World Snooker Championship 2023: Reigning champion Ronnie O'Sullivan drawn against Pang Junxu in first round
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'He's the greatest player in the world' - watch O'Sullivan's best shots from final
Cazoo World Championship |
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Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 15 April-1 May |
Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app |
Defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan will face debutant Pang Junxu in the World Championship first round.
O'Sullivan is seeking an eighth world title - which would be a record in the modern era - after beating fellow Englishman Judd Trump last year to equal Stephen Hendry's tally of seven.
Trump, the 2019 champion, faces a tough opener against Scottish qualifier Anthony McGill, a former semi-finalist.
England's four-time winner Mark Selby plays compatriot Matthew Selt.
Thursday's draw was broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast. The tournament begins on Saturday at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, with live coverage across the BBC.
Scotland's John Higgins - another four-time champion - will meet David Grace, who secured his place on the professional circuit during qualifying but lost in the first round when he made his only other appearance at the Crucible in 2016
Shaun Murphy will play China's Si Jiahui, in a repeat of their 2021 UK Championship meeting, which led to an an outburst from the 2005 world champion after he suffered a surprising first-round loss to the-then teenage amateur.
Three-time winner Mark Williams plays Jimmy Robertson, while UK champion Mark Allen takes on Chinese debutant Fan Zhengyi, who defeated Stephen Maguire to reach the first round.
There is also the prospect of an entertaining encounter between England's Jack Lisowski, who reached the quarter-finals in 2022, and Thailand's Noppon Saengkham, while Joe Perry, who said he was "physically sick" after beating Mark Davis to qualify, returns after failing to reach the past three World Championships, and plays the Welsh Open winner Robert Milkins.
Neil Robertson's quest for a second world title, 13 years after his first, begins against Chinese teenager Wu Yize. Two-time finalist Ali Carter will play Welsh qualifier Jak Jones and 2020 finalist Kyren Wilson takes on Ryan Day.
Elsewhere, Belgium's Luca Brecel plays Ricky Walden, a Crucible semi-finalist a decade ago, 16th seed Ding Junhui is up against Iran's world number 23 Hossein Vafaei, 2015 winner Stuart Bingham plays David Gilbert and Gary Wilson meets Elliot Slessor.
Analysis - 'Nightmare draw' for debutant Pang
Shaun Murphy, 2005 world champion
For Pang Junxu, it is a nightmare draw and a real baptism of fire, although he's had a great season. Why would you want to play the best player of all time in his second home first match out?
It would shock the world if he were to beat Ronnie O'Sullivan but those in the know think he could give a good account of himself if he settles. He is more than capable.
For pure media interest, my match with Si Jiahui generates a lot of talking points obviously following what happened last time we played at the UK Championship 18 months ago. There'll be no surprises. My comments, which were misguided and I apologised for, had nothing to do with him personally.
He is a fabulous young man and a good ambassador for Chinese snooker, especially at the moment with the 10 suspended Chinese players.
Anthony McGill was going to be a tough draw for anyone. He was the grenade everyone wanted to avoid because he's been to the Crucible a few times, he's been to the semi-finals and he lost that epic semi-final against Kyren Wilson a few seasons ago.
His game is tailor-made for the long format and he was the player that nobody wanted. Judd Trump will have watched and listened to the draw and I'm sure he'll have been the name that he didn't want. That will be a great match to watch.
This year, the 16 qualifiers are the strongest we've ever seen - and the first-round draw is as precarious for the seeds as we've ever seen.
First-round draw in full:
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Pang Junxu
Ding Junhui v Hossein Vafaei
Luca Brecel v Ricky Walden
Mark Williams v Jimmy Robertson
Judd Trump v Anthony McGill
Jack Lisowski v Noppon Saengkham
Robert Milkins v Joe Perry
Shaun Murphy v Si Jiahui
Mark Allen v Fan Zhengyi
Stuart Bingham v David Gilbert
Ali Carter v Jak Jones
Neil Robertson v Wu Yize
Kyren Wilson v Ryan Day
John Higgins v David Grace
Gary Wilson v Elliot Slessor
Mark Selby v Matthew Selt