Ding in the game.

Home favorite Ding Junhui won his first round match against Finland's Robin Hull with a comfortable 5-1 at the 2016 Snooker World Open in southeast China's Yushan county, Jiangxi Province on Tuesday.

Hull missed a crucial pink to hand Ding the first frame. A 71-point break helped the runner-up of this year's World Championship take an early 3-0 lead. Hull fought back with 75-point in the fourth frame. But Ding did not give any chance to his opponent and ordered a second round berth by beating Hull 78-9 in the sixth frame.

"When I just began my professional career he was the top 16 of the world," Ding said of his opponent, "I remember he retired due to some virus infection, but he made a strong comeback."

Born in 1991, China's Zhang Anda beat 2002 World Championship winner Peter Ebdon 5-1 in an earlier match. He will play against Judd Trump in the second round.

Elsewhere, defending champion Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson also advanced.

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