Ronnie O’Sullivan withdraws from English Open for second consecutive year
Ronnie O’Sullivan has pulled out of the English Open for the second year running, handing Welsh player Liam Davies a walkover into the next round of the tournament at Brentwood Leisure Centre, reports BritPanorama.
Davies, currently ranked 99th in the world, will face either Thepchaiya Un-Nooh or Wang Xinbo in the last 32. O’Sullivan’s last appearance at this event was in 2024 when he was eliminated by He Guoqiang in the first round.
The Rocket’s only triumph at the English Open came in 2017, where he secured a 9-2 victory over Kyren Wilson in Barnsley. This year, Mark Allen is defending the Steve Davis Trophy after narrowly defeating Zhou Yuelong 9-8 in last season’s final.
Despite not competing in this particular tournament, O’Sullivan has been in form during his recent matches. He recorded three consecutive century breaks against Kyren Wilson at the Shanghai Masters but ultimately lost the last-16 encounter 6-4.
O’Sullivan is scheduled to play against Jackson Page in the opening round of the China Open on Sunday, August 9. The seven-time world champion has shifted toward competing in overseas events rather than on home soil in recent seasons. Last year, he made just two competitive appearances in Britain. At the UK Championship in York, Zhou Yuelong knocked him out 6-4 in the last 32, and his World Championship campaign ended in a heartbreaking 13-12 loss to John Higgins in April.
Away from the UK, O’Sullivan came close to securing titles on two occasions, finishing as runner-up to Neil Robertson in the Saudi Arabia Masters final and to Thepchaiya Un-Nooh at the World Open in Yushan. Recently, he expressed a desire to compete in just a couple more World Championships as he aims for an eighth world title, stating, “I have two attempts at it. If I can find a bit of cueing or some form at Sheffield, you never know.”
With O’Sullivan’s current drop to 12th in the world rankings due to reduced participation, the competitive landscape is shifting. The veteran player has declined to take part in qualifying matches for the World Championships, stating, “I’m not going to play qualifiers. You won’t be seeing me go down to Barnsley trying to win qualifying matches and all that sort of stuff.”
As the tournament unfolds, observers will be keen to see if other players are able to capitalize on O’Sullivan’s absence, and whether the sport’s enduring icon will make a swift return to form in his remaining competitions this season.
