Masters 2021: David Gilbert and Kyren Wilson move into quarter-finals with convincing victories

David Gilbert and Kyren Wilson both reached the quarter-finals of the Masters after convincing first-round victories.

Gilbert defeated Joe Perry 6-2, while Kyren Wilson completed a 6-2 win over Gary Wilson.

Perry and Gary Wilson were appearing at the tournament as a late replacements for Judd Trump and Jack Lisowski, who tested positive for Covid-19.

Kyren Wilson and Gilbert will now meet in the last eight on Thursday.

Now outside the top 16 in the world rankings, 2017 finalist Perry had talked excitedly about his late entrance but conceded that he had done little to prepare for a tournament he had not expected to participate in.

And after taking an extended break over Christmas, his rustiness told early on and ultimately ensured this year's experience was a short-lived one.

World number 13 Gilbert compiled breaks of 58, 62 and 60 on the way to a 4-0 lead at the interval with some assistance from Perry, who had looked poised to level the match at 1-1 until he missed a routine shot on the green.

A break of 71 in the fifth frame put Gilbert on the cusp of a whitewash. However, Perry restored some pride with a 73 and a wonderful break of 108, before bowing out of the competition.

It was a welcome result for Gilbert, who has been struggling for form this season and had written off the tournament when he was originally drawn against Trump.

"I've been bang out of form so it felt a lot better out there," Gilbert said.

"When [Prime Minister] Boris Johnson was doing his announcement [about coronavirus restrictions], I was hoping they locked the whole thing down and closed sport off and everything. I was ready to go in my garage and grab a couple of beers and get drunk.

"I knew I had Judd, so as much as I was looking forward to it, I couldn't see past him to be honest but it has turned out all right for me now."

The late change to the playing schedule meant that marketing images around the arena in Milton Keynes still displayed pictures of both Lisowski and world number one Trump.

Gary Wilson initially did not appear to be phased by his last-minute inclusion, even though it came just days after saying he was "totally gone" following a fit of temper in his Championship League, external defeat by John Higgins.

A break of 85 and a superb 43 clearance gave him a 2-1 lead but it was largely one-way traffic after Kyren Wilson levelled the match with a 115.

"When you win a couple of frames in one visit, it just settles you down," he said.

"You mentally prepare for another opponent and have a few weeks to visualise who you are going to play and it doesn't give you much time to prepare for another one."

Flukes on a red and yellow helped him take a pivotal sixth frame and he then went through the gears with a superb 136 and break of 65 to round off his win.