Doherty in control at Worlds

In other action, England’s Anthony Hamilton became the first seeded player to go out of the tournament, losing a marathon battle with Scotland’s Chris Small.

Leading 57-45 in the deciding frame, Hamilton missed the blue and Small potted the remaining three balls to edge through 10-9 in a game which lasted nearly seven-and-a-half hours.

Tony Drago of Malta also made it through to the second round, completing a 10-4 win over British Open champion Fergal O’Brien.

Earlier in the day, Nigel Bond completed a 10-6 win over Welsh qualifier Dominic Dale.

Leading 8-1 overnight, Bond required just two frames to reach the second round.

But Dale did not give up without a fight, winning five out of sixframes with breaks of 69, 66 and 122 before Bond secured victory.

Bond, the runner-up four years ago, now faces the winner of the match between Doherty and James.

Elsewhere, former champion John Parrott of England led Northern Ireland’s Terry Murphy 6-5.