Ronnie O'Sullivan displayed a rare moment of frustration during his World Snooker Championship quarter-final against Si Jiahui on Wednesday, punching the table after a positioning issue.
The snooker legend, who has been in impressive form throughout the tournament, currently leads 10-6 against his Chinese opponent.
O'Sullivan needs just three more frames to advance to the semi-finals at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
The 49-year-old is chasing a record-breaking eighth world title, which would surpass Stephen Hendry's tally of seven championships.
Ronnie O'Sullivan punched the table after a rare moment of frustration
BBC
Despite dominating much of the match, O'Sullivan's flash of temper showed a crack in his usually composed demeanour.
The incident occurred during the 11th frame when O'Sullivan had built a 22-point advantage.
After potting the pink, he was left frustrated when the cue ball settled near the cushion, making his next shot on a red more difficult.
His irritation boiled over as he thumped the table with his fist.
BBC commentator Shaun Murphy noted: "A bit of frustration showing this morning from Ronnie O'Sullivan. He is trying to push the cue ball into that red and you can see what he thinks of it."
Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry added: "Yeah I think that frustration was building from the shot from the yellow, not landing perfectly on the red."
Despite the momentary lapse, O'Sullivan quickly recovered his composure.
He managed to pot the subsequent red and position himself perfectly on the blue.
From there, the veteran cleared up to secure the frame and extend his lead to 8-3.
Ronnie O'Sullivan was frustrated with himself despite his healthy lead
Reuters
"He's rescued the situation," Hendry observed after the recovery.
Murphy commented on O'Sullivan's unusual struggle with positioning: "We're so used to seeing Ronnie's pinpoint accurate cue ball control. We've not seen that here at the moment."
"He's really having to work for these. That cue ball's doing a lot more steps than it would do normally."
O'Sullivan went on to finish the second session with a commanding 10-6 advantage over Si.
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O'Sullivan's strong showing at the Crucible comes after a difficult start to 2025.
Prior to the World Championship, he had secured just one victory this year, narrowly defeating Zak Jones in the Championship League in January.
His preparation raised concerns when he withdrew from both the German Masters and the UK Open at the last minute.
These unexpected absences left many in the snooker world worried about his form and commitment.
However, O'Sullivan has silenced doubters with commanding performances against Ali Carter and Junxu Pang in the earlier rounds.
Now just three frames away from the semi-finals, the Rocket appears to be rediscovering his best form at the perfect time.
