Wu Yize leads Shaun Murphy 10-7 at end of first day's play in World Championship final
Wu won six of nine frames played in evening session
Murphy and Wu shared eight frames played during Sunday's opening session
Final is best of 35 frames and will conclude on Monday
Murphy 4-5 Wu
The risks that Wu Yize had stopped taking earlier, he's taking again now.
Far more aggression in his cueing in these early stages of the evening session.
He leads 44-16 at the moment, on a break of 40 and it's he who is at the table.
Murphy 4-5 Wu
Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
Image source, PA MediaWe will have an overnight leader no matter what given there are nine frames being played.
Monday afternoon's session then reverts back to eight, with the potential for a further 10 frames to conclude the match should it go the distance tomorrow night.
Murphy 4-5 Wu
Anything you can do...
Shaun Murphy nails a long red and sets himself up perfectly on the black.
It looked like a great chance for 'The Magician' to build something but his break stalls on 16.
Murphy 4-5 Wu
Stephen Hendry
Seven-time world champion on BBC Two
The talent coming through from China is quite frightening. Zhao last year, Wu this year, Chang Bingyu beat Shaun in a match this year with a 100% pot success rate.
Hopefully we get some young talent - Stan Moody showed up well here, and Liam Pullen - hopefully those guys can keep up.
Murphy 4-5 Wu
Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Two
It's hard to pick a winner of this match. They are similar players despite the age difference. I think it's who is going to play the most relentless. It is not going to be tactical.
Murphy 4-5 Wu
That's how you start the evening session.
Whatever Wu Yize has done during that interval seems to have worked.
A break of 82 gets him on the board first this evening and that was quick!
Murphy 4-4 Wu
Shaun Murphy gets the first pot of the evening session but misses on the brown, which allows Wu Yize in.
The 22-year-old looked very focused during his walk-on and that is showing in the early stages of this contest.
He's up to a break of 54 and arguably already cueing better than this afternoon.
Murphy 4-4 Wu
Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Two
There was a little lull this afternoon which I think is understandable but the best is yet to come in this final, I think.
Image source, PA MediaMurphy 4-4 Wu
Let's hope the rest of this final can live up to that one for you then, Arwyn.
Walk-ons complete, a stern warning from referee Rob Spencer to the crowd to keep those phones turned off and we are away.
Wu Yize to break.
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The semi-final between Allen and Wu was the best match I have seen in over 50 years (and I remember the Taylor epic). It was probably the best sporting contest I have ever witnessed.
Arwyn, Stone Bucks.
Murphy 4-4 Wu
Stephen Hendry
Seven-time world champion on BBC Two
In the first session, the players were trying to find their feet. Tonight, I expect to see fireworks.
Murphy 4-4 Wu
Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
I briefly saw match referee Rob Spencer on the corridor at the Crucible earlier.
As a former policeman, he should know all about apprehending someone and just laughed when someone said "well done" for taking charge of the situation in the third frame when a female spectator jumped over the barrier on the front row.
She was prevented from making any further progress towards the table by Spencer before security escorted her out of the venue. She is unlikely to be welcome back to a World Snooker event any time soon, with a likely ban on the way.
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Image source, PA MediaYou have to love Shaun's enthusiasm and interaction with the crowd. Good to see another youngster in the final though. Will be a close one I'm sure.
Justin, London
Murphy 4-4 Wu
This year's final is likely to be a lot closer at the halfway stage than the previous two showpiece matches at the Crucible.
Zhao Xintong led Mark Williams 11-6 overnight in last year's final, as did Kyren Wilson against Jak Jones in 2024.
Both Zhao and Wilson converted those overnight leads into world title wins.
Murphy 4-4 Wu
BBC Two
Coverage of the second session is now live on BBC Two, the BBC iPlayer and on this page - click on the "Watch live" icon.
Murphy 4-4 Wu
Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
It is a dreary and rainy day in Sheffield but Arthur and Will were kind enough to stop for a chat a little earlier. They are up from London and have positioned themselves in Wu Yize's corner.
"We like him a lot and he is dynamic potter. You have to feel bad for Mark Allen though," says Will.
"That is going to haunt him. We would have liked to have seen John Higgins but Shaun deserved to be here. He has got a very good chance and while we are supporting Wu, Shaun has been the best player in the tournament so far in our opinion."
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Murphy 4-4 Wu
Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
In case you missed it earlier....
Shaun Murphy recovered from 3-0 down draw level at 4-4 against Wu Yize in the first session of their World Championship final at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
The showpiece match was briefly interrupted in the third frame when a female spectator jumped over the barrier on the front row.
She was prevented from making any further progress towards the table by referee Rob Spencer before security escorted her out of the venue.
It is not the first time there has been a disruption to this year's tournament. There were several instances of shouting out during Wu's semi-final match against Mark Allen, while fans have repeatedly been warned about phone usage.
At that stage Wu, who is bidding to replace Murphy as the second-youngest Crucible champion, was in charge.
The 22-year-old continued from where he left off against Allen on Saturday evening, with breaks of 51 and 61 helping him establish a healthy early advantage.
However, Murphy took the final frame before the mid-session interval with a run of 85 and then began to impose himself on the contest.
The Englishman is aiming to set a new record for the longest gap between first and second titles, with it being 21 years since he triumphed on snooker's grandest stage.
He restricted Wu to just 25 points across four frames as he responded in style with a flurry of big breaks - with runs of 98, 77 and a superb 109 earning him a 4-3 lead.
Wu, who is the third Chinese player to reach the world final after 2016 runner-up Ding Junhui and last year's champion Zhao Xintong, broke down on 65 while appearing to go for a maximum 147 break in the eighth frame but it did not prove costly as he restored parity.
Ready to watch these two do battle again?
We certainly are.
Finely poised at 4-4 after the opening session, Shaun Murphy and Wu Yize will play another nine frames this evening before concluding the 2026 World Championship final on Monday.
Let's get right into it and find out what awaits us this evening.
Image source, PA MediaMurphy 4-4 Wu
Image source, PA MediaSo the first eight frames of the World Championship final have been shared and there are another nine to be played in this evening's session from 19:00 BST.
Be sure to join us again later!