World Snooker Championship
Date: 17 April-3 May 2010 Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Coverage: Live coverage each day on BBC Two, BBC Red Button and BBC Sport website (UK only), updates on BBC Radio 5 Live.
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By Mark Ashenden
BBC Sport in Sheffield |
Selby bounces back with magnificent 142
Graeme Dott took advantage of a sloppy Mark Selby display to take a 5-3 lead in their World Championship semi-final.
The 2006 champion hit a 79 and a 70 to win three of the first four frames as Selby struggled with his potting.
A 93 in a gruelling seventh frame made it 5-2 to the Scot but the Leicester cueman ended the session on a high.
A break of 142 - the second highest of the tournament - clawed back some lost ground before the pair begin their second session on Friday at 1430 BST.
Selby, nicknamed the 'Jester from Leicester' and a runner-up three years ago, looked off the pace for much of the evening, perhaps mentally still recovering from his fine comeback against Ronnie O'Sullivan on Wednesday.
The 26-year-old will be hugely relieved after a stunning century - his sixth of the tournament - at the end of a long night helped him forget what was a pretty miserable session for him until that point.
Nonetheless, Dott was impressive, showing the resilience that has seen him rise from a ranking of 48 two years ago to a guaranteed top-16 spot next season, after reaching the Crucible semi-finals from the qualifying stages.
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606: DEBATE
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A sloppy safety from Selby saw his opponent comfortably take the first frame and it was heading for 2-0 until the Scot missed an easy green after a 53 break.
Although the Masters champion snatched it to level, his attacking game was increasingly thwarted as he got dragged into a fascinating safety duel.
It was 14 minutes before the first red was potted in the third frame and Dott eventually came through with a run of 70 that included a double on the last red, capitalising on a wild Selby shot on the green.
Dott, not the only one having to raise his energy levels after disposing of Mark Allen in a last-frame thriller in the quarters, did not let up and a run of 48 saw him move 3-1 ahead.
After a ragged period featuring a series of missed pots, Dott went 4-2 up with a 50 break before extending his lead to 5-2 after emerging from an error-ridden, 27-minute frame with a knock of 93.
But the obdurate Selby, the pre-match favourite to win the title, finally came good in the last frame, far surpassing his previous highest break of the night of 35 with a brilliant 142.
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