Shaun Murphy beat three-time winner Ding Junhui 6-5 in a final-frame decider to maneuver into the quarter-finals of the UK Championship in York.
Whereas Ding constructed a glowing break of 129 within the opening body, each gamers appeared removed from their greatest till the closing phases of the competition.
In a see-saw affair Ding trailed 2-1 and led 3-2 earlier than former UK winner Murphy reeled off three consecutive frames, with an excellent run of 135 within the eighth body his first break over 50 within the contest.
Ding, additionally the runner-up within the two earlier years, responded with successive centuries to pressure an eleventh body however Murphy held his nerve, compiling a break of 65 on his solution to victory.
He’ll now play world quantity 20 Barry Hawkins, who defeated fellow Englishman David Gilbert 6-5 in an equally hard-fought encounter.
In the meantime, Jack Lisowski adopted up his first-round victory in opposition to Mark Selby with an equally spectacular 6-4 triumph in opposition to Ali Carter.
Breaks of 85, 63 and 106 helped the 33-year-old set up a 4-1 benefit earlier than Carter lowered his arrears with a 68.
Lisowski, who’s arguably the most effective participant on the skilled tour to haven’t received a rating title, responded with a 97 and rounded off his win with a 52, with a late Carter combat again coming too late.
He’ll now play Mark Allen within the final eight after the Northern Irishman recovered from 4-2 all the way down to beat Wu Yize 6-4.
Two half centuries had given Allen, the 2022 UK champion, a 2-0 benefit.
However 21-year-old Yize, from China – who didn’t pot a ball in both of these frames -then compiled breaks of 77, 117 and 79 as he reeled off 4 consecutive frames.
With the match seemingly slipping away Allen, the world quantity three, got here into his personal making two centuries and two half centuries to progress.
