The event starts in about 1h 1/2 and more p:layers withdrew and were replaced:
Ian Martin replaced Kyren Wilson, Simon Blackwell replaced Kurt Maflin, Mertens replaced Kacper Filipiak and Ben Fortey replced Gao Yan … for now.
Now… Lewis, do you know why so many Chinese players withdrew?
Ronnie O'Sullivan 
The 4 Chinese players who withdrew previously are all Victoria boys, so there may be some connection. Gao Yang is a Ding Academy player. It could be a logistic issue – many of the players who have withdrawn don’t actually drive, and you can’t exactly pack a car full of players to travel to MK. Perhaps it’s just not considered worth all that trouble just for a 10-minute frame. Beyond that, I don’t know.
Some of those players (e.g. Chang Bingyu) could be in trouble because of the lost ranking points. Even £500 could be the difference this year.
Thank you Lewis