Welsh Open: Mark Selby crashes out while John Higgins progresses

Selby shocked

Mark Selby, the world number one, made a break of 135 in the second frame in the process of moving 2-1 ahead of Hossein Vafaei and looked comfortable before the Iranian rallied.

He scored breaks of 52 and 56 to take the following two frames and won the sixth 88-6.

Selby moved 58-12 clear in the seventh and final frame but Vafaei was not overwhelmed and a break of 54 saw him clinch a stunning 4-3 win.

Higgins rediscovering form

John Higgins, meanwhile, was pushed all the way by Jack Lisowski, who three times came back from a frame down before losing 4-3.

Lisowski had two chances to secure victory in the decider and led 40-1 at one point, only for Higgins, chasing a sixth title, to hold his nerve with a 71 clearance.

The Scot will next take on Joe O'Connor, who saw off world number eight Ding Junhui 4-1 to reach the last eight.

Robertson rockets into last eight

Neil Robertson cruised into the quarter-finals of the Welsh Open in Cardiff on Thursday night thanks to a convincing 4-0 win over Michael Georgio.

The Australian wasted no time in getting through to the last eight, with breaks of 79, 75 and 62 helping him to seal victory over the Cypriot.

Robertson will face Norway’s Kurt Maflin in the quarter-finals after a break of 78 in the fourth frame helped him beat Elliot Slessor 4-2.

Bingham sees off Robbie Williams

Stuart Bingham was in superb form as he rattled off three century breaks to beat Robbie Williams 4-2 and ensure his place in the last eight.

Williams went 2-1 up after a 102-break of his own, but Bingham landed the final three frames thanks to breaks of 128, 103 and 124.

Bingham will face Zhao Xintong in the quarter-finals, as the Chinese 21-year-old beat Alexander Ursenbacher 4-2, a break of 86 in the sixth frame sealing the win.

Ding brushed aside by O’Connor

Ding Junhui could only muster a frame against Joe O’Connor as the man from the Midlands eased to a 4-1 victory.

A break of 93 in the second frame helped O’Connor race into a 3-0 lead before Ding won the fourth 80-6 to give himself a chance of making the comeback.

However, it was short-lived as O’Connor ground out the fifth frame 68-37 to earn himself a place in the last eight where he’ll face John Higgins who beat Jack Lisowski 4-3.

Lisowski played some wonderful shots on his way to two century breaks of 134 and 115, but it wasn't enough to beat Higgins who won the decider with a break of 71 to seal the win.

Scott Donaldson is also in the quarter-finals after the Scot beat Ian Burns 4-2, a break of 110 in frame three helping him along the way.

He'll face Hossein Vafaei next after the Iranian beat Mark Selby 4-3 in a late-night thriller.

Related snooker links

• Richard Mann's outright Welsh Open preview
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• Sky Bet's snooker odds