This match was characterised by both players building big breaks earlier but it's been much more of a close-fought battle this evening.

Wu Yize is the one on top at the moment having just nabbed the 16th frame to take a three-frame lead.

Mark Selby needs to try to get the last one on the board to stay in touch.

Stephen Hendry
Seven-time world champion on BBC Four

The drama in that final frame was incredible. The amount of titles these two guys of won, the amount of times they have played each other, but the pressure on any given night can still be absolutely huge.

John Higgins has battled tonight. He might struggle sleep tonight because the adrenaline will be pumping. It's incredible that he's in this match.

Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Four

We saw Ronnie O'Sullivan bash the table in frustration. What a boost that was for John Higgins to know the other guys is feeling it as well.

Phew, that was a gripping session of snooker from the Crucible.

The match is deliciously poised for tomorrow when it resumes at 13:00 BST. It will be unmissable.

Here's the match statistics so far.

Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Four

The standard dropped tonight, but isn't it amazing that when it gets worse sometimes it can be more exciting because of the unexpected misses.

John Parrott
1991 world champion on BBC Four

A brilliant final frame and what a session of snooker that was - full of tension. Both players had chances but John Higgins just refused to go away.

Ronnie O'Sullivan rattles off a break of 45 but the last red into the top-left corner rattles and a safety battle with John Higgins ensues.

Higgins gets his chance on the yellow, though, and goes on to pot the remaining colours off the spots - bar the black - to seal the frame.

Remarkably, Higgins is within two frames of O'Sullivan.

Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Four

A big last frame for both players. It is worth double!

Where's the cue ball going, where's the cue ball going!

You can still hear one of the late great John Virgo's infamous catch phrases in your ears when John Higgins plays a shot like that.

The Scot pots the red into the bottom-right corner but the cue ball rebounds off the cushion and goes into the left-middle pocket.

A break of 39 over and Ronnie O'Sullivan is back on his feet.

Here's that moment of frustration taken out on the table by Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Mark Selby misses the chance to get parity and instead it's a composed Wu Yize who clinches the 14th frame to restore his two-frame cushion.

How vital will that frame be?

Ken Doherty
1997 world champion on BBC Four

That is exactly what it means to Ronnie O'Sullivan. He's getting frustrated. He had a great chance in the previous frame and didn't convert. Those knuckles will be sore, let me tell you.

Is the pressure starting to get to Ronnie O'Sullivan here?

The Rocket misses a straightforward red to the top-left corner early in the final frame of the evening session, grits his teeth and thumps the table with his knuckles in frustration.

Stephen Hendry
Seven-time world champion on BBC Four

That frame has kept John Higgins in the match. Even if he loses it he can still potentially win the match from 10-6 down. He's given himself a chance though sheer grit. He's been outplayed for the majority of this and is somehow still in it. 9-7 would be unbelievable for John here.

These two players have enjoyed some fantastic matches over the past three decades.

Ken Doherty
1997 world champion on BBC Four

What a frame by John Higgins and one of the most important of the session.

John Higgins is not going down without a fight!

He clears the brown, blue and pink before slamming in the black.

"Come on John" roars a punter at the Crucible.

A superb long red gets John Higgins' tail up. He's on 37 points to Ronnie O'Sullivan's 55 with four colours left.

This would be a great heist by the Scot.

Image source, Getty Images

Over on table two, Mark Selby is bidding to pull level with Wu Yize.

The 'Jester from Leicester' bagged the frame immediately after the mid-session interval and is currently on a break of 51 in the 14th frame.