Drop it Ronnie
HEARN IN COURT THREAT TO ROCKET
SNOOKER supremo Barry Hearn has told Ronnie O’Sullivan to back down from his bullying claims or he’ll see him in court.
‘The Rocket’ accused Hearn and the sport’s governing bodies of “bullying” and “intimidation” after his 10-7 win over Gary Wilson in the Betfred World Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield on Sunday.
O’Sullivan’s outburst stemmed from a letter he got after the Masters warning of possible disciplinary action for fiercely criticising referee Terry Camilleri and swearing at a photographer.
No action was taken but O’Sullivan sees himself as the victim of unfair treatment for his comments in recent years and warned he may contact the lawyers of his artist pal Damien Hirst. Now Hearn has hit back, threatening legal action of his own.
Hearn said: “I personally take any accusation of bullying and intimidation by me or World Snooker very seriously.
“Unfounded accusations such as these are damaging to World Snooker’s global reputation, as well as my own.
Concerns
“We will take whatever action is required to protect this reputation from such inaccurate comments.
“Neither World Snooker nor myself have received any communication from Ronnie O’Sullivan’s lawyers.”
Snooker’s governing body, the WPBSA, says it will take no action over O’Sullivan’s latest blast.
But WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson added: “In terms of bullying and intimidation, we don’t accept that at all.
“I am more than happy to sit down with Ronnie and discuss the issues.”
After yesterday’s 10-5 first-round win over Peter Ebdon, former world champion Stuart Bingham said: “You hear there are no characters in the game, but we feel we are doing interviews like this with tape over our mouths.”
Former world champion Shaun Murphy almost blew the chance to take on O’Sullivan in the second round on Thursday, only beating 17-year-old Yan Bingtao from China 10-8 after a fluked red sealed a 10-8 win on the black.