Ronnie O'Sullivan whitewashes Clark, Mark Allen makes first 147 maximum

Young Clark could only sit and watch for much of the contest as O’Sullivan racked up big break after big break to set his stall out as one the favourites for the title.

Two century breaks, including an impressive 131 clearance to close out the encounter, were the highlights of an impressive afternoon on the baize for Rocket Ronnie, who had sounded in good spirits when talking to Eurosport prior to the second round clash.

The big positive for talented 22-year-old Clark is he won't have to come up against Ronnie every week.

In the early session matches aside from O'Sullivan, Ding Junhui and Yan Bingtao both were victorious, with the latter beating Liang Wenbo. There was also a victory for Mark Allen as he recorded his first professional 147.