Ronnie O’Sullivan joked that snooker rival Ali Carter may have an issue with him due to his ‘massive trophy cabinet’ ahead of their Masters final showdown. The duo have a history of heated matches which sparked excitement and intrigue going into Sunday’s contest at the Alexandra Palace.
O’Sullivan is hunting down the eighth Masters triumph of his career and the first since 2017. Carter, currently ranked No. 10 in the world, has never clinched the title.
The Colchester-born snooker star would surely love to seal his first with a victory over the Rocket, who kicked off the fighting talk ahead of their match-up in the final.
“I think he’s got more of a problem with me than I have with him,” O’Sullivan told Discovery+. “He’s got something against me. Maybe it’s because I’ve got a massive trophy cabinet full of trophies.”
The rivalry between Carter and O’Sullivan came close to boiling over back in 2018, when they met in the last 16 of the World Snooker Championship and knocked shoulders with one another as the Rocket stepped up to take his shot.
Carter smiled at the crowd as O’Sullivan took his seat and said: “You’re Mr. Angry.” A brief but frosty exchange of words followed before referee Paul Collier told the players to play on, with the revved-up Rocket insisting he was ‘cool as a cucumber’.
After the match, which Carter won 13-9, he claimed not to be ‘intimidated’ by O’Sullivan ‘like a lot of other players are’. He has also previously labelled snooker ‘The Ronnie O’Sullivan show’, with the catalogue of shots fired from each direction only adding to the suspense around Sunday’s Masters meeting.
Carter fancied his chances heading into the match, telling Eurosport: “I have every confidence. I’ve just got to worry about my game and I’m relishing the challenge. What better than to play the greatest player of all time on the biggest stage?
“It doesn’t get any better. To not be in awe is the main thing for me to concentrate on tomorrow and to enjoy it. I need to enjoy the occasion. I probably didn’t enjoy the two world finals as much as I should have done. Looking back now, I’d love to rewind the clock and just enjoy it. That is what I’m going to do.”
Carter’s confidence appeared to be well-founded as he raced into a 4-2 lead over the Rocket at Ally Pally, with a 122 clearance sending a stern message to O’Sullivan early on.
