
| Venue: Barbican Centre, York Dates: Saturday, 25 November – Sunday, 3 December |
| BBC coverage: Watch live on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Red Button and BBC iPlayer, as well as the BBC Sport website and mobile app |
World champion Luca Brecel moved into the second round of the UK Championship with a 6-4 win over Yuan Sijun in York.
A mixed display from the Belgian saw him construct sublime breaks of 127 and 108 but also make a series of errors.
It allowed China’s Yuan, who at times also struggled among the balls, to come from 4-2 down to level at 4-4 before Brecel again pulled clear.
Brecel will face Yuan’s compatriot Zhang Anda or England’s Elliot Slessor next.
Later on Sunday, Shaun Murphy takes on Hossein Vafaei, while Ali Carter is in action against Matthew Selt. Both matches will begin at 19:00 GMT.
Brecel has failed to hit the heights since his triumph at the Crucible with his run to the final of the Shanghai Masters in September a rare highlight this season.
To underline that point, his victory over Yuan, which was effectively sealed by a fluked red to the left middle, means he is into the last 16 of a ranking event for the first time this term.
“I won, that is the positive thing,” Brecel told BBC Sport.
“When I was 4-2 up I wasn’t really there any more. It is really tough for me to keep the focus. When it went 4-4 that is when I got better.
“I bought two cars last week and I spent about £400,000 just to get some pressure back. When I came to York I saw Stephen Hendry and he said, ‘it’s back to work’ and he was absolutely correct.
“It feels like now I need to go back to work and I just need something to spur me on. It was not my best game today but I still feel motivated.”
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