O'Sullivan Leads Higgins in World Championship Last-16
Ronnie O'Sullivan holds a 6-2 lead over John Higgins following the opening session of their World Championship last-16 match. The contest will resume on Sunday at 19:00 BST. Meanwhile, Mark Williams, another member of snooker's renowned 'Class of 92', was eliminated from the tournament.
Williams, aged 51, who was a finalist in the 2025 competition, was defeated 13-9 by 2013 finalist Barry Hawkins in front of a packed audience at the Crucible Theatre.
Prior to the matches, the crowd gave a standing ovation to honor the contributions of O'Sullivan, Higgins, and Williams, collectively holders of 14 world titles.
The highly anticipated match between 50-year-olds O'Sullivan and Higgins marks 30 years since their first meeting at the Crucible.
Seven-time world champion O'Sullivan displayed excellent form on Saturday, compiling breaks of 86, 82, 137, and 95 to secure four of the first five frames, establishing a 4-1 lead.
Higgins responded with a significant break of 68 in frame six, but O'Sullivan closed the session by winning the last two frames, including a break of 76 in the final frame, concluding the day with a four-frame advantage.
The match will continue on Sunday evening at 19:00 BST, with O'Sullivan requiring six more frames to clinch victory with a session to spare.
O'Sullivan, who overcame He Guoqiang 10-2 in the opening round despite using different cues in the two sessions, is pursuing an eighth world title, which would be a modern-era record.
Three-Time Champion Williams Eliminated
It was 4-4 after the first session, but Barry Hawkins extended his lead to 10-6 over Mark Williams by the end of the second session before securing a 13-9 win.
Following two sessions, Hawkins led 10-6, and Williams, a three-time world champion in 2000, 2003, and 2018, was unable to mount a comeback as the six remaining frames were evenly split, resulting in Hawkins' victory.
Eleventh seed Hawkins, who turned 47 on Wednesday, was aided by two breaks of 85—one in frame 18 and another in frame 20—to reach the Crucible quarter-finals for the seventh time.
"I just had to try my best over the three sessions. In two I played OK but the second session, I didn't play very well and that's when he got a good lead," said Williams.
"I tried to come back but he was just the better player. I just don't make enough breaks any more. I broke down on 40 or 50.
"It was the best reception I've ever seen here. They were all on their feet. It probably won't happen again with all three of us [of the 'Class of 92'] in the same session.
"There's nothing else I can really do, I can't practise for hours each day and I can't get better - as you go on, you get worse and worse."
Hawkins, who will face Northern Ireland's Mark Allen in the quarter-finals on Tuesday and Wednesday, commented:
"This is definitely up there [as his best Crucible experience]. It's not easy beating someone like that to get to the quarter-finals.
"I didn't just fall over the line so I'm quite happy with the way I played and my game - I enjoyed every minute of it.
"I used to have too much respect and would crumble against these sorts of players but over the last four or five years I've got more belief."
Regarding the standing ovation at the start of the session, Hawkins said:
"They were not standing for me, they were standing for the Class of 92 but when I walked out, what a feeling. It's the best place to play when it's like that."
Allen Defeats Wilson to Reach Crucible Quarter-Finals
Mark Allen advanced to the quarter-finals after defeating Kyren Wilson 13-9 in a compelling match.
Allen, aged 40, began strongly with a 5-0 lead but then trailed 6-5 before regaining control to lead 9-7 by the end of Friday's middle session.
He won four of six frames on Saturday to secure a place in the last eight for the sixth time.
Allen's best performances at the Crucible include semi-final appearances in 2009 and 2023.
Wilson ended his wait for a major title two years ago; now, attention turns to whether Allen can follow suit.
Allen, who held the world number one ranking for nearly four months in 2024 and has won two-thirds of snooker's Triple Crown by capturing the Masters in 2018 and the UK Championship in 2022, believes he still has the potential to win a world title.
"I've got as much out of this event as I've deserved. I've not played well enough to win it," Allen said. "There are no lucky world champions, you just have to go out there and earn it, but I've not earned it yet.
"But I still think I have got the ability to do it. That's why I keep on coming back.
"Any win here is a good win, but the biggest positive is I'm in the quarter-finals and I'm in second gear so there's plenty more to come."
Wilson offered encouragement to Allen:
"Kyren said 'if you play like this, you're going to be hard to stop' and that's a big boost coming from someone like him," Allen said.
Wilson said: "Mark is one who I'm always rooting for, he is a great lad, down to earth.
"I said to him 'you've got every chance of winning it'. We all know what a battler he is and I would love to see him win it."
Trump Levels Match with Vafaei After Century Break
World number one Judd Trump will retain his ranking if he defeats Iran's Hossein Vafaei. After their first session, the pair are tied at 4-4.
Trump won three of the opening four frames, but Vafaei, ranked 32nd and the only qualifier to advance past the first round, responded with three consecutive frames to lead 4-3.
However, 2019 world champion Trump produced an excellent break of 115 in the final frame of the session, leaving the match evenly poised ahead of the second session on Sunday afternoon.
Chinese Duel: Zhao Xintong Leads Ding Junhui
In the all-Chinese second-round match, Zhao Xintong holds a 9-7 lead over Ding Junhui, needing four more frames to secure victory. This match will be completed on Sunday morning at 10:00 BST.
Robertson and Wakelin Tied After Opening Frames
The match between Australia's 2010 world champion Neil Robertson and England's Chris Wakelin is evenly poised after the opening eight frames.
Robertson, aided by breaks of 65 and 59, led 4-1, but Wakelin responded with a 77 break in frame six and won the next two frames. Their match will resume on Sunday afternoon at 14:30 BST.
