Shaun Murphy makes maximum as he moves ahead in Masters semi-final

Shaun Murphy crafted a magnificent 147 break as he came from behind to lead his Masters semi-final 4-2 against Mark Allen at Alexandra Palace.

After a nervous start from both players, each missing routine reds into the bottom corner, it was Allen, tournament winner in 2018, who eventually built a couple of solid breaks which proved enough to take the opening frame.

Some more solid scoring and safety play from the Northern Irishman saw him extend his lead before Murphy got a frame on the board with a break of 66 to reduce the deficit.

A long red helped set 2015 champion Murphy on his way to a run of 83 as he levelled the match at 2-2 heading into the mid-session interval.

On the resumption, Murphy did not allow his momentum to be checked by an appearance from the Alexandra Palace wasp, going on to complete the turnaround and lead 3-2 helped by a break of 54.

‘The Magician’ had missed a maximum attempt during his 6-2 win over Neil Robertson on Thursday, having snookered himself behind the blue when on 120, but maintained perfect position as he picked off three tricky reds around the pink spot.

Murphy confidently knocked in the colours off their spots to complete only the sixth 147 break in the history of the Masters.