Jimmy White was left shocked after Ronnie O’Sullivan expressed his anger during his World Snooker Championship quarter-final.
The seven-time world champion vented his frustration on the Crucible table after missing an easy pot in his match against Stuart Bingham.
O’Sullivan cruised through the first two rounds in Sheffield as he aims to win a record eighth title in the coming days.
But Bingham was sure to give him a tougher test than Jackson Page and Ryan Day after his second-round victory over Jack Lisowski.
Ronnie O’Sullivan shocked Jimmy White by missing an easy red at the World Snooker Championship
Eurosport
Bingham took a 3-1 lead from the first mid-session interval Tuesday, building on the momentum he gained from his victory the night before.
But O’Sullivan came back to level the match at 3-3 and had a great chance to take firm control in the seventh quarter.
However, unusually, he missed a red to trigger a furious reaction, where he slammed his tail on the edge of the table.
Welsh snooker player Dominic Dale was commenting at the time and said: “Ronnie is showing some frustration, I don’t blame him.
“That was a bad response on his part. Hitting his tail, you don’t like to see that.”
O’Sullivan came back to win the match and take a 4-3 lead, before Bingham leveled the score at 4-4 after the first session.
But O’Sullivan’s angry moment later became a talking point in the Eurosport studio and White revealed his surprise at the incident.
The six-time finalist said: “You don’t often see him miss a red like this. You can’t believe it.
“It was the first opportunity, the seventh frame, where he had a chance to take the lead. It was a chance for him to get started.
-“He led 4-3 [by winning this frame]but Ronnie struggled in this match.
“He missed some easy misses, he won’t keep doing it, he’ll catch up. Bingham has to keep his confidence and continue to play the way he is.”
While leading 2-0, Bingham decided to chase a break of 147 before taking a more conservative approach.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
Ronnie O’Sullivan slammed his cue on the table in a moment of anger during the World Snooker Championship
Eurosport
White says the 47-year-old may regret not taking advantage of O’Sullivan’s poor condition.
He said: “He could have very easily played to bag that red, make sure he’s good on the yellow or green.
“But he decided to go for black, he grabbed his jaw and [although] he potted the yellow, he missed the next red with a rest.
“He could have led 3-0 and really controlled the match.
Ronnie O’Sullivan wasn’t happy as he missed a red in the seventh frame of the quarter-final
Eurosport
“Because at that point Ronnie was really struggling and he was getting a little angry.”
O’Sullivan and Bingham will play the next eight frames of their match starting at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon.
The match will conclude later in the evening, with action beginning at 7 p.m.
