Selby And Murphy Book Berlin Spots
World Champion Mark Selby secured his place in the final stages of the D88 German Masters with a 5-2 win over Jamie Jones.
The qualifying event finishes in Barnsley on Friday with the 32 winners going through to the Tempodrom in Berlin for the world ranking event which runs from January 31 to February 4.
When Selby won this title in February 2015 he became world number one, and he has stayed on top of the rankings ever since. He lost the first two frames against Jones but then hit back to take five in a row with top breaks of 73, 115, 92 and 119.
Shaun Murphy top scored with 70 as he beat Scottish Open finalist Cao Yupeng 5-2. China’s Yu Delu made a 123 as he beat Jimmy White 5-2.
Martin Gould, who won this title in 2016, edged out Ken Doherty 5-4. The deciding frame lasted 46 minutes and came down to the colours, Gould clearing from green to pink for victory.
Jimmy Robertson beat Peter Lines 5-4, winning the decider on the final black, while Mark Allen compiled runs of 82, 61, 72, 72 and 68 in a 5-2 win over Rod Lawler.
Barry Hawkins top scored with 96 in a 5-2 win over Liam Highfield while Mark Davis made a 110 in a 5-0 defeat of Josh Boileau.
Earlier on Thursday in first round matches, Scottish Open champion Neil Robertson kept his winning streak going as he beat Chris Wakelin 5-2 with a top break of 101.
Belgium’s Luca Brecel continued to struggle with the effects of a shoulder injury as he lost 5-1 to Hammad Miah. After losing the first frame, world number 79 Miah took five in a row with top breaks of 52 and 65.
Ali Carter was another top 16 player to suffer defeat as he lost 5-3 to Wang Yuchen. Carter led 3-2 before China’s Wang took the last three frames.
Judd Trump top scored with 109 in a 5-3 win over Adam Duffy to set up a match with Yuan Sijun.