Harold and Hunter Take Command

Dave Harold equalled the highest break of this year's Embassy World Championship this morning as he and Paul Hunter took command of their respective their first-round matches in Sheffield.

World number 15 Harold knocked in a 135 on the way to a 3-1 lead over China Open runner-up Anthony Hamilton. It marked a return to form for the 35-year-old from Stoke, who has suffered a poor season and will probably need to win this tournament - and cause one of the biggest shocks in its history - to stay in the world's top 16.

He certainly made the ideal start against Hamilton, helped by the 135 in frame two which put him alongside Matthew Stevens at the top of the century-break table he went 3-0 up. World number 19 Hamilton, from Nottingham and known as the Robin Hood of Snooker, took the last frame before the interval to stay in touch.

Hunter, still recovering from the removal of four non-malignant cysts from his testicles, showed few signs of discomfort as he grabbed a 3-1 advantage over Australia's Quinten Hann.

The back-to-back Masters champion was first at the table and won the opening two frames of a clash between two of the game's glamour boys.

Hann, 24, pulled one back with a run of 52, but the 23-year-old from Leeds restored his two-frame cushion just before the break.