Hong Kong Masters: Neil Robertson downs Mark Williams to reach the semi-finals, could face Ronnie O’Sullivan

Neil Robertson booked a place in the Hong Kong Masters semi-final after defeating Mark Williams 5-3 at the Hong Kong Coliseum.

In the opening frames between the two former world champions, Robertson was able to come back from behind twice to tie it 2-2 in the fourth frame, leaving it to be anyone’s game.

Williams was somehow unable to capitalise, leading Robertson to come back with 140 points, the highest break of the tournament so far.

Leading for the first time, Robertson wasted no time in the sixth frame, downing a red in the bottom left. He then missed the black right away, giving Williams chance to redeem himself from the frame prior, to which he also fumbled as he looked at the board in disbelief and shook his head.

Robertson made it difficult for himself but was able to extend his lead to two frames at 4-2.

In a must-win situation for Williams, the Welshman sunk both the red and the blue in the bottom left pocket before securing the seventh frame with 80 points.

At 4-3, Robertson was adamant about not wasting the lead he had built up as he drained a red in the bottom corner before he downed the black that just made it into the middle pocket. His blue was essentially the match ball as it secured the Australian a spot in the last four.

On what his mindset was going into this match, Robertson said he wanted “to be very attacking. Mark and I are very attacking players, we like to make big breaks.

“I felt for him because he only came up a couple of hours before our match, and then in the first frame, he made 134, which was absolutely unbelievable. So I thought, ‘I’ve got to keep it going’. I made a couple of centuries myself.

“When you are playing in front of a big crowd like this, it is important to play the right way and to play in a way that all the fans will enjoy as well.”

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