Matthew Stevens made light work of China’s Chen Zifan in his first match at the English Open but may face a tougher test against veteran Jimmy White on Wednesday evening.

Stevens brushed aside the world number 85 4-1 to book his place in the second round and is 1.50 to overcome White at the K2 Leisure Centre in Crawley.

White, 56, is playing in just his second ranking event of the season after failing to qualify for the World Open, China Championship and European Masters but he did but in a solid performance when beating world number 40 Lyu Hoatian in his opener in Crawley.

The world number 77 fell at the first hurdle at the English Open in the first two editions of the tournament in 2016 and 2017 but will be eager to get past Stevens – as it could potentially set up a showdown with Ronnie O’Sullivan in the next round.

The ‘Rocket’ criticised the host venue earlier this week but should still have far too much quality for his own second round opponent Allan Taylor even if he isn’t fully focused, with O’Sullivan 1.04 to claim the win and Taylor 11.00.

White, who is bidding to reach the third round of a ranking event for the first time since last year’s Northern Ireland Open, is 2.50 to down Stevens or 6.50 to win 4-2.

Stevens has won the last two meetings between the two but they haven’t faced each other in eight years, so that head-to-head record doesn’t offer much insight into Wednesday’s clash and White could offer good value in this match-up.