Ronnie O'Sullivan established a 6-2 lead over John Higgins after the first session of their second-round match at the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield. The seven-time champion produced a stunning 137 total clearance as he dominated his old rival, moving closer to a record eighth Crucible title.
Former champion and BBC pundit John Parrott praised O'Sullivan's performance, describing him as 'pretty evil' among the balls. 'Tomorrow is another day and John knows he is well capable of beating Ronnie 6-2. But John is going to have to find his top game because it doesn't look like Ronnie is going to dip any time soon,' Parrott said.
O'Sullivan started with a break of 86 but missed a pink in the second frame, allowing Higgins to level. However, the Rocket responded with breaks of 82, 137 and 92 to win three consecutive frames. Higgins took the sixth frame, but O'Sullivan closed out the session by winning the final two frames.
In other matches, Mark Allen defeated Kyren Wilson 13-9 to reach the quarter-finals, despite letting slip a 5-0 lead. Allen will face Barry Hawkins, who beat Mark Williams 13-9. After his win, Allen criticised Stephen Hendry for 'talking rubbish' about his shot selection.
Judd Trump is level at 4-4 with Hossein Vafaei after the first session of their second-round match. Defending champion Zhao Xintong leads Ding Junhui 9-7 ahead of the final session, while Neil Robertson squandered a 4-1 lead to draw 4-4 with Chris Wakelin.
