World Snooker Championship LIVE: Latest scores and results from Selby-Wilson and Milkins-Jiahui

Ronnie O’Sullivan returned to the World Snooker Championship on Saturday afternoon to quickly dispatch Hossein Vafaei at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

Resuming with a 6-2 lead, O’Sullivan reeled off the remaining frames and finished with back-to-back centuries to clinch victory 13-2 and a place in the quarter-finals. Despite the animosity in the build-up, with Vafaei calling O’Sullivan “a nice guy when he’s asleep”, the pair embraced and laughed together after the match was over.

On the other table, Welshman Jak Jones continued his impressive form with victory over 2010 champion Neil Robertson, seeing off the Australian 13-7.

Play will resume at 7pm with 13th seed Robert Milkins taking on Chinese Crucible debutant Si Jiahui, and 15th seed Gary Wilson up against four-time world champion Mark Selby.

Follow all the action in our blog below:

Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Hossein Vafaei live updates

• World Snooker Championship continues at the Crucible on Saturday

• Play will resume at 7pm with evening session

• 13th seed Robert Milkins takes on Crucible debutant Si Jiahui

• 15th seed Gary Wilson faces four-time world champion Mark Selby

• RESULT: Ronnie O’Sullivan 13-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

• RESULT: Neil Robertson 7-13 (25) Jak Jones

Vafaei: ‘I lost to the greatest'

18:57 , Lawrence Ostlere

And here’s his beaten opponent:

“It was nice for the people everywhere, you see snooker at the top of the news,” laughed Vafaei. “Snooker is just boring players without me, so it’s good to have a good character. It just makes people more interested in the sport.

“This year I lost to the greatest who ever played this game. He said to me, let’s be friends together again. Everything is back like it was before and I wish him to win the tournament because he is too good for this sport.”

O’Sullivan: ‘There’s no point getting fixated with one player'

18:56 , Lawrence Ostlere

Here’s Ronnie O’Sullivan on that beef with Hossein Vafaei:

“It’s not like I take comments personally, I’ve probably had five or six people saying something over my career that has just inspired me to prove to myself that I can still play the game,” said O’Sullivan afterwards. “I play between 50 and 100 matches a year and I’ve got to beat everyone, there’s no point getting fixated with one player and what he did. I don’t say anything to him. That little black book is locked up in my mind and just kind of helped me.”

Report: Ronnie O’Sullivan demolishes Hossein Vafaei

17:43 , Lawrence Ostlere

Ronnie O’Sullivan turned his so-called grudge match against Hossein Vafaei into a demolition job as he won their second-round match at the World Snooker Championship 13-2 with a session to spare.

Full report:

Ronnie O’Sullivan grudge match ends in hug after crushing win

Evening session

17:12 , Lawrence Ostlere

Play will resume at 7pm with 13th seed Robert Milkins taking on Chinese Crucible debutant Si Jiahui, and 15th seed Gary Wilson up against four-time world champion Mark Selby.

Result: Neil Robertson 7-13 (25) Jak Jones

16:29 , Lawrence Ostlere

A huge win for Jak Jones, who is through to the quarter-finals for the first time after dominating the 2010 world champion Robertson.

Result: Ronnie O’Sullivan 13-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

16:28 , Lawrence Ostlere

Ronnie O’Sullivan mops up with a brilliant century, then gives his rival Hossein Vafaei a big hug and they share a laugh. A lovely moment between the pair after some words were shared before the contest.

O’Sullivan will take on Luca Brecel in the next round. On this evidence, he is going to take some stopping.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 12-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

16:12 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan doesn’t quite get the rub of the green with his attempt to scatter the remaining reds, runs out of room and is forced to head up to the blue in order to finish the frame. There will be no 147, but he does clinch another frame with a century to move to within one of ending this contest.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 11-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

16:09 , Lawrence Ostlere

Whisper it quietly, but after clinching another quick frame, Ronnie O’Sullivan has now hit seven reds and seven blacks...

Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

15:54 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan and Vafaei are back out there after the interval. Meanwhile Jak Jones is closing in on another frame against Neil Robertson, and a place in the quarter-finals.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

15:37 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan has played four frames this afternoon and won all four in double quick time. This time Vafaei misses a red while scattering the pack and O’Sullivan clears the table. This is utter domination.

Neil Robertson 7-11 (25) Jak Jones

15:34 , Lawrence Ostlere

Robertson spurns and Jak Jones takes advantage to steal another frame – the Welshman is just two now from reaching the quarter-finals for the first time in his career.

Neil Robertson 7-10 (25) Jak Jones

15:24 , Lawrence Ostlere

Progress has been slower on table two, where Neil Robertson has earned back one frame and is well-placed to pick up another. Could he pull off a comeback?

Ronnie O’Sullivan 9-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

15:22 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan wraps up another frame with rapid 60+ break, and he’s four from the quarter-finals.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 8-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

15:09 , Lawrence Ostlere

Oh dear – Vafaei had the 10th frame in his grasp but a miss with 59 points on the board let O’Sullivan back in. He needed to clear a cluttered table but is on the way to doing so brilliantly, his shot from pink to yellow the pick of the bunch, although using the cue ball to dislodge the final red from the cushion wasn’t bad either...

O’Sullivan does indeed clear up to win the frame by one point! Vafaei needs a miracle now.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

14:54 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan makes a rare mistake after a half-century break, missing a pink off the spot to let Vafaei back to the table needing to clear up to win it. But Vafaei misses a routine blue while trying to get the cue ball cannoning into the reds, and O’Sullivan returns to mop up the frame.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-2 (25) Hossein Vafaei

14:49 , Lawrence Ostlere

O’Sullivan and Vafaei immediately engage in a safety battle, and it’s won by the seven-time world champion when he’s left a sight of a long red, which he buries into the left corner. He’s already racked up a break of 38 with only the pink and blue – the black was knocked on to the top cushion earlier in the frame – and he’s well placed to go and extend his lead in this second-round match.

The afternoon session is under way

14:39 , Lawrence Ostlere

The players are out on the Crucible floor. On table one it’s Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Hossein Vafaei, while on table two it’s Neil Robertson against Jak Jones.

Saturday afternoon session at the World Snooker Championship

14:31 , Luke Baker

Ok, turning our attention to this afternoon’s session at the Crucible now, with two mouthwatering clashes lined up.

Ronnie O’Sullivan leads Hossein Vafaei 6-2 overnight in their ill-tempered grudge match and another eight frames will be played today in the race to 13. If O’Sullivan wins the session 7-0 or 7-1, then he’ll book a quarter-final spot with a session to spare. There’s bound to be more fireworks after the verbal barbs in the build-up and then Vafaei smashing the reds everywhere with his opening break-off yesterday as a reaction to perceived disrespect form O’Sullivan in a previous encounter.

Meanwhile, on the other table, the always heavily-tipped 2010 world champion Neil Robertson is in all sorts of bother against unfancied Welsh qualifier Jak Jones. Robertson trails 10-6 heading into the final session, meaning Jones only needs three more frames for a famous victory. The Aussie will have to start fast if he wants to produce a stirring comeback and keep his hopes of a second world title alive.

MC Rob Walker will be getting the boys on the baize at the Crucible shortly.

What is snooker’s Chinese betting scandal?

14:27 , Luke Baker

This year’s World Snooker Championship at the Crucible could be overshadowed as 10 players face an independent disciplinary hearing after charges related to match fixing.

The players, which include former UK champion Zhao Xintong and ex-Masters champion Yan Bingtao, are currently suspended from the World Snooker Tour.

The WPBSA confirmed in a statement: “The players will remain suspended until the outcome of the Independent Disciplinary Hearing is published.

“They will therefore not participate in any remaining World Snooker Tour events during the 2022/23 season, including the 2023 World Snooker Championship.”

But what have the players been accused of, and what will happen at the hearing?

What is snooker’s Chinese betting scandal?

Mark Allen inspired by gift from daughter in thrashing of Stuart Bingham

14:16 , Luke Baker

Mark Allen made a quickfire return to the Crucible on Saturday morning to claim the one frame he required and move into the quarter-finals of the World Snooker Championship for the first time since 2018.

The 37-year-old required just 15 minutes to fashion a break of 68 and turn a 12-4 overnight lead into a 13-4 win against the 2015 champion Stuart Bingham, setting up a last-eight clash with either Neil Robertson or Jak Jones.

Allen, who is intent on rectifying a dismal Crucible record that has seen him reach this stage just four times since a solitary semi-final appearance in 2009, said he had been inspired by a bracelet given to him by his five-year-old daughter, Harley.

“It’s great for me having this to look at, when you make mistakes out there and you look down and you realise where your priorities really lie, it takes some pressure off,” said Allen.

“It just says ‘dad’ on it. It’s pinks and purples and stuff, not really my favourite colours, but it helps keep my mind at rest. It’s good to have that happy thought in your head and get ready for the next one.”

Mark Allen inspired by gift from daughter in thrashing of Stuart Bingham

Luca Brecel secures quarter-final spot after beating Mark Williams at Crucible

14:05 , Luke Baker

Luca Brecel held his nerve to reach the World Snooker Championship quarter-finals for the first time with a 13-11 victory over Mark Williams.

Welshman Williams looked to have turned the tide when he fought back from 11-8 adrift to tie a gripping second-round clash.

But Belgian world No 10 Brecel posted a break of 84 to edge back in front, before taking the match with a run of 67.

Brecel is the first player through to this year’s Crucible quarter-finals, where he will meet Ronnie O’Sullivan or Hossein Vafaei.

Luca Brecel secures quarter-final spot after beating Mark Williams at Crucible

Ronnie O’Sullivan cashes in as wild Hossein Vafaei break-off shocks Crucible

13:54 , Luke Baker

Ronnie O’Sullivan shrugged off an extraordinary act of self-sabotage by opponent Hossein Vafaei to deliver a potential knockout blow in the opening session of their so-called grudge match at the World Snooker Championship.

O’Sullivan racked up his 200th Crucible century as part of a ruthless riposte to Vafaei’s pre-match barbs, while the Iranian did himself no favours by smashing the balls from his first break-off in an ill-judged reaction to perceived disrespect shown to him by O’Sullivan performing the same shot in their last meeting two years ago.

Vafaei’s blast cued up O’Sullivan to mop up with a break of 78 and the defending champion went on to fashion a 6-2 overnight advantage in their second-round clash, leaving him an opportunity to wrap up victory with a session to spare when they resume this afternoon.

The Iranian was accused of “stupidity” and “disrespecting the sport” by a shocked Steve Davis in the BBC studio, while another former world champion, Shaun Murphy, labelled Vafaei’s antics “an embarrassment” and “completely self-inflicted”.

Ronnie O’Sullivan cashes in as wild Hossein Vafaei break-off shocks Crucible

World Snooker Championship

13:52 , Luke Baker

Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of Day 8 of the World Snooker Championship.

This afternoon sees the second session of the most eagerly-anticipated match of the championship so far as seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan takes on the outspoken Hossein Vafaei in the second round.

Vafaei made plenty of headlines during the build-up by calling out O’Sullivan and then smashed the reds everywhere on his opening break-off as a reaction to perceived disrespect by The Rocket in a previous encounter. O’Sullivan brushed that off to lead 6-2 overnight however.

Stick with us for all the latest updates