2019 World Championship of Snooker

James Cahill, the first ever amateur to compete at the Crucible, will face Ronnie O’Sullivan in the first round of the Betfred World Championship.

The random draw for the last 32 of snooker’s biggest event was made today, with the top 16 seeds pitted against the 16 players who came through the qualifying rounds.

Blackpool’s 23-year-old Cahill, who has played on the pro tour in the past and has beaten the likes of Mark Selby and Ding Junhui at the UK Championship, earned his Crucible debut by winning three qualifying matches and has been handed a tie against five-time champion O’Sullivan.

That match will start on Monday and play to a finish on Tuesday.

Defending champion Mark Williams will be up against Martin Gould in the opening match, which takes place in the 10amand 7pmsessions on Saturday.

Judd Trump will take on the fastest player on the tour, Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, while Neil Robertson will be up against one of seven debutants, Michael Georgiou.

John Higgins faces bogey player Mark Davis while Mark Selby’s opponent is gifted Chinese potter Zhao Xintong.

Mark Williams (1) v Martin Gould

David Gilbert (16) v Joe Perry

Barry Hawkins (9) v Li Hang

Kyren Wilson (8) v Scott Donaldson

John Higgins (5) v Mark Davis

Stuart Bingham (12) v Graeme Dott

Shaun Murphy (13) v Luo Honghao

Neil Robertson (4) v Michael Georgiou

Mark Selby (3) v Zhao Xintong

Luca Brecel (14) v Gary Wilson

Jack Lisowski (11) v Ali Carter

Mark Allen (6) v Zhou Yuelong

Judd Trump (7) v Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

Ding Junhui (10) v Anthony McGill

Stephen Maguire (15) v Tian Pengfei

Ronnie O’Sullivan (2) v James Cahill

The tournament in Sheffield runs from April 20 to May 6 with a top prize of £500,000 up for grabs. There will be extensive TV coverage from BBC and Eurosport.