Ronnie O'Sullivan gives view on snooker's 'unwritten rule' to Ally McCoist

Ronnie O’Sullivan says there is an unwritten rule in snooker whereby players agree to stop a frame if they need an unrealistic number of snookers. is back on the biggest stage, at the Crucible, after a period away from the sport.

The Rocket had not played on the professional tour since January after showing his frustrations with his cue. He has struggled with the mental side of the game but overcame his nerves to .

O’Sullivan racked up three centuries in five frames on Wednesday to book his place in the next round against Pang Junxu. The seven-time champion said he was “scared” of returning to Sheffield to compete but looked more at ease when chatting to Ally McCoist on TNT Sports.

Former striker McCoist asked O’Sullivan if there’s an unwritten law around snookers where players concede the frame if they trail by a certain number of points.

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“Yeah, it’s possible,” O’Sullivan replied. “You know, some players are good at getting snookers and they can get you with six or seven snookers on the trot.

“But the guys now are so good at getting out of them that if you need three or four then maybe you should just get on with the next frame. I got five [snookers] once and won a frame in the qualifiers when I was 16. I got five snookers against Craig Edwards. It was amazing.”

Despite being a seven-time champion himself, O’Sullivan said that Judd Trump is the man to beat at the World Championship. Asked if Trump is the favourite, O’Sullivan replied: “One million per cent. For me, his only danger was Kyren Wilson because Kyren matches up well with Judd, he enjoys that match play.

“Snooker is a bit like match play sometimes – you’re not playing the course, you’re playing the opponent. And Kyren is probably one of the only top players who relishes playing Judd and I think that makes it a really good game. There are still loads of other good players in this tournament who can give Judd a game, but he’s definitely the favourite.”

Speaking after his win over Carter, the 49-year-old explained his mental struggles. “I thought: ‘What am I doing, coming here and exposing myself, imploding out there, having a meltdown?’ All that went through my head.

“I was a bit scared about ­playing. It is a daunting venue to play at anyway, but it’s just about getting on the bike again and playing. I’m really happy that I’ve done it, even if I’d lost it didn’t matter – I’ve made the breakthrough now.

“My expectation levels were to maybe get a few frames and see where I go from there. I feel like I’ve had a ­victory by just winning a match, and it is all part of the ­rebuilding process.”