Ronnie O’Sullivan will start the defence of his World Snooker Championship title against Stuart Bingham on April 18.
Click here to watch the draw being made
The Rocket, who beat Ali Carter 18-8 in last year’s final to land his third Crucible crown, was paired with fellow Essex cueman Bingham when the random draw for the last 32 was made on BBC Radio Sheffield this morning.
World No 21 Bingham beat Stephen Hendry in the first round in 2000 and hopes he can register another shock. “It’s obviously a very tough draw, but maybe the first round is the best time to play Ronnie,” said the 32-year-old from Basildon.
“It will be one of the highlights of my career to play Ronnie at the Crucible. I’ve played Hendry there, and last year I beat Steve Davis and said that I wanted to play the best players at the best venues. The atmosphere will be fantastic.
“I play Ronnie twice a week in practice – he wins more often then not but I tend to hold my own. I’m just relieved to have made it to Sheffield and happy to be in the draw,” added Bingham, who beat Alan McManus 10-6 in the final qualifying round on Sunday.
In arguably the tie of the first round, former champions Mark Williams and Stephen Hendry will go head to head. They met in the final in 1999 when Hendry won the last of his seven titles. Twice-champion Williams has since dropped out of the top 16 but made it through the qualifiers by beating Tom Ford 10-5.
Young Chinese stars Ding Junhui and Liang Wenbo will meet for the first time in professional competition. Ding has won three ranking titles but has never been past the second round at the Crucible, while Liang enjoyed a memorable run to the quarter-finals on his debut last year. Both are based at the World Snooker Academy in Sheffield.
Legend Steve Davis, who came from 5-0 down to beat Lee Spick 10-8 in the qualifiers last night, is rewarded with a tie against Australia’s Neil Robertson.
John Higgins, the 1998 and 2007 Champion, faces a tough test against Michael Holt in the opening round, while Shaun Murphy plays debutant Andrew Higginson. Another debutant, Roewe Shanghai Masters champion Ricky Walden, is up against former Masters winner Mark Selby.
The full draw is:
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Stuart Bingham
Mark Allen v Martin Gould
Peter Ebdon v Nigel Bond
Ryan Day v Stephen Lee
John Higgins v Michael Holt
Joe Perry v Jamie Cope
Graeme Dott v Barry Hawkins
Mark Selby v Ricky Walden
Shaun Murphy v Andrew Higginson
Marco Fu v Joe Swail
Ding Junhui v Liang Wenbo
Stephen Hendry v Mark Williams
Ali Carter v Gerard Greene
Neil Robertson v Steve Davis
Mark King v Rory McLeod
Stephen Maguire v Jamie Burnett
(From Website : http://www.worldsnooker.com/ws_championship_qualifiers_second_news-24400.htm?tid=122)
