Stuart Bingham v Jak Jones LIVE: World Snooker Championship scores and updates from semi-final

04/05/2024

LIVE – Updated at 18:55

Kyren Wilson reached a second World Snooker Championship final by downing David Gilbert 17-11 at the semi-final stage at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

Wilson won five frames on the bounce on Friday to surge into a 14-10 overnight lead – just three frames away from victory – and although Gilbert won the first of the day on Saturday afternoon to close the gap, Wilson knuckled down and won three on the trot to seal victory. Having lost in the 2020 World Championship final to Ronnie O’Sullivan in front of a Covid-reduced crowd, the world No 12 will now walk out on Sunday in front of a packed Crucible crowd as the favourite to lift a first world title.

The other last-four encounter is a much grittier affair than the relatively free-flowing contest between Wilson and Gilbert proved to be. It has been tough sledding between Stuart Bingham and Jak Jones, who were unable to be separated after the first two sessions before Welshman Jones pulled into a 13-10 lead with five frames on the spin on Saturday morning.

The duo were pulled off early due to slow play but 2015 world champion Bingham did win the final frame of the morning with a century break to move just three behind going into the final session at 7pm this evening, with Wilson awaiting in the final.

Follow all the action from the World Snooker Championship below, and get the latest predictions and odds here:

World Snooker Championship updates – Kyren Wilson v David Gilbert

The World Snooker Championship semi-finals will conclude at the Crucible
The highest-ranked remaining player, Kyren Wilson, beats David Gilbert 17-11 to reach his second world final
Stuart Bingham v Jak Jones has been a slog and Welshman Jones leads 13-10 ahead of the evening session
Latest score: Stuart Bingham 10-13 Jak Jones
RESULT: Kyren Wilson 17-11 David Gilbert

Kyren Wilson books World Snooker Championship final place in style

18:55 , Luke Baker

Kyren Wilson eased into his second World Snooker Championship final after completing a 17-11 win over qualifier David Gilbert at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

The 12th seed took three of the four frames required in Saturday’s third session to wrap up a victory that earns him a second crack at the title following his defeat in the 2020 final to Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Five frames in succession in their second session on Friday evening had done the damage as Wilson turned a neck-and-neck clash, that was finely poised at 9-9, into a four-frame advantage he never looked likely to squander.

Gilbert did reduce the deficit to 14-11 with a break of 70 in the opening frame of the day, but after coming off worse in a lengthy safety battle in the next, his fate was effectively sealed.

Wilson punched the air and blew a kiss to his family in the stand after potting the decisive blue and will start a heavy favourite in his second final against either Stuart Bingham or Jak Jones, who complete their last four clash on Saturday evening.

Kyren Wilson books World Snooker Championship final place in style

Qualifier Jak Jones edges closer to his first World Snooker Championship final

16:30 , Luke Baker

A reminder of what is to come later this evening

Jak Jones stands four frames away from becoming the first qualifier to reach the World Snooker Championship final since 2016 after establishing a 13-10 lead over Stuart Bingham in their Crucible semi-final.

Resuming at 8-8 on Saturday morning, Jones briefly fell behind before reeling off five frames in a row to seize the initiative in their error-strewn clash. Bingham gave himself hope of hauling back the deficit with a flamboyant break of 104 in the seventh and final frame of the session.

The pair were hauled off one short of their allotted eight after a gruelling session that averaged over 24 minutes per frame, including one that drifted towards the hour mark and required mid-frame toilet breaks.

The pair will resume to a finish on Saturday evening with Jones, the world No 44, bidding to emulate Ding Junhui’s run to the final in 2016.

stuart bingham v jak jones live: world snooker championship scores and updates from semi-final

(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Kyren Wilson reacts to win over David Gilbert

16:20 , Luke Baker

Kyren Wilson heads into the BBC studio to chat to Hazel Irvine and John Parrott after his win:

“It’s like Groundhog Day! You keep waking up same time, eating the right food and keep going. I feel like I’m going to grow gills I’ve been having so much salmon.

“Coming into this event, I’ve not had the best of seasons and suddenly everyone is saying I’m favourite. But Dave would’ve felt he had every right to win that game. He’s a classy cueist, hits the ball unbelievably well and I had to stop him getting going.

“I broke the back of the match yesterday – Dave wasn’t quite there and I was very focused. I had some good form and nice slices of luck at good moments. It was just about being patient.

On what he learnt from the 2020 final that he lost to Ronnie O’Sullivan: “Don’t eat too much pizza and have too many Peronis the night before! I woke up that morning so tired and the fire alarm woke me at 6am. I probably hadn’t even had three hours sleep, I was shattered.

“I know how to handle that a bit better now and the semi-final will give me confidence. I’ve taken that match out in one clean hit, got in with a great strike on a long red – that will give me a bit of confidence going into tomorrow.

“I tried to do something a bit different this year. I missed a few events because my form wasn’t great, then I went to Portugal for an eight-day break, left the cue alone and then had bang on two weeks to prepare. I came in quite refreshed.”

RESULT! Kyren Wilson 17-11 David Gilbert

16:06 , Luke Baker

A second World Championship final for Kyren Wilson and well deserved. From 9-9, he absolutely pulled away from David Gilbert and left him in his dust.

His only previous Crucible final came in 2020 against Ronnie O’Sullivan, in front of a Covid-reduced crowd and the Rocket cruised to victory. But this time, Wilson will be favourite against either Stuart Bingham or Jak Jones and will fancy his chances of clinching a first world title.

FRAME AND MATCH! Kyren Wilson 17-11 David Gilbert

16:04 , Luke Baker

Mid-range yellow is crunched home and Kyren Wilson is on cruise control to the finish line. The final colours are cleared – he fist pumps tot he crowd after potting the blue and wins the match in style!

Kyren Wilson is into the World Snooker Championship final with a 17-11 win over David Gilbert!

(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

16:02 , Luke Baker

Wilson back in prime position and only nerves can stop him now. The balls are all there for the taking. The black off the penultimate red levels the scores at 49-49 in the frame.

Just the final red as an obstacle, needing to pot it with the rest. He’s a great rest player and the red finds the heart of the pocket! He’s ok on a colour as well. The final knockings of this match now

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

16:00 , Luke Baker

There’s only one red that could pose Wilson a problem – one that’s tight on the right side cushion, near the middle pocket. He sets about taking the other four reds in the open first, slowly eradicating Gilbert’s lead.

On 28 he tries to move the safe red and dislodges it from the cushion! Lovely shot. It’s in the open now. A couple of tricky pots to follow though

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

15:57 , Luke Baker

Gilbert moves smoothly past 30 points and keeps picking off lone reds. Pots the blue to move the break to 49 and tries to disturb the remaining central cluster of reds.

He makes contact and splits them but the cueball runs wild. Tough pot on a red to the right corner and the cut rattles the jaws but stays out. Gilbert leads 49-8 but Wilson back at the table with a red to get him started.

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

15:54 , Luke Baker

When Gilbert reaches 15, he decides to smash into the main pack of reds and they split really nicely. Good shot. He needs to keep his composure now and this frame should be his.

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

15:52 , Luke Baker

After Wilson’s break-off, Gilbert tries to roll a long red into the right corner and it’s agonisingly close – rattling both jaws but staying out. Wilson cuts it in and then pots a thin black.

But then Kyren misses a straightforward red! Just the 8-0 lead and Gilbert needs to break the back of this frame at this visit now.

Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

15:50 , Luke Baker

Gilbert now needs to win six straight frames to win this match. There’s one more before the mid-session interval – can Gilbert at least force Wilson to think about the finish line for the 15-minute interval by winning this frame?

(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

FRAME! Kyren Wilson 16-11 David Gilbert

15:48 , Luke Baker

The journey is nearly over for Dave Gilbert. Wilson racks up 55 points before missing but he’s straight back in when a Gilbert safety goes wrong and polishes off the frame from there.

A few errors coming from Gilbert and Wilson moves 16-11 ahead – just one frame away from victory.

Kyren Wilson 15-11 David Gilbert

15:40 , Luke Baker

Hmmm – is the pressure telling on Dave Gilbert? He’s not striking the cueball as nicely now and the break ends at 10 when he misses a fairly straightforward, mid-range red to the corner.

It leaves Wilson a two-ball plant, which he makes, and the reds are nicely set, with pink and black available, so he’ll fancy racking up the points here.

Kyren Wilson 15-11 David Gilbert

15:38 , Luke Baker

Wilson misses a long red to the right corner by quite a distance to begin the next frame and Gilbert has a mid-range red to get the first scoring chance. He sets about building a lead.

FRAME! Kyren Wilson 15-11 David Gilbert

15:35 , Luke Baker

Gilbert fighting hard and puts Wilson in a couple of snookers but he manages to hit them. Blue and then pink eventually potted by Kyren and he wins the frame.

Wilson wins the frame to go 15-11 ahead – he’s just two from victory now.

(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

15:29 , Luke Baker

What has Kyren Wilson done there?! Gilbert pots the remaining reds but makes a mess of his counting and now needs two four-point snookers. He tucks Wilson up behind the blue and Wilson fouls while trying to get out of the snooker!

That’s five penalty points to Gilbert and he can now tie in this frame! He trails 55-28 with 27 points (all the remaining colours) on the table.

But Wilson pulls out a long pot on the yellow, so it’s back to snookers required

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

15:23 , Luke Baker

Gilbert wins the safety battle and is able to pot a red but he’s left with a tricky brown which rattles the jaws of the corner pocket. That miss means he now needs snookers in this frame, 53 points behind with only 51 remaining.

Reds are tied up on the side cushion as well, so this is an uphill struggle for Gilbert but he’ll battle on in this frame. Great safety shot! Gilbert uses one red to knock the other two off the cushion and gets the snooker behind the yellow!

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

15:13 , Luke Baker

Gilbert pushes the boat out too far. He wins the safety battle and pots a red but then takes on a mrid-range black to the corner pocket, trying to squeeze it past another red. The pot isn’t really on, it clips the red and misses the pocket.

Wilson left in among the balls and should win the frame from here. Pots a couple of balls and then misses a red, so his lead is 55-1. Still in control of the frame but not quite won yet as we enter another safety battle

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

15:03 , Luke Baker

Eventually Wilson’s luck runs out. He tries a cannon but runs out of position relying to land on the black and is left without a pot. It’s a handy 47-0 lead but there’s still plenty of points available for Gilbert.

Wilson puts the green ball safe on the side cushion with his safety shot to ensure an added hurdle should Gilbert try to counter-clear

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

14:59 , Luke Baker

Wilson running out of position at points in this break but each pot is still finding the heart of the pocket. He’s forced to take the brown ball a couple of times but he steadily builds a lead regardless, passing 25 in the break.

Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

14:57 , Luke Baker

A big shot for Gilbert to take on – a thin cut on a red to the right corner – and it rattles the jaws but stays out. The cue ball runs up into baulk but leaves an easy starting red for Wilson and there are at least five or six reds in the open here.

He will look to build a lead in frame 26.

FRAME! Kyren Wilson 14-11 David Gilbert

14:51 , Luke Baker

Exactly what Gilbert needed – a calm, composed break of 70 and he takes his chance to narrow the gap. Superb play by ‘the Angry Farmer’. He’s still alive in this match you know…

David Gilbert wins the first frame of the evening to move three behind a 14-11.

Kyren Wilson 14-10 David Gilbert

14:47 , Luke Baker

NO HE CAN’T! Wilson misses a black off the spot on 25 and also splits the pack of reds open so Gilbert returns to the table with a great chance of winning this frame from here.

He trails 25-15 but the balls are there for a big contribution.

Kyren Wilson 14-10 David Gilbert

14:46 , Luke Baker

What a fluke! David Gilbert was up out of his chair ready to pounce when Kyren Wilson missed a red on 16 but it flicked off the white and dropped in the opposite corner. Gutting for Gilbert.

Can Kyren really punish him and win the frame at this visit now?

Kyren Wilson 14-10 David Gilbert

14:41 , Luke Baker

A couple of cracking pots from Gilbert, including a frankly ridiculous long red up into the green pocket rolled in dead weight, but eventually just a safety left and he exits the table after a break of 15.

Kyren Wilson 14-10 David Gilbert

14:37 , Luke Baker

Cracking opening long red by Wilson, crunched into the right corner but he overcuts a tricky yellow. So Gilbert will have a chance to rack up some points after a simple red to start.

The roars from the crowd suggest they’re desperate for the underdog to get back into this semi-final

Kyren Wilson 14-10 David Gilbert

14:35 , Luke Baker

Here we go! The players are out. Dave Gilbert comes on to Insomnia by Faithless as ever, which gets the crowd rocking. He needs to keep the faith to turn this match around.

Kyren Wilson v David Gilbert

14:28 , Luke Baker

This has been a great semi-final so far – the two men were locked together at 8-8 after two sessions before Kyren Wilson pulled away somewhat yesterday evening by winning five frames on the spin.

David Gilbert kept his cool to win the final frame of the evening with a century to keep his hopes just about alive at 14-10 behind. Gilbert desperately needs a fast start this afternoon of course in the race to 17. There’s no margin for error.

(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Who is David Gilbert? The ‘Angry Farmer’ aiming to fulfil huge snooker talent

14:16 , Luke Baker

If David Gilbert continues his remarkable run at the 2024 World Snooker Championship all the way to the title, not only would he go down as one of the most surprising winners in the tournament’s history but there would be few more popular champions.

The man hilariously nicknamed ‘The Angry Farmer’ due to regularly working on his family’s farm in Staffordshire and having a reputation for on-table petulance earlier during his career, is well-liked by almost all of his fellow professionals and the media who cover the sport.

“I really hope so,” said reigning world champion Luca Brecel when asked if Gilbert could go on to win the world title this year after stunningly being beaten by him in round one. “I just like Dave, he’s a bit like me, he’s very down to earth, says it how it is and doesn’t take himself too seriously which is fantastic. I really love him, he’s a good guy.”

Stephen Maguire was similarly effusive in expressing his respect and affection for Gilbert ahead of their quarter-final – with the pair having competed since coming up together as juniors three decades ago – and the 42-year-old’s reputation as one of snooker’s nearly men who has never quite been able to fulfil his abundant talent also makes him an easy player to root for.

Who is David Gilbert? The ‘Angry Farmer’ aiming to fulfil huge snooker talent

Who is Kyren Wilson? The snooker star edging closer to ending major title drought

14:12 , Luke Baker

For Kyren Wilson, another deep run at the World Championship could finally allow a man long tipped for a major title to fulfil the potential he has shown throughout his career.

Born in Kettering, the 32-year-old first turned professional in 2010 and soon established himself as one of snooker’s brightest young stars, recovering from a loss of form and regaining his World Tour card to return to the top tier of the sport in 2013.

Wilson immediately made an impact, forging a reputation as a player who could beat anyone on his day as he built the consistency required to challenge at the highest level. By 2015, it had arrived — at the Shanghai Masters, Wilson came all the way through qualifying to stun Judd Trump in the final and secure his first ranking title.

Who is Kyren Wilson? The snooker star edging closer to ending major title drought

Kyren Wilson takes commanding lead to close on Crucible final place

14:08 , Luke Baker

Kyren Wilson needs three more frames to reach a second World Snooker Championship final after opening up a 14-10 lead over David Gilbert.

The pair were tied at 8-8 after the morning session but Wilson, the only seed left, won six of the eight frames in the evening to take a commanding lead.

It would have been virtually game over had Gilbert not won the final frame with a break of 101, but he goes into Saturday’s final session as a big underdog, with the winner to face either Stuart Bingham or Jak Jones.

Kyren Wilson takes commanding lead to close on Crucible final place