DEFENDING champion Zhao Xintong moved closer to cracking the so-called Crucible Curse by booking his place back in the quarter-finals of the World Snooker Championship with a 13-9 win over compatriot Ding Junhui.

Zhao shrugged off some evident nerves to build on a 9-7 overnight advantage despite losing an error-strewn, 46-minute opener that saw Ding temporarily reduce the arrears to a single frame.

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