Fergal O'Brien fails to qualify for English Open

Fergal O'Brien has failed in his attempt to qualify for the English Open after being outclassed in a 4-0 defeat to Chang Bingyu in Leicester.

Similar to his defeat in Belfast against John Higgins last week, O'Brien had chances early on in the match but couldn't convert them into frames as his opponent grew in confidence.

Chang hit a break of 73 in the third, before finishing out the match in style with a century.

O'Brien recently told RTÉ Sport that his big targets over the coming months were to qualify for the World and UK Championships, the two most prestigious ranking events in the game.

But he also acknowledged that if he didn't start winning games soon then his current tour card, which ends at the end of the 2023/24 season, will be his last and he'll move on from playing professional snooker.

Later today Cork's Aaron Hill faces Liam Highfield while Antrim's Jordan Brown is up against Scott Donaldson as the qualifiers continue. Yesterday, Ken Doherty booked his place in the tournament with a 4-1 over Robbie Williams, while Michael Judge was knocked out.