Match Reports from the 888.com World Snooker Championship
Sensational Selby
Peter Ebdon 8 – 13 Mark Selby
Mark Selby notched an incredible five centuries across two sessions to send Peter Ebdon crashing out.
From the first frame of the day, the 23-year-old from Leicester put the 2002 champion under pressure.
After a tight opening session, Selby won a close ninth frame before finding another gear. He made three centuries in a row, only the third player to do so at the Crucible after John Higgins and Ronnie O’Sullivan. During the process of racking up 370 points to go 8-4 ahead, Ebdon did not pot a single ball.
Selby’s long potting was outstanding, and put Ebdon under immense pressure in their safety duels.
The world number seven stopped the rot in the 13th frame, but Selby came back from 54-8 down to pinch the following frame. A break of 54 helped Ebdon win the next, but he missed the final brown off its spot to hand the final frame of the session to Selby.
When the players returned for the final session, it was Ebdon who made the most of the early exchanges, making 86 to trail 10-7.
The world number 28 responded by lifting his game again, this time decisively. Consecutive breaks of 130 and 116 made him the leading century maker so far, and got him to within a frame of victory.
Ebdon made a gutsy 97 to give his fans something to cheer about, but it did nothing to alter the balance of the match. Selby duly won the 21st frame with a 72 to make his first Crucible quarter-final.
The prospect of a last eight appearance was unthinkable a week ago when he lost his first five frames to Stephen Lee. If he can carry this momentum to the next match, he might just surprise a few more people.
