Ronnie O'Sullivan made light work of his opponent Craig Steadman when their first round match in the World Snooker Championship resumed earlier today, to clinch a place in the second round at the Crucible. 'The Rocket' had too much firepower for his fellow Englishman as he ran out a convincing 10-3 victory. He will next play the winner of the battle of the two Welshmen, Matthew Stevens and Mark Williams. Two-time runner-up Ali Carter also progressed through to the second round by beating Scotland's Alan McManus 10-5.
Thirty-nine years old O'Sullivan looks to still have the desire to chase his sixth world title in Sheffield, after running into the indefatigable Mark Selby in last year's final.
That loss will have no doubt hurt the Englishman, as he seemed to suffer as much on the mental side as on the ability of his opponent. There were few such issues against Steadman today. Leading 7-2 overnight, Ronnie wrapped up the match in the morning session for the loss of just one more frame. His main problem during the game seemed to be in the first session when his new shoes seemed to cause discomfort. For a brief time, O'Sullivan risked the wrath of the officials by playing in his socks. That contravenes the players' dress code, so a compromise was found when he borrowed an old pair of shoes from the tournament director.
Like Ding Junhui in his match, O'Sullivan had also threatened to score a maximum break in yesterday's action in the very first frame.
After successfully potting 13 reds and blacks, his break ended with the consequent 104 break, proving to be his sole century break during the match. He was solid enough throughout, with five other breaks of 50 or more giving him confidence ahead of the tougher tasks to come. With either two-time runner-up Stevens or two-time champion Williams to face in the second round, that sterner challenge may come sooner rather than later.
Stevens led his compatriot 7-2 overnight going into their second session today.
Carter has returned to the snooker limelight after a recent emotional rollercoaster. Having suffered the pain of twice failing in the final at the World Championship, he has more recently had to recover from lung cancer as well. He is a resilient character, having also been diagnosed and recovering from testicular cancer back in 2013.
His world ranking of 13 was generously protected while he battled his latest illness, but now the 35-year-old seems determined to regain his place in the upper echelons of the sport once more. A solid 10-5 success over the veteran McManus represented a decent start to his campaign. Carter says that he fears no-one after his health battle, but he has a tough draw in the second round in the form of Neil Robertson.
Also through to round two is the Irishman Mark Allen, the former partner of ex- women's world champion Reanne Evans. Allen won 10-3 against Ryan Day from Wales to set up a meeting with Barry Hawkins in the second round. Hawkins survived a final frame decider against Matthew Selt before coming through 10-9.
