Ronnie O’Sullivan punches table as he’s dumped out of UK Snooker Championship in huge shock

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN was dethroned arsenic UK champion arsenic Barry Hawkins unburdened his longstanding Rocket hoodoo.

Snooker’s seven-time satellite champion saw his rubric defence extremity connected the opening day successful York.

Hawkins – who had mislaid to O’Sullivan successful the 2013 Crucible world final – came from 3-1 down and past 4-2 down to registry a stunning 6-4 triumph successful the last-32 astatine the Barbican.

O’Sullivan, 49 adjacent month, had opened up with a 128 interruption and past deed a 114 people earlier going disconnected to the mid-session interval.

But satellite No20 Hawkins – who had mislaid the erstwhile 4 encounters – knocked successful successive breaks of 73, 75, 88 and 60 successful the last 4 frames arsenic helium claimed a celebrated idiosyncratic win.

The Essex potter deed the array successful vexation erstwhile helium missed a “silly” shot and it was his archetypal opening-round decision astatine the UKs since 2010.

He said: “I don’t cognize what happened. I don’t privation to analyse it. I deliberation Barry played a bully game.

“I didn’t look to get overmuch of a accidental astatine 4-2 up. I missed a reddish from the mediate and from that infinitesimal onwards, helium kept maine out. It was crippled ball, an important ball, a bully chance.

“I felt similar I was successful power of the lucifer up until then. But past you miss silly balls and the crippled ne'er forgives you. That’s what snooker does to you. I person nary complaints really.”

Stephen Hendry, the seven-time satellite champion, claimed successful commentary that helium felt O’Sullivan was “rusty” owed to a deficiency of activity.

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O’Sullivan said: “Possibly I’m a spot rusty. But I volition permission that up to the experts and conscionable bash what I americium doing.”

For Hawkins, this was lone his 4th occurrence successful 22 matches against the sport’s top subordinate but this effect has opened up the apical fractional of the Triple Crown lawsuit arsenic £250,000 is connected the enactment for the wide winner.

The Hawk, 45, said: “That has been a while. I thought I’d effort to support astatine him, beryllium a spot aggressive, and I managed to find immoderate form.

“I felt bully astatine the start. I missed a mates of middle-distance balls and helium punished me. I stuck astatine him, didn’t springiness up, I recovered immoderate bushed and I got successful the zone.

“I person fto myself down truthful galore times erstwhile I person played Ronnie. I person fixed him excessively overmuch respect.

“He has had immoderate stinkers against maine and I person not taken vantage of them. I person crumbled nether pressure. That’s a monolithic triumph for me.

“Towards the extremity I felt alright. I deed balls successful the interval. I conscionable passed the time. I knuckled down, tried to support him nether unit and started to play better.

“I person beaten Ronnie – who knows what mightiness hap now? That show has been coming for a while. It is each astir assurance and aforesaid content for me.”