This is an improvement of about 20 seconds over 10117s, with StackRabbit. I'll check if there's a way to improve it even more by playing at the top, even if the AI I'd use can't really get tetrises.
Four Score enabled. 4-player Adapter in use. Hold UP on controller 3, hold LEFT, DOWN, and RIGHT on controller 4.
Level 155 is where the crash happens. This fix sets the first two digits in the score to 00 where it normally crashes.
Level 169 can still crash however. Be cautious.
#638516566699282617 - NES Tetris Fastest Crash% Preview 12
The basic idea here is to minimize the amount of points gained from clearing lines. The less lines cleared at once, the less points gained from it, and the lower the level, the lower the score. Additionally, points can be gain from pushing down to make the blocks fall faster. This run starts at level zero and only gets one line clears until it maxes out without ever pushing down.
#638449330339344310 - NES Tetris "Fastest Crash%" TAS V4