A mixed bag from Wu Yize. He runs out of position potting a red, with no shot on the black. He makes up for it with a stunning long blue, only to then miss the next red. 0-17.

Wu Yize has had chances in this frame, but Murphy closes the gap back to two frames.

Murphy has been 3-0 and 4-1 behind, but is still in contention.

Frame six has been a strange one. Shaun Murphy made a break of 42, one behind his best of the match so far, then Wu Yize got a slice of luck by potting a red after missing his target one by some distance.

But Murphy then got some luck of his own by flicking the red in off the blue, only to underhit a straight-forward safety attempt on the brown. Murphy 43-5 ahead.

Ouch, that has to hurt Shaun Murphy. He was 61-34 in front, ran out of position and later left the last red on, with Wu polishing off the rest to snatch the frame on the black, winning it 64-61.

Wu two frames away from victory.

That could be costly. Murphy, 61-34 ahead, leaves the last red on. Wu could steal this frame now.

Murphy quickly opts for safety and the long-game approach pays off as Wu makes an error when missing a red, before Murphy gets to 61-34 ahead with one red left.

Wu with what John Virgo calls a 'hit and hope' blaster to try to hit anything, but he's left a red on for Murphy.

Murphy adds six but goes safe and what a result with the cue ball in the jaws of the pocket, leaving Wu snookered on everything.

Wu gets 34-18 in front, but runs out of position and then misses the double into the middle to give Murphy possession of the table.

Shaun Murphy gets 18-0 ahead but misses a mid-range red and Wu then sends a fine red into left middle with a chance to rack up the points in frame number five.

Three times Wu fails with a four-cushion escape with the cue tight behind behind the brown to gift Murphy 12 points, before the Chinese player leaves a red on, which Murphy takes.

We're back in action. Remember, it is the first to six, so Wu Yize is halfway there, while Shaun Murphy needs to win five of the potential seven frames.

This is how Shaun Murphy beat Kyren Wilson in last year's Masters final.

On Friday, Ronnie O'Sullivan withdrew from the Masters for medical reasons.

The 50-year-old world number eight, who won a record-extending eighth title in 2024, also pulled out of last year's event on medical grounds.

He was due to face Australian Neil Robertson in the opening round on Wednesday but has now been replaced in the draw by Scottish Open champion Chris Wakelin.

O'Sullivan, who claimed his first Masters crown in 1995 at the age of 19, said he made the "nightmare decision" not to take part in the Triple Crown event in 2025 because he was under a lot of pressure and "lost the plot".

The exact nature of his medical condition has not been disclosed.

O'Sullivan has cited medical reasons or the need to prioritise his mental health for his withdrawals from several tournaments in recent years, including the British Open, Wuhan Open and World Grand Prix.

'The Rocket', who now lives in Dubai with his family, last competed at the UK Championship in December when he was beaten 6-4 in the first round by China's Zhou Yuelong at York Barbican.

This is the schedule for the first round matches over the next four days.

We have a world champion playing in every one of the games until at least Thursday.

A couple of failed attempts to get out of a two-cushion escape from Wu gives Murphy another eight points and then he gets over the line to get his first frame of the match and that will make the reigning champion feel a lot better about himself.

Murphy makes a break of 43 but there is no viable shot on the black, so he has to go safe with Wu coming to the table 48-0 behind in the last frame before the mid-session interval.

The crowd loved these exhibition-style shots from Wu Yize to wrap up the third frame. Enjoy.

A chance for Shaun Murphy to get a sizeable break in frame three after Wu could not hit anything when trying to escape a snooker with the cue ball tight behind the black on the top cushion.