Ronnie O'Sullivan shocked the snooker world after winning the Masters by launching a blistering attack on final opponent Ali Carter, calling him 'not a nice person' and telling him to 'sort his f***ing life out'. The seven-time world champion also showed his middle finger to Carter during the trophy presentation, confirming a bitter rivalry that has simmered for years.
O'Sullivan has dominated their head-to-head meetings, winning 23 of 26 matches, including the 2008 and 2012 World Championship finals. However, Carter knocked O'Sullivan out of the 2018 World Championship in the second round, a match remembered for a shoulder barge between the pair that was dubbed 'barge-gate'. Former world champion Dennis Taylor said he had never seen such an incident at the Crucible in 41 years.
Ahead of Sunday's final, Carter had been complementary, describing O'Sullivan as 'the greatest of all time'. But O'Sullivan took a different approach, telling Discovery+: 'I think he's got more of a problem with me than I have with him. Maybe it's because I've got a massive trophy cabinet.' After the match, Carter said he was 'starting to get annoyed' with O'Sullivan and that 'you have to play the crowd' when facing him.
Those comments triggered O'Sullivan's explosive response. In a television interview, he said: 'He needs to sort his f***ing life out. I'm not going to skirt around it any more... He's a f***ing nightmare. Playing snooker against someone like that is a nightmare. He's not a nice person. He's got issues.' O'Sullivan added: 'The more he brings it on, the more I f***ing punish him every time. He's just digging a grave for himself.'
