Players Championship: Mark Selby thrashes Ronnie O'Sullivan to reach semi-finals
- Published
Mark Selby will play either China's Zhang Anda or John Higgins in the semi-finals
Mark Selby produced a superb display to thrash Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-0 as he advanced into the semi-finals of the Players Championship in Telford.
Four-time world champion Selby compiled breaks of 65, 91, 81, 105 and 59 to race into a 5-0 lead.
World number one O'Sullivan made his first half century of the match in the sixth frame, but Selby overturned a 58-point deficit to seal his win.
Selby will face John Higgins or Zhang Anda in the last four.
"To beat Ronnie in any tournament by any scoreline is a great victory but to do it in the way I did - the safety was good, the long game was good, I was very, very pleased," Selby said on ITV4.
"The biggest thing for me is when I'm not winning, I tinker, but what I am doing now is what I need to be doing, whether I win or lose."
Earlier on Thursday, Mark Allen celebrated his 38th birthday and 700th professional match with a 6-4 win over Welsh Open champion Gary Wilson.
The Northern Irishman won three of the final four frames against Wilson and will now play Ali Carter in the semi-finals on Friday.
Superb Selby stuns O'Sullivan
Seven-time world champion O'Sullivan had come into his quarter-final contest with Selby looking for his 17th consecutive match victory.
The 48-year-old was also hoping to collect a fourth straight title, having won his past three events - the UK Championship, the Masters and the World Grand Prix.
However, Selby, who had not beaten 'The Rocket' since the 2020 Scottish Open final, took advantage of some loose safety play from his opponent and dominated proceedings with some excellent tactical play and heavy scoring.
In a controversial opening to the match, referee Desislava Bozhilova failed to warn O'Sullivan in the first frame after a second missed attempt when he could see one side of a red.
She swiftly realised her error, apologised to both players and informed the 41-time ranking winner he would forfeit the frame if he did not hit a red with his next shot.
O'Sullivan's response was to smash into the reds, allowing Selby to clinch the frame with a break of 65 and establish his rhythm on the way to a memorable victory.
Allen edges hard-fought affair
Allen, who rattled off three centuries in the first three frames on his way to an impressive 6-3 win over Mark Williams in the first round on Tuesday, started in positive fashion in the quarter-final.
He recorded breaks of 84, 63 and 75 to move 3-1 ahead after Wilson had taken the third frame.
Slip-ups from Allen allowed Wilson to draw level, before errors from the Englishman gave the world number three the chance to re-establish his lead.
With momentum swinging back in his favour, Allen, who has won the Champion of Champions and Shootout events this season, took back-to-back frames.
A miss on the black from Allen allowed Wilson to claim the ninth frame and keep his hopes of progressing alive.
However, Allen's composed 69 break in the next frame took him through.