Masters snooker 2024: Mark Selby sweep past Robert Milkins to secure quarter-final showdown with Mark Allen

Mark Selby emphatically booked his place in the quarter-finals of the Masters with a 6-1 victory over Rob Milkins.

The former world No. 1 registered five breaks over 50, including a dazzling 119 in the second frame, as he eased into the last eight.

Milkins, meanwhile, endured a frustrating evening, and his wait for a first win at Alexandra Palace goes on, after a third straight defeat in three visits.

Selby, who last won the event in 2013, made a rapid start, accumulating 100 points in the opening frame without a 50-plus break.

The scoring was even more heavy in the second. An early split on the pack off the blue, described by Eurosport commentator Neal Foulds as “absolutely sensational,” spread the bunch delightfully.

From there, he went on to compile a faultless 119, despite not potting the black until the final shot of his visit.

Milkins had barely seen sight of the table by this point, and that proved telling at the start of the third frame when he missed a simple enough black, bringing an untimely end to a break of 11.

Things became scrappy and awkward from there, with nine of the reds pushed below the black and Selby at one point warned for two misses.

The 40-year old eventually broke the stalemate, but a handy break of 24 came to an end when he tried to develop some of the remaining reds, only to finish with a touching ball, forcing him to play safe.

Milkins could do little damage on his return to the table though, and a fantastic 53 from the Jester, which looked unlikely given the position of the balls when he started his break, saw him take a 3-0 lead.

The Milkman was beginning to get frustrated, but a visit from Selby came to an end when he was put off by a loud noise in the crowd.

Once more, though, the former world champion would get another chance to put the frame to bed, and this time he did so with a clinical 63, ensuring he had a 4-0 advantage at the mid-session interval.

The assault looked set to continue after the break, as the Jester breezed to 45, only to miss a red that was hanging over the pocket.

Milkins was presented with a chance that he couldn’t afford to miss, and he duly cleaned up with a break of 88, eclipsing his previous best for the match of 13.

That proved to be nothing more than a bump in the road for Selby though, who capitalised on a poor missed red from Milkins to make it 5-1 with an excellent 70, his fourth successive 50-plus visit.

Milkins was his own worst enemy again in what proved to be the final frame, as he was first at the table but couldn’t make the visit count.

The Jester made a break of 74 that was more than enough to seal a 6-1 success and a quarter-final against Allen.