Mark Selby took a 7-6 lead from Mark Allen after a marathon second session saw just five frames played in their semi-final at the World Championship.

Allen had a 5-3 advantage after “doing Selby at his own game” during the first session according to seven-time world champion and Eurosport expert Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Eight frames were scheduled to be played in the afternoon but the record for the longest frame of the match was broken three times, so play was called off just before 18:00 UK time.

The opening frame of the second session came down to the final pink and black with Allen 56-54 in front. He cut a thin pink in to go 6-3 ahead after the 41-minute frame, but then a big moment came in another lengthy frame.

Selby required a snooker with just the colours up to the green remaining and got it, before clearing the rest of the balls to get some momentum on his side, following 45 minutes of cautious play.

He punched a long red in at the start of frame 11 on his way to making a delightful 95 and made two scoring breaks in the next frame to make it all square at the interval.

It took more than two hours to complete the opening four frames but the match was being played in light spirits, with the pair seen having a chat prior to the resumption of play, which Jimmy White didn’t agree with.

A run of flukes and great shots prompted more laughter in another cagey frame, where Selby came out on top after a missed red from Allen to lead 7-6.

The official rule is a frame cannot start 45 minutes prior to the next session at the World Championship, but tournament organisers chose to end the afternoon’s play

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In contrast, the semi-final between Si Jiahui and Luca Brecel has been more flowing, with the Chinese player 11-5 in front going into the penultimate session on Saturday evening.

Eight frames are set to be played, so Si could wrap up the match and book a place in the final with a session to spare in the first-to-17 encounter.

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