Ronnie O'Sullivan pulls out of Masters on medical grounds as career in doubt

Ronnie O'Sullivan, the reigning champion, has pulled out of The Masters for medical reasons, sparking fears about his career.

He was set to play against John Higgins on Sunday afternoon, but will no longer be participating in the London event, reports the Express.

Neil Robertson steps in as O'Sullivan's replacement and is slated to play in the tournament's first match against Higgins.

The World Snooker Tour (WST) confirmed the change in a statement: "Neil Robertson has replaced Ronnie O'Sullivan in the draw for the upcoming Johnstone's Paint Masters.

"Last year's champion O'Sullivan was due to face John Higgins in the opening match on Sunday afternoon, but has withdrawn on medical grounds..

"Higgins will now face Robertson, who was ranked in 17th position at the seeding cut-off after the Victorian Plumbing UK Championship.

"The Johnstone's Paint Masters runs from January 12th to 19th at Alexandra Palace in London."

This announcement comes shortly after O'Sullivan exited a Championship League event following an incident during a game, leading to increased speculation about his future in snooker.

In a match against Robert Milkins, O'Sullivan showed frustration by hitting his cue on the table after failing to pot an easy ball.

Commentator Dave Hendon described the scene: "That was a concern [that O'Sullivan had an easy pot] but it's not happened. The cue has taken a bit of punishment there.

"He's apologising now to the referee and Rob Milkins. Just a rush of blood [to the head]."

O'Sullivan suffered a narrow defeat in the first-to-three game, losing 3-2, but not before displaying what seemed to be a moment of resignation, seemingly abandoning the frame mid-play.

In the decisive fifth frame, O'Sullivan appeared indifferent as he took his shot, not bothering to see where the cue ball would end up and walking away while the balls were still in motion.

Commentator Hendon observed O'Sullivan's haphazard approach: "Still anyone's frame though... well, he's [O'Sullivan] literally just whacked them. He's given up I think."

It was later confirmed that O'Sullivan had decided to pull out of the competition: "Ronnie O'Sullivan we saw earlier was clearly getting frustrated against Robert Milkins. He has made the decision to withdraw from the tournament so he won't be playing his last match against Ali Carter."

The Masters will proceed without O'Sullivan starting Sunday afternoon. Judd Trump, the world No. 1, is tipped as the top contender, while Kyren Wilson, the current world champion, has seen his odds improve to become the second favourite after O'Sullivan's exit.