Rocket misfires in his attempt to get Carter

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN’s bid for a sixth snooker world Championship title is turning into something of a rollercoaster ride. after fighting back from 4-0 and 6-3 down to beat stephen Maguire in the first round, the Rocket (below) will have to stage another comeback today after finishing last night trailing ali Carter 9-7. O’sullivan, who beat Carter in the finals of 2008 and 2012, made a string of uncharacteristic errors as he went 5-3 behind, then lost the first three frames of the evening session. But after then going 9-5 down, he showed some of the old magic with breaks of 79 and 105 to spark hopes of a turnaround. Masters champion Mark allen became the first player to reach the last eight, beating Joe Perry. the pair resumed at 8-8 last night after Perry — conqueror of defending champion Mark selby — had overturned a 5-3 deficit. However, allen took control by winning the first four frames of the evening, with breaks of 133 and 74, before wrapping up victory with a

clearance of 122.