Shaun Murphy came from 3-1 down to beat Stuart Bingham 4-3 in a thrilling black ball finish at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open to reach his 80th ranking event quarter-final.
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Murphy admitted it was "panic stations" when Bingham surged 3-1 ahead in a high quality tussle, but eventually a brilliant last-gasp clearance from Murphy gave him victory and a last-eight clash with Judd Trump or Barry Hawkins in Belfast on Friday. World number eight Murphy is seeking his first title since the 2023 Championship League.
He was on track for a 147 in the opening frame before missing a tough penultimate red on 104. In a repeat of the 2015 Crucible final, Bingham stormed back to take three in a row with top runs of 121 and 101. Back came Murphy with 56 and 52 for 3-3, then Bingham looked set to take the decider until he missed a difficult red to a top corner on 60. It came down to the last two reds, and Murphy converted a mid-range pot to set up a match-winning 40, finishing with a tricky black along the baulk cushion.
"Wouldn't it be nice to win easily!" said the 42-year-old, who reached his first ranking quarter-final in 2004. "Stuart played incredibly well. At 3-1 I hadn't done much wrong. It was panic stations but the trick is to stay calm because you usually get a chance. I got lucky in the last frame, if Stuart had got a good pack split on 60 in the decider it would have been over. I love coming here to Belfast and I've got strong ties here."
World Champion Kyren Wilson ended the run of 18-year-old Stan Moody with a 4-1 success. A top break of 91 helped world number two Wilson to reach his only quarter-final this season other than the Xi'an Grand Prix, which he went on to win.
"I was on a bit of a hiding to nothing because I was expected to beat Stan," said Wilson. "I had to make sure I stayed professional, played the right shots and kept him under pressure. I had a week off after the Wuhan Open so I'm pleased to come here, switch back on and get to another quarter-final.
"Stan hits the ball lovely. You have to learn on the job in this game and obviously he needs more experience and probably to take a few hidings. He is in a great position to have so many tournaments to play in and the prize money is huge. He's showing he can beat some of the top players."
Wilson will now meet Mark Williams, who saw off Ma Hailong 4-2 with a top break of 51. After losing in the final of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters last month, Williams chose to change his cue, and has no doubt it was the right decision.
"When I started using the new cue I was expecting to lose in the first round a few times, but it's something I wanted to do," said the three-time World Champion. "I'm in another quarter-final here. The cue is beautiful, it's all down to the person using it."
China's Pang Junxu reached his fourth ranking event quarter-final with a 4-0 whitewash of Martin O'Donnell. His next opponent is Oliver Lines or Neil Robertson.