Neil Robertson has progressed to the second round of the World Championship. He overcame Pang Junxu to book his place.
Kyren Wilson trailed Mark Allen but came back from 0-5 down to 3-5 after the first session of their second round clash.
Robertson on Safety Play
Robertson said he is trying to get every frame played on his terms. He acknowledged that he has been guilty of thinking he has many frames to play, then struggling after a bad session.
He added that he’s lost to great safety players over the years at the Crucible, players who win the safety exchanges.
Robertson stated he is trying to have as few safety exchanges as possible, but if they occur, he wants the balls open so he can knock in his shots. He admitted he’s not going to beat John Higgins or Mark Selby at their kind of game.
Seeds Dominate the Early Rounds
Neil Robertson defeated China’s Pang Junxu 10-6. This helped equal a Crucible record, as 15 of the 16 seeded players won their first round matches.
Fourth seed Robertson’s victory meant that for only the third time, all but one of the seeds made it through their matches against the qualifiers.
The only player that came through qualifying to still be in the competition is Hossein Vafaei of Iran. He defeated China’s Si Jiahui 10-3 earlier on Thursday.
The Crucible has staged snooker’s biggest event since 1977 and never have all 16 seeds advanced. The closest being 15 in 1983, and then again 10 years later.
- In 1983, Jimmy White lost to Tony Meo.
- 10 years later Doug Mountjoy defeated Alain Robidoux.
Robertson joked that Hossein Vafaei did him a favour earlier on. All the seeds had won, so the pressure was building.
Wilson Battles Back Against Allen
Kyren Wilson came back from 0-5 down to trail Mark Allen 3-5 after the first session of their second round clash.
Stephen Hendry said Mark Allen missed a trick and should have won the session 7-1 minimum because of how poorly Kyren Wilson was playing. Hendry added that Allen let Wilson back into the match.
Steve Davis observed that Kyren Wilson started his match really flat and not really playing his own game. Davis said Wilson got thrown a lifeline and decided to go for it, and it worked.
Davis added that in the modern day game, you’ve really got to be positive and put your foot to the floor. If you give someone that breathing space, they can get to you.
Kyren Wilson won a third frame in a row and looked a different player. He produced a half-century break and Allen conceded.
Allen could have been out of sight, but this match is finely poised ahead.
Robertson won the 2010 World Championship, but failed to qualify in 2024 and lost in the first round last year.
He was beaten 10-8 by Chris Wakelin on that occasion, but the pair will meet again in the last 16. Their match starts on Saturday and finishes on Monday.