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Shaun Murphy fell just short of a maximum 147 break as he defeated Neil Robertson to move into the Masters semi-finals at Alexandra Palace.
In the eighth frame that saw him complete a 6-2 victory, Murphy, on course for a maximum, misjudged his shot as he potted the black to take his break to 120 and snookered himself on the final yellow behind the blue.
And the 42-year-old, who won the title in 2015 by beating Robertson in the final, said on BBC Two: “I couldn’t breathe!
“One of my targets for the season was to make a max in one of the Triple Crown events, and I was like ‘come on, this is a good chance, this is a good chance’. Anywhere but there, goodness me.
“It was exciting. The most important thing today was it would have been a great present – it’s my mum’s birthday today.”
Smiling as he put his head in his hands, he added: “What an idiot! Anywhere but there!
“I’d love to have another go at that one. I wouldn’t mind but I did that before once, years ago in the Welsh Open against Mark Williams. I did the same thing, exactly the same shot. You’d think I would have learned. I just couldn’t breathe. I was very nervous.”
Murphy also described his performance as “somewhere near my best”, adding: “I’m delighted, I’m really pleased.”
After the ‘Magician’ made breaks of 90, 67 and 66 en route to a 4-1 lead, two-time champion Robertson replied with a 108 when taking frame six before Murphy posted 82 and his almost-maximum as he wrapped up victory.
Australia’s Robertson said: “I thought both of us looked absolutely fantastic out there.
“I think when two players are playing really well, it’s just smallest of margins one way or the other can be the difference, and that’s the way it was. I think you just have to take your hat off to Shaun with how well he played today.”
On the near-147, he said: “It’s such a bad shot, because even if he leaves himself a shot with the rest on the yellow, he’s so good with the rest that you’d fancy him potting it. I couldn’t believe it.
“It was a real shame for everyone watching, it would have been really nice to see the 147 here as well. So, gutted for Shaun from that point of view, but I’m sure he’ll be happy with the match.”
