Ronnie O’Sullivan was embroiled in an angry exchange with referee Olivier Marteel as he took a 5-3 lead in the opening session of the World Snooker Championship final against Judd Trump.
Marteel appeared to admonish O’Sullivan when the six-time champion returned to his seat after failing to get out of a snooker in the eighth frame, prompting O’Sullivan to jab his finger and respond that the official “saw nothing”.
O'Sullivan could also be heard saying "don't start" to Marteel, before Trump then appeared to question why his opponent's ticking off couldn't have waited until after the frame had finished.
Ultimately, the incident didn't knock Trump off his stride and he won the frame - his second in succession - to reduce the arrears before O’Sullivan left the arena without offering the usual handshake to Marteel.
Six-time world champion Steve Davis said on BBC commentary: "It felt like maybe an obscenity was said and Olivier Marteel might have pulled him up on it. It was a tough moment for Judd Trump as he didn't want all that - he just wanted to pot that yellow, so what a pot it was."
Stephen Hendry, who O'Sullivan will draw level with on seven world titles with a victory over Trump, said of the opening session: "That session had everything. It had centuries, the drama with re-spotting the cue ball - it was a fantastic session of snooker. Judd was maybe not at his absolute best but it just sets it up beautifully for tonight at 5-3."
O'Sullivan denied any offence in an interview with Eurosport, saying: "I just think he (Marteel) seems to be looking for trouble. I just get that vibe from the guy.
"They've got hundreds of cameras out there and they can go and check them all. I'm not going to have any of it because I think he's just trying to create something. He needs to deal with it, not me."
O'Sullivan is already facing an investigation by the WPBSA disciplinary committee for allegedly making a lewd gesture after missing a black in the 13th frame of his 10-5 first-round win over Dave Gilbert.
The six-time world champion had earlier complained to Marteel about a security guard who was moving in his line of sight during the third frame, then the pair became embroiled in a lengthy exchange over the placing of the white following a miss in the fourth frame.
The incidents marred an action-packed opening session in which Trump took the lead with a break of 72, only for O'Sullivan to capitalise on some poor shot choices by the 2019 champion to win the next five in a row, including two centuries that took his career tally at the Crucible over the 200 mark.
Tension mounted in the fourth frame when O'Sullivan insisted the white had been wrongly replaced following a miss, twice involving Trump in the discussion and at one point jokingly insisting Marteel should play the shot himself before the official finally insisted that play must continue.
O'Sullivan went on to win the frame by potting a re-spotted black off three cushions and, after sweeping through the next two, the situation looked grim for Trump, who had appeared to struggle with the occasion and was facing up to an almost irretrievable first-session deficit, but he will have ended the session satisfied and optimistic after stopping the rot with back-to-back frames.
