Vafaei launches epic comeback to stun Trump on day of great Crucible drama
Iran’s Hossein Vafaei caused the biggest shock of this year’s World Snooker Championship as he beat the world No 1, Judd Trump, in a final frame decider on Monday.Hossein showed nerves of steel to rattle off a break of 91 in the 25th frame to claim a 13-12 victory and move through to the quarter-finals for the first time.Trump, aiming to add to his 2019 title, had led 10-7 and 12-11, but Vafaei would not be denied.The beaming Iranian was warmly congratulated by Trump at the end and received a standing ovation from the crowd.“He’s such a tough opponent.
I respect him on and off the table,” Vafaei said.“Today I played better than yesterday and I managed it better than before.I said: ‘If it’s my tournament, it’s going to happen.’ I’ve been working on the mental side, I’ve wanted to be calmer and perform.It’s better to sometimes shut your mouth and let the game come out.
”Ronnie O’Sullivan admitted he got what he deserved after seeing his attempt for a record-breaking eighth Crucible crown shattered by a stunning comeback from John Higgins while Mark Selby branded the playing surface “horrific” after a 13-11 defeat by China’s Wu Yize.O’Sullivan twice led by five frames, but lost six in a row over the final two sessions and Higgins fired three centuries on Monday before holding his nerve to get over the line and complete a memorable 13-12 win to make the quarter-finals.Selby drew on his years of experience to push Wu all the way but expressed his frustration afterwards.“I felt like the conditions were the worst I’ve experienced here at the world championship.”O’Sullivan shrugged off his loss and revealed he had booked a flight back to his base in Ireland for Monday morning having been so convinced before their high-profile showdown that he was set to lose the match with a session to spare.
“I’ve got to be honest with you, I had a flight booked home early this morning because I wasn’t sure if I’d get to the third session before the match started,” he said O’Sullivan, who has played sporadically on the circuit this season.“I was realistic about my chances.I haven’t been in any big matches for two years.Playing the top boys in a real pressure situation now, I knew it was going to kind of expose me in some sort of way.I was really shocked that I was able to make a game of it.
”Remarkably, it was Higgins who had looked more likely to exit the tournament without the need for a Monday session, after looking distinctly out of sorts in the early stages, trailing 8-3 then 9-4 and looking bereft of his usual battling qualities.But he forced a rare show of frustration from O’Sullivan as he chipped back to a 9-7 overnight deficit, and turned on the style in the final session by firing three centuries en route to completing one of the most memorable wins of his career.“It’s got to be up there,” said Higgins.“I’m just delighted I came to the party in the third session, because after the first two sessions, how I was only 9-7 behind, I’ll never know.Ronnie was by far the better player.
“The atmosphere was incredible.I’ll be honest, the ovation we got walking in there, it threw me.I just felt like I was like a rabbit in the headlights a little bit, and I think Ronnie could thrive off that and just settled down straight away.”O’Sullivan’s chances of regaining the ascendancy on Morning afternoon took an early hit when he broke down on a mid-range red in the opening frame and Higgins showed he was up for the fight by taking the frame with a break of 58.Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'.
If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.In the Guardian app, tap the Profile settings button at the top right, then select Notifications.Turn on sport notifications.Successive centuries shunted the Scot in front for the first time at 10-9, but O’Sullivan slugged straight back with a coolly dispatched 62 to haul level, before a brilliant 93 with the black out of commission suggested the favourite was back on course for victory.Higgins responded with his third century of the session and the pair split breaks in excess of 80 to set up a nerve-racking decider.
Both had early chances but it was Higgins who grasped his at the second attempt to record a famous win,O’Sullivan insisted he was “shocked” to have taken it to the brink, adding: “When I was 6-2 up after the first session, I said to my mate: ‘I can’t work this out’,I felt like I played OK, and 9-7 up after two sessions, I thought: ‘OK, cool,’“But John played great today and I tried to hang on to him,I just couldn’t get the job done.
I had a chance in the last and was probably a little bit unlucky going into the pack.I left myself a difficult red and I missed.What can you do?”Meanwhile, Selby had compiled a match-best 95 to keep himself in with a chance at 12-10, but it was clear that neither player was scoring at their best, as the normally free-scoring Wu did not muster a half-century on Monday until the chiselled-out 53 that finally got him over the line.“It’s not the reason I lost that match, but it’s disappointing to come to a tournament that is the pinnacle of our sport and think the conditions are going to play really well and they’re not,” Selby said.“In my first game against Jak Jones I felt like the table was absolutely horrific.
It was tough,I know they [the table-fitters] did the best job possible, but something needs to happen because it’s so inconsistent from one tournament to the next,”Despite Wu’s often unorthodox shot choice – highlighted by an outrageous plant off two cushions during Sunday’s session – Selby believes his opponent has a shot at lifting the Crucible crown,“He’s great for our game, he’s great to watch and very, very attacking,” Selby added,“Some of the balls he took on against me, I’m not sure they were the right shot, but they were going in.
He’s still young and loving the game,“I think he’s a world champion in the making,Who knows? It could be this year, but I do think he’ll probably win it at some stage,I don’t think he played great in that match but some of the standards he plays to when he gets on a bit of a run, he’s hard to stop,”
Gay and Bedingham ace Durham’s chase against Lancashire: county cricket, day four – as it happened
Durham’s Emilio Gay and David Bedingham turned a substantial run chase into an ice-cream and Pimm’s knockabout at Chester-le-Street, chasing down a target of 336 to beat Lancashire with 18 overs to spare. Their unbeaten centuries, in a record stand, came at a gallop and Lancashire had no answer, despite winkling out Ben McKinney and Alex Lees before lunch. “The team is starting to believe,” said the Durham head coach, Ryan Campbell. “There’s a feeling of calmness around the group that I haven’t seen in a while.”Tom Westley and Dean Elgar both made centuries and in process batted Essex to safety against Surrey at the Oval, in a game soaked in sunshine and runs
Anthony Joshua to face Tyson Fury this year for biggest fight in British boxing history
The most hyped and regularly postponed fight in recent British boxing history will apparently take place this year after Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury agreed terms to meet in the ring. Long in the making, and coming far too late in the faded careers of both former world heavyweight champions, the much-delayed showdown will be a guaranteed money-spinner for the fighters and their backers.Eddie Hearn, who promotes Joshua, could barely contain his glee in an Instagram post that said: “Signed, sealed, delivered! AJ v Fury is on! The biggest piece of business we’ve ever done but more importantly the one we’ve always wanted. Biggest year of AJ’s career coming up, the comeback is on.”The bout is expected to take place in November with Netflix having broadcast rights
Murphy goes head-to-head with Loughnane on Guineas weekend in title race
A little over a month after the Brocklesby at Doncaster launched the new season on turf the Flat jockeys’ championship will finally be off and running at Newmarket on Saturday. For the first time since Oisin Murphy and William Buick took the race all the way to Champions Day in October 2021 there is a genuine chance of a contest that extends beyond the end of July.It has the potential to be a historic contest and the bookies cannot agree on a favourite in what is likely to be a straight head-to-head between 20-year-old Billy Loughnane – who would be the youngest champion for more than a century – and Murphy, the reigning champion and hoping to join Kieren Fallon as a six-time winner.Murphy was an easy victor with 143 winners last season and while Loughnane was the only other rider to reach three figures he was a long way adrift on 108. On that basis, punters could expect Murphy to be a heavy favourite, but at lunchtime on Monday it was possible to back Murphy at 11-10 with Ladbrokes and Loughnane at 6-4 with William Hill – an 88% book in a contest for which Rossa Ryan, at 16-1, is the only other runner shorter than 25-1
Vafaei launches epic comeback to stun Trump on day of great Crucible drama
Iran’s Hossein Vafaei caused the biggest shock of this year’s World Snooker Championship as he beat the world No 1, Judd Trump, in a final frame decider on Monday.Hossein showed nerves of steel to rattle off a break of 91 in the 25th frame to claim a 13-12 victory and move through to the quarter-finals for the first time. Trump, aiming to add to his 2019 title, had led 10-7 and 12-11, but Vafaei would not be denied.The beaming Iranian was warmly congratulated by Trump at the end and received a standing ovation from the crowd. “He’s such a tough opponent
‘I can run 1:58’: Sabastian Sawe sets new target after historic London Marathon win
Sabastian Sawe believes it is only a matter of time before he runs a marathon in one hour and 58 minutes after his superb sub-two hour performance in London on Sunday.Sawe ran 1hr 59min 30sec to break the world record by 65sec and the 31-year-old Kenyan confirmed that he plans to race again in the autumn, although he has not decided where.It will probably be in Berlin, which is a faster course than London, in September. When Sawe was asked whether he agreed with his coach, Claudio Berardelli, that 1:58 was possible in his next race, he smiled. “It’s only a matter of time
Mickey Arthur drafted into new coaches panel to mend England’s ties with county cricket
Mickey Arthur, the former South Africa and Pakistan head coach, is one of four appointments to England’s new County Insight Group as the national team seeks to repair relations with the domestic game after last winter’s Ashes defeat.Among the recommendations from the internal Ashes review that led to Rob Key and Brendon McCullum remaining as director of cricket and men’s head coach respectively was improved dialogue with the county game, not least regarding selection.The sense previously was that England were not interested in the views of those on the shop floor. Paul Farbrace, head coach at Sussex, had summed up the mood as: “There has almost been a feeling in county cricket that: ‘We’re not bothered whether England are doing well or not,’ and that saddens me.”To that end Key has appointed four county head coaches – Arthur, Richard Dawson, Alan Richardson and Anthony McGrath – to sit on a new panel that will meet the England hierarchy three or four times a season
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