Chigwell's Ronnie O’Sullivan insists he relished a once-in-a-lifetime moment after equalling the all-time career centuries record en route to a first-round victory at the Masters.

O’Sullivan never quite reached his brilliant best, but the snooker he produced was good enough to see off world No. 9 Ricky Walden 6-4 at London’s Alexandra Palace.

The Chigwell potter made two tons in the win, including a 116 break in the final frame, to tie Stephen Hendry on 775 centuries in his career.

O’Sullivan started slowly but compiled breaks of 77, 91 and 100 to establish a 5-1 lead before Walden staged a revival, including getting the two snookers he required to pinch frame eight to move to 5-4.

But in typically dramatic fashion, ‘The Rocket’ sealed the victory, and equalled Hendry’s record, in the tenth frame.

His break appeared to be over on 89 with the yellow ball tight to the baulk cushion, but O’Sullivan conjured some magic, and a large slice of luck, to fluke it into the middle pocket before clearing up the remaining colours.

The 39-year-old now faces a quarter-final clash with Hong Kong’s Marco Fu and admitted that making history in his home tournament made the moment even more special.

“I wanted to get the century at the end for the crowd – I’m glad I equalled the record,” said O’Sullivan. “It’s something I’ve thought about for a little bit and I’m glad to do it.

“The tournament in London, so everyone wants to see me do well – I’m the home player if you like and it’s great to have that support.

“It was a bit of a buzz for me out there – obviously when I potted the black but didn’t get the yellow out I thought that was it but then the yellow goes in and I was perfectly on the green and the crowd went absolutely nuts!

“It was funny and it was really quite a good moment – I really enjoyed it.”

His first-round triumph continued O’Sullivan’s incredible record at the Masters – he has won the event five times in the past.

And despite approaching his 40th birthday, the form shown by the world No. 3 in winning both the UK Championship and the Champion of Champions tournament this season means he is odds-on favourite to add a sixth Masters title to his haul.

If that is to happen, then O’Sullivan will have to overhaul Fu on Thursday afternoon following the 37-year-old’s 6-3 victory over Stuart Bingham in round one.

But a combination of Fu’s experience and ‘The Rocket’ not quite being at his best, means there is no danger of him taking victory for granted.

“Marco is a top player – he’s one of those guys who is playing a lot and he has raised his level like a lot of players on tour,” added O’Sullivan.

“He will be a tough opponent but with each match in the tournament I’m sure I will get a bit stronger and raise my level, so it’s one I’m looking forward to.

“I’m not as sharp as I was 18 months ago – my levels aren’t as high. I’m still playing alright but I was playing a lot more competitions then and I was a lot quicker out of the blocks.

“If I did have a bad spell it was probably only for a few shots or a frame whereas at the moment I am drifting in and out – it can be two or three frames on the bounce which is not ideal at this level.”

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