Seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open due to medical reasons, the World Snooker Tour (WST) has announced.
O’Sullivan was due to face Long Zehuang in the last 64 in Belfast on Monday afternoon, but announcement from WST on their website confirmed he had pulled out of the event.
China’s Long receives a bye to the last 32, with the tournament at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast running until October 27th.
O’Sullivan hasn’t featured since being knocked out of the first round of the English Open last month after a shock defeat to He Guoqiang, where he describing his performance as “awful” and “embarrassing”.
It is the third consecutive tournament that O’Sullivan has withdrawn from, having also skipped the British Open and Wuhan Open in recent weeks. He is next due to feature at the International Champions event in China from November 3-10.
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Ronnie O’Sullivan says if the World Snooker Championship was relocated to Saudi Arabia then he would find the tournament more convenient as a player
Trump makes winning start in Belfast
World No 1 Judd Trump began his title defence with a 4-0 win over Ishpreet Singh Chadha needing just 49 minutes to whitewash his opponent with the aid of breaks of 72, 65 and 112.
“It was easy to get up for this event,” said Trump, who has won the event four times in the last six years. “Certain venues seem to be made for snooker. Anyone who has played in the semis or final at the Waterfront [Hall] knows how special it is.
“It’s similar to Alexandra Palace or the Tempodrom in terms of the size of the crowd and the way people react. I thrive on that atmosphere with people enjoying themselves. It helps me show off and play my best shots.”
Trump will face Matthew Selt in the last 32 after Selt defeated Lyu Haotian 4-1, while World Championship runner-up Jak Jones beat Alexander Ursenbacher 4-0 and Zhou Yuelong recovered from 3-1 down to oust Dominic Dale 4-3.
Northern Ireland’s Jordan Brown suffered a 4-2 defeat to Robert Milkins, while 18-year-old Stan Moody made breaks of 108 and 105 before beating Ryan Day in a decider.
Louis Heathcote also came through in a decider in a scrappy contest against former world champion Mark Selby, whose 81 in the first frame was the only break over 50 by either player.
Stuart Bingham beat Scott Donaldson 4-1 in a similarly low-scoring contest, while China’s Pang Jungxu made a break of 98 in the decider as he beat compatriot Yuan Sijun 4-3.
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