Championship League snooker: Gary Wilson impresses as Liang Wenbo downs Selby

With Gerard Greene replacing Matthew Stevens, Wilson was strong favourite to progress from the group beforehand and only dropped a single frame in three facile victories.

Last season's World Championship semi-finalist looked in ominous touch from the moment he entered the arena, opening up with a run of 73 before adding a break of 60 in his 3-0 whitewash of Mitchell Mann.

Despite losing the first frame of his second match against John Astley, Wilson continued to strike the ball with authority as he reeled off another three frames on the bounce, the last two thanks to back-to-back centuries (107 and 100) as he closed out another victory.

Having beaten Astley with an impressive display in the group opener, Greene was forced to spend much of his clash with Wilson sat in his chair as the Wallsend potter made it a perfect three from three with another whitewash triumph, this time with the help of breaks of 125 and 134.

With Astley and Mann drawing the final match of the night 2-2, Greene filled the runner-up spot in the table having been the only other player to taste victory in a group that was dominated by Wilson throughout.

Wilson told @CLSnooker: "I played OK, a few sloppy shots here and there but it's to be expected. It's been really well organised, I don't think there's anything you can fault.

"There are arrows and signs for you everywhere, if this is anything to go by there's no reason why other tournaments can go ahead."

Wenbo too strong for Selby

Liang Wenbo will join Wilson in the next stage after making a similarly strong start to his title bid, topping Group 5 at the expense of Mark Selby.

Breaks of 100 and 117 bookended a commanding 3-1 victory over Joe O'Connor before Wenbo added another century (103) in his 3-0 drubbing of Lee Walker.

With top seed Selby beating Walker 3-1 and earning a hard-fought draw with O'Connor, Wenbo still had work to do in the day's finale against the three-times world champion, but the latter never recovered from a couple of early misses as the Chinese dominated proceedings with another assured display.

A top break of 69 did scant justice to Wenbo's efforts, particularly in the opening two frames when frame-winning contributions were well crafted despite the pink and black being out of commission for large parts.

With any chance of qualification gone once falling 2-0 behind, Selby appeared to have accepted his fate by the time a rare lapse from Wenbo opened the door in frame three and when the former missed the opening red by some distance, his opponent didn't afford him any more kindness, closing out the match moments later.

In the end it was O'Connor who finished second in the group, the rookie giving a good account of himself and hinting at a bright future when stroking in a career best and tournament-high break of 143 against Selby.

Thursday's results and standings

Group 14

1. Gary Wilson (Q) P 3 W 0 L 0 D FD +8 Pts 9
2. Gerard Greene P 3 W 1 L 1 D 1 FD -1 Pts 3
3. Mitchell Mann P 3 W 0 L 1 D 2 FD -3 Pts 2
4. John Astley P 3 W 0 L 2 D 1 FD -4 Pts 1

Gerard Greene 3-1 John Astley

Gary Wilson 3-0 Mitchell Mann

Gary Wilson 3-1 John Astley

Gerard Greene 2-2 Mitchell Mann

Gary Wilson 3-0 Gerard Greene

John Astley 2-2 Mitchell Mann

Group 5

1. Liang Wenbo (Q) P 3 W 0 L 0 D FD +8 Pts 9
2. Joe O'Connor P 3 W 1 L 1 D 1 FD 0 Pts 4
3. Mark Selby P 3 W 1 L 1 D 1 FD -1 Pts 4
4. Lee Walker P 3 W 0 L 3 D 0 FD -7 Pts 0

Mark Selby 3-1 Lee Walker

Liang Wenbo 3-1 Joe O'Connor

Liang Wenbo 3-0 Lee Walker

Mark Selby 2-2 Joe O'Connor

Joe O'Connor 3-1 Lee Walker

Mark Selby 0-3 Liang Wenbo