GLASGOW // Ronnie O'Sullivan yesterday needed only 66 minutes to avenge last season's 9-5 Royal London Watches Grand Prix final defeat at the hands of Marco Fu in yesterday's second-round match. O'Sullivan defeated the holder 5-1 at Glasgow's Scottish exhibition Centre, producing an array of heavy scoring which left the Hong Kong professional in a daze.
The world champion who lost the second frame when Fu made a break of 116, replied with a 76, 73, 67 and 57 as he justified his status as the tournament favourite. Such was the pace of the contest that the longest frame was completed in only 16 minutes and the quickest in eight minutes with Fu pointless in the last two frames and scoring just six in the fourth. John Higgins came out on top in the all-Scottish clash against Stephen Hendry to reach the quarter-finals.
The match of the round played in front of a full house, ended with Higgins, a triple GP champion, winning 5-2. Steve Davis, now 51, beat Adrian Gunnell 5-4 in a gruelling 4hr 28min contest which finished after midnight. Davis is now through to a second consecutive ranking quarter-final for the first time since 1996. sports@thenational.ae