A breathless display of snooker from Ronnie O'Sullivan saw him win three frames on the bounce to beat Mark Selby 17-16 in the semi-finals of the World Championship at the Crucible.
On one of the most remarkable days in the history of this most remarkable snooker tournament, O'Sullivan ensured that he once again had the final word at the conclusion of a match where snooker fans saw the very best and very worst of Ronnie O'Sullivan.
For Selby's part, he will surely feel hard done by having hauled himself within touching distance of the winning line when inching into a 17-16 lead; outworking his opponent in a tense 30th frame that O'Sullivan eventually surrendered when attempting yet another hit-and-hope after finding himself snookered on the final pink.
The hit-and-hope became a feature of O'Sullivan's game plan as he was cast under Selby's web of brilliant safety play but for all his frustration threatened to boil over at times, he never once backed down from the challenge and in the end, produced an irresistible finishing kick that only he has ever been capable of.
O'Sullivan still had work to do when returning for Friday night's concluding session trailing 13-11, but having won the final two frames of the morning session, it was no surprise that he ran with that momentum and made a blistering start to his evening's work.
He certainly looked in good spirits when entering the arena with a broad smile on his face and a brilliant red floated along the bottom cushion helped set up a break of 114 - the first century of the match but one that could only hint at what was to come.
When O'Sullivan cleared the table for a clearance of 57 in frame 26, he suddenly found himself level at 13-13, but Selby refused to panic and after watching O'Sullivan go in-off when attempting to split the reds in the following frame, the three-time world champion stepped in with a typically gritty hand of 56 to inch back in front.
Selby followed up with a well-taken run of 63 in frame 28, putting himself back in the box seat at 15-13, and he left the arena for the mid-session interval with O'Sullivan visibly frustrated at being unable to get to grips with Selby's masterful tactical play and rock-solid potting under pressure.
That frustration was clear for all to see when O'Sullivan broke down in the first frame after the interval, barely looking at an audacious plant before missing by some way and allowing Selby the chance to move one frame within victory.
When Selby then missed a tricky red along the bottom rail, O'Sullivan's attitude was now bordering on going for broke but a fabulous shot played with his left hand developed the final red before he mopped up the remaining colours to once again keep Selby in his sights.
While O'Sullivan's all-out-attack approach might have been causing debate on various social media platforms, it had certainly knocked Selby out of stride, but the latter grimly moved with one frame of victory when O'Sullivan opted to try another hit-and-hope on the final pink with frame 30 very much alive.
Selby kept his cool to pot the pink but just as O'Sullivan's race appeared to be run, he had other ideas and ensured the best was still to come.
It began with an immaculate and exhilarating total clearance of 138 in frame 31 that offered the first warning to Selby of what lie in store; the frame safe within barely four minutes and the final black slammed into the back of the pocket with an air of disdain as O'Sullivan sauntered back to his chair.
O'Sullivan clearly wasn't done yet and with attack now seemingly the only instruction left in his manual, he stroked in the first red he could see to begin frame 32 with a bang. Selby would have surely wandered back to own his chair sensing little danger, but despite the white being chained to baulk cushion and the long red looking far from appealing, it was potted with such ease it almost made a mockery of the game.
In truth, O'Sullivan spent most of the night making a mockery of the sport but he breezed around the table for another frame-winning contribution (71) that within the blink of an eye, had somehow forced a final-frame decider. Selby, all the while, looked punch-drunk as he tried to rally himself for a finale he would have thought scarcely possible only 20 minutes earlier.
Yet another daring opener from O'Sullivan, again from distance, ensured he was in first in the decider and after he persuaded a red along the bottom cushion to drop into the corner pocket, it was he who was hurtling towards the winning line as Selby once again looked on disbelief.
The day still had one final twist, however, O'Sullivan losing the white and failing to sink his recovery pot to the green pocket as Selby woke from his daze with his title hopes hanging by a thread; 64 points in arrears but still with enough currency to play with.
A wonderful shot to develop one of the two tied-up reds looked to have put Selby on course for a frame and match-winning clearance but when failing to land on the final red, he was forced to play safe.
O'Sullivan, to his credit, pulled his safety game out of the wardrobe and after riding his luck with his previous shot, played a fine shot to leave Selby in big trouble with the cue ball behind the black.
This time the master wasn't able to escape the trap and O'Sullivan held his nerve to pot another devilishly-tough pot, one that carried the extra significance of being match ball. When it thudded into the centre of the pocket, he was finally over the line at the end of a day when snooker and the Crucible had given us just about everything.
Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, it was O'Sullivan's genius that won through in a match that not even his own flaws could deny him his date with destiny and the chance to win a sixth world title and a record breaking 37th ranking title.
O'Sullivan stays alive in morning session
Ronnie O'Sullivan trails Mark Selby 13-11 after winning the final two frames of the third session of their World Championship semi-final.
Despite ending the morning session just as he began it - trailing Selby by two in the race to 17 - it is O'Sullivan who might feel he has the momentum ahead of tonight's concluding session having somehow claimed the final two frames to reduce his arrears from 13-9 to 13-11.
In truth, Selby dominated proceedings, making five breaks of 50-plus compared to O'Sullivan's sole half century, a break of 68, but the Rocket finally enjoyed a change of luck in match where very little has gone his way when fluking a snooker in the 23rd frame to reignite his hopes of claiming a sixth world title.
Having won Thursday's afternoon session 6-2 to surge into a 9-7 overnight lead, Selby resumed on Friday morning in confident mood and a run of 97 would have calmed any early nerves he might have had as O'Sullivan was left with his thoughts as he watched on from his chair.
Despite enjoying a huge fluke to begin the following frame, O'Sullivan shook his head in dismay only moments later when splitting open the reds before watching the white roll into the middle pocket.
After Selby missed a golden opportunity of his own to extend his lead further, O'Sullivan finally put the frame to bed thanks to silky final red along the side cushion but a break of 68 in frame 19 allowed Selby to immediately reestablish his three-frame advantage.
As would prove to be the running theme of the session, O'Sullivan just about kept himself in touch when winning the fourth frame of the morning courtesy of a break of 68 following an early chance for Selby that he wasn't able to make full use of.
O'Sullivan continued to struggle following the mid-session interval as Selby dictated terms with some wonderful safety play and the excellent long potting that O'Sullivan has produced throughout the tournament was now starting to wilt under the pressure.
When Selby added a pair of 72 breaks in frames 21 and 22 - the first of which was rescued with a terrific cut brown with the rest just as O'Sullivan would have been expecting to return to the table - O'Sullivan's hopes of winning the match appeared all but over.
That certainly looked to be the case when Selby needed only a mid-range red to claim the penultimate frame of the morning - frame 23 - but when he missed, and O'Sullivan fluked a snooker behind the brown soon after, the contest was alive again.
O'Sullivan fought hard to scramble a nervy clearance to the black and then followed up with a break of 46 in frame 24. It didn't quite win him the frame, but a brilliant red from distance not long after did, meaning he had somehow drawn the session and kept Selby firmly in his sights.
He still trails 13-11, but the smile O'Sullivan managed as the players departed the arena suggested it is he who might just be the happier of the two as the match heads towards a potentially thrilling climax this evening.
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