Ronnie O'Sullivan was defeated in the World Championship quarter-finals by Stuart Bingham and said he "deserved to lose". He also suggested his time at the top of the snooker rankings might be at an end now. Stuart Bingham won the match 13-9, winning five frames in a row during Wednesday's final session.
O'Sullivan has won 27 ranking events, including five UK titles and five Masters titles. "I've had 20 years at the top - eventually there has to be a changing of the guard," said O'Sullivan, now aged 39, after the match. "I was way off the pace. He just pushed me around and I felt second best all match."
Bingham is not much younger though, he is 38 years old. "You can't start looking for form these days. I made so many unforced errors," added O'Sullivan. "Before you might have got away with it, but now you get punished by all the players. If you don't play the minor tournaments, you are going to get left behind. I am not prepared to play in the minor events either, though."
Bingham plays Judd Trump in the semi-finals while Shaun Murphy takes on Barry Hawkins. Here are the current outright tournament win odds at Bet365:
Judd Trump - 1.83 Shaun Murphy - 3.25 Barry Hawkins - 8.50 Stuart Bingham - 9.00