Ronnie O'Sullivan of England competes during the Snooker UK Championship 2019 first round match with Ross Bulman of Ireland in York, Britain on Nov. 28, 2019. (Xinhua/Han Yan)
O'Sullivan cruises into last 16 at Snooker Championship League.
LONDON, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Five-time world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan breezed past the first round to reach the last 16 by taking three consecutive victories at the Snooker Championship League on Friday.
Elite sports events were allowed to resume behind closed doors in Britain on Monday and snooker came back with the non-ranking event held at Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes, after being suspended for 11 weeks.
England's Ronnie O'Sullivan reacts during the first round second session with England's James Cahill at the World Snooker Championship 2019 in Sheffield, Britain on April 23, 2019. O'Sullivan lost 8-10. (Xinhua/Craig Brough)
O'Sullivan, 44, agreed to take part in the 64-man event after he was allowed to bring his own food. "I don't trust people cooking my own food at the hotel during these times. I have been told that will be okay, but you never know until you arrive there and see what happens." he was quoted by British media.
The world number six didn't lose a game in his three matches on Friday, beating Kishan Hirani, Michael Georgio and Chris Wakelin one by one to finish top in Group 10.
Earlier, World number one Judd Trump reached the second-round group robin matches after three wins. Chinese player Liang Wenbo also advanced in style with three victories, including one over three-time world champion Mark Selby.
The 16 group winners will be re-grouped to determine the four players to compete in the finals. ■