RON HIS WAY
Ronnie O’Sullivan OUT of World Snooker Championship in nailbiter vs Stuart Bingham after ‘sportingly’ gifting him frame
The tight contest contained two controversial moments that may have derailed The Rocket
RONNIE O’SULLIVAN was booted out of the World Snooker Championship by Stuart Bingham – but then revealed he considered not competing in the tournament.
And the Rocket reckons some referees “have got it in for me” as his quest for Crucible No.8 rolls over until next year.
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Bingham, the 2015 world champion, progressed to the semi-finals following a stunning 13-10 victory and celebrated with a glass of red wine.
Yet seven-time world champion O’Sullivan, 48, said he only attended after being persuaded to do so by a new sponsor.
O’Sullivan, who PUNCHED the table in anger after one poor shot, said: “I wasn’t going to play the Tour Championship in Manchester or this because of how I was feeling about playing.
“They sort of twisted my arm. It’s first come, first served. I have signed up for 8-9 events next year.
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“There are only so many days I allow myself to be away from home. You cannot do it all.
“I would have done (punditry) days with Eurosport here. They’ve been pretty good with me. I wanted to fulfil that.
“There are so many things to do in my life, man. I have such a busy, good life.
“Probably done painting with Damien Hirst, ate good food, taken the dogs out, seen my children, gone to Champney’s Spa.
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“It might sound boring to you but it’s bloody exciting to me.”
O’Sullivan was praised in frame 12 by former world champion Neil Robertson for “the greatest bit of sportsmanship I’ve ever seen” after he turned down a chance to pot a red.
Inside Ronnie O'Sullivan's rollercoaster life from drug addiction and pig farm job to dad's prison time for murder
Trailing by 14 points, it appeared he was unsure whether the black -which referee Desislava Bozhilova has just respotted - was lying correcting on its spot, thus making the red pottable.
Rather than pot the red, O'Sullivan opted to instead play a safety shot after more than four-and-a-half minutes of deliberation – as the black ball was respotted about 10 times.
Australian cueist Robbo, working for the BBC praised O’Sullivan for telling ref Bozhilova she had not placed the black back accurately and was giving him an unfair advantage.
O'Sullivan went on to lose the frame.
But O’Sullivan admitted: “To be honest with you, some of the referees I think they’ve got it in for me.
“So I just wanted to prove to her that she’d got it wrong.
“I didn’t feel good about having to pot the ball after that. But I just wanted to make a point.
“I’m not that hungry to win in that way. I’m more of a principled person, so once the principle’s been made I can sleep at night.”
Inside Ronnie's colourful career
FROM his lightning breaks to blasts at officials, Ronnie O'Sullivan has fired snooker into the spotlight.
The seven-time world champion makes almost as big an impact away from the table as on it.
O'Sullivan has three children - two daughters and a son.
And the Rocket's on-off relationship with British actress Laila Rouass has also hit the headlines.
He has opened up on battles with his weight and addiction.
While the controversial cueist reckons he wasted NINE YEARS of his career by partying too hard.
Despite being worth £14million, O'Sullivan is renowned for his love of canal boats and snubbing flashy cars.
His rivalry with fellow star Judd Trump has been branded 'snooker's greatest feud'.
And Ali Carter had his nose knocked out of joint by the Rocket in their infamous 'Snotgate' row.
Check out all our Ronnie O'Sullivan articles here.
The World Snooker Tour refute those allegations and insist the referee acted correctly and appropriately.
Bingham, who hit a 104 in the penultimate frame, cried backstage as he edged closer to a second world title – and now faces qualifier Jak Jones over four sessions across three days.
The Essex potter, 47, said: "It would mean everything to win this again.
There aren't many people who have won it twice and it would maybe mean more second time around, because the first time it was all new, but I've got the chance to actually do it again."
In the afternoon session, the Slow Man beat the showman as Jones, a 150-1 title outsider, knocked out Trump 13-9.
This clash of styles failed to ignite as Trump, 34, underperformed once again at world level.
Despite being tied at 8-8 on Tuesday, Trump was undone by Jones’s slow pace, failing to dictate the tempo and apply his aggressive snooker.
To be honest with you, some of the referees I think they’ve got it in for me.
Ronnie O'Sullivan
World No. 2 Trump said: “I just struggled. It was a little bit slower than I’d have liked.
“I couldn’t get rhythm. Every time I came to the table, it felt like it had been ages and I wasn’t able to get into that flow.
“Maybe I should’ve been more attacking in the first sessions. Maybe I played into his hands. I only have myself to blame.”
Welshman Jones — who has NINE siblings — made the quarters on his debut 12 months ago but has now banked £100,000 in prize money.
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He sealed this victory with a 106 clearance and aims to be the third qualifier to taste Crucible glory.
Jones, 30, said: “I thought Judd struggled. I’m just playing snooker like I do every day in the club.”
10 greatest acts of sportsmanship
- West Ham's Paolo Di Canio once CAUGHT a cross rather than scoring into an open goal when Everton keeper Paul Gerrard was laid out injured on the floor
- At the 1991 British Grand Prix, F1 legend Nigel Mansell gave rival Ayrton Senna a lift back to the pits on the top of his car after the Brazilian ran out of fuel on the final lap
- Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff decided against celebrating England's victory in the Second Ashes Test in 2005, instead opting to console Brett Lee who had been left on 43 not out
- After Jesse Owens fouled on his first two long jump attempts at the 1936 Olympic Games, rival Lutz Long gave him some advice on how to successfully reach the final. This worked, before Owens went on to claim gold and Long won silver
- In February 2003, Mike Tyson secured his 50th and final knockout in professional boxing with a 49-second stoppage of Clifford Etienne. He then proceeded to help Etienne back to his seat after the KO
- Brother Alistair Brownlee helped brother Jonny over the line at the 2016 Triathlon World Series finale in Mexico after he appeared to be collapsing with exhaustion
- In 1997, Liverpool's Robbie Fowler was awarded a penalty after going down under a challenge from Arsenal keeper David Seaman, before the striker owned up and admitted it was not a foul. Seaman then saved the penalty from Fowler
- British fencer Judy Guinness notified judges that her opponent, Austria's Ellen Preis, had not been awarded two points for successful touches at the 1932 Olympic Games. Preis went on to claim gold, with Guinness having to settle for silver
- American Abbey D'Agostino and New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin both fell over during the 5000 metres at the 2016 Olympic Games, before they helped one another to the finish
- In 2019, Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa allowed Aston Villa to equalise after his side had taken the lead when Jonathan Kodjia was down injured