- Ronnie O'Sullivan's victory over John Higgins did not get started until 1.45am
- Mark Selby's 4-3 loss to Mark Allen earlier lasted nearly three-and-a-half hours
- The Rocket has revealed the nickname that he has given to his long-time foe
By Kieran Lynch
Published: | Updated:
Ronnie O'Sullivan has taken a cheeky jab at Mark Selby after the Rocket's victory over John Higgins didn't finish until around 3am in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The seven time World Snooker champion eased into the next round of the inaugural Riyadh Season World Masters of Snooker with a remarkably one-sided 4-0 win over Higgins - who failed to pot a single ball.
However, the match didn't get going until 1.45am local time due to Mark Allen's dramatic 4-3 comeback win over Selby earlier in the night, which lasted nearly three-and-a-half hours.
Jack Lisowski on interviewing duty for Eurosport praised O'Sullivan before adding: 'You've done us a favour, because it's getting late here.'
O'Sullivan laughed before looking at his watch and replying: 'Selby - I call him 'Midnight Selby' because his games go past midnight every game - it's a nightmare.
Ronnie O'Sullivan mocked Mark Selby after his Saudi debut against John Higgins did not finish until 3am
Selby's 4-3 loss to Mark Allen lasted nearly three-and-a-half hours in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
O'Sullivan said he called his rival 'midnight Selby' because his games 'always go past midnight'
'You don't want to be following Mark because you're going into the next day.'
Asked if it felt like 3am, O'Sullivan added: 'No. Listen, when I'm tired, I sleep and I had a good few hours today so I feel like I'm just getting going. I'll keep playing if the fans want it. They've all gone home now.'
When put to him that the day's matches had been entertaining, O'Sullivan responded: 'Have they? I've not watched any to be honest, I've just been chilling out.
'But, yeah, I know. Listen, you're getting all the top players playing against each other, so you're always going to get good games, unless it's Mark and Mark today – you know, it was a bit of a drag wasn't it? Even Mark Allen, he went 'that was tough'. But yeah.'
O'Sullivan previously commented that Selby and Allen 'should get their own comedy show' after they were hauled off early during the second session of their World Snooker Championship semi-final last-year due to the length of their match.
'The crowd seemed to enjoy it,' O'Sullivan said on Eurosport at the time. 'There will be some people at home that like watching snooker like this.
'Some people like watching the attacking game, some like the defensive - working it all out, looking at every shot.
'Maybe they should get their own comedy show together, they would be quite a good double act with the referee involved! They are good mates, good fun.'
Ronnie O'Sullivan took a dominant 4-0 victory over John Higgins on Tuesday in Riyadh
The Rocket wasn't the only player to voice his frustration with the delayed schedule in the Saudi Arabian capital.
Ali Carter lost 4-1 to Luca Brecel and gave a prickly post-match interview where he criticised the referee and complained about the delay. 'I got here and I'm four hours waiting to play.
'Coming a long way and you have to deal with that. It's a great event and it's very raw at the minute. It's such a big opportunity for someone to win such a great event. For everything to go wrong today, right from the off is very frustrating.'
O'Sullivan faces Judd Trump in Wednesday's semi-final, with Allen and Brecel meeting in the other match.
