World Snooker Championship LIVE - Stuart Bingham faces Jak Jones after Kyren Wilson and David Gilbert split session

That's us done for the afternoon

On 56, Kyren has to make a call: the 147 or the frame, and he takes the 147 - good for him, there are loads of the latter and few of the former. So he slithers in a horrible black to left corner from right side, steadies to steers down a straight diagonal, and there are no difficult balls, but also not that many dead easy ones. I say that, but he breaks the pack, the next red secures the frame; "Thank God Mark Selby's out this year," he says, as last time his made a maxi in the final to win a share of the prize pot.

How much is too much? Dave's so confident now he goes nails at a brute to right corner, misses, and Kyren immediately gets to work, four red-blacks reminding us of the maxi he scored here last term. But have a look He splits the pack beautifully but must now face down a minger of a black from the side rail; he strokes it home superbly and, student of the game that he is, he'll really want a shy at the big fish. Come on the Kyrizzle!

"He's always been good enough," says UJ of Dave. "Maybe his thought processes aren't as good as those others have, but he's good enough." And so is this match - so far, the standard has been high with neither player just letting things go - they're taking on everything, and when Dave's left with the final black, he thwacks it off the table, making the point that he's absolutely loving this contest. So are we, old mate, so are we.

Dave doesn't hit the pack as he'd planned but he's on one, then has to find a recovery-pot thanks to lax cue-ball control. So far, the method is working, but he'll want to play a little tighter than he is. Still, he's at the table potting balls ... or was, jawsing a brute to the green but getting away with it, leaving not. It He had to take it on, though, because he can't get the white doing what he tells it.

We go again...

Oh Dave. A lax positional shot means a nasty oblique red to the middle and he can't cut it down; he's not settled yet and, in comms, Dave notes that last evening he said if he had Kyren's self-belief he'd have won one of these by now. That sounds a little glib to my ear - Kyren is a better player than him and doesn't have one - but so far we're seeing the difference on the table. Or are we? A poor safety offers another opportunity, but the remaining reds are awkwardly situated.

Kyren nails a gorgeous starter diagonally into left corner but a bad miss hands Dave a chance; he winds up stuck in the reds, the speed of the new cloth perhaps deceiving him, so it's end of break. Thinking more about how this match might go, I'd say if Dave wins, it'll be an arse-nipper but Kyren, if he plays well early doors, is capable of winning by a way. And as I type, he cannons a red and pots it, the last thing the Angry Farmer needs ... but a miss with the rest, a rarity from the Warrior, and even though it's only frame two, you feel he needs to make something of what's a decent chance.

Kyren secures the frame, the only remaining seed looking good. I doubt three qualifiers have ever made the last four, and it happening now tells us how many brilliant players we have in our game. It sometimes means, though, that the world championships won't confirm for us the identity of the best player in the world, and as someone who grew with Davis and Hendry, that's a shame. But at the same time, it's great having no clue what's going to happen

Kyren looks settled and why not, this is his fourth one-table situation in seven years. On 40, he strokes a pink to middle that gets him in position to dismiss another red, and though of the remaining three, two aren't far off cushions, they're far enough such that I expect him to find route to them. Of course, as soon as I type that he makes one difficult for himself, but sends it spinning to the green bag, and this is very good work.

Now that you ask, I strongly fancy Kyren for this one. He's playing well - though not as well as he can, he noted pre-match - and given the remaining field, will be convinced this is his time. What he has is a superb long-potting game and good tactical discipline, perfect for the long format, and if he sustains his level, of the three others left, only Stuart Bingham can beat him. And he's in first here, Dave missing to left corner which allows him to tidy up, but after he cleverly releases the black, it rolls safe, just

And off we go...

Dave Gilbert is a beautiful cueist and he's reached this stage before, losing a final-frame decider to John Higgins, which is to say if he's on, he can stroke them in with the best. Kyren, meanwhile, loves Sheffield - he's made three quarters, two semis and a final, unable to do much in the latter having spent himself struggling past Anthony McGill in the last four. Now, though, he's a much better player, he's in form, and he's certain that this is his destiny.

We all had these as our final four, right? Course we did. But though we might not have our biggest names, what we do have is four men about to attack the opportunity of their lives with everything they've got. Stuart Bingham has won at the Cruce before so is probably under less pressure than Kyren Wilson, Jak Jones and Dave Gilbert, but like them he has sacrificed and grafted for a moment he thought might never come again. So, over the next three days, these four are going to empty their souls for our entertainment - and it's going to be great.