST
That frame broke an awkward spell for Selby, and he looks calm and assured with the reds well set.
Incidentally, for those who don’t want to know what happened in tonight’s Premier League fixture, look away now, and try not to read the content of the Breaking News alert at the bottom of your browser window. At least one phone in the Crucible auditorium just chimed with the news, much to the annoyance of referee Paul Collier.
Related: Leicester City win the Premier League title: latest updates – live!
9.54pm BST
@stuartgoodwin Considering events at Stamford Bridge, would it be reasonable to say that Selby could be the happiest man in the world soon?
Let’s stick our collective necks out and suggest: possibly.
9.52pm BST
A punishing period of tactical stuff is broken by a cracking double from Selby, but he plays it with safety-first in mind, and rolls up behind the black 40 ahead, with 43 left on the table.
But then Ding cracks, leaving both of the remaining reds on, and Selby is on to the table like a lion on a gazelle. He gets over the line, and a 51-minute frame goes his way. Just one more frame needed for the world No1.
9.48pm BST
FAO my wife: I’m definitely not going to be out of work at 10. Can you feed the bunnies? Ta.
If this goes 18 17 its gunna be a late one lol
9.46pm BST
It’s fair to say that Selby is getting a bit more of the rub of the old green at this stage. A flick off the blue elevates a good-looking safety, leaving Ding in big trouble. But despite the obvious nerves, more calm hands give Selby something to think about.
And, after a fashion, he conjures a lovely snooker, sending the ball across and up, leaving Ding needing to swerve the white from behind the brown.
9.39pm BST
Selby’s nearly home in this frame, 43-7 up, but all the reds are now safe on the bottom cushion. That’s better news for the world No1 than it is for Ding at this stage.
And Selby’s finding his range with his safety play too. Ding is 36 behind with just 51 on the table. Not that he’s any slouch on the safety front himself – he’s acquitted himself brilliantly at times in this match.
The PRESSURE is mounting
Still think selby will scrape over the line though. #thatswhyhesno1
9.33pm BST
Selby’s looking a tiny bit ruffled here. Normally these tactical passages of play are to his liking, but his errors are irking him.
He takes his time before addressing a long-ish red, cueing awkwardly over the blue. In. A phenomenal shot. But – not for the first time tonight – it’s followed with something a bit average. Selby aims to cannon on a red but fails to make contact, instead flicking off the pink, leaving the cue ball some distance from his next object. Which he misses by some distance.
9.26pm BST
Ding’s in a pickle here. The white is, unusually, touching two reds.
He climbs on to the table and jabs tentatively down on to the cue ball. The white moves, but – crucially – neither of the reds budges. Good, calm hands.
9.20pm BST
Timely distraction from Alex Corcos …
I’ve heard it for the last time now and a mildly extensive Google search has yielded nothing: what is Ding’s entrance music? It sounds promising
9.17pm BST
We were due a messy passage of play – but here’s one.
Selby, again with extensions to extensions at hand, fails to sink a regulation-looking pot and he’s back in his seat 6-7 down in the frame, with safety-friendly reds everywhere. For those who don’t like the tactical side of this sport, look away now.
9.10pm BST
One nil, to the Mark Selby.
Lovely plant from the Leicester man, making it work between two balls sitting some distance apart.
9.06pm BST
None of this tightly clustered pack nonsense this time around. Ding splits them up good and early. Ordinarily this would be good news for any decent pro, but it also means any missed red could be the last shot of the frame.
Some good safety play from both men here – no balls down yet.
Enjoying your coverage this evening. Ultras banners are always on the large size – some as big as a snooker table. No A4 at Clapton. Ian.
9.01pm BST
Shot of the evening – a ridiculous, thinly cut red, leaving the white careering across the table several times. That brings up 98 for Ding. Then it’s a formality to get over the century mark to 103. He immediately dumps out, so no clearance this time.
But those paying attention may note that he’s creeping ever-closer to Selby now.
8.57pm BST
Premier League, sch-memier league. All the cool kids are all over this way.
Ding’s break crosses the half-century mark. He’s not exactly got the ball on a string, as TV’s finest like to put it, but is working hard to make this visit count.
8.52pm BST
Or not. A lovely long red from Ding. 16-14 has a nice ring to it for a plucky upstart. There’s a long way to go before that though – a Hobbit’s-handful of reds are available before further development is required.
This is calm and assured stuff under the circumstances. He’s 28 up, but a thwack into the bunch leaves a tricky red to the right centre. Suddenly he’s 35-0 up with lots to play with.
8.47pm BST
Selby to break after the mid-session interval. Tidy enough. Ding sends the cue ball back towards the green pocket, flirts with it suggestively, and leaves Selby with an awkward safety. The world No1 clips the object red far too thin, but the cue ball, between mid-table and baulk, has the blue between it and anything meaningful.
His next safety is much better, and although Ding gets the white back up the table, Selby has a chance. No dice. But he plays it as a shot to nothing with enough weight to get tightish to the top cushion. We might have a few minutes of this.
8.40pm BST
Bit of live-blogging housekeeping from eight days ago while I have a sec …
In Lawrence Ostlere’s mile-by-mile coverage of the London Marathon, he plugged in tweets from me giving sporadic from-the-roadside updates of the Guardian Sport entrants. We had Owen Gibson > Sachin Nakrani > Steve McMillan in the opening stages, which remained true until the boy Nakrani blew a gasket in the latter half, allowing the hobbled McMillan to romp on through.
8.29pm BST
Many thanks for everyone’s correspondence (seven people now) suggesting various Leicester City/Ranieri/Dilly Ding snooker links to tie together all of tonight’s potential sporting news. Much obliged, but just for the record I’ve had it written in a pad since about 5pm on Friday. So if it comes to it, it’s MINE.
Back on crap holdy-uppy things in the crowd, important thoughts from our own Owen Gibson, which can apply to all sports everywhere …
Another proposed new law: if you don't put enough effort into your banner, it will be confiscated. A4 efforts in felt tip not acceptable.
8.22pm BST
Let’s be honest, 16-13 is not a lovely scoreline to be on the wrong end of in a first-to-18 match, but it’s a hell of a lot better than 17-12.
Ding is close to the line in this frame now. One more red …
8.17pm BST
Dunno. Looks more like a less terse Lord Kitchener to me.
@stuartgoodwin In his chair Selby/Munch reflects on an errant safety and the faint prospect of a final frame decider pic.twitter.com/AKMlfmhgpd
8.15pm BST
Paul Collier, officiating the final, shows his displeasure as another mobile chimes out, shattering the decorum at the table.
Ding is not to be chimed out of his composure however, and his next shot is an outstanding, red-developing rasper. But with his break at the 22 mark, he gets an unfortunate double-kiss trying to play safe off the green.
8.11pm BST
Cracks in the Selby armour. A badly misjudged dink on to a red finishes short, and leaves Ding well set once more.
But then Ding finishes short playing for the blue! Plenty of capacity for things to go badly wrong, but playing it round the green pocket with lots of side takes him back in touch with the reds. Clustered reds leaves lots of mileage in this frame however.
8.08pm BST
Also available on the Guardian tonight, more sport with potentially news-making potential. Currently eight minutes in …
Related: Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur: Premier League – live!
8.06pm BST
A phenomenal long pot from Ding to get the scoreboard moving. But the ensuing yellow fails to drop. Mercifully, nothing of note left for Selby.
Time for some safety, and we’re soon in tippy tappy cluster territory. A re-rack looked a shoo-in, until Ding leaves the cue ball touching one of the reds. Easy safety for Selby, playing away. But then ANOTHER touching ball after a well-weighted effort back down-table by Ding.
8.02pm BST
Meanwhile, this from the gorgeously named Riley Strother …
Ahoy there,
I am following along from the Race Rocks lighthouse perched on a tiny island off the west coast of British Columbia! Only about 10 miles from Victoria, hometown of Cliff Thorburn! It’s too bad there aren’t any top Canadian players anymore. Not like the 80s when there were 3 or 4! Although I read somewhere that Marco Fu grew up in Vancouver.
8.01pm BST
More phone-based dickheadedness in the crowd. Just put them on silent, folks. Ding composes himself and sinks an awkward black. Let’s be honest, everything’s awkward at this stage, particularly when you’re five frames down to a player noted for closing matches out.
But Ding gets over the line. He needed to seal the frame to leave himself with more than a margin of error to play with – and he has.
7.56pm BST
Everyone’s cashing out their Ding bets. Boo. There’s life in this match yet – Ding’s at the table, but there’s plenty of work to do to develop some clustered reds. And develop them he does. Well, two of them anyway.
@stuartgoodwin Looks like you can catch that 12:30 train.
7.54pm BST
I’ve put it off for as long as I can. Time for The Safety Dance.
7.50pm BST
Ding has cut a calm figure this evening but just before the crucial black in frame 27 his face was suddenly doused in sweat. If this match is to go much further he needs to rally in almost as grand a style as he managed at this time yesterday.
Early stages of this frame, great pot from Ding cueing from the bottom cushion to sink a red into the right centre. Couple of shots later, time for a crucial black to take the cue ball into the clustered reds. Strong contact, unfortunate outcome. Not a lot immediately on.
7.44pm BST
Black ball needed by Selby. He’s well placed on the pink …
But he fluffs his position. He needs to cut it in from a fine angle now.
7.40pm BST
Unbelievable. His position for the penultimate red finishes a fraction of a ball short, and the pot isn’t on.
The safety’s just short of perfect, and Selby takes on a long red. Missed.
7.34pm BST
Ding’s tail is up. A brave cannon to develop two balls by the bottom cushion leaves all remaining reds with room the breathe. The Chinese player quickly takes the lead in the frame.
7.31pm BST
A great attempt to rustle the pack from distance and develop matters further in his favour results in a touching ball, so Selby’s contribution ends with him 27-0 up.
Ding needs to head for the cluster off a side cushion. Attempt one stops well short. Attempt two taps them lightly, but Selby thinks he’s left a red on. He chops down on the cue ball, applying left hand side, but has midjudged the gap to the object ball, and strikes another in between the two. No pot, but nothing left for Ding to score with.
7.25pm BST
Last year’s losing finalist laments …
Preferred my view last year good luck to both tonight. May the best man win #bbcsnooker #betfredworldchampionship pic.twitter.com/Ch55s3Otjk
7.23pm BST
Ding breaks, before Selby fluffs an attempt to get the cue ball back behind the D.
The Chinese then leaves the white tight to the baulk cushion once more. If he’s been rattled during this match, his safety hasn’t always shown it. A couple of shots later an attempted long red from Ding rattles the jaws but flies out, skirting with the opposite corner on its way back up the table.
7.18pm BST
Selby adds a break of 46 to comfortably take the frame, and leaves himself just three short of a second World Championship title.
If the next frame doesn’t go Ding’s way, it will take something dramatic, almost Mike Hallett-ian, to stop Selby taking the trophy.
7.15pm BST
Selby’s visit ends on 57 as he misses a red to the middle pocket by some distance.
But not as much as Ding misses a longish red to the bottom corner. Lacked conviction, and this is now Selby’s frame to lose.
@stuartgoodwin If it goes past midnight I'll shout you your taxi home!
7.11pm BST
Ding is muttering to himself in the chair, and is clearly gutted at fluffing that early chance. Selby looks composed at the table and this is a good opportunity to build a big lead in the frame.
The pink spot is tied up, so it’s up with the yellow spot. Could be a factor. Selby’s break is already 41.
7.07pm BST
We go again. And this time we ain’t stopping for nuthin’.
Still up for grabs:
6.55pm BST
Another tab for your browsing this evening. Yes, yes I know you all love snooker and snooker only, but …
Kick-off at Stamford Bridge is 8pm BST, but Tom Bryant is already in the chair, covering all the latest Thai Buddhist monk-related developments.
Related: Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur: Premier League - live!
6.49pm BST
Quick reminder for those who missed it earlier: I was booked to cover this live blog between the hours of 2pm-10pm today. Obviously given the nature of free-flowing sport, that’s a guide, and I’ll be here for the duration – and will whistle a happy tune throughout, I’ll have you know.
But let’s see how accurate a guide that was.
6.33pm BST
Oh banter how we do love thee …
@joegentlemanjoe Does the Leicester game finish at 3am then ?
6.30pm BST
Before things ramp up again in Sheffield, a very quick nod to the landlord of The White Horse Inn in Westleton, Suffolk, where I recently found myself. Nothing to do with the fare on offer or anything, but because me and the Mrs eventually got to the bottom of why his voice was so familiar.
He is the larynx twin of David Mitchell’s character from the commentary box here …
6.22pm BST
Back on birthday boy Jimmy White for a second, a look at the punditry lineups available to UK viewers today …
Right now on TV: BBC have Virgo, Parrot & Taylor.
Eurosport have Jimmy White, Ronnie O'Sullivan & Ronnie Wood.
6.11pm BST
For the few of you who haven’t had the fact ramraided into your skulls in recent weeks, Mark Selby – a proud Leicester man – is an equally proud Leicester fan. On a tense day for him as a snooker professional, it’s hard to imagine he won’t be getting fed updates from Stamford Bridge tonight, solicited or otherwise. Those rowdy bloody snooker fans.
The potentially crucial Chelsea v Spurs match will be getting the full MBM treatment shortly, but for those keeping an eye on Premier League title affairs while you keep tabs on all things baize-y, a few bits to whet your appetite:
6.03pm BST
Some good news for armchair fans who like their sport delivered terrestrially …
Snooker’s world championship will remain on terrestrial television until 2019 after the BBC secured a two-year extension to its deal.
The agreement also includes broadcast rights for the UK Championship and Masters, the BBC said.
Related: World Snooker Championship to remain on BBC until at least 2019
5.51pm BST
Interesting observation on Twitter …
For context, Bingham led 14-11 a year ago. Last time the leader at the start of the final session didn't win was Stevens in 2005.
Will the ultimate granite match player let a 14-11 lead slip very unlikely IMO
The mobile phones going off constantly, really have plagued this event. Needs to stop. https://t.co/wagld5tVkE
5.37pm BST
With the scores at 64-11 to Selby, a difficult cut on the black is frame ball. He avoids going in-off in the middle pocket, and is now in trademark territory: he has his opponent needing snookers, at the table with an inch-perfect safety leaving the cue ball tight on the baulk cushion.
Ding’s response is undercooked, but none of the reds are on.
5.30pm BST
At 55-4 up, a difficult clipped red into the middle pocket from Selby fails to drop. A huge, huge let-off for Ding. But two balls later, an awful positional shot for the next red leaves nothing on. Hard to tell exactly what he was playing for there.
Whatever it was, it didn’t work. And his attempted safety with the extension and the rest is undercooked - Selby’s 44 ahead, with 75 remaining on the table. He eyes up a long red, and sinks it.
5.25pm BST
For an allegedly tedious player, once Selby gets in he doesn’t hang around. Already the break’s well over 40 points, but he’s running out of easy reds. It will be seriously impressive for him to seal the frame at this visit.
5.21pm BST
An attempted flick off two cushions fails to land, and Ding has the cue ball put back for Selby to try and repeat the trick.
And what a trick it is. There’s reds on for Ding but nothing straightforward so he opts for safety once more.
5.17pm BST
So will we go into tonight 14-11 or 13-12? Three frames ahead with four needed would put Selby in an incredibly strong position, but a one-frame gap would make it anybody’s.
Solid safety early on from Ding, replied to in kind by a deft, cluster-busting safety from Selby. There’s reds on, but Ding opts to play safe, and leaves the world No1 tight on the baulk cushion, and in all kinds of trouble. He can see plenty of reds, but will do incredibly well to find a route back up the table from here.
5.13pm BST
Arguably more by luck than judgment, Ding gets over the line to reduce the deficit to two frames.
I’m not sure we’ve seen the last replay of that huge kick on the pink. Pivotal moment?
5.11pm BST
An emerging theme to Ding in this match has been that the longer he takes over his shot selection, the more likely that it’s not going to pan out as planned. He lets Selby in with a careless attempted safety.
But what an awful kick Selby gets on a tricky pink into the middle pocket. He swipes at the air with his cue in frustration, and looks absolutely furious. A huge, huge let-off for Ding. Having looked every bit like bottling this frame, he’s suddenly on the verge of taking it.
5.06pm BST
Unless there’s a tongue in the cheek here, Neil Richards is #teamebdon …
@stuartgoodwin How do you cope with the rare boring bits where they pot a few balls in between the safety/snooker escaping marathons?!
5.05pm BST
And duly, Ding runs a crucial six inches out of position, leaving a difficult black. He sinks it to go 52 ahead, with 91 remaining. Mercifully, he refuses to try and make an exceptionally difficult plant, and opts to play safe.
5.02pm BST
Ding could be in here. Last night he took these kind of opportunities well, but amid the pressure of his first World Championship final every shot feels like it should kick the momentum either way. He’s quickly 44-0 up in the frame, but the rest is out again …
4.58pm BST
Two frames left in the session. Selby breaks. Ding sinks a long red. There’s a pattern here, but what happens in the next five minutes could go a long way to dictating the destiny of the match. It feels an awful lot like a must-win frame for the Chinese.
4.56pm BST
The world No1 closes out with a break of 68, slamming the black away aggressively to take the frame 118-9. At one point that frame looked like leaving us with a scoreline of Selby 12-11 Ding. In a match of pivotal frames, that could be a telling gap.
4.52pm BST
With another three-frame cushion beckoning for Selby, a red up the rail refuses to drop. The ensuing miss from Ding feels crucial, and he overcuts it horribly. Extend-o cue time again from Selby, and that’s a huge reprieve. It’s been far from vintage from him this afternoon, but he’s injected just enough quality at crucial times to keep Ding lagging behind. He takes the score past the point of snookers being needed and is on the verge of guaranteeing a lead for the final session.
4.43pm BST
Simon McMahon is sort of with me on the forced fun of the Crucible banners (see 15.46), although I do not endorse the quality of his puns.
Actually now I say that, the extension one would have been ideal a few minutes ago.
You’re not wrong about the embarrassingly naff ‘Ton Up’ posters. They should hand out blank ones like they do at the darts for punters to write their own messages on. ‘Ding Dong battle’, ‘Look at the size of my extension’, ‘Is snooker past its Selby date?’, that sort of thing. The possibilities are endless.
4.40pm BST
Ding breaks. Selby rolls delicately into the pack off the side cushion. The Chinese judges his safety well, but leaves a tempting red on. Badly misjudged by the world No1. This a potentially useful position for Ding – all the more so after a gorgeous black into the middle pocket which spins around the yellow pocket and back down to a brace of loose reds.
An attempted black misses by some distance though. But not as much as Selby’s attempted safety was missed by – he aims to flick off a red and back into baulk, but pings the white around the table to leave it almost level with the pink.
Is this the biggest cue in Snooker history?! pic.twitter.com/ierEidLKiW
4.29pm BST
With only the colours left, and Selby 66-43 up, Ding fluffs an attempted safety. Awkwardish yellow goes down, and Selby’s back in charge. Quietly, he’s closing in on the 18 frames required.
4.26pm BST
There have been several references to China grinding to a halt while this match is on, most recently from Barry Hearn on the BBC.
Expected viewing predictions vary wildly, but let’s just say this match, the first to feature a player from Asia, is not going unnoticed in the country of Ding’s birth.
| 27.1% of China's national TV audience tuned in to watch Ding's match today on CCTV5 - incredible figures!#ilovesnooker @Betfred
4.21pm BST
The break’s at 31, but sloppy positional play grinds Ding to a halt. Selby responds with his best shot of the afternoon so far – an outstanding long red to swing the momentumometer back in his direction.
4.15pm BST
There’s no quickfire century from Selby this time though, and Ding is back at the table, 14-8 down. Bit of safety, followed by another deliciously clean long red into the bottom left pocket. Plenty of reds to play with here for the Chinese.
4.10pm BST
An alehouse-level break from Selby, leaving the cue ball closer to the left middle pocket than the top cushion.
Ding looks like getting among the balls immediately, but tricky bridging tight to the cushion forces the miss on an otherwise straightforward-looking red. So Selby is quickly reprieved. His capacity for brushing off adverse situations is seriously impressive.
4.07pm BST
News you might have missed last night incidentally – in fact news published so late it almost missed the final edition of today’s paper, thanks to the late finish in Sheffield …
Crucible set for World Snooker Championship contract extension
The contract with The Crucible comes to an end next year and there had been speculation that the world championship – which earns £5m for Sheffield over the 17 days of the competition – could leave the city and even move abroad …
Jason Ferguson, chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, told The Guardian: “I don’t think any of us in the sport have the heart to change. We’ve had substantial offers to move the world championship. But what price do you put on history? What price do you put on heritage? On those wonderful photographs you see when you walk backstage? Taking snooker away from here would be like taking the Wimbledon tennis championships away from Wimbledon.
4.02pm BST
Going back a bit, during Selby’s semi-final victory over Marco Fu, there was the brain-aching proposition of a 76min 11sec frame, a Crucible record.
To put that into perspective, you could watch James Whale’s Frankenstein in its entirety, and then watch the YouTube video of Ronnie O’Sullivan’s record-breakingly-fast 147 from 1997. And still have caught the first and last shots of the frame.
3.52pm BST
Speaking of Hendry, he took a bit of flak online about his views on Selby’s playing style. Which, to be honest, I thought were fairly well balanced.
Listen everyone I totally admire and appreciate the skill in the play last night it's just not my game#ifonlyicouldplaysafety
3.46pm BST
Ding crosses the 100 barrier, sticks out his tongue, and the – let’s face it, bloody awful – “TON UP” banners are raised in the crowd. No total clearance, but that’s his 14th century of the tournament, just two behind Stephen Hendry’s World Championship record.
We’re going to 11-10, and this seesawing match is tightening up again. Mid-session interval time.
3.42pm BST
Pretty sensibly, he’s opted to try and seal the frame as opposed to going for the maximum. 56-0 up he plays for the blue.
3.40pm BST
Six reds and six blacks from Ding so far in this break. Surely not …
3.39pm BST
That was a great reaction from Selby. But again he’s uncharacteristically sloppy with the safety at the start of the next frame. Ding needed to shake that last frame off and it looks like he has.
Throughout the match the room has seemed to be on Ding’s side. And not just them, if you believe the testimony of Eric Bristow. The MBE is apparently Massive Billiards Expert …
All the pro snooker players want selby to lose just like our football we want leicester to win league
3.33pm BST
That’s century No9 for Selby at this year’s tournament. Once again he’s shown that he’s as dangerous when things aren’t going his way as when they are. 84th century at the Crucible in all for 2016, closing in on the record of 86.
A stunning pink is coupled with splendid position rolling round the cushions to leave a delicate black – that’s a pretty remarkable break of 126 under the circumstances.
3.29pm BST
Selby, perhaps sensing he’s up against it, has raised the pace, taking his break past the half-century. Ding already requires snookers in this frame, and Selby is showing no sign of letting this one go.
3.27pm BST
Lucy Reynolds evokes a quite beautiful image …
@stuartgoodwin
Looks like the Terry Griffiths hairdryer treatment has worked beautifully overnight
3.23pm BST
Selby breaks, Ding replies with a strong safety tight to the cushion.
Selby inadvertently pots the black to give away seven points, and Ding puts away another great long red.
3.20pm BST
Ding clears the table, giving himself a little pep up as the black goes in. The gap is down to one. Ding was one ball away from being 7-0 down at one point, let’s not forget.
Don’t forget also that the Chinese, currently ranked No17 in the world, had to go through qualifying this year. This has not been the quietest month of his life.
3.15pm BST
This feels like a crucial moment in the context of the match. If Selby can hang on, it’s vital breathing space at a time when things aren’t necessarily going his way. If Ding can come back to just one frame behind, you’d back him to close the gap all the way on the last hour’s evidence. He has Selby in no end of trouble here with some glorious snookers.
The world No1 escapes from his latest effort off two cushions, but Ding puts away a stunning red as clean as you like from the tightest of angles. Ding has the table, but with some unusually-placed colours to contend with. The frame is almost 50 mins old incidentally.
3.07pm BST
Selby’s 52-22 up but Ding is holding his own marvellously on the safety front. He puts Selby into no end of trouble with a snooker behind the pink, and an aggressive escape leaves an inviting long red into the yellow corner to seal the frame.
Eek. Missed. And now Selby has applied thumbscrews with a pig of a snooker needing the help of cushions that haven’t always obliged in recent weeks.
3.00pm BST
Selby ends his break at 36, needing one more red and a decent colour to leave Ding looking for snookers. A great effort from the Chinese puts Selby into trouble of his own, however.
John S asks …
If Ding wins, would this be the first Crucible winner that lives in Sheffield, and if so are we allowed to use the word “irony” in that eventuality?
2.56pm BST
First of those spells where the momentum drops, people go to make a cuppa and Peter Ebdon leans into the screen, licking his lips. Yet another fine red by Ding followed by a fluffed colour (a tricky pink, with hampered bridging).
Selby is as the table, 28-21 up, and with some clever positional play suddenly things are looking decently set, even though nothing but the blue is on its spot.
2.51pm BST
Back on the fatigue question, this from Gary Naylor …
Selby was in a bad way last night - it was only the crowd reactions to Dennis Taylor's commentary jibes that kept him going! @stuartgoodwin
2.47pm BST
More mistakes here in a match that’s been full of them in among some majestic potting and safety play. Ding misjudges his safety to dump the cue ball straight in, and Selby’s slightly appalled with himself after leaving a selection of long reds on with his attempted safety back up the table.
2.41pm BST
David Wall’s been in touch. Feel free to do the same: stuart.goodwin@theguardian.com or @stuartgoodwin.
It was probably the 15th, marathon frame last night that caught the headlines, but I thought the last one was fascinating in its own way. Both players started making mistakes that you’d be embarrassed to make at your local club (or even on the pool table in the pub). It’s not often that you see the effects of mental fatigue so obviously, but both players seemed to be almost falling asleep at the table and could barely carry out otherwise routine shots as a result. Of course, it’s magnified in a sport like snooker, but it just highlighted how important mental alertness, as well as physical fitness, is in top level sport.
2.37pm BST
A stunningly clean long pot from Ding. The corner pockets are like a yawning Pac-Man to him from distance so far this afternoon. An awkward yellow takes him back towards the reds, and there’s options to play with. But in taking a tricky shot with the rest – with which he’s had mixed success in this game – he fails to make it count.
But again Selby can’t capitalise. And his next attempt at a safety isn’t brilliant either.
2.32pm BST
Ding breaks, and after Selby opts to go safe on the bottom cushion instead of going back to baulk, the Chinese puts away a long red into the yellow pocket beautifully. Big chance. However, he overruns when playing for the next red, and in opting to take it on, smashes the cluster wide open while missing by some distance.
Selby’s at the table, but his positioning’s off too. An awkward brown puts him back among the balls however. First sustained spell at the table for the 2014 champion.
2.26pm BST
The frame is Ding’s as he calmly keeps building a break past the 80 mark. Falls short of the century but that will help calm his nerves.
It needs pointing out however that this year’s championship is a world where giving away 16 points in fouls is no impediment to Selby keeping his side of the ticking clocking along. The phrase “Mark Selby requires three snookers” does not necessarily mean he’s out of these frames.
2.21pm BST
There’s some nervous stuff going on here already. Ding offers Selby the chance of an opening by leaving a red close to the pocket, but – still – it’s no gimme, and the world No1 fails to take advantage.
The Chinese – famously the first Asian player to make the Crucible final – makes no mistake next time and he’s back at the table with the reds placed pretty promisingly. That blue, an inch off the top cushion, is out of commission as far as break-building is concerned and Ding is strong favourite for this frame now.
2.17pm BST
The famously patient Peter Ebdon is loving this incidentally … here’s his thoughts on Selby:
If you can't enjoy watching a master and one of the greatest match players of all time, you are not a Snooker fan. https://t.co/V0T41caHLa
2.15pm BST
Ding puts the cue ball into the baulk area after a neat break of 32, to give him a 32-1 lead in the frame. We’re into safety territory already.
2.12pm BST
First miss of the day: Ding rattles the jaws with a long red.
First pot of the day: Selby puts a red away, but immediately fluffs a blue, which goes safe. Early opportunity for Ding.
2.09pm BST
Ding enters first, with his snazzy red waistcoat. Little wry grin, giving little away. Selby checks his cuetip, and gives a jaunty wave as he passes the World Championship trophy, clad in his gloriously retro grey garb. Selby will break first.
1.17pm BST
The story so far …
In short: Mark Selby (Eng) leads Ding Junhui (Chn) 10-7
Continue reading...