'I can't...' - Ronnie O'Sullivan walks out of arena after unexpected problem during World Open
Updated 16/03/2026 at 12:35 GMT
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Ronnie O'Sullivan made his snooker return at the World Open in Yushan, China after five weeks away from the tour. The Rocket won 5-1 against Ross Muir in a match that saw a wardrobe malfunction, an insect-related delay, and O'Sullivan just miss out on a 147. O'Sullivan will next be in action on Wednesday when he faces Matthew Selt in the last 32 of the tournament.
Watch: O'Sullivan walks out of arena after unexpected issue
Video credit: TNT Sports
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s first-round win at the World Open was not without incident.
The Rocket was making his first appearance in five weeks and won 5-1 against Ross Muir to book his place in the last 32 in Yushan, China.
O'Sullivan was exceptional in the latter stages of the match as he rattled off two consecutive century breaks - but the opening of the match was stop-start.
First, as Muir was preparing to take a shot, a fly landed on the ball.
Muir managed to stop his motion and attempted to waft the fly away, before being joined by the referee.
The fly eventually buzzed away, but the distraction may have put Muir off as he missed the shot to the middle.
Shortly afterwards, O’Sullivan paused proceedings at 15-0 ahead in the first frame when he was seemingly put off by a sponsor’s logo on his waistcoat.
O’Sullivan twice went down to play a shot but then told the referee that he needed to "cover up" the logo and walked out of the arena, shaking his head.
"The logo is putting him off a little bit with the cueing," said TNT Sports commentator Dave Hendon.
"We are going to have a little delay while he sorts it out…I think it might be sown on, but there’s a little bit sticking out that’s affecting his cueing. If it was stuck on he could put it somewhere else."
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Watch moment fly lands on ball and disrupts play in O'Sullivan match
Video credit: TNT Sports
O’Sullivan was gone from the arena for a couple of minutes with Muir left sitting in his chair.
When O’Sullivan returned, the logo appeared to be the same, but he didn’t have any issues as he potted the black.
TNT Sports commentator Neal Foulds also pointed out that O'Sullivan is using an "old chalk".
"He’s not using the chalk that so many other players use now, which seems to stop kicks," said Foulds.
O’Sullivan looked in good form in his first tournament since the World Grand Prix in early February.
He almost made a record-extending 18th maximum of his career in the fifth frame but just came up short.
O’Sullivan cut the final black into the corner pocket but the white kissed off the pink and also went down, ending the break.
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'He was going for it!' - O'Sullivan narrowly misses out on maximum against Muir
Video credit: TNT Sports
O'Sullivan's last 147 break was at the 2025 Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters when he became the first player in history to hit two maximums in the same session.
He achieved snooker perfection in the first and seventh frames of the match against Chris Wakelin.
The Rocket has a bye in the next round of the World Open after scheduled opponent Ishpreet Singh Chadha withdrew from the competition.
He is next set to face Matthew Selt on Wednesday at the Yushan Sports Centre.
O’Sullivan is bidding to win his first ranking title since the World Grand Prix in 2024.
Watch and stream the 2025/26 snooker season live on TNT Sports and discovery+
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