Rocket survives late scare

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN kept his Welsh Open title defence on track after surviving a nail-biting finish against Australian Neil Robertson in Newport yesterday.

The world champion knocked in three century breaks to storm into a 4-1 lead but came close to elimination before booking his semi-final place by holding his nerve in the deciding frame to win 5-4.

Robertson, a 22-year-old left-hander from Melbourne, had already knocked out Jimmy White and John Higgins on his way to the quarter-final.