Selby out of the 2010 Premier League - 18/11/2010

Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-1 Mark Selby
Best of six frames.
O'Sullivan's scores first
67-49 (O'Sullivan 56, Selby 49), 68-43 (O'Sullivan 41, Selby 32), 87-12 (O'Sullivan 80), 48-79 (O'Sullivan 30, Selby 38)

MARK Selby is out of the 2010 PartyCasino.com Premier League Snooker competition.

Selby had a place in the semi-finals in his grasp and would have secured his spot with a victory over O'Sullivan. A 4-2 defeat would have left him in with a chance but sweating on Neil Robertson's result later in the evening, but the 5-1 scoreline meant he was eliminated.

If Robertson fails to beat Shaun Murphy then Mark Williams would clinch the last play-off position.

"I knew what was at stake for Mark in that last frame," said O'Sullivan. "It makes you more nervous when you know there is someone (Williams) sitting at home going 'Come on Ronnie'. There's a lot of pressure on you and you turn to jelly."

Ronnie O'Sullivan has, along with Marco Fu and Shaun Murphy, secured his place in the play-offs.

Selby needs at least a point from this match to join the Rocket in the final four.

If Selby loses 4-2 then he will be sweating on the result of the Shaun Murphy v Neil Robertson match later this evening. However, if Selby is beaten 5-1 or 6-0 then he will be out of the 2010 PartyCasino.com Premier League Snooker.

Selby looked on course for an early lead as he was 49-0 ahead before a miss on the blue gave O'Sullivan a chance. He rattled in 56 before missing the same ball.

The frame could have swung either way but O'Sullivan eventually clinched it with a thin cut on the blue and a fine effort to pot the pink.

O'Sullivan started the second frame by potting six reds and five reds but any hopes of him becoming the first man to achieve a 147 maximum under shot clock rules ended when he ran out of position.

Selby pulled it back to within nine points and, after a lengthy safety exchange, seemed to have O'Sullivan trapped with the cue ball tight behind the pink. But O'Sullivan played an escape off of two cushions to not only hit the yellow, but to pot it as well on his way to taking the frame.

It became an even tougher task for Selby as O'Sullivan won the third frame to move into a 3-0 lead. However, he had a stroke of luck early on as Selby accidentally knocked in the pink and O'Sullivan made him pay with a break of 80.

O'Sullivan gained a 37-point lead early in the fourth but missed a black into the side pocket. Selby chipped away at the lead before he laid a snooker, which saw the frame end in bizarre circumstances.

O'Sullivan had made a number of failed attempts to hit the yellow but was unhappy with referee Paul Collier calling 'foul and a miss' so deliberately kept fouling by nudging the cue ball into the green until Selby had a frame-winning total before then conceding the frame.

If O'Sullivan's antics in the fourth were not appreciated by the crowd, they were soon to see the other side of the player in the fifth as he rattled in a sensational break of 116 to move 4-1 ahead.

Selby had to win the last frame of the match or face elimination from the competition.

O'Sullivan was 55-0 up in the last but missed the frame-winning red. Selby chipped away at the lead but missed the black which would have forced a respotted black. O'Sullivan later potted the same ball to end Selby's hopes.