London, Jan 11 (IANS) Defending champion Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the Snooker Masters on medical grounds, the World Snooker Tour revealed on Friday. The annual invitation tournament featuring the Tour’s top 16 players opens on Sunday at Alexandra Palace in London. O’Sullivan, 49, was due to face John Higgins in the tournament’s opening match.
O’Sullivan’s withdrawal comes after he exited a Championship League event in controversial circumstances. During a defeat to Robert Milkins, O’Sullivan angrily struck his cue against the table after failing to make an easy pot, reports Xinhua. The Briton’s place in the Masters will be taken by Australia’s Neil Robertson, who was ranked in 17th position at the seeding cutoff after the UK Championship.
China’s Ding Junhui was drawn to play against veteran Mark Williams in the first round on Monday. The tournament’s two other Chinese players, Si Jiahui and Zhang Anda begin their campaigns on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively, with Si facing Mark Allen, and Zhang locking horns with Kyren Wilson.
Born in Wordsley, England, O’Sullivan, a seven-time snooker world champion and widely recognised as “The Rocket,” took Hong Kong residency earlier this year under the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, as announced by the immigration department.
The 49-year-old is widely recognised as one of the most talented players in snooker history. He has won the World Snooker Championship seven times, a modern-era record that he shares with Stephen Hendry. One of the most accomplished players in the sport’s history, O’Sullivan has also won a record eight Masters titles and a record eight UK Championship titles, for a total of 23 Triple Crown titles, the most by any player.
One of the most renowned snooker players in the world, O’Sullivan turned professional in 1992 at the age of 16 after winning several amateur titles including the IBSF World Under-21 Snooker Championship.
O’Sullivan’s other career highlights include three World Grand Prix titles, two Players Championship titles, four Welsh Open titles, two Scottish Open titles, two German Masters titles, four Irish Masters titles, two China Open titles, two Champions Cup titles, ten Premier League titles, four Champion of Champions titles, three Scottish Masters titles, and five Shanghai Masters titles.
–IANS
bsk/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
