Masters 2024: Mark Allen makes 147 before fighting back to beat Mark Selby and reach semi-finals

Mark Allen made a superb 147 maximum break, then came from 4-1 down to beat Mark Selby 6-5 in the quarter-finals of the Masters at Alexandra Palace.

The Northern Irishman’s effort follows Ding Junhui, who made his second maximum at the tournament on Tuesday.

Kirk Stevens (1984) and Marco Fu (2015) are the only other players to have achieved a 147 at the Masters.

Ali Carter had earlier beaten reigning champion Judd Trump 6-5 and will face Allen in Saturday evening’s semi-final.

“To do it here [make a 147] at the Masters, one of the Triple Crown events, is very special,” Allen, who won the Masters in 2018, told BBC Sport.

“It wasn’t the best cue ball in the world but it made it more exciting for the crowd and a bit more nerve-wracking for me but I am glad I have done it for the fans.”

Allen’s moment of snooker perfection in the third frame was out of keeping with a protracted and largely error-strewn affair, which went into Saturday morning.

His effort deservedly received the adulation and applause of the packed auditorium and there were fist bumps all round with fans, as Selby also congratulated him on the 196th maximum ever made in professional snooker.

His 147 also means he is in line to share the £15,000 high break prize, and alongside Ding and Xu Si, he could yet claim a £147,000 bonus at the Crucible in April – awarded if any player makes two 147s across the three Triple Crown events this term.

Three-time champion Selby had looked in total command after five frames against Allen, who he defeated in the last four of the 2023 World Championship.

But a break of 56 and a 103 enabled world number three Allen to take the initiative as he won four consecutive frames.

After appearing shorn of confidence, underlined by a miss on a straight red to the bottom-left corner in the ninth frame, Selby produced a timely 55 to help take the match to a decider.

And while both had opportunities in the balls, Allen superbly got position on the key green and was able to round off his win.

“I don’t know where the maximum came from because it was a really poor performance,” Allen added.

“Like Mark [Selby] said yesterday, we should have just started at midnight and played one frame because it was always going to go five-all. I was applying myself really well but could not find any rhythm. Any win against Mark is a good win.”

Carter made three half-centuries and a break of 103 to lead 4-2 before a wonderful run of 129 began a Trump fightback in which he reeled off three frames in a row to lead 5-4.

However, Carter took a nervy 10th frame with a superb 43 clearance to level and sealed his victory with a fine run of 64 in the decider.

“You have to try and hold on to these special moments. To make a clearance like that in those circumstances and in front of a crowd like that is a feather in my cap,” Carter told BBC Sport.

“For all the money I looked like I was going to go 5-3 in front and I lost my composure for a couple of frames.

“I had worked really hard but [I was] delighted to make an unbelievable clearance to force a decider and then how I held myself together I don’t know.”

World number two Trump was hoping to join a select quartet of Cliff Thorburn, Stephen Hendry, Paul Hunter and Ronnie O’Sullivan to have won the tournament in successive years.

But unlike 12 months ago, when Trump also failed to produce his best snooker in his opening two matches, this time he paid the price against an opponent who, until this appearance, had not featured at the Masters since his run to the 2020 final.

There were signs Trump was not at his clinical best early on despite a break of 80 to take the second frame and while both players made uncharacteristic errors, Carter’s scoring was slightly better throughout.

Trump’s only century of the contest, plus an outrageous fluke in the eighth frame – when he missed a pot on the green but managed to snooker Carter from knocking it into the top left corner with the brown – looked to have rattled his opponent and handed him the initiative as he went ahead for the first time in the match.

But Trump was left to reflect ruefully on two spurned opportunities in the 10th frame, when he ran out of position and then overcut a red to the left corner that would have left Carter requiring snookers to save the match.

“He should never have really had that chance [in the 10th frame], it was terrible from me,” Trump said.

“I had two perfect chances to win the game and I’m obviously disappointed but he deserved to win.”