Second-round matches are best of 25 frames
RESULT: John Higgins 13-12 Xiao Guodong
RESULT: Mark Williams 13-10 Hossein Vafaei
END OF SESSION: Luca Brecel 7-1 Ding Junhui - resumes on Sunday
END OF SESSION: Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-2 Pang Junxu - resumes on Sunday
END OF SESSION: Lei Peifan 6-10 Zhao Xintong - resumes on Sunday
END OF SESSION: Si Jiahui 5-3 Ben Woollaston - resumes on Sunday
Brecel 5-1 Ding
Luca Brecel is going to take some stopping here as he banks another frame, featuring an expansive double and powerful pots.
It feels like Ding Junhui has barely had a sniff. The Chinese player looks stone-faced in his seat as he waits for the balls to be racked up again for the penultimate frame of this session.
Can Ding get another frame on the board here?
Si 2-2 Woollaston
All square at the mid-session interval.
Ben Woollaston earns himself a 50-point lead in frame four and then returns to the table to knock in the few more points he needs to wrap up the frame.
Brecel 4-1 Ding, Si 2-1 Woollaston
Michael Emons
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
Image source, Michael EmonsTable Two has a former Crucible winner taking on a former runner-up.
On Table One, Ben Woollaston, who won here for the first time with his win over Mark Selby in round one, finds himself 2-1 down in the early stages of his match with Si Jiahui.
The Chinese player reached the semi-finals here in 2023 and if he can maintain some of the long potting we have seen from him so far, he could cause problems.
Either Woollaston or Si will face either Ronnie O'Sullivan or Pang Junxu, with 'the Rocket' 6-2 up after their first session earlier.
Image source, Michael EmonsBrecel 4-1 Ding
Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Four
Luca Brecel is the most jaw-dropping player in the game for me. Ding Junhui is completely on the back foot.
Brecel 4-1 Ding
John Virgo
1979 UK Championship winner on BBC Four
It's easy as you like from Luca Brecel. This is a real joy to watch. Natural ability with no fear.
Brecel 4-1 Ding
Luca Brecel is absolutely flying here, moving round the table like a ballroom dancer and knocking balls in for fun. He waltzes into a 4-1 lead with his second century break of the match.
Mesmerising snooker from the Belgian.
Si 2-1 Woollaston
It's not been the most fluent start by either player on the other side of the dividing wall, but Ben Woollaston will be a lot happier now that he has a frame on the board.
He trails 2-1.
Brecel 3-1 Ding
After the mid-session break we are back under way in the match between Luca Brecel and Ding Junhui.
Brecel needs a good run in the World Championship, otherwise he faces a huge drop in the rankings.
The Belgian, who is defending the prize money for winning the world title in 2023, is likely to need to reach the semi-finals to remain inside the top 25.
Maybe that explains his remarkable form so far?
Brecel 3-1 Ding
Michael Emons
BBC Sport at the Crucible Theatre
Image source, Getty ImagesDing Junhui won the first of his 15 ranking titles just after his 18th birthday at the China Open in 2005
Since the turn of the century, there has been a British winner at the Crucible in every year apart from when Australian Neil Robertson triumphed in 2010 and Belgium's Luca Brecel took the 2023 title.
But a long-term aim of snooker bosses has been to grow the game globally.
"Most people thought this sport was very English and would remain this way, but we could see a real burning will to grow in these countries," said WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson.
"We have taken this game which was doing well and very popular in England and turned it into a [global] sport."
Snooker's popularity in China grew at a rapid rate, accelerating when a shy Ding Junhui, two days after his 18th birthday, defeated seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry to win the 2005 China Open, watched by a reported television audience of 110 million in the country.
"Because of Ding, snooker now has a big market," said world number 12 Zhang Anda before the World Championship. "Ding being world champion would be good for every player because China is a very big market. I hope he can win the first one."
Si 2-0 Woollaston
Dennis Taylor
1985 world champion on BBC iPlayer
Image source, Getty ImagesNeither player has settled just yet. It's a big match for both players.
There's a lot of expectation on Ben after knocking out one of the favourites, Mark Selby, so he'll want to put in a good performance here.
Brecel 3-1 Ding
Steve Davis
Six-time world champion on BBC Four
Luca Brecel has been dormant since he won that World Championship in 2023. Where's he been? It's early days but he's looking in great form here.
Brecel 3-1 Ding
It's not just pure potting from Luca Brecel. A rapid break of 55 from the Belgian in the fourth frame is followed by some deft safety shots.
On his return to the table he plays a stunning double - bringing roars of approval from the Crucible crowd - and then repeats the shot a few moments later.
Brecel goes for a third double, and misses on this occasion, but he has 78 points on the board which is enough to take the fourth frame.
Breathless stuff.
Si 2-0 Woollaston
Image source, Getty ImagesBen Woollaston is on a break of 24 when he collides into the bunch when potting a red. It sends a red flying on and off the side cushion and knocks the blue into the middle pocket.
Si Jiahui gets himself close to the winning line but there's still a chance for Woollaston to pinch frame two.
The world number 44 sends the last red up and down the table, but the red catches the bump of the middle pocket and ricochets into a pottable position for Si.
Woollaston gets one of the two snookers he needs, but then Si knocks in a long yellow to put the frame beyond doubt.
Brecel 2-1 Ding
John Virgo
1979 UK Championship winner on BBC Two
Luca Brecel looks in great shape. Very impressive this. People criticise him for not putting the hard graft in on the practice table, but each to their own. He won that world title and is a joy to watch. Everybody is loving this, apart from Ding Junhui!
Brecel 2-1 Ding
It's very much blink-and-you-miss frames so far between Luca Brecel and Ding Junhui. A break of 78 from Brecel gives him the third frame with some eye-catching snooker.
With one red left on the table the Belgian almost pulls off a bit of showmanship with a double as he went in search of another century break, but it just misses the middle pocket.
Image source, Getty ImagesBrecel 1-1 Ding
Anything Ding Junhui can do...
Luca Brecel has also settled quite quickly at the Crucible, as he peels off a century break of his own.
The flamboyant Belgian plays like he does not have a care in the world en route to a break of 121 to level things up. We might be in for a cracker this evening.
Brecel 0-1 Ding
John Parrott
1991 world champion on BBC Two
When Ding Junhui has a good record against someone he is usually pretty reliable at doing the job. We've seen his 7-1 record against Luca Brecel so will fancy his chances.
Brecel 0-1 Ding
Image source, Getty ImagesLuca Brecel and Ding Junhui have met each other nine times since 2018 with the Chinese player winning eight of those meetings.
However, there is something for Brecel to cling on to.
The Belgian came out victorious in their most recent encounter - a 4-3 success in the last 16 of the 2024 Scottish Open.
Si 1-0 Woollaston
Si Jiahui must still be kicking himself that he did not reach the final on his Crucible debut two years ago, letting a huge lead slip in his semi-final against Luca Brecel and losing narrowly to the eventual champion.
Meanwhile, this is Ben Woollaston's first Crucible appearance since 2013 and the first time in his career that he is playing in the second round of the World Championship.
The balls go a bit awkward in the first frame and Si, the number 13 seed, makes three modest contributions to clinch the opener.
Brecel 0-1 Ding
John Virgo
1979 UK Championship winner on BBC Two
That's the way to do it from Ding Junhui, who has laid down a marker to Luca Brecel. He's said to him 'if you miss and leave in among the balls you'll pay for it'. Absolutely superb.
