Ronnie O'Sullivan was knocked out of the World Snooker Championship after a bitter second-round clash with Ali Carter at the Crucible. The five-time champion lost 13-9, with tensions boiling over in the 19th frame when O'Sullivan snapped at Carter, calling him 'Mr Angry' after an apparent shoulder barge.
The incident occurred when O'Sullivan fluked a snooker, leading to a collision at the side of the table. O'Sullivan, 42, told Carter it was his turn to play, prompting Carter to respond sarcastically. Referee Paul Collier intervened, urging both players to continue. O'Sullivan later said he was 'cool as a cucumber'.
Carter, who has twice overcome cancer and suffers from Crohn's disease, said he was not intimidated by O'Sullivan. 'I've been through harder things than that in my life,' he said. 'It would have been easy for me to sit back in my chair and be like, I'd better be the little boy in the corner.'
O'Sullivan refused to apologise, claiming Carter had also barged him. Asked about a potential fine, he said: 'They can send a letter to my lawyer... Have you never been angry in your life? If someone's going to shoulder-barge into me, do I have to walk around him, tiptoe or do a little curtsy as if he's the Queen?'
O'Sullivan trailed 11-9 at the mid-session interval and was off his game throughout. Carter was clinical, setting up a quarter-final against Mark Williams or Robert Milkins. Elsewhere, John Higgins took an 8-0 lead over Jack Lisowski, Barry Hawkins beat Lyu Haotian 13-10, and Kyren Wilson defeated Jamie Jones 13-5.
