Zhao Xintong produced close to his best standard as he thumped Ishpreet Singh Chadha 4-0 to reach the last 32 of the English Open on Tuesday.
The reigning world champion has struggled for consistency since the start of the new season but will be hoping to build on a dominant opening display in Brentwood.
Zhao, who reached the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters but hasn’t been beyond the round of 16 in a ranking event yet this term, compiled runs of 134, 110, and 105 against his Indian opponent.
Next up for the Chinese competitor will be Jack Lisowski, who overcame Thepchaiya Un-Nooh with a 4-2 scoreline.
With the lineup in the last 32 now complete, just five spots have been filled from players who had entered the fray in the early rounds across the weekend.
Among them was Aaron Hill, with the Irishman continuing his strong start to the season after orchestrating a 4-2 defeat of Championship League Snooker winner Stephen Maguire.
Former ranking event winners Luca Brecel, Ricky Walden, and Fan Zhengyi also made it through with Robbie Williams representing the other lower-ranked contender still involved.
Other than that, the seeds prevailed with a lot more marquee names joining the likes of Mark Williams, Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy, and Ding Junhui who advanced from Monday’s round of fixtures.
Saudi Arabia Masters winner Neil Robertson launched the defence of his English Open crown with an imposing 4-1 triumph over Sunny Akani.
The Australian, who was recently awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia, will next face Jackson Page after the Welshman ousted Zhao Hanyang by the same margin.
Elsewhere, Xiao Guodong continued his impressive recent form with a 4-0 rout of countryman Gong Chenzhi.
Xiao’s success at the World Games was bettered by his defence of the Wuhan Open, and he looked sharp again while making breaks of 105 and 73 against Gong.
World number one Judd Trump similarly enjoyed a routine whitewash win over Michael Holt, while there were victories too for the likes of Mark Allen, Ali Carter, Gary Wilson, and Zhang Anda.
Former world champion Stuart Bingham and 2024 Crucible finalist Jak Jones are also still in the chase for the £100,000 top prize.
A busy day on Wednesday will see the field whittled down further to the last 16.
2025 English Open Draw
Round of 64 (bo7)
Neil Robertson 4-1 Sunny Akani
Jackson Page 4-1 Zhao Hanyang
Shaun Murphy 4-0 Zak Surety
David Gilbert 2-4 Fan Zhengyi
Wu Yize 4-1 He Guoqiang
Chris Wakelin 4-1 Ross Muir
Lei Peifan 4-1 Ryan Day
Mark Selby 4-1 Liam Highfield
Mark Williams 4-0 Amir Sarkhosh
Zhou Yuelong 4-1 Xu Si
Barry Hawkins 4-2 Louis Heathcote
Tom Ford 4-3 Martin O’Donnell
Hossein Vafaei 3-4 Luca Brecel
Si Jiahui 4-2 Liu Hongyu
Pang Junxu 4-3 Daniel Wells
Kyren Wilson 2-4 Robbie Williams
Judd Trump 4-0 Michael Holt
Yuan Sijun 4-3 Ben Woollaston
Gary Wilson 4-2 Sanderson Lam
Elliot Slessor 4-2 Jimmy Robertson
Stuart Bingham 4-0 Dylan Emery
Mark Allen 4-1 Scott Donaldson
Matthew Selt 4-2 Liam Davies
Ding Junhui 4-1 Liam Pullen
Xiao Guodong 4-0 Gong Chenzhi
Joe O’Connor 1-4 Ricky Walden
Zhang Anda 4-1 Anthony McGill
Jak Jones 4-3 Jamie Jones
Stephen Maguire 2-4 Aaron Hill
Ali Carter 4-2 Marco Fu
Jack Lisowski 4-2 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Zhao Xintong 4-0 Ishpreet Singh Chadha
Round of 32 (bo7)
Neil Robertson vs Jackson Page
Shaun Murphy vs Fan Zhengyi
Wu Yize vs Chris Wakelin
Lei Peifan vs Mark Selby
Mark Williams vs Zhou Yuelong
Barry Hawkins vs Tom Ford
Luca Brecel vs Si Jiahui
Pang Junxu vs Robbie Williams
Judd Trump vs Yuan Sijun
Gary Wilson vs Elliot Slessor
Stuart Bingham vs Mark Allen
Matthew Selt vs Ding Junhui
Xiao Guodong vs Ricky Walden
Zhang Anda vs Jak Jones
Aaron Hill vs Ali Carter
Jack Lisowski vs Zhao Xintong
Click here for the updated results (snooker.org)
Featured photo credit: WST
