Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the Masters just days before the start of the tournament, with medical reasons ruling him out. He will be replaced by 17th seed Chris Wakelin.
In a statement, the WST confirmed: “Ronnie O’Sullivan has withdrawn from the Johnstone’s Paint Masters for medical reasons. O’Sullivan was due to face Neil Robertson in the opening round on Wednesday, January 14th at 7pm.
“He has been replaced in the draw by Chris Wakelin who was 17th seed at the cut-off point.
“The tournament at Alexandra Palace in London run from January 11-18.”
It’s the second year in a row that O’Sullivan will not be involved in the triple crown event. The announcement comes less than 38 hours before the start of the tournament, which gets underway on Sunday.
His first match was due to be the final one of the first round, starting on Wednesday evening, where he would have faced Robertson in a clash of the heavyweights. However, O’Sullivan will now be replaced in the draw by Wakelin, who has recently been crowned Scottish Open champion.
Ahead of the tournament, he has been spotted preparing by facing two professional players in a pub in Ireland. Former British Open champion Fergal O’Brien arranged the practice with two young talents whom he is coaching.
The Masters was going to be O’Sullivan’s first appearance in the UK since his shock exit in the UK championships back in November. The Rocket suffered a 6-4 loss against Chinese sensation Zhou Yuelong.
The Sun report that O’Sullivan has been ill recently, leading him to feel physically drained. It is, however, reported that he is now on the mend.
It adds that the decision to withdraw from the tournament has not been taken lightly. The competition is described as one of his favourite events.
Last season, the record eight-time champion made the decision to withdraw due to being in a bad place mentally. It came shortly after he snapped his cue during the Champions League event held in Leicester.