Ronnie O’Sullivan’s replacement agrees with fans after Rocket’s no-show | Other | Sport

Chris Wakelin has acknowledged he was the only person in snooker to welcome Ronnie O’Sullivan’s 11th-hour withdrawal from the Masters. The prestigious invitational tournament took a hit when the eight-time champion pulled out due to medical reasons shortly before the first round got under way.

While the Rocket’s appearances have become increasingly sporadic since missing last year’s event, expectations were high that he would participate this time around. His absence opened the door for Wakelin, ranked 17th and the highest-placed player outside the top 16, to step into the breach. The 33-year-old was thrilled to get the call-up, though he recognises Alexandra Palace spectators will have felt let down. 

He told Metro: “Obviously he pulled out last year, but with me being at 17 [in the rankings], I thought this will be the year that he turns up!

“It’s a massive shame for the tournament and for the fans. There’s only one person who’s thrilled about it and luckily for me, that is me.

“Obviously he’s got his reasons and I hope he’s alright. It’s tough when you don’t want to play or you’ve got stuff going on. It’s a shame for the fans, but I’ll be doing my best to put on a show as his replacement.”

Wakelin’s Alexandra Palace stint proved short-lived as Neil Robertson dispatched him 6-2, with every first-round encounter ending with the same scoreline.

It was Robertson who filled in for O’Sullivan last year. The Thunder from Down Under player had a hunch that the Rocket, now based in Dubai, might miss the event.

He said: “I did know that I was touch and go in terms of the allowance of the days he has with his Dubai citizenship. So, I knew there was the possibility of him not coming.”

Robertson added: “I wasn’t really surprised when he withdrew, but I was prepared for that. I wasn’t affected at all in terms of my match prep.”

Reflecting on his loss, Wakelin admitted: “I felt really good at 2-2, then Neil came out and made back-to-back centuries, and I felt like I melted out there.

“What an amazing tournament and a great opportunity. You can’t play amazing snooker every week, I haven’t got that consistency yet.”

The quarter-finals kicked off on Thursday, with John Higgins narrowly defeating world champion Zhao Xintong 6-5 and Judd Trump securing a 6-2 victory over Mark Allen.

Robertson is set to face Kyren Wilson in the final quarter-final on Friday night, following an all-Chinese showdown between Wu Yize and Xiao Guodong.