QUALIFIER Liang Wenbo became the first Chinese to reach the quarterfinals of the World Snooker Championship when he came through a tense deciding frame against Joe Swail to win 13-12 in Sheffield, England, on Monday.

Liang, who is making his debut at The Crucible, will now face tournament favorite Ronnie O’Sullivan for a place in the last four.

Leading 9-7 at the start of the final session, the 21-year-old moved to within a frame of victory at 12-8.

He then saw Swail reel off four frames in a row to level at 12-12. The Northern Ireland player looked on course to win in the final frame before a missed brown handed victory to Liang.

Liang said he had struggled for consistency during the match.

“The first session was very good but in the second session I felt very nervous and played very tight. I think I played well in the final session but I did make mistakes,” Liang said.

Swail was unhappy with the re-positioning of the yellow in the final frame following a foul shot, claiming that it had not been put in the correct place. Liang managed to hit the yellow at the second attempt, without the cue ball going off a cushion, after appearing to be snookered initially.

Liang insisted, however, that he had not been given an unfair advantage, saying: “The referee did the right thing because I misjudged the first shot.”

Looking ahead to his match against twice world champion O’Sullivan, Liang said: “I’ll try my best and I think I have a chance.”

O’Sullivan made a maximum 147 break, a record third in world championships, on his way to beating fellow Briton Mark Williams 13-7 earlier in the day.

It was only the seventh maximum break recorded at The Crucible — the gifted O’Sullivan has now struck three of them — and earned him a bonus of 147,000 pounds (US$294,000) plus 10,000 pounds for the highest break of the tournament.

O’Sullivan, in an interview on BBC television with six-time world champion Steve Davis, joked: “Is it only 157,000 pounds?

“It was more important to win the game but it gives me a few more choices in the summer. I’ll be getting a Bentley GT Convertible now — I’ve been dying for one,” said the Essex cuemaster, who punched the air in delight after his latest stunning break.

“The difference between this year and the previous 13 is that I am keeping my discipline and being patient.

“If things go wrong I do not hit completely disastrous standards — and that’s the most important thing.

“Now things have turned around my form has come because I know a little bit more about what I’m doing technically.”

An admiring Williams said of O’Sullivan’s final-frame clearance: “The 147 was an excellent break. It’s only him who can do a break like that and make it look so easy. I knew he was going to go for it from the moment he was going for the first red. He didn’t look out of position once.”

O’Sullivan, 32, is bidding to win the world title for the third time after his 2001 and 2004 triumphs.

(SD-Agencies)