Selby into final after 63-minute black-ball frame

Mark Selby reached the final of the Champion of Champions tournament by beating Neil Robertson 6-2 in a match which included a 63-minute frame decided on the final black.

England’s Selby, playing in front of his home crowd at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester, largely controlled matters against the Australian to set up a final against world number one Judd Trump.

A grinding seventh frame which had lasted well over half an hour appeared to be heading to a conclusion when Robertson fluked the pink, but he then missed the black – only for Selby to miss a simple pot.

Four-time world champion Selby also made heavy weather of a 45-minute eighth frame, but came through it to set up a meeting of the only two men to have played in every edition of the Champion of Champions since 2013.

Selby won the opening two frames, including the second with a break of 127 to extend his record of scoring a century in every tournament he has played this season.

Robertson missed a simple red in frame one and was on the back foot thereafter.

Selby moved 4-1 ahead with an 80, but Robertson responded with a 104 – more than double his next highest break in the match – before the epic seventh frame.