/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2023/10/13/3802693-77343788-2560-1440.jpg "Ronnie O’Sullivan comes from behind to beat Anthony McGill and book spot in last 16 of UK Championship 2023")
Ronnie O’Sullivan remained on course for a record-extending eighth UK Championship title with a 6-2 win over Anthony McGill at the Barbican Centre in York.
Should O’Sullivan go on to win, he will create another slice of history, becoming the oldest and the youngest UK champion, having won the Triple Crown event in 1993 at the age of 17.
The 47-year-old will face either Robert Milkins or Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in the next round.
McGill made an impressive start with a break of 116, featuring a clever plant on two reds and also a double into the middle pocket, and was presented with an early chance in the second frame when O’Sullivan potted the white.
The Scotsman missed a long red which looked like it might be costly with the reds spread, but O’Sullivan ran out of position on 49, allowing McGill back to the table to move 2-0 ahead.
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O’Sullivan turns on the style with beautiful long red
The Rocket spurned another opening early in the third when he missed a blue to the middle on 14, but he was given a reprieve that he made the most of to halve his deficit.
Building on that momentum, O’Sullivan made a second successive break of 89 to go into the mid-session interval level at 2-2, capitalising on a missed yellow from McGill.
With McGill starting to struggle, a 66 in the fifth frame earned O’Sullivan his first lead in the match – and he wouldn’t let it slip.
He won a scrappy sixth to go 4-2 ahead before he clinched the win with breaks of 61 and 92 to make it six frames on the bounce.
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‘Batter my feet to pieces!’ – O’Sullivan explains wearing trainers in match
On the other table, John Higgins joined O’Sullivan in the last 16 with a 6-3 victory over Joe O’Connor.
Three 50-plus breaks helped the three-time champion of the event establish a 4-1 lead before O’Connor hit back to get within one at 4-3.
That would be as close as the Englishman got to troubling Higgins, though, who made the first and only century of the match in the eighth frame and completed the win with a break of 66.
Higgins will play either Neil Robertson or Zhou Yuelong in the next round.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
