Ton-hitting Ding is 1st Asian player in world snooker final

SHEFFIELD, England (AP) — Ding Junhui became the first Asian player to reach the final of the World Snooker Championship, beating Scotsman Alan McManus 17-11 at the Crucible on Saturday.

"I feel peaceful at the moment, just like normal. I want to be excited but my heart tells me it's like normal," said the 29-year-old Ding.

China's snooker flag-bearer also achieved the highest number of century breaks in a single match at the famed snooker venue with seven, surpassing the record of six previously shared by Mark Selby and Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Ding's tons in the match were 100, 131, 100, 128, 138, 113 — missing the 15th black of a 147 maximum attempt — and 123.

It was almost the first all-Asian final after Hong-Kong's Marco <deleted> lost to top-ranked Selby 17-15 in the other semifinal.

<deleted> appeared to touch a red with his index finger early in the 27th frame when bridging to play a safety shot. Referee Brendan Moore spotted nothing wrong, and <deleted> showed no sign of having noticed he nudged the ball.

The final frame of the day's opening session between <deleted> and his English opponent had lasted a record 1 hour, 16 minutes, 11 seconds — the longest in tournament history.

Selby, who won in 2014, is appearing in his third world final.

-- (c) Associated Press 2016-05-01

Where was Ronnie in this event ?

Wasn't James Wattana in it at one time?