Mark Allen is in action on Wednesday evening as he kicks-off his UK Championship bid against Basem Eltahhan.

The Northern Irishman is aiming for a second Triple Crown title after landing The Masters last season and he has already enjoyed ranking tournament success this term after winning the International Championship in China.

Allen heads into the tournament on the back of two successive defeats as he went out in the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions event, before falling at the first hurdle in his home tournament in Belfast.

The 32-year-old should be able to put that Northern Ireland Open disappointment behind him when he comes up against Eltahhan, as the Egyptian is ranked outside the world’s top 100 and is on an 11-game losing streak – a run stretching way back to February.

Allen is 3.30 to win 6-0 or 3.10 to win 6-1, with Eltahhan the 17.00 underdog to cause a huge upset.

Three-time champion John Higgins is also in action on Wednesday as he opens his account at the Barbican Centre against Thailand’s Dechawat Poomjaeng.

Higgins last won the UK Championship in 2010 but hasn’t been beyond the quarter-finals since and went out in the fourth round last year.

The Scot’s best performance so far this season is an appearance in the final of the China Championship and he may face a test against Mr Poombastic.

The 40-year-old has previously been ranked inside the top 40 and does have a win over Higgins on his record, at the Player Tour Championship seven years ago.

Poomjaeng is 11.00 to win, while Higgins is 2.00 with a -4.5 frame handicap.