With celebrities aplenty in ­attendance and a protester bursting on to the ­hallowed Crucible floor, at one stage on Sunday there threatened to be more ­headlines off the baize than on it during the opening half of snooker’s two-day extravaganza to crown its world champion.

But by Sunday evening and as the halfway point of the final between Shaun Murphy and Wu Yize approached, both ­competitors ensured all the talk will be about what is to follow on Monday afternoon and ­evening inside one of sport’s most famous buildings.

There is history to be made ­irrespective of who triumphs at some stage on Monday.…