Mark Allen shows true colours with private comment to Shaun Murphy as star makes claim
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Mark Allen showed his class with a sporting gesture after Shaun Murphy’s 147 break at the Masters. The pair, who have been close friends, have been embroiled in a war of words over the last few months. At the UK Championship in November, Murphy, while on BBC commentary duty, accused Allen of deliberate slow play in his semi-final against Barry Hawkins.
Allen hit back on social media, telling Murphy to “leave personal feelings out of the commentary box”. He added: “All because I called out some of his recent BS.”. Murphy subsequently denied there was anything personal behind his comments, although the pair have clashed on a number of issues in recent months. Allen admitted the pair had “grown apart” prior to their semi-final meeting at the Masters.
However, there was a clear show of respect before, during and after Murphy’s 6-3 victory, which featured a stunning maximum break. After the Magician sunk the black to bring the house down at Alexandra Palace, Allen quickly congratulated his rival. It was a classy gesture from Allen, who put aside their intense rivalry to appreciate the achievement.
Speaking on his onefourseven podcast, Murphy, who had missed a maximum attempt against Neil Robertson earlier in the week, revealed what Allen said to him. He said: “He was very complementary, he was kind and very sporting. I think he said something like, ‘you made up for the other day’. It was nice.”.
