European Tour 2 2013 Results: Favourites Looking Strong in Rotterdam

There’s no time to ease into a European Tour 2 match at Rotterdam, as the best-of-seven format leaves little leeway to repair the damage of any early lapses.

Some of snooker’s biggest players joined the action in Round 3, fighting it out for ranking points and the €25,000 top prize.

The schedule is hectic, with one slow match capable of disrupting a large chunk of the tournament tree, highlighted by Stuart Bingham starting his fifth-round match before John Higgins had even begun his campaign.

Bingham made light work of his opening matches against Adam Duffy and Ryan Causton. The Englishman was never really tested as he ploughed to wins of 4-0 and 4-1, respectively.

"

4-0 win for me this morning. Play again at 3.30. Soaking up the sun now in Rotterdam. Hard life!

— Stuart Bingham (@Stuart__Bingham) July 19, 2013"

He reached a career high of world No. 6 recently, and another strong performance in Rotterdam would stand him in good stead ahead of the Shanghai Masters in September.

Shaun Murphy was another of the big names to find life relatively easy as he dismissed Ben Jones 4-0. A break of 67 in the third frame put him in complete control, and although he endured a slightly closer fourth, he wasn’t prevented from racing into the next round.

In the tournament’s biggest clash so far, Ricky Walden and Matthew Stevens, the world Nos. 10 and 12, went head-to-head in the fourth round, with the former triumphing 4-1.

Both players potted superbly at stages in the match, with Walden making a century in the opening frame before following it up with breaks of 58 and 50 in the next.

Stevens responded by posting 60 and 55 in two visits to the table to half the deficit. He couldn’t force his way back into the match though, as Walden regained the momentum with a break of 63 in the fourth frame and sealed the win in the final frame 84-43.

With many of the bigger names yet to get underway, including Higgins and Mark Selby, it’s still very early days, but the signs are that they should progress without complication.

One player who isn’t making an appearance is world No. 1 Neil Robertson, who withdrew from the event due to illness.

“I'm gutted because I was really looking forward to playing in Rotterdam," said Robertson, as reported by World Snooker.

“I need to spend a few days resting in Australia to get back to 100 per cent before travelling, so I couldn't make the trip to Europe.”