Shaun Murphy will savour some home comforts after beating Xiao Guodong with a session to spare and reaching the last eight of the World Snooker Championship.<\/p>\n
Murphy guaranteed himself a night off on Friday with a 13-3 second-round demolition of Xiao \u2013 and then revealed he was heading home before his quarter-final gets under way on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
“Mathematically it’s possible to win with a session to spare but you don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to happen,” Murphy told the BBC after a fluent potting display that produced four centuries and seven further breaks over 60.<\/p>\n
“I kept getting those little chances and I\u2019m really pleased how I played. It doesn\u2019t happen often because everybody\u2019s so good.<\/p>\n
“We\u2019re going to ship out of Sheffield for a few days. Go home now. I\u2019ve got my practice table at home and I can do as much as I want instead of trying to dodge in for half an hour at the Crucible.<\/p>\n
“(I will) spend the next few days getting ready for what\u2019s going to be a big game.”<\/p>\n
Murphy will play reigning world champion Zhao Xintong or Ding Junhui next as the 43-year-old attempts to reclaim the title he won in 2005 as a Crucible qualifier.<\/p>\n
“I don\u2019t know if I\u2019d use the word desperate (to win it) but it\u2019s very close,” said Murphy, who celebrated victory with a fist pump to the Sheffield crowd<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s been 21 years since that totally clueless 22-year-old kid walked in here and nicked the trophy from everybody.<\/p>\n
Stunning finish, STUNNING PERFORMANCE!<\/p>\n
Shaun Murphy will have the night off after beating Xiao Guodong 13-3 with a session to spare. #WorldChampionship<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/6eLzuxhrem<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 WST (@WeAreWST) April 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n “I\u2019ve come back here every year trying my hardest to repeat that magic and I\u2019ve not been able to.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s not been for the lack of trying. Who knows? I\u2019ll enjoy watching Ding and Xintong battling it from the safety of my house and see who comes through that.”<\/p>\n Murphy led 6-2 overnight and Xiao won only one more frame on Friday as his game fell apart.<\/p>\n ‘The Magician\u2019 maintained his spell over Xiao as breaks of 93 and 66 helped him claim the first three frames of the second session.<\/p>\n Xiao responded with 74 to reduce the deficit, but Murphy rattled off breaks of 103, 69, 115 and 103 to reach the 10th World Championship quarter-final of his career.<\/p>\n The all-Chinese battle between Zhao and Ding was tied 4-4 after the first session.<\/p>\n Zhao pounced on errors from Ding to win successive frames on pink and black and lead 4-3.<\/p>\n The roles were reversed when Zhao missed a straightforward pot and Ding made a brilliant 62 clearance to snaffle the final frame.<\/p>\n A smart pack split sets up a break of 140 for Mark Allen!<\/p>\n He earned his sweetie! \ud83c\udf6c \ud83e\udd23<\/p>\n Be smart like the pros and get a smart meter!@smartenergygb<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/pR2vWlb2HV<\/a><\/p>\n