SNOOKER star Zhao Xintong was left baffled when he accidentally broke a POCKET during his World Championship semi-final against Ronnie O’Sullivan.
The 28-year-old was 4-3 down when the mishap occurred.
BBCA shot from Zhao Xintong broke the table during the World Snooker Championship semi-finals[/caption]
BBCSome parts of the table fell off[/caption]
After he potted the black to go 66-32 up in the frame, Zhao paused for a brief moment while two reds hit the floor.
The TV camera then panned to the corner of the table, were it was revealed that a pocket had become loose.
Members of the crowd gasped in shock when the two reds dropped.
Meanwhile, O’Sullivan didn’t seem fazed in the slightest.
Zhao went on to win the frame to draw level with the Rocket.
After the session had ended, former world champion Shaun Murphy was asked how long it should take to fix the table.
The Magician responded: “Minutes only. It’s just a little clasp and it gets screwed in, no problem.
“But a table fitter out the back in the Crucible somewhere has just stopped what they were doing momentarily!”
O’Sullivan made a huge error at the start of the match by potting the cue ball with his first break.
Zhao was awarded four points as a result.
O’Sullivan admitted he was ‘playing awful’ following his quarter-final win over Si Jiahui on Wednesday.
He said: “I am just grinding it out. I have had some work done on my cue today.
“And I am probably going to have to try and get a new ferrule and tip because it feels awful.
“I’m playing awful and the cue feels awful so it is the worst situation to be in as a snooker player. I don’t think I can get any worse.”
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