O’Sullivan and Bingham level after opening session, Higgins behind to Wilson

Ronnie O’Sullivan and Stuart Bingham are locked at 4-4 after both players surrendered the lead in an even opening session to their World Championship quarter-final.

World No. 1 O’Sullivan, bidding for a record eighth Crucible title in Sheffield, got off to a sloppy start and trailed 3-1 before a run of three straight frames edged him in front.

But 2015 world champion Bingham claimed the final frame of the session to level things up and leave the tie finely poised ahead of its resumption on Wednesday.

Bingham made an ideal start with an impressive clearance of 55 after some fine potting, leaving O’Sullivan trailing for the first time at this year’s World Championship.

He followed that up with an even better break of 75 in the second, getting off the mark after landing a red off the cushion into the yellow pocket.

O’Sullivan hit back in the third and left Bingham needing one snooker with just the pink and black balls remaining.

The world No. 1 halved the deficit by superbly landing the pink to the top pocket, as the Rocket worked his way into the contest.

However, O’Sullivan was left with plenty to ponder as Bingham re-established his two-frame advantage with a 79 clearance after the Rocket missed a black to open up the table.

O’Sullivan earned his second frame in style with an elegant 116 break, the first century of the match giving the Crucible crowd a reminder – as if they needed one – of his remarkable break-building prowess.

Momentum stalled somewhat in a stuttering, cagey, 35-minute sixth frame, but O’Sullivan eventually got the better of Bingham to level things up at 3-3.

Despite his fightback, Ronnie’s frustration from a sluggish start showed when he slapped his cue off the table after missing a simple red early in the following frame.

He pounced on a later opportunity to put together a run that all-but secured the frame, Bingham requiring four snookers and eventually conceding to go behind for the first time.

But Bingham ended the session on a high by landing a couple of superb long reds to build the score to 72-0 and force a concession from O’Sullivan.

On the other table, Kyren Wilson took a 5-3 lead over four-time world champion John Higgins after making a blistering start.

Wilson rattled off four straight frames before the mid-session interval, but the Scot dusted himself down and battled his way back into contention.

Kyren got off to a dream start with two resounding frames in a row, Higgins potting just 12 points as his opponent put together breaks of 70 and 95.

The mesmerising momentum continued with 93 and 71 clearances as Wilson stormed into a 4-0 lead at the interval to take firm control of the tie.

Wilson responded admirably, finding his first century of the match with a 121 clearance to restore a four-frame lead.

But that was cut back to three as Higgins made a 73 break, before the Scot rattled off his second century of the match to make it a two-frame game heading into Wednesday’s completion.

The pair will return to the table at 10:00 UK time on Wednesday for the second session and 19:00 for the third.