Xi'an Grand Prix recap: Ronnie O'Sullivan defeats Jak Jones to reach quarter-finals after Kyren Wilson demolished by Shaun Murphy
Updated 11/10/2025 at 12:10 GMT+1
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Ronnie O'Sullivan continued his serene progress at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix, with a commanding 5-2 victory over Jak Jones, booking his place in the quarter-finals. Earlier in the day, Shaun Murphy ended the reign of defending champion Kyren Wilson with a 5-0 whitewash. Watch and stream top snooker action, including the Xi’an Grand Prix, live and on demand on TNT Sports and discovery+.
‘He’s not happy’ – O’Sullivan wants black ball replaced in ‘unusual’ situation
Video credit: TNT Sports
ROCKET ROARS INTO QUARTER-FINALS
Ronnie O'Sullivan hit two centuries on the way to reaching the Xi'an Grand Prix quarter-finals, following a 5-2 victory over Jak Jones.
The Rocket continued his impressive start to the week, during which he has dropped just three frames in his four matches.
O'Sullivan controlled the opening frame with a run of 58 along the way, before a magnificent 135 total clearance doubled his lead.
Jones halved the deficit and had a chance in frame four, only to miss a red to the left corner and allow his opponent to clear with exactly 100 for a 3-1 lead.
The former Crucible finalist had another opportunity in the fifth frame. This time, he missed a routine red to the left corner at 51-18 in front, and O'Sullivan stepped in with a 53 clearance.
Jones stayed alive in emphatic fashion with a 140 total clearance, but it proved a false dawn, as runs of 36 and 81 got The Rocket over the line.
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‘He’s looking very strong’ – O’Sullivan ‘seals the deal’ with impressive win over Jones
Video credit: TNT Sports
AROUND THE TABLES
Mark Williams 3-4 Barry Hawkins
Stuart Bingham 2-2 Lyu Haotian
RESULT: O'SULLIVAN 5-2 JONES
A further break of 81 does the trick for O'Sullivan, who books his place in the last eight.
The Rocket will play Gary Wilson on Saturday.
O'SULLIVAN 4-2 JONES (37-1)
Following an initial run of 36, a long plant gives O'Sullivan another chance to secure frame and match.
ENTER THE DRAGON
Ding Junhui books his place in the quarter-finals with a 5-1 victory over Oliver Lines.
The home favourite hit breaks of 134, 83, 77 and 63 along the way.
CENTURY! O'SULLIVAN 4-2 JONES
Absolutely magnificent from the Welshman!
A superb total clearance of 140 keeps his faint hopes alive in this clash.
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‘Gusty riposte’ – Jones responds to O’Sullivan with ‘beautifully-executed’ 140 break
Video credit: TNT Sports
O'SULLIVAN 4-1 JONES
After winning the safety exchange, O'Sullivan clears with 53 to move to the brink of victory.
O'SULLIVAN 3-1 JONES (18-51)
The Welshman is going along nicely with a run of 47, until he misses a routine red to the left corner.
Thankfully for him, he leaves nothing on and a safety battle ensues.
O'SULLIVAN 3-1 JONES (18-5)
We are back under way on the featured table, and O'Sullivan has the first chance of frame five.
Yet, a missed black off the spot gives Jones the chance to get back in the contest.
AROUND THE TABLES
Mark Williams 1-3 Barry Hawkins
Ding Junhui 3-1 Oliver Lines
Stuart Bingham 0-2 Lyu Haotian
WILLIAMS 1-3 HAWKINS
The Hawk has recovered from losing the opening frame, with breaks of 90, 55 and 73 putting him in control at the interval.
CENTURY! O'SULLIVAN 3-1 JONES
The seven-time world champion clears to the pink with a break of exactly 100.
His second century of the match moves him within two frames of victory.
O'SULLIVAN 2-1 JONES (0-14)
O'Sullivan rattles a mid-range red in the jaws of the left corner.
However, Jones can only make 14, before leaving a red over the same pocket.
The Rocket with an easy starter...
O'SULLIVAN 2-1 JONES
Jones eventually sees out the frame, only the second O'Sullivan has dropped this week.
The Welshman halves his deficit.
O'SULLIVAN 2-0 JONES (19-59)
Not quite, but he does get to the snookers required stage.
O'Sullivan needs two of them and plays on.
O'SULLIVAN 2-0 JONES (14-37)
Jones takes the lead in the frame with a run of 36.
He has another opportunity after knocking in a wonderful long red.
Can he convert this one?
O'SULLIVAN 2-0 JONES (14-1)
O'Sullivan misses a long blue by quite some distance, handing another chance to Jones.
What can the former Crucible finalist make of this opportunity?
CENTURY
Ding Junhui is quick out of the blocks elsewhere, with a brilliant break of 134 opening a 2-0 lead over Oliver Lines.
O'SULLIVAN 2-0 JONES (4-0)
The Welshman appears to have an opportunity to get his hand on the table after a couple of loose shots from O'Sullivan.
However, after potting a red with the rest, the cue-ball catches his cue before he can move it out of the way.
The Rocket is back at the table with a chance to make him pay.
CENTURY! O'SULLIVAN 2-0 JONES
Jones broke off and left a possible long red, but little did he know that would spell the end of the frame.
Indeed, O'Sullivan knocks it in and produces a superb 135 total clearance to double his lead.
CENTURY
Across the arena, Mark Williams is off to a flying start, with a break of 104 in the opening frame of his clash with Barry Hawkins.
O'SULLIVAN 1-0 JONES
A run of 58 is more than enough for O'Sullivan to get his first frame on the board.
Remember, he has only dropped one in his three matches so far this week.
O'SULLIVAN 0-0 JONES (68-0)
Back at the table, the Rocket gets to the snookers required stage, but will want to maintain his early momentum by clearing the table if possible.
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‘He’s not happy’ – O’Sullivan wants black ball replaced in ‘unusual’ situation
Video credit: TNT Sports
O'SULLIVAN 0-0 JONES (22-0)
A nice red to the right centre presents the first opportunity to O'Sullivan, who pots all the available reds before he is forced to play safe.
HERE WE GO
The players are introduced into the arena ready for the session to commence.
Following his customary pre-match fist-bump and left-handed break, O'Sullivan gets things under way.
ELSEWHERE
More star names are in action around the tables, including two former world champions in Mark Williams and Stuart Bingham.
Williams takes on Barry Hawkins in a tasty battle of the left-handers, while Bingham plays home favourite Lyu Haotian.
Speaking of home favourites, Ding Junhui is also in action, taking on Oliver Lines.
WELCOME BACK
Good afternoon to everyone joining us for the second session on Friday at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix.
The Rocket is imminent, as he takes on Jak Jones shortly for a place in the quarter-finals.
JOIN US AGAIN FROM MIDDAY
We’ll be back later with more action from the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix with Ronnie O’Sullivan taking centre stage.
See you then!
MAGNIFICENT MURPHY MARAUDS PAST WILSON
Shaun Murphy was in irresistible form as he outclassed defending champion Kyren Wilson to reach the last eight at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix.
The Magician rampaged out of the traps and bagged a 3-0 lead inside 45 minutes courtesy of a break of 70 and back-to-back century clearances of 141 and 133 respectively.
Wilson could do little but watch on and found himself staring down the barrel heading to the interval as Murphy notched another excellent run of 84.
There was no turnaround when the players returned as Murphy sealed the whitewash with a break of 84 without world number two, Wilson potting a ball.
Elsewhere, Gary Wilson romped to a 5-0 win over Guoqiang He and will meet Ronnie O'Sullivan or Jak Jones next.
Daniel Wells was a 5-2 winner over Robert Milkins.
AROUND THE TABLES
- Pullen 2-0 Hill
- Wells 4-0 Milkins
- Wilson.G 4-0 He
RESULT! – WILSON 0-5 MURPHY
It’s a very brief one as he can’t find cover and Shaun lands another red-black combo before a red to middle tees up a black that allows him to cannon into the pack once again.
This time he progresses them nicely and rolls a blue to middle to clatter into the bunch for a second time and develop a frame-winning opportunity.
A close-range red to the right corner via the rest and a black to the opposite corner move him over the line and it’s all about whether he can set a points without reply record.
The one stumbling block is a red tied to the left rail, but he releases that with a screwback off a pot on the black.
He needs to come off two cushions and between the green and brown to land on that final red, but catches a colour and ends up snookered.
There’s no record but it is a 5-0 whitewash via another super run of 84 to take him into the last eight.
WILSON 0-4 MURPHY (0-17)
Murphy returns from the interval and immediately finds his groove again, gliding a sublime long red from right to left and into the yellow pocket.
The good news for Wilson is that the pack is pretty much intact and when Shaun tries to attack it via a blue to middle left and a bounce off the left cushion, he can’t engineer enough power to make enough of a dent.
It's end of break on 17 and Kyren gets a look-in.
AROUND THE TABLES
- Pullen 1-0 Hill
- Wells 2-0 Milkins
- Wilson.G 3-0 He
WILSON 0-4 MURPHY
Wilson looks to secure his first pot of the contest but a long red down the right jumps back out of the corner pocket.
Murphy locks-in with a long red to the yellow pocket and sets about another confident break.
The Magician is pacing his pots beautifully, optimising position and leaving Kyren with that sinking feeling.
Even when it appears to be running out of steam shy of 40, he spies a plant to the right corner that Alan McManus describes as ‘unmissable’ on TNT Sports comms, insisting there was nothing lucky about Shaun landing on it and that he would have known it was there way before he decided to make use of it.
Murphy splits the remainder of the pack and then needs a blue to the yellow bag to make sure Wilson won’t return.
The stray reds are picked off one by one around the black as another century looms, but he frowns in irritation as he fails to down the black to the left.
It matters little in the context of the match as his break of 84 means he is four up heading to the interval.
WILSON 0-3 MURPHY
Murphy pounces upon another unconvincing safety from Wilson and slips in a simple red close to the left corner.
A flick off a nearby red alters his intended focus in terms of position but he rectifies it with as slick blue up to the green bag.
The Magician quickly develops a decent lead and then progresses more reds from the pack with screw back off a routine red.
Once again he takes on a diagonal blue, this time up to the yellow pocket to regain position.
A red to the left corner takes him perfectly on to the black, but he has to play up to the blue with the highest value colour blocked off by a ring of nearby reds.
He ignores the barrier and plays down the right side of the table to land on the black again, intelligently taking care of stray reds without disrupting the four balls that may halt his run prematurely.
A blue to middle and a red to the right corner finally tee him up for the black and the cannon into the quartet of reds. It works a treat and when he slips the pink to middle right it seals another frame with Wilson rooted to his seat.
Back-to-back centuries is secured with a pink to the right corner and perfect position to take the final, tricky red down the right rail.
It really is world-class form from the world number 12 as he completes another clearance to the tune of 133.
AROUND THE TABLES
- Pullen 0-0 Hill
- Wells 1-0 Milkins
- Wilson.G 1-0 He
WILSON 0-2 MURPHY
The Magician conjures up a thunderbolt of a long red down the right to the corner to kick off proceedings in style in Frame 2.
The world number 12 takes a blue to earn position on a red near to the black on its spot.
Another red to middle left follows and he considers a plant to the left corner before opting for a red north of the pair to crack the pack with a lovely cannon that ends with him plum on the black.
A red with the rest jiggles with the jaws of the right corner pocket before dropping but it doesn’t hinder his angle on the black which takes him beyond the 50-mark once again.
It’s the only moment where Murphy looks anywhere near out of groove as he sinks another red-black combo to leave Wilson in his seat for the second frame in a row.
This time Shaun does clinch the century with a sublime cut on a black to the left corner and it becomes a real statement of intent as completes a 141 clearance to take a firm grip of this best of nine encounter early doors.
WILSON 0-1 MURPHY
An awful safety from Wilson opens the door for Murphy to lean in from the bottom deck and jab in a red up to the yellow pocket via the rest.
The brown follows to the green bag, allowing him to navigate down to an already splintered pack.
A pink up to middle right is the obvious choice with the black shielded by a trio of reds.
A deft, fine cut on a red to the right keeps him ticking along and he continues to play the pink up to middle to move within sight of the half century.
He executes perfect pace to get topside of blue when he does briefly shift from red-pink combos, but it’s a pink down to the left corner that ends Wilson’s hopes.
A red up to middle left and a blue to the right means Kyren won’t be returning but the hunt for a century ends on 70 when he can’t quite tease a red to the corner.
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Shaun Murphy
Image credit: Getty Images
The Xi'an Grand Prix has reached the last-16 stage, with Ronnie O'Sullivan taking on Jak Jones in the afternoon session.
Prior to the seven-time world champion's appearance, there is a blockbuster clash between former world champions Kyren Wilson and Shaun Murphy.
You can follow the action right here with our text commentary, as well as tuning in on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Friday's schedule
Last 16
07:00
- Daniel Wells v Robert Milkins
- Kyren Wilson v Shaun Murphy
- Gary Wilson v He Guoqiang
- Liam Pullen v Aaron Hill
12:30
- Lyu Haotian v Stuart Bingham
- Ronnie O'Sullivan v Jak Jones
- Barry Hawkins v Mark Williams
- Oliver Lines v Ding Junhui
- - -
Watch and stream top snooker action, including the Xi’an Grand Prix, live and on demand on TNT Sports and discovery+
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