Ronnie O’Sullivan has been blasted as a nuisance by those watching the World Snooker Championship final. The Rocket is aiming to match Stephen Hendry’s record of seven crowns, but will have to get past former champ Judd Trump to do it. But the viewers are somewhat frustrated with the sporting genius following a verbal spat with the official.
During the eighth frame, with The Rocket leading 5-2, he was O'Sullivan was slapped with a formal warning by referee Olivier Marteel for a gesture made in the final frame of the morning session. The argument that followed overshadowed the end of a captivating first session, as the world number one insisted the official was in the wrong about the accusations.
He claimed Marteel had ‘“seen nothing”, before telling him ”don’t start”, and sternly pointed his finger at the Belgian to go and look at the cameras. O'Sullivan shook his head as the referee returned to the table to officiate. Once the frame came to a close, O’Sullivan gave Trump a fist bump but refused to acknowledge the referee as he exited the Crucible.
“I think Ronnie O’Sullivan hammed that situation up and was actually a bit of a nuisance in the end. He’s trying it on a bit too much with referees for my liking,” a fan tweeted.
“Shocking comments from O'Sullivan regard Olivier Marteel. Any chance of anyone at #bbcsnooker or #eurosportsnooker calling out this behaviour? A great player but not a nice character,” another user wrote. A third follower added: “Olivier Marteel became embroiled in rows with Ronnie O'Sullivan today, and unlike the Rocket you suspect he will not be able to speak about the incidents.
“Let's not forget the man outside the snooker arena, though. A Covid front-line hospital hero back in Belgium.” While this fan said: “No they dont, about time refs stop p***y footing around O'Sullivan. Well done."
Did Ronnie O'Sullivan have a point? Let us know in the comments section.
O’Sullivan denied any offence in an interview with Eurosport, saying: “I just think he [Marteel] seems to be looking for trouble. I just get that vibe from the guy. They’ve got hundreds of cameras out there and they can go and check them all. I’m not going to have any of it because I think he’s just trying to create something. He needs to deal with it, not me.”
The World Snooker Tour confirmed the incident in a statement which read: “Ronnie O’Sullivan received a formal warning from the referee following a gesture he made in the eighth frame.” After being pegged back to 5-4, O’Sullivan has once again opened up a commanding lead and now has an 9-4 advantage over Trump in the final.
