Ronnie O’Sullivan: ‘It’s not right’ - Liam Graham slams ‘disrespectful’ Rocket for late Scottish Open forfeit
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Updated 11/12/2023 at 18:59 GMT
Teenager Liam Graham has branded world No. 1 Ronnie O’Sullivan “disrespectful” after the 48-year-old forfeited their match at late notice. O’Sullivan was due to play Graham in the opening round of the Scottish Open on Monday, but pulled out due to “medical reasons”. “It’s disrespectful what he’s done, it’s not right,” Graham insisted. “It’s not surprising given the things he does.”
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Ronnie O’Sullivan has come under fire for his late withdrawal from the Scottish Open, with his supposed first-round opponent Liam Graham labelling the world No. 1's actions "disrespectful".
O'Sullivan pulled out of the tournament at late notice due to "medical reasons", which saw Graham advance to the second round by default.
Scotland's Graham, 19, said O'Sullivan's forfeit was "not surprising".
“It’s disrespectful what he’s done, it’s not right,” Graham told the Daily Record. “A lot of people took time off work to come and watch today and it’s disappointing.
“At the end of the day I want to play the best players in the world and I was really looking forward to it. I had a lot of people coming to watch and it’s really disappointing for them.
“It’s not surprising given the things he does. I found out when I got to the venue this morning. I didn’t have much prior warning, I think he pulled out very late.
"I would have stayed at home and all the people who have travelled to watch me would have come another day as well.”
Following the disappointment, Graham has received a bye and will face Ben Mertens in the second round.
“It’s been a tough start to the season for me, I haven’t really had anywhere to practice,” Graham admitted ahead of his opening match in Edinburgh. “I need the ranking points from this event and hopefully I can have a good run.
“I haven’t really had anywhere proper to practice as a base. But I’ve only really got myself settled now at Parklands Country Club in Glasgow.”
During the run-in to his eighth UK Championship title, O’Sullivan hinted that he could miss the Scottish Open with his priorities set on the upcoming exhibition event in Macau.
“I’m looking forward to a break,” he said. “I think I have to monitor my schedule a lot, and I just think prevention is better than cure and I don’t want to get to the point where I hit a bad spot.
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“So, I think for me, it’ll be try to enjoy this tournament, then probably miss Scotland and then go to Macau for Christmas for a big event.
“I’m looking forward to that. I want to be ready for that, it’s an important event.”
O’Sullivan has missed six events so far this season and has only featured in two events outside of China - the English Open and the UK Championship - the latter which he won.
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