Match Reports: 888.com World SnookerChampionship
Putting The ‘Ton” In Hamilton
Anthony Hamilton 13 – 8 Ian McCulloch
After two lacklustre sessions, Anthony Hamilton finally broke free to steam into the quarter-finals.
Both players struggled to string pots together for much of the match, and there were just six breaks over 50 in the first 16 frames.
The deciding third session was thoroughly different, as Hamilton finally hit a seam of good form that left a despairing McCulloch reeling.
Beginning at 8-8, Hamilton seized on a bad miss from McCulloch to win the frame with a break of 65.
His first century of the tournament extended his lead to 10-8. For much of the 111 break the Robin Hood of Snooker was on for a 146, but he ran out of position on the final red.
The match was largely decided in the 19th frame, when McCulloch again got in first. The man from Preston missed a black off the spot to give Hamilton a chance.
A horrible miscue on the final pink looked to have gifted the frame back to his opponent, but a tense McCulloch missed again to fall three behind. It was his last meaningful shot of the match.
Hamilton twisted the knife with his second century in three frames in the 20th, and nearly made it a hat-trick, only to miss on 91 in the next.
The win puts the world number 16 into the Crucible quarter-finals for the fourth time in eight years. He will be hoping to bring the form from the third session with him.
By David Pritchard
