It was an eventful match between Luca Brecel and Ding Jun Hui in the quarter finals of the 2019 Masters at Alexandra Palace.
It was an 11 frame thriller with the audience privy to a great display of sportsmanship as well as a very lucky shot for Brecel, and the escape of the tournament.
In the seventh set, the Belgian was attempting to pot a red to the middle pocket, when the ball bounced between the jaws and crawled down the table, dropping into the right corner pocket:
That fluke from Luca though...#EurosportSnooker pic.twitter.com/Y3dOQPcyWT
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) January 17, 2019
Later in the very same frame, Ding showed incredible sportsmanship, admitting he had slightly touched the white when lining up a long pot on a red:
There's sportsmanship and there's this.
Incredible from Ding Junhui ??? pic.twitter.com/PvXzK6naPA
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) January 17, 2019
The referee clearly had no idea what Ding had done, and it's a testament to the 31-year-old's morals that he felt the need to alert the official of the foul.
The shot of the match was undoubtedly taken by Brecel in the 9th frame, when he escaped a snooker with a sensational snooker of his own to put the pressure back on his opponent:
'That is the most majestic safety shot you will ever see in your life' @fouldsy147 is loving this SENSATIONAL escape and safety from Brecel pic.twitter.com/eLYOYs7svI
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) January 17, 2019
Ding did not live to regret his sportsmanship in the tie, going on to win the tie 6-5, to progress to the next round.
