Snooker World Championship:Scotland's John Higgins was inspired by text messages from wife Denise as he crushed Jamie Cope's world title hopes. Two-time former world champion Higgins battled back from 12-10 down to defeat Cope 13-12, finishing up with a classy break of 80 to clinch a place in the last eight of the Betfred.com World Championship.
There was high drama at the start of the final frame, when a spectator was taken ill and the players left the arena. Higgins spent five minutes in his dressing room considering the shot that awaited him on their return.
He potted the red after playing it out in his mind "a hundred times", and Cope did not get another shot.
But it was wife Denise's text promptings that gave Higgins the impetus to battle back from the brink of defeat, after Higgins had braced himself for a second-round exit.
He tripped up in the second round against Welshman Ryan Day in 2008, losing 13-9, and knew another dismal failure was on the cards.
"But my wife sent me a few texts as if to say, get my finger out, and let Jamie try to win the match, don't give it to him too easily," Higgins revealed.
Referring to the final-frame disruption, Higgins said: "It's very rare that you go back to your dressing room and you know you're coming out to play a pressure shot."
Stoke player Cope, who won a qualifier to take his place in the Crucible draw, fired in a break of 103 to establish his 12-10 lead but he had few chances after that.
"I thought I'd got him at 12-10. But I just didn't take the chance," he said afterwards.
The quarter-finals begin on Tuesday with Higgins taking on Mark Selby, Stephen Maguire facing Neil Robertson, Stephen Hendry meeting Shaun Murphy and Ronnie O'Sullivan's conqueror Mark Allen tackling Ryan Day.
Australian Robertson reached the last eight with a terrific 13-8 victory over last year's losing finalist Ali Carter.
Robertson, 27, showed plenty of emotion in the match, not least during the second session when he yelled out in relief and pumped his fist after pinching a frame on the black, before repeating that feat three times.
The Bahrain Championship winner will not be toning down his celebrations, believing the Crucible audiences love to see a character.
"If somebody did it to me, I wouldn't care," Robertson said.
"Stephen Maguire bangs his cue, smashes things, but he doesn't do it to put his opponent off - it's just passion.
"I think enthusiasts and neutrals that don't know too much about the game would love to see stuff like that.
"When I cleared up to go 6-6, I had to do something.
"I was going to punch someone or scream as loud as I could, and luckily I screamed."
Maguire set up his clash with Robertson in the last eight by beating Mark King 13-6, in the match that featured a record-breaking frame of one hour, 14 minutes and 58 seconds.
King had led 5-4 earlier but Maguire, who had been struggling at that point, improved as the match went on and produced a break of 133 in frame 14.
Reflecting on yesterday's turgid frame, the second of the match and the longest ever to be played at the Crucible, Maguire - who won it 70-56 - said: "I just felt like giving it to him... if he wanted it that badly."
Selby ousted 2006 champion Graeme Dott by a 13-10 margin but only after the Scot made life tough for him this evening.
Selby resumed with a 10-6 lead but lost three of the first four frames.
Dott had a chance in the 21st frame but Selby finally took it and clenched his fist in delight, appreciating the importance.
An 88 break from Selby made it 12-10 and, after Dott failed to make the most of a chance at the start of the 23rd frame, the match was soon over.
Selby, the 2007 runner-up, established a 47-point lead with only a possible 43 remaining and, when he knocked in the penultimate red, he raised his arm to his supporters in a victory salute.