Ding Junhui advances as Trump, Zhao Xintong out at Xi'an Grand Prix

XI'AN, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese snooker star Ding Junhui advanced to the third round of the Xi'an Grand Prix after defeating Jordan Brown 5-1 on Wednesday.

However, world No.1 Rudd Trump was knocked out in a close match, losing to Matthew Stevens 5-4, while reigning world champion Zhao Xintong suffered a 5-2 defeat against Robert Roy. Both players failed to reach the last 32.

Ding told Xinhua on Tuesday that although he has recently struggled to make century breaks, he has been able to control the game by mastering the rhythm of transitioning between offense and defense.

Facing Brown, Ding quickly took control, establishing a comfortable 3-0 lead after three frames. Brown had a chance to pull one back but made an error midway through the fourth frame, trailing 4-0 before the break.

In the fifth frame, both players created and missed chances, and Brown managed to reduce the deficit to three. However, a missed easy shot by Brown in the sixth frame, followed by a break of 97 for Ding, led to Brown's elimination from the tournament.

"I am satisfied with my performance, both offensively and defensively," Ding said.

In the third round, Ding will face Louis Heathcote.

Milkins and Zhao were tied 2-2 before the first interval. Zhao, who has been recently battling illness and taking medication, eventually lost focus in the prolonged "war of attrition," trailing 2-4 after six frames. Although he kept hope alive in the seventh, the world No.11 committed a snooker for himself and was defeated 76-55, failing to reach the last 32.

After Wednesday's matches, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Mark Williams, Shaun Murphy, and Neil Robertson secured victories in the second round. The host players, Si Jiahui and Wu Yize, also advanced to the third round.