World Snooker Championship: Gary Wilson beats Ali Carter to reach the semi-finals; John Higgins progresses

By Sporting Life

Snooker

Thu May 02, 2019 · 6y ago

A review of the action on day 12 of the Betfred World Championship where Gary Wilson's fairytale continued and John Higgins knocked out Neil Robertson.

Wilson roars into last four

Qualifier Gary Wilson claimed the biggest win of his career when defeating Ali Carter 13-9 to book his place in the semi-finals of the World Snooker Championship.

Wilson resumed with a 9-7 advantage having fought back from losing the first three frames of the match to dominate proceedings for the remainder of Tuesday's opening two sessions.

A wonderful break of 117 upon the resumption, his fourth century of the match, settled any early nerves and although Carter struck back to win the next two frames with the aid of breaks of 51 and 128, Wilson kept his cool to enjoy the finest moment of his career.

A calm run of 57 in frame 20 reestablished Wilson's two-frame advantage and when he edged the next frame, a closely-contested affair, he was within touching distance of the last four.

The expected wobble never came and a break of 72 almost took Wilson over the line before a fantastic long red - a hallmark of his play in Sheffield over the last few weeks - put the match to bed.

The 33-year-old spent six years off the tour and endured stints as a taxi driver, a bar man and a production line worker in a frozen foods factory before grasping his second chance in the sport, one which has earned him a career-best payday of at least £100,000.

Wilson said: "I dropped off the tour and I wasn't good enough to get back on. I was having all these uncertain times when I didn't know if I was going to be a pro again.

"I was desperate to get back on the tour and just scrape a living. So to go from that point to where I am now, in the one-table set-up, is absolutely amazing and the sort of thing you dream of.

"I remember situations when I was struggling for money and wondering what job I was going to do.

"I'd been playing since I was eight years old and I had put my heart and soul into it. I had missed school and nights out with my mates. All this makes it feel worthwhile."

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Gilbert too strong for Wilson

David Gilbert became the second player through to the semi-finals after completing a 13-8 victory over Kyren Wilson.

Gilbert began with a 10-6 overnight advantage and although Wilson briefly reduced the deficit, a missed black off its spot enabled the world number 16 to move closer to victory.

Another mistake by Wilson in the 21st frame let in Gilbert who missed a pair of match balls before finally prevailing.

Higgins fightback stuns Robertson

John Higgins defeated pre-tournament favourite Neil Robertson 13-10 to reach the 10th semi-final of his career.

The 43-year-old drew on every inch of his fighting qualities to repel the Australian's bid to fight back from a 9-7 morning deficit.

Twice Robertson moved back to within one frame but Higgins kept his nose in front and finished in style with a 101 clearance in the last.

Four-time world champion Higgins had earlier produced a display full of guile and grit in the second session to grind out a 9-7 lead ahead of tonight's concluding session.

Robertson looked to have matters in control when winning the first two frames of the morning, the first with the aid of a break of 78 and the second when he stole a frame on the pink that Higgins really should have put to bed minutes earlier.

The Scot wasn't perturbed, though, and although he was still two frames adrift at 7-5 when returning from the mid-session interval, he finally found something like his best form to win four frames on the bounce and turn the match on its head.

🔴 The master at work...

👏 John Higgins takes an 8-7 lead over Neil Robertson...pic.twitter.com/EojNYyWfLZ
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) May 1, 2019

Trump taunts Maguire after crushing win

Judd Trump took a swipe at opponent Stephen Maguire after demolishing the Scot 13-6 to book his place in the World Championship semi-finals at the Crucible.

The 29-year-old mocked the Scot's pre-match assertion that he was a "lucky" player by joking: "I got a lot of luck out there - I think that was the only reason I did win."

Trump added: "I think it's obvious that people take it differently. Some people applaud their opponent and some people brush it off like it wasn't their fault - so maybe that's just his way of looking at it."

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Trump, who is targeting a place in his first world final since 2011, had built on his stunning opening session by winning the first two frames on Wednesday and establishing a 9-1 lead.

Maguire managed to claw his way back to respectability by taking four of the next five frames including a break of 110 but Trump was in no mood to hang around and swiftly responded with breaks of 68 and 82 to send him over the line with something to spare.

Shrugging off the fact that his win made him the new odds-on favourite for the title, Trump added: "It's always good to beat anybody that comfortably but there is a long battle ahead.

"It was nice to be playing with no real pressure out there and just being able to fully enjoy it with that kind of lead. It was just important to get it over with as soon as possible."

Asked to sum up his own performance in one word, Maguire responded: "S**t" - which will duly earn him a £250 fine from the sport's governing body for swearing in a press conference.

Trump will next face qualifier Gary Wilson whose fairy tale run continued as he converted a 9-7 overnight advantage into a 13-9 win over former two-time finalist Ali Carter.