Masters snooker 2021 LIVE updates - Mark Selby in action after Neil Robertson crashes out earlier
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Updated 12/01/2021 at 22:59 GMT
Masters snooker 2021 LIVE - Favourite Judd Trump had to withdraw from the Masters on the eve of the event, along with Jack Lisowski, after testing positive for coronavirus. But there are still a host of big names ready to battle in the first Triple Crown event of 2021 with former world champions Neil Robertson and Mark Selby both in action in Tuesday's star-studded line-up.
London Masters, Selby – Maguire | Snooker | ESP Player Feature
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That's us for tonight.
Join me again tomorrow at 12.45pm GMT for:
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Ding Junhui (1pm)
John Higgins v Mark Allen (7pm)
Don't mind if I do.
Stephen Maguire beat Mark Selby 6-3!
That's an excellent night's work from Maguire, who played well tonight. He plays Yan Bingtao next.
Selby 3-5 Maguire (6-62)
Mark clears three reds and tries his snooker of the final one but it doesn't work out and he winds up having to escape one himself. Stephen then sees a double bounce in, spin round and jump out. It won't be long (yeah).
Selby 3-5 Maguire (6-62)
Maguire finds a three-ball plant to the middle but then misses a brown into it from the other end. Mark needs one snooker, and there's plenty of scope.
Selby 3-5 Maguire (0-61)
Yup, this is did. Maguire has worked his way around this beautifully, barely needing to play any difficult shots. But then he doesn't get enough on a black so has no red on, that being match ball. He groans, smiles, mutters - for quite some time - then takes a lot of thinking time before playing safe, mainly because he can barely bring himself to. Still, he's doing alright.
Selby 3-5 Maguire (0-38)
Stephen is manufacturing a decent chance out of this. Sensible potting will be enough from here.
Selby 3-5 Maguire (0-15)
Hello! Stephen glides in a beauty to the centre and Mark will be wondering if he's done here. The reds aren't splayed, but there are a fair few at which to pick, and the black available to both pockets.
Selby 3-5 Maguire
Eventually Selbz gives up, and he now needs three straight to progress.
Selby 3-4 Maguire (34-65)
Mark pots the final red, adds a black, and tries a snooker with all the colours bar the yellow - which is near the black - on their spots. Stephen has a long think but hits, Mark pots it and tries again with the green. And on and on an Ariston.
Selby 3-4 Maguire (24-65)
And there's one, Stephen missing the final red and narrowly evading a free ball. We could be some time.
Selby 3-4 Maguire (13-65)
That made it a great chance, but there are some tricky reds lose to the side cushion - four of them - that'll need developing. He eliminates two, picks off another from somewhere else ... then returns for a great long effort. It's not enough for the frame, but Mark returns to the table needing two snookers.
Selby 3-4 Maguire (13-28)
Stephen attempts a red, misses, and leaves Mark a starter. The table is complex, so he takes his time over his shots, goes into the pack, and then on 13 jawses a tricky red. This might be a problem because Stephen gets himself in and there are a fair few loose reds; very quickly, he clears a route for the black to both corners.
Selby 3-4 Maguire
Another fascinating frame.
Selby 3-3 Maguire (4-72)
Nowt. He misses and leaves, which will mean the frame.
Selby 3-3 Maguire (4-48)
But not much, just seven points ... in the immediate term. Shortly afterwards, a really good long red gets Stephen back at the table ... but have a look! A few shots later, he plays a nice little clip, gets a kiss he didn't anticipate ... and goes in-off! That was unfortunate, but a poor positional shot made the pot harder than in needed to be. What can Selbz make of it?
Selby 3-3 Maguire (0-27)
Trying to clip in a long, tight one, Mark misses the red on the way down but catches it on the way up. That's going to cost him.
Selby 3-3 Maguire (0-13)
Eesh! Stephen leaves one, white near the cluster, but Selbz overcuts it! I did not see that coming, and there's scope for Stephen to punish him. The reds are tight, but you'd much rather be at the table than sat down (unless you're me). Except using the spider, he gets a massive kick, and though the red goes down he can only play safe thereafter.
Selby 3-3 Maguire
This is building into another really good match. I love the Masters.
Selby 2-3 Maguire (65-8)
Stephen catches a red thick and leaves it for Mark, returning to his seat gurning with vex. That'll be the frame.
Selby 2-3 Maguire (51-8)
Maguire takes a while looking at a plant of his own - if he takes it and it works, that's those reds I mentioned split. It looks like it goes ... and it's there! But he doesn't finish on anything, so goes back up to baulk off the yellow, which he fails to develop.
Selby 2-3 Maguire (51-7)
Oh! Mark misses what looks like a straightforward plant - that's not at all like him - and leaves an easy starter. Resolving this table will take some work - of the five remaining reds, three are in each other's road - but it's doable.
Selby 2-3 Maguire (36-1)
No matter. He's soon back involved, and this time the table is far more inviting. On 22, he gets a couple of nice kisses that land him on the brown - he lifts a hand to register his sincerest apologies before continuing to pot balls. We should all know such desolation.
Selby 2-3 Maguire (5-1)
Mark catches the blue on his way back up to baulk, offering Stephen out; he clatters home a longish starter but thick, so plays onto the bottom cushion off the yellow. It's a fair shot, but then Mark plays off the pack and in behind the brown. That's a very good shot indeed. And it gets Mark a chance because Stephen's escape leaves one - it goes down, but the table is difficult and he misses the second red.
Selby 2-3 Maguire
Whoops! Maguire misses a pink on 99, ramming it hard towards the top left and rattling the jaws. But he moves back in front and will be feeling pretty good about life.
Selby 2-2 Maguire (0-82)
Stephen goes into the pack early and looks nicely placed to seal this in one visit. He's got a 141 on the table, and the highest break so far this week is Kyren Wilson's 136.
Selby 2-2 Maguire (0-24)
Mark leaves the white short, allowing Stephen to send home a routine starter. The black follows it, and when Stephen returns to the business end via further red, he's in good shape.
Right, off we go again.
Lovely stuff.
Selby 2-2 Maguire
Yup, Selbz removez enough balls for an unassailable lead, and that's the mid-session. That was really enjoyable - there's been a lot of the tactical stuff, and these two are both nifty at it. I'll be back shortly, when they'll play to a finish.
Selby 1-2 Maguire (50-18)
Stephen misses once, then second go he hits a different red to the one for which he played and leaves an easy starter. That'll be enough for 2-2.
Selby 1-2 Maguire (50-18)
Phil Yates notes that Maguire has only potted one red in this frame, and is being kept in it by foul points. Pobably not for much longer though, because Selbz bangs home a plant - after much deliberation - then tucks in behind the black, on the green spot because nothing else was available the last time it went down.
Selby 1-2 Maguire (43-18)
Uncle Joe recons this table is playing slower than the previous ones here, and Selbz is taking his time to get used to it. But though he's not flowing he's still accumulating, and is inching inexorably towards the frame.
Selby 1-2 Maguire (9-18)
Stephen plays into the pack and a red he probably didn't think would slide back up the table imparts an infelicitous double kiss. Then, to make matters worse, Mark gets a lovely kiss when he sticks one away, and this is a chance to make a telling contribution. Stephen will be raging if he gets to the interval at 2-2.
Selby 1-2 Maguire (0-18)
Stephen gets first go at the table and an only manage four, but he adds more by way of foul when Mark struggles to find the right pace on some cushion escapes. Safety then ensues.
Selby 1-2 Maguire
Welcome to the match Mark Selby! A 79 gets him away, and get us away too really - this is getting interesting.
Selby 0-2 Maguire (55-2)
Just as I'm writing welcome to the match Mark Selby, he misses a red and there are 91 points left on the table. He gets the next chance though, but can only jaws a long pot; in response, Stephen does likewise, and that gives Mark a chance to secure things. He sends down a starter, and off we go.
Selby 0-2 Maguire (40-1)
But it's Selbz who gets first go in frame three and he could really use something decent. The reds aren't spread especially nicely, but there are enough loose ones with which to work and then he pokes in one which, followed by a fine black, really opens things up.
Selby 0-2 Maguire
Selbz did have a chance there, but Maguire looks in better shape and a run of 57 underlines that.
Selby 0-1 Maguire (26-73)
Mark hasn't looked himself so far tonight and Stephen is putting it on him. He's dominating the safety exchanges - not often anyone says that in a match with yerman - his long-potting is on point - and he's looking comfy in the balls.
Selby 0-1 Maguire (26-31)
He hits second go, but Stephen sorts another very acceptable red, then rolls in behind the green again, serving Selbz a small dose of own medicine. He's not tight enough though, allowing an easier escape, but the situation allows Stephen to dictate proceedings, and he's soon back with hand on table.
Selby 0-1 Maguire (26-13)
After a long safety exchange - ctrl C, ctrl V - Stephen takes on a tight red to the centre, and in comms, Uncle Joe is certain it's going down. But it raps the far jaw and shoots out, presenting Mark with a reasonably laid table. But he can't get much from it, and when Stephen nails a fine long red, he finds himself snuggled in behind the green.
Selby 0-1 Maguire
Nup, 66 and the frame. I feel sure he'll cope.
Selby 0-0 Maguire (0-82)
This is really good from Stephen, and with the frame secure he'll want to grab the ton that's there for him.
Selby 0-0 Maguire (0-34)
You've got to favour Selbz tonight because he's been in better form and is the better player, but if Maguire's on, then who knows - it's just that of all the best players, he might be the least predictable. He gets the first chance though, and looks settled but then my SkyGo cuts out, returning to present me with a safety exchange. Strangely, Selbz doesn't look comfy during it, and a fine long pot brings Stephen back to the table.
Evening all
Off we go again!
That's the afternoon sesh done
We'll be back at 6.45pm GMT for the Selby v Maguire.
Yan Bingtao beats Neil Robertson 6-5
What a debut! Twenty years old! Yan has a brilliant snooker brain and he used every cell of it in that final frame - especially - but throughout the match, hanging in there when Robertson was on and fighting back like a boss. He plays Maguire or Selby in the last eight.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (13-50)
Neil sends down the final red but misses a difficult black into the green pocket and now needs three snookers to tie. Good luck, old mate. In the meantime, Yan will try to move the balls he put on cushions over pockets.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (10-50)
There are three reds left and we've been going over four hours ... and WHAT A SHOT THAT IS FROM YAN! Neil leaves a red to the yellow pocket and he absolutely powers it home! He's not quite on the pink, but the look on his face tells you he thinks he's won, and he just uses it for a snooker. If Neil misses with his escape, the best he can do is tie. He hits, but carelessly, and Yan is going to win! He's played the key frames so well, and his snooker brain is off the charts. Neil will think he's tossed it and in a way he has, but he's looked increasingly befuddled as Yan's schlepped him out of his comfort zone. How he'll rue that missed black - not so much the acxtual pot, but playing it.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (10-48)
Eesh! Neil catches the jaws with a safety - Yan's beaten him up in that aspect like Selby did to Ronnie in the 2014 world final. Yan then sees off another red, and though he finishes on nowt, he's able to send the blue safe; even if Neil gets in now, he'll have a hard time cobbling together the points he needs.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (10-38)
A superb long red from Yan yields no reward; he's stuck onto the black and in baulk, so sends the brown safe and leaves the white behind pink and yellow. Neil misses with his escape, not by much but nevertheless, and this is slipping away from him now - all the more so when he misses again.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (10-38)
Look at that! Neil clips home a long red of champions to get himself away in the decider; he's down at 54% for such shots today, which tells you just how good an effort it was. There are six reds left, clustered under the pink, so there's lots for Neil to do, and he starts it nicely, missing his cannon into the pack only to go around the back of them and wind up on a ball. Next, the key shot: a pink into the middle, off which he'll cannon the pack ... but he misses the pot! He misses the cannon too, but leaves nothing so we're back playing safety.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (0-38)
A poor positional shot leaves a tricky red, and it looks like he's overcut it ... but it wobbles and drops ... but where's the cue-ball going? ... it avoids the centre pocket, just. The upheaval ruins his position so that's end of break, but he's been dominating the safety exchanges this afternoon so 38 is a handy lead.
Robertson 5-5 Yan (0-37)
Neil leaves Yan a red, and he's nicely set for the yellow, able to power through and come back down into the pack. But he doesn't quite get into the cue-ball so has to play safe. That's a huge let-off for Neil ... but it's Yan in next and this time it might be for real. A pink into the middle allows him to disturb a couple more reds, and he continues picking around the margins; eventually he'll need to power into the cluster, but this is looking like a very valuable visit.
Robertson 5-5 Yan
Tell youse what, Yan has stones for months. Master debut, 20 years old, and trailing an all-time great all afternoon ... but heere we are! Let's have it!
Robertson 5-4 Yan (0-59)
But wait! Yan gets into a tricky position to pot the black and seems unhappy about it, then overcuts it by a long wayThere's work for Neil to do here, but of the seven remaining reds, only one looks out of commission. He stretches about the table working out what to do ... there are a lot of options ... then misses a simple red with rest, overcutting it by plenty! That will surely mean a final-frame shoot-out!
Robertson 5-4 Yan (0-51)
A poor positional shot forces Yan to use the rest to keep the break going. he's missed three that way this afternoon but he fairly clatter this one home, sees away the green next, and is soon back in amongst it. It'd be extremely surprising if we weren't to get a decider here.
Robertson 5-4 Yan (0-32)
But Yan looks pretty chilled - of chill in current parlance - out there, and when Neil botches a safety he's right there at the business end with the black available to both pockets. Yan's highest career break is 138, so he's got work to do in that department, but he'll fancy himself for enough points here to finish the frame.
What is the format?
It's a simple proposition: the 16 best players in the world playing in a straight knock-out format on one table. There's a day session at 1pm and an evening session at 7pm each day from Sunday, January 10 to Sunday, January 17.
It's best of 11 all the way up to the final, which will be best of 19.
Full Masters schedule
First round
Sunday January 10
- Kyren Wilson 6-2 Gary Wilson
- Joe Perry 2-6 David Gilbert
Monday January 11
- Stuart Bingham 6-4 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
- Shaun Murphy 6-4 Mark Williams
Tuesday January 12
- Neil Robertson v Yan Bingtao (1pm)
- Mark Selby v Stephen Maguire (7pm)
Wednesday January 13
- Ronnie O'Sullivan v Ding Junhui (1pm)
- John Higgins v Mark Allen (7pm)
Quarter-finals
Thursday January 14
- Perry / Gilbert v Wilson / Wilson (1pm)
- Bingham / Un-Nooh v Murphy / Williams (7pm)
Friday January 15
- Higgins / Allen v O'Sullivan v Ding (1pm)
- Selby / Maguire v Robertson / Yan (7pm)
Semi-finals
Saturday January 16
- TBC v TBC (1pm)
- TBC v TBC (7pm)
Final
Sunday January 17
- TBC v TBC (1pm, 7pm)
HOW TO WATCH THE MASTERS 2021 TV AND LIVESTREAM
You can watch every moment of the Masters live and ad-free on the Eurosport app and eurosport.co.uk.
The Masters will also be broadcast on Eurosport 1 across the week.
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