Judd Trump eases into last-16 at English Open

Defending champion Judd Trump moved through the gears as he reached the last 16 of the BetVictor English Open with a clinical win over Matthew Selt at Brentwood.

Trump appeared listless at times in his opening victory over Liu Hongyu, admitting afterwards he "wasn't that bothered to win or lose", but sharpened his focus with a 4-1 win against Selt.

His opponent did not make a single pot until the third frame but the world number one put a vital red into the centre pocket to shut down any potential comeback. Trump will face Fan Zhengyi in the last eight following his 4-2 win over Oliver Lines.

Second seed Kyren Wilson also progressed with ease courtesy of a 4-1 win over Scotsman Anthony McGill, renewing acquaintances with one of his favourite opponents.

"To Anthony’s credit, he was one of the first ones who came up to me in Xi’an and congratulated me on becoming world champion and said he thought I’d be a really good ambassador for the sport," said Wilson.

"That just shows the class of him."

Mark Selby was in good touch with a 4-0 win over Joe O’Connor, peaking with a break of 137 in the second frame. China’s Sia Jiahui awaits after coming through a much closer contest, edging his compatriot Jiang Jun 4-3.

Luca Brecel continued his season of disappointment as he slumped to a 4-3 loss at the hands of Pang Junxu, the Belgian unable to recapture the magic that saw him take last year’s world championship.

Local boy Ali Carter was unable to give the crowd the result they wanted, beaten 4-2 by Wu Yize and Ben Woollaston secured a 4-1 win over Zak Surety.

John Higgins, Ross Muir and He Guoqiang all celebrated 4-1 scorelines, beating David Gilbert, Jamie Jones and Stephen Maguire respectively.