Ronnie O'Sullivan Baffles Commentator With Never-Before-Seen Moment in Whitewash

Snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan left the commentary team stunned with one shot during his whitewash loss to Shaun Murphy.

During their meeting at the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship, Murphy secured an upset as he claimed his first victory over O'Sullivan since 2017, with a 4-0 whitewash.

The shock result came after Murphy also defeated 15-year-old Ziyad Al-Qabbani 4-0 and earned him a spot in the quarter-finals of the 'golden ball' event.

It marks the first time that seven-time snooker world champion O'Sullivan had failed to win a frame in any contest of seven frames or more since back in 2023.

But perhaps more shocking was one shot that he made during the match that left the commentary team at a complete loss for words.

With a record seven World Championship titles, a record 41 ranking titles, and a record 23 Triple Crown titles, it's safe to say that O'Sullivan is undoubtedly the greatest snooker player of all time.

But even the greatest sometimes has off days, as the Englishman struggled to find his rhythm against Murphy, leading to the dramatic outcome to the match.

O'Sullivan's pot success for the match was just 79 per cent, with his worst shot of the match coming as he missed an incredibly straightforward yellow in the final frame, shocking commentator Neil Robertson.

"Oh my goodness. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him miss a ball like that ever," he admitted.

The loss means that 'The Rocket' will have to wait even longer to add another piece of silverware to his stacked trophy cabinet, with his last tournament win coming in this event under its previous name of the World Masters of Snooker in March 2024.

O'Sullivan's last loss to 'The Magician' came when he lost 10-8 in the Champion of Champions final in November 2017.

Since then, Murphy has lost six against the seven-time world champion, ending his losing streak in Riyadh.

Murphy will now face current Crucible champion Zhao Xintong in the last eight on Thursday, with the reward of $1m (£760,000) for potting a golden ball after making a maximum 147 still available to those in contention.

Meanwhile for O'Sullivan, it's not long before the 49-year-old will return to the table, as he will be back in action at the UK Championship, with his opening round match due to take place on December 2 in York.