David Gilbert battled past Jordan Brown 5-3 to continue his fine run of form and make the last 32 of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters in Riyadh.
Having struggled with his form for a number of years, he returned to his brilliant best with a run to the semi-finals of the World Championship to end last season, which included wins over defending champion Luca Brecel and Stephen Maguire.
A regimental approach to practising and fitness away from the baize, guided by former professional Andy Lee, helped Gilbert to recapture his love for the game ahead of the Crucible back in May. So far this season he has only lost in one of his 13 matches.
With this evening’s tie finely poised at 4-3, Gilbert fired in a sublime 124 to get over the line. That seals him a last 32 clash with Scottish Open and Welsh Open champion Gary Wilson.
“It is a huge tournament. I just want to get some wins on the board. It was a really tough match tonight and I’m very pleased to finish it off well in the end,” said world number 20 Gilbert.
“I just basically didn’t play for a couple of years. Andy turned up in March and got me practising and thinking better. It has helped me tremendously. I’m just trying to carry that on.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for all the players on the tour to get some pounds and points on the board. I’m sure I speak for everybody when I say we are very grateful for this event. The conditions and how we have been treated has been fantastic.”
Neil Robertson defeated Chinese teenager Gong Chenzhi 5-1 to book a blockbuster last 32 meeting with Mark Selby.
The Thunder from Down Under is aiming to return to top form after a difficult 23/24 season which saw him slide to 27th in the world rankings.
Defeat ends a fine run 2024 WSF Junior Championship runner up Gong, who won three matches to reach this stage.
Robertson fired in breaks of 72, 103 and 94 on his way to a comprehensive victory. The Australian was pleased with how he coped with the unknown, having never played Gong and excited for his upcoming encounter with Selby.
Robertson said: “It is very hard to come up with a strategy. I was saying to Joe Perry earlier today that I’ve never seen him before. I hadn't ever seen him play. Joe said he was very raw and very aggressive. We came up with the idea of keeping things tight early on to see if he could deal with safety play. His best chance was to pot freak balls to get in but the inexperience told at the end.
“If people haven’t tuned into snooker for the last few years, they will probably think this next match is a semi-final! It is always good playing Mark. He brings the best out of me a lot of the time. It is strange playing him at this stage, but you’d rather be the player with the ranking points secure and the matches under the belt. Hopefully that comes to my advantage.”
Jack Lisowski made two century runs of 103 on his way to beating Martin O’Donnell 5-2. He now plays Crucible runner-up Jak Jones.
China’s Wu Yize beat Stephen Maguire 5-4 in a tense final frame and now faces world number one Judd Trump.
Yuan Sijun beat yesterday’s maximum man Noppon Saengkham 5-4, while Scott Donaldson beat Ryan Day 5-2. They play Shaun Murphy and Barry Hawkins respectively in tomorrow’s last 32.