Mark Allen has tried to play down his feud with Shaun Murphy ahead of a crunch meeting between the pair at the Masters. The two rivals will go head-to-head at the semi-final stage at Alexander Palace, having both looked in assured form this week.

Shaun Murphy crafted a magnificent 147 break as he came from behind to beat Mark Allen 6-3 and secure his place in the Masters final at Alexandra Palace.

Mark Allen and Shaun Murphy meet in the semi-finals of the Masters on Saturday after a ‘difference of opinion ’ has left the former good mates ‘not as close as we once were.’ Both players have looked good at Alexandra Palace this week, with Murphy beating Gary Wilson and Neil Robertson and Allen downing Si Jiahui and Mark Selby.

Shaun Murphy reached his third Masters final with a 6-3 win over Mark Allen, hitting a maximum break on his way to victory.

Shaun Murphy crafted a magnificent 147 break as he came from behind to beat Mark Allen 6-3 and secure his place in the Masters final at Alexandra Palace. He will now play world champion Kyren Wilson for the title after the reigning world champion beat the current world number one Judd Trump by the same score in Saturday’s second semi-final.

Shaun Murphy hailed one of the greatest moments of his career after he produced a maximum 147 break in his Masters semi final win over Mark Allen. The former world champion came close to achieving the feat in the previous round against Neil Robertson but managed to snooker himself behind the blue attempting to get up to the yellow.