Jimmy White booked his place in the last 32 of the Northern Ireland Open, at the age of 62, after taking advantage of a bizarre incident in the sixth frame of his match against Hossein Vafaei.

With the frame drifting towards the hour mark, Vafaei looked to have left himself in pole position to force a decider when he potted a long red after a misjudged safety from White had sent the cue ball into the bottom pocket.

However, referee Kevin Dabrowski called a foul, insisting Vafaei had not replaced the cue ball correctly inside the D, much to the surprise of both players, who tried to check the position by peering through the viewfinder of a nearby television camera.

However, Dabrowski remained adamant that his call was correct, handing the initiative to White, who duly wrapped up victory over the world number 24, extending a shock run that had seen him win two qualifying rounds just to reach the tournament proper.

Having viewed more footage of the incident after the match, White acknowledged that the cue ball looked "slightly out" of the D, while former world semi-finalist Alan McManus said Dabrowski had made the correct call.

"It was harsh on Hossein Vafaei, of course it was, but the referee was correct and it's down to the player to make sure he puts it in the D correctly," McManus told Eurosport.

Two-time champion Mark Allen delighted his home fans as he compiled three breaks over 70 in a 4-0 whitewash of China's Liu Hongyu.

Earlier, Neil Robertson continued his strong recent form – and his bid to cement his place back in the world's top 16 – as he edged a 4-3 win over Graeme Dott in a repeat of the 2010 World Championship final.