English Open: Judd Trump survives scare; Kyren Wilson through; David Gilbert beaten

After a break of 75 helped Trump take the opening frame, Heathcote, ranked 69 in the world, had threatened an upset in Milton Keynes when two half-century clearances saw him move 3-1 ahead.

Trump, though, made the most of being allowed back to the table in the fifth frame with a run of 86 to reduce the arrears before levelling the match.

The 2019 world champion continued his momentum with another half-century break to take the deciding frame 73-5 and secure a place in round two.

The Warrior up and running

World Championship runner-up Kyren Wilson kicked off his bid with a 4-2 victory over Dominic Dale.

Wilson looked to have his game in good working order as he compiled breaks of 51, 75 and 59 to book his place in the second round.

The Kettering potter was quickly out of the traps as he eased into a 2-0 lead and though Dale scraped over the line in frame three, Wilson hit straight back in the fourth frame to extend his advantage to 3-1.

Dale again rallied in frame five when reeling off a high break of 94, but though he would add a run of 56 in the following frame, it was Wilson who held his nerve to pinch the frame on the black and close out the match.

Gilbert loses out as tensions rise

Last year's beaten finalist David Gilbert lost 4-2 to Rory McLeod in a match that saw tempers flared from both players.

Boiling point came in the fourth frame when, trailing 2-1, McLeod was unhappy he wasn't afforded a free ball by referee Mark King after Gilbert had feathered the white and fouled.

As it was, McLeod fought back to win the frame, and the subsequent two frames, to prevail 4-2, but the controversy didn't end there as both players were reported to have aired their disappointment with each other after the match.

Elsewhere, Shaun Murphy, the 2005 world champion, edged out Robert Milkins 4-3 and Matthew Stevens saw off Jamie O’Neill 4-2. There were also 4-2 wins for Jack Lisowski and Stuart Bingham, over Li Hang and Fergal O’Brien respectively, while Luca Brecel beat Ian Burns 4-0.

Gary Wilson, the world number 19, beat Ukrainian Iulian Boiko 4-1, while Welshman Ryan Day saw off amateur Mark Lloyd 4-0 and Swiss potter Alexander Ursenbacher recorded a 4-2 win over Scotland’s Graeme Dott.

Tom Ford defeated Xiao Guodong 4-3 while Zhao Jianbo edged out Michael White by the same scoreline.

Former world champion Ken Doherty suffered a 4-1 defeat by Xu Si, while there were also wins for Matthew Selt, Nigel Bond, David Lilley and Simon Lichtenberg.

Earlier on Tuesday morning, Peter Lines had become the latest player forced to withdraw from the tournament in Milton Keynes after returning a positive coronavirus test.

Lines’ son Oliver has also been forced to withdraw as a contact, despite testing negative for the virus prior to his first-round win over Noppon Saengkham.

Oliver Lines sarcastically described the decision as a “fair one” on Twitter, but government guidance says contacts of a positive case must self-isolate irrespective of any negative tests returned over the subsequent 48 hours.

Stuart Carrington had to withdraw after testing positive for the virus on Monday, along with Sam Craigie, with whom he had been in contact, and referee Andrew Barklam.

Both Craigie and Oliver Lines were scheduled to face Anthony McGill, who is now into the third round without having played a game.