Ronnie O'Sullivan cruised into the Northern Ireland Open quarter-finals after a comfortable 4-1 victory Zhou Yuelong which included his 973rd career century.
The Rocket had earlier brushed aside Tom Ford 4-0 in his third-round game before returning to the baize during the evening session to make light work of his Chinese opponent.
O'Sullivan, who is chasing a 34th ranking title of his career that would put him just two behind Stephen Hendry on the all-time list, did go 1-0 behind despite a break of 58 but runs of 83 in the next frame and a superb 132 in the fourth put him well in control of the contest.
💯🚀 Century 973 for Ronnie O'Sullivan!pic.twitter.com/TMV99GHQRj
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) November 15, 2018
A tight fifth frame followed but O'Sullivan produced a brilliant shot on the final black to book a last eight spot against David Gilbert, who beat Lu Ning 4-0.
💯🚀 Century 973 for Ronnie O'Sullivan!pic.twitter.com/TMV99GHQRj
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) November 15, 2018
He could meet Mark Selby in the semi-finals after the Leicester cueman beat Martin O'Donnell 4-2 to set up a clash with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who crushed Robbie Williams 4-0 with breaks of 138 and 104 in less than 40 minutes.
Judd Trump is also one to watch in Belfast after a superb break of 115 helped him see off Belgian star Luca Brecel 4-2 but his quarter-final opponent Ryan Day looked impressive in a 4-0 win over Andrew Higginson.
Peter Ebdon hit a 107 break in the final frame of his 4-1 victory over Li Hang and he'll meet Eden Sharav, who held his nerve to see off Ali Carter in a deciding frame.
Northern Ireland quarter-finals
In draw bracket order
- Eden Sharav v Peter Ebdon
- Judd Trump v Ryan Day
- Ronnie O'Sullivan v David Gilbert
- Thepchaiya Un-Nooh v Mark Selby
