Fans are making the same joke about Ronnie O'Sullivan's social media post ahead of World Snooker Championship

Ronnie O'Sullivan is on his way to Sheffield to play in the World Snooker Championship - and fans are all making the same joke.

'The Rocket' heads into the tournament as the top seed and the world number one, and is looking to win his record-breaking eighth world crown.

He is currently favourite to do so, having enjoyed a hugely successful season that has seen him win the UK Championship, the World Grand Prix and the Masters.

He has been drawn against qualifier Jackson Page in the first round of the competition, with that match starting on Wednesday.

The opening day of the tournament is on Saturday, with reigning champion Luca Brecel kicking proceedings off against David Gilbert on table one.

That means players have been arriving in Sheffield throughout Friday - and O'Sullivan posted a selfie alongside confirmation that he is indeed Sheffield bound.

It wasn't a photo filled with emotion, though, as O'Sullivan stared into the camera. And fans made the same joke in response.

One fan wrote: "We've all felt how Ronnie feels about going to work."

A second said: "Looks buzzing for it."

And a third joked: "The face of man who's got to work 17 straight days in a row."

A fourth, meanwhile, said: "Chuffed to bits to be heading to the Crucible."

The reason for O'Sullivan and the other 15 seeded players attending the Crucible on the eve of the tournament was to fulfil press duties, including pre-tournament photoshoots.

Despite what the photos might suggest, O'Sullivan is in fact relishing the tournament as he attempts to become only the fourth player in snooker history to win all three Triple Crown events (World Championship, UK Championship, Masters) in the same season.

He told Sky Sports: "The last few days I've started to play alright, so I've started to fancy the job.

"I wouldn't be surprised if I win it but, equally, I wouldn't be surprised if I lost first round. Snooker sometimes doesn't make sense.

"I still think I've got another one or two world titles in me. As long as I feel young around the snooker table, age is just a number.

"I thought I was finished at 35, but I'm still going at 48. I've still won a lot and I'm still number one, which is a bit of a miracle in itself."