O'Sullivan withdraws from Welsh Open

Ronnie O'Sullivan has pulled out of the Welsh Open.

World Snooker Tour announced O'Sullivan officially withdrew from the tournament less than four hours before he was scheduled to make his comeback to snooker, with Jamie Clark receiving a bye into the second round in Llandudno.

'The Rocket' has been absent since he snapped his cue and struck the table during his Championship League exit in January, followed by a dramatic withdrawal from the Masters just over a day before his scheduled clash with rival John Higgins.

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He described his decision to pull out of the Masters as "a nightmare", adding that he "lost the plot" in the build-up to the tournament.

O'Sullivan has withdrawn from eight events this season, since it began in July, and is yet to win a tournament.

The 49-year-old reached the semi-finals at the Xi'an Grand Prix, Shanghai Masters and Riyadh Season Championship in the early part of the 2024/25 campaign but has largely been far from his best.

O'Sullivan is next scheduled to play at the World Open in Yushan, China on February 23 to March 1.

The World Grand Prix, Players Championship and Tour Championship also take place in March before the World Championship in Sheffield from mid-April.