Shaun Murphy bounced back from Sunday's Welsh Open heartache to beat Mark Selby 6-3 in the first round of the Players Championship, before taking issue with being asked if his rare misses had been down to lapses in concentration.
Murphy came off second best against Robert Milkins in Wales but got straight back on the bike to add to Selby's poor record in ITV-televised events, and then balked at the suggestion that his focus hadn't been absolute.
"I think accusing players of that is one of the laziest pieces of journalism in the world," lamented Murphy, who later clarified that he was not accusing Jill Douglas of laziness.
"For people out there to think that at the most important part of a frame or match, my concentration wanders, is ridiculous.
"It's complete rubbish. It's one of those things that gets my goat. You don't lose your concentration. You might be thinking about the cannon, but you are focused.
"It's so important. To accuse players of wandering off is ridiculous. There is always a technical explanation as to why you missed a shot.
"It's too easy to say 'he just lost his concentration'. It's very rarely true. I've had enough of it, to be honest with you."
A fiery Shaun Murphy joined us in the studio after his victory over Mark Selby here at the Players Championship.
— ITV Snooker (@ITVSnooker) February 21, 2023
Watch LIVE tonight on ITV4 at 645pm.#ITVSnooker pic.twitter.com/aiBWBLKbT9
Just wanted to make clear that in terms of my post match studio “rant” I was in no way accusing @JillADouglas of being a “lazy journalist”. I’ve seen a few comments where people think that’s what I meant and I certainly didn’t. Hop over to @instagram for more 👍🏻
— Shaun Murphy (@Magician147) February 21, 2023
Slow start costs Selby
Things were bleak from the start for Selby, who lost the first three frames before scrapping to win a tight fourth and retain hope at the mid-session interval.
Murphy though came out firing with a 92 break, the highest of the match, and took the sixth to move within one of the second round before Selby grittily recovered to get within two at 5-3.
The comeback was on when he got to the table in frame nine, but Selby let Murphy in and he took his chance well.
On the other table, Kyren Wilson produced the performance of the tournament so far to beat Zhou Yuelong 6-2.
Wilson registered two centuries and four half-centuries in a high-class affair which saw every frame won with a break of over 50.
In the evening session, Milkins continued his own remarkable momentum by claiming a 6-5 win over Tom Ford, taking victory with a break of 74 in the decider.
There was also a deciding frame on the other table, with Ali Carter edging past Judd Trump 6-5.
