Limerick's Leo Fernandez faces Ronnie O'Sullivan at UK Championship

LIMERICK snooker player Leo Fernandez will take on seven-time champion Ronnie O'Sullivan at the prestigious Betway UK Championship in England tonight.

Forty four-year-old Fernandez enjoyed one of the biggest wins of his career at the UK Championships in 2017 when producing a stunning comeback to dump world number three Ding Junhui out of the prestigious Championship at the York Barbican.

Fernandez rallied from 1-5 down to defeat the two-time UK champion 6-5 in a thrilling match.

The first round match between Limerick-born Fernandez and 'The Rocket' is due to get underway at 8pm tonight, Wednesday.

The UK Snooker Championship is one of Snooker's 'Triple Crown' events alongside the World Championship and the Masters.

Fernandez turned professional in 1995 and competed in the 1999 World Championship. 

Snooker’s oldest ranking event outside of the World Championship, the UK Championship will be the first Triple Crown Series tournament of the season with a top prize of stg£200,000 to be won.

The UK Championship is being held at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes this year, rather than its traditional home in York due to the ongoing coronavirus restrictions

All matches up to and including the semi-finals will be played over the best of 11 frames, increasing to 19 for the final.

First staged in 1977, the UK Championship has been won by all of snooker’s great names.

The tournament which continues until December 6 is televised live on Eurosport and later BBC.