German Masters: Mark Allen through to third round as he faces former World Champion next
Antrim’s Mark Allen has reached the third round of the German Masters after edging out China’s Gao Yang at the Tempodrom in Berlin.
The Northern Irishman lost the first frame but then won three in a row to lead 3-1 at the interval thanks to runs of 70 and 69.
Yang then reduced the deficit to 3-2 but Allen restored his two-frame buffer with a break of 59.
Allen only needed one more frame for victory but he had to wait as Yang closed the gap to 4-3, but he would clinch the match thereafter as a run of 60 got him over the line at 5-3.
He will now face former World Champion and Triple Crown winner Shaun Murphy next for a spot in the quarter-final.
Allen’s best run in the tournament was back in 2022 when he was a losing semi-finalist to Yan Bingtao.
However, there would be no second-round joy for fellow Northern Ireland cueist Jordan Brown after he was beaten 5-0 by former Crucible finalist Jak Jones.
The Welshman took all five frames to end Brown’s hopes of a prolonged stay.
Meanwhile, Zhang Anda composed the fifth maximum break of his career during a clash with Barry Hawkins.
It continues the incredible flow of 147 breaks this season, taking the total to a staggering 22. The previous record for a single campaign of 15 was set last season.
The perfect break puts Zhang in line for the £5,000 high break prize. It's the 239th official 147 in professional snooker history and Zhang becomes the fourth player to produce a maximum at the Tempodrom.