Wu Yize Storms Into 6-2 Lead Over Allen Despite Crucible Power Outage
Chinese Prospect Dominates Opening Session of World Championship Semi-Final
Wu Yize produced a commanding display at the Crucible on Thursday evening to establish a 6-2 lead over Mark Allen in the opening session of their World Championship semi-final — and he did so with barely a flicker of disruption, even when the venue itself lost power for approximately 15 minutes mid-session. The 22-year-old from China, appearing in his first Crucible semi-final, reeled off the final four frames of the session with a clinical authority that left Allen rooted to his chair for long stretches of play.
A Blackout That Barely Broke Wu's Rhythm
The interruption arrived at one of the more consequential moments of the match. Allen had just levelled proceedings at 2-2, having recovered from an early 2-0 deficit, and with momentum seemingly shifting in the Northern Irishman's favour, the BBC's television and online broadcast went dark. Screens inside the Crucible itself also lost signal, with World Snooker Tour confirming via X that a technical issue had paused coverage. After around 15 minutes, play resumed and the players completed the frame before the mid-session interval.
It proved to be the last meaningful foothold Allen would find in the session. Wu returned from that brief hiatus as if nothing had happened, swiftly reasserting control and making it clear the momentum belonged to him alone.
Wu's Statistical Brilliance on the Night
The scorecard tells its own story. Wu contributed breaks of 77, 50-plus, 78, 64, and closed the final frame of the evening with a 91, leaving Allen 42 in the same frame. The Northern Irishman, by contrast, went 45 minutes without potting a ball during Wu's dominant closing run — a statistic that underlines just how completely the young Chinese player controlled the baize in the latter stages of the session.
Wu had earlier been on course for a maximum 147 break in the fifth frame, only to miss his attempt on the eighth black. He recovered composure quickly, however, completing the frame with the colours to the pink to move 3-2 ahead. It was a minor blemish in an otherwise near-flawless evening's work.
How the Opening Session Unfolded
Wu took the opening frame with the aid of a fortuitous double before constructing a well-made 77 to go 2-0 up. Allen responded with a break of 59 in the second frame, only for a missed cut on the black to hand Wu the opportunity to capitalise — which he duly did with a half-century of his own. Allen then pulled one back with a break of 91 in the third frame, and levelled at 2-2 before the power outage intervened. From that point on, it was Wu's session entirely.
Allen's Route to the Last Four
Allen's presence in the semi-finals — only the second time in four years he has reached this stage at the Crucible — has been notable in itself. The Northern Irishman is a player of proven quality on snooker's biggest stage, and the deficit he faces is far from insurmountable across the remaining sessions of a best-of-33 encounter. Nevertheless, the manner of Wu's dominance will give him genuine cause for concern heading into Friday's play.
Wu's Remarkable Run Through the Draw
For Wu, Thursday's performance was consistent with his overall trajectory through this year's tournament. He accounted for former champion Mark Selby in an earlier round before eliminating qualifier Hossein Vafaei in the quarter-finals. Now in his first World Championship semi-final, the 22-year-old is showing few signs of the occasion weighing heavily upon him. His shot selection, break-building fluency, and composure under pressure have been among the defining qualities of his campaign (data via CueTracker).
Higgins and Murphy Level at 4-4 in the Other Semi
In Thursday's afternoon session at the Crucible, the other semi-final between John Higgins and Shaun Murphy produced an altogether tighter contest. Murphy, the 2005 world champion chasing a second title after a 21-year wait, was pegged back by the four-time champion Higgins, with the match levelled at 4-4 by the close of the afternoon session. Higgins had needed a 10-9 comeback victory over Fan Zhengyi in the opening round to advance, but has grown progressively more authoritative as the tournament has progressed. Both players will resume with everything still to play for.
Wu Yize and Mark Allen return to the Crucible on Friday, with Wu requiring a further 11 frames to secure a place in his first World Championship final. Allen, meanwhile, will need to find something close to his very best snooker if he is to overturn what is currently a four-frame deficit.
