World number one Judd Trump survived a scare as he came from behind to beat Louis Heathcote 4-3 and secure a place in the second round of the English Open.
After a break of 75 helped Trump take the opening frame, Heathcote, ranked 69 in the world, had threatened an upset in Milton Keynes when two half-century clearances saw him move 3-1 ahead.
Trump, though, made the most of being allowed back to the table in the fifth frame with a run of 86 to reduce the arrears before levelling the match.
The 2019 world champion continued his momentum with another half-century break to take the deciding frame 73-5 and secure a place in round two.
Shaun Murphy, the 2005 world champion, edged out Robert Milkins 4-3 and Matthew Stevens saw off Jamie O’Neill 4-2. There were also 4-2 wins for Jack Lisowski and Stuart Bingham, over Li Hang and Fergal O’Brien respectively, while Luca Brecel beat Ian Burns 4-0.
Gary Wilson, the world number 19, beat Ukrainian Iulian Boiko 4-1, while Welshman Ryan Day saw off amateur Mark Lloyd 4-0 and Swiss potter Alexander Ursenbacher recorded a 4-2 win over Scotland’s Graeme Dott.
Tuesday’s late matches in Milton Keynes saw four-time world champion John Higgins defeat James Cahill 4-2.
The veteran Scot produced a clearance of 122 in the second frame, only for Cahill to respond with runs of 78 and 92 to level at 2-2. However, two more half-century breaks saw Higgins home.
Barry Hawkins, meanwhile, saw off Brazilian Igor Figueiredo 4-0.
Earlier during Tuesday’s afternoon session in Milton Keynes, 2020 world championship finalist Kyren Wilson beat Dominic Dale 4-2.
Wilson played on when needing snookers to take the decisive sixth frame by a point.
Tom Ford defeated Xiao Guodong 4-3 while Zhao Jianbo edged out Michael White by the same scoreline.
Former world champion Ken Doherty suffered a 4-1 defeat by Xu Si, while there were also wins for Matthew Selt, Nigel Bond, David Lilley and Simon Lichtenberg.
Earlier on Tuesday morning, Peter Lines had become the latest player forced to withdraw from the tournament in Milton Keynes after returning a positive coronavirus test.
Lines’ son Oliver has also been forced to withdraw as a contact, despite testing negative for the virus prior to his first-round win over Noppon Saengkham.
Oliver Lines sarcastically described the decision as a “fair one” on Twitter, but government guidance says contacts of a positive case must self-isolate irrespective of any negative tests returned over the subsequent 48 hours.
Stuart Carrington had to withdraw after testing positive for the virus on Monday, along with Sam Craigie, with whom he had been in contact, and referee Andrew Barklam.
Both Craigie and Oliver Lines were scheduled to face Anthony McGill, who is now into the third round without having played a game.
