Ding Junhui is on the verge of a shock exit at the Crucible ©Getty Images

Tournament favourite Ding Junhui of China is on the verge of being knocked out of the World Snooker Championship after a poor day at the table at the Crucible in Sheffield.

Despite entering the quarter-final stage as the competition favourite after the exits of five-time champion Ronnie O'Sullivan and defending champion Mark Selby, Ding put in a nervy display which now sees him on the brink of going out of the competition.

The 27-year-old finds himself 5-11 down to England's Barry Hawkins, who has never reached the final of this competition.

A replica scoreline was also reached in the match between England's Kyren Wilson and Northern Ireland's Mark Allen in the evening session, meaning the Englishman looks highly likely to go through.

England's Judd Trump looks set for a last four spot in the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield ©Getty Images
England's Judd Trump looks set for a last four spot in the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield ©Getty Images

Earlier in the day, England’s Judd Trump took a large step towards the semi-final of the World Snooker Championships with an excellent quarter-final display against John Higgins in a repeat of the 2011 final,

The 28-year-old leads four-time champion Higgins of Scotland, winner of the 2011 final between the pair, by a 5-3 scoreline going into tomorrow's sessions after a brilliant display at the table today which saw him achieve a pot success rate of 93 per cent.

One match that is on a knife-edge, however, is the one between Wales' Mark Williams and England's Ali Carter who are level at 4-4 going into tomorrow's session.