Shaun Murphy avenges Welsh Open final defeat with Tour Championship last-eight win over Robert Milkins

Trailing 5-1 and then 6-3 at one stage and with history looking destined to repeat itself, Murphy rallied to win five consecutive frames, holding his nerve to see the job through.

He will play Mark Selby or Ryan Day next.

“A few years ago that’s the type of match I wouldn’t have won, you know,” Murphy told ITV afterwards. “I was known for only being able to really to win if I burst the lights out, whereas that’s changed.

“It took me a bit longer than some of my peers to get that B and C game, but I have got it now. I will have a bit of patience and I will wait.

Milkins prevailed in a lengthy opening frame, but Murphy levelled with a break of 70 before losing a tight third frame.

Milkins made it 3-1 and then 4-1, with breaks of 75 and 71 respectively, before extending his lead further.

Crucially, however, Murphy pulled two frames back. A break of 67 to make it 5-2 gave him the injection of confidence needed and he emerged victorious in the final frame of the session after a lengthy safety exchange.

It was Milkins who took the initiative as the match resumed for the evening session, capitalising on a missed red by Murphy when he was leading by 32. Milkins suckered his opponent into another mistake before ultimately putting the frame beyond Murphy’s reach with a half-century to make it 6-3.

But the game was to be turned on its head as Murphy secured the 10th frame. There were indications that Murphy was just warming up now – and that the tide in the match was turning – as he produced an impressive break of 106, punishing a poor safety shot to move to within one frame of Milkins.

Murphy missed out on a century in the 12th frame but he would have been more than happy to level the contest at the mid-session interval at 6-6 following a break of 67.

With the match beautifully poised, mistakes were being made, but while Murphy was firing on all cylinders, the body language of Milkins suggested his confidence was being sapped away. And for the first time, the former got his nose in front, and he had now won six of the previous seven frames.

Murphy had well and truly found his range now and after potting a superb long red, he went on to take a fifth consecutive frame as he edged closer to victory.

Perhaps now resigned to defeat, Milkins looked to have a weight off his shoulders as he managed to stop the rot, taking a scrappy frame. And he took that mindset into the 16th frame when he managed to level the scores at 8-8 following a break of 43.

It was now effectively a best of three and Murphy got the first of those meaning he needed just one more frame to seal his place in the last-four, and he clinched the win in style – with a sensational 128.

“I think that was the first time in the whole match I won in one visit, so I suppose it’s better to save it to the end,” Murphy said.

“I was chatting to my wife Elaine early on and she said those two last frames this afternoon were vital, and how vital they were. If it’s 6-2 or 7-1 behind it’s over really you know. To scramble to those two gave me a foot hold in the match.

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