‘That will be salty’ – Ronnie O’Sullivan lands nemesis in World Snooker Championship 2025 draw leaving host stunned
RONNIE O’SULLIVAN will face nemesis Ally Carter in a ‘horrible draw’ in the 2025 World Snooker Championship – his first match for more than three months.
SunSport understands the Rocket intends to play at the tournament for the 33rd successive time, despite having withdrawn from five ranking events this year on ‘medical grounds’.
O’Sullivan, 49, is due to walk the green carpet outside the famous Sheffield theatre on Good Friday for the annual pre-Worlds media day and top-16 seeds group photograph.
This is despite snapping his cue in half in January and deciding not to play in TV titles as he struggles with his technique amid a general displeasure over the quality of his game.
But the sport’s greatest cueist knows in round one he will have to play fellow Essex potter Carter with whom he shares a long and explosive history.
O’Sullivan has known Carter since they were teenagers and has beaten his rival in two championship finals – he won 18-8 in 2008 and then 18-11 in 2012.
Carter, the world No.18, enjoyed a rare victory in the second round of the 2018 Worlds but the two Englishmen were involved in a “shoulder barge” incident in the 19th frame.
When O’Sullivan won a record-extending eighth Masters crown in January 2024, following a 10-7 victory over Carter, an x-rated war of words occurred in the respective post-match press conferences.
Carter alleged O’Sullivan cleared his nose – like a long-distance runner might do – onto the carpet while sitting in his chair during the final frames.
The Captain claimed the former world No.1 was “snotting all over the floor” and labelled it as “outrageous behaviour from a top professional”.
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World Snooker Championship first round draw in full
Judd Trump vs Zhou Yuelong
Zhang Anda vs Pang Junxu
Shaun Murphy vs Dan Wells
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Ali Carter
Ding Junhui vs Zak Surety
Mark Allen vs Fan Zhengyi
Jak Jones vs Zhao Xingtong
John Higgins vs Joe O’Connor
Neil Robertson vs Chris Wakelin
Xiao Guodong vs Matthew Selt
Mark Williams vs Wu Yize
Barry Hawkins vs Hossein Vafaei
Mark Selby vs Ben Woollaston
Kyren Wilson vs Lei Peifan
Luca Brecel vs Ryan Day
Si Jiahui vs David Gilbert
In response, O’Sullivan launched a furious expletive-driven rant, stuck up his middle finger in protest and stormed out of his press conference with family and friends trailing behind.
A year later, O’Sullivan admitted he had regrets over his part in the Snotgate row, admitting: “Maybe I should have been more diplomatic.”
This blockbuster pairing was the standout tie in Thursday morning’s draw which was conducted at the BBC Radio 5 Live studios in Salford.
Mark Selby, the four-time world snooker champion, watched it happen live and he replied: “I don’t think either of them will be happy with that.
“It’s great that Ronnie is in the competition. We have not seen him since January. I wanted him to play. It seems he is playing and that is fantastic for the game.
“Carter is probably one of the toughest qualifiers to draw again. He has played Ronnie in two world finals and the Masters final. Yeah, that’s a horrible draw.”
The 2025 tournament, which starts on Easter Saturday, will involve a record 10 Chinese players and three debutants.
Kyren Wilson is the defending champion and will take on Lei Peifan in two sessions on the opening day in front of 980 fans.
The Warrior is trying to break the Crucible Curse – no first-time winner has retained the crown in South Yorkshire.
Qualifier Zhao Xintong, who has served a 20-month ban for a match-fixing offence, is in the 32-man field as an amateur and opens up against the 2024 runner-up Jak Jones.
Selby was drawn to face fellow Leicester ace Ben Woollaston while John Higgins, the No.3 seed, battles ‘giant-killer’ Joe O’Connor.
Judd Trump, the world No1, takes on China’s Zhou Yuelong on the evenings of Tuesday and Wednesday as he eyes collecting the £500,000 first prize pot on Monday May 5.