SEEING REDS
Snooker star Vafaei stuns Crucible with ‘disrespectful move’ at Ronnie O’Sullivan as pundit slams it as ‘EMBARRASSING’
SNOOKER star Hossein Vafaei was labelled "embarrassing" after his "silly" break-off against rival Ronnie O'Sullivan at the world championships.
Iranian Vafaei, 28, called seven-time world champion O'Sullivan "disrespectful" after he smashed up the reds with the first shot of a frame during their clash two years ago.
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But he hit back at the Brit during the first session of their second round clash at the Crucible on Friday by breaking off in the same manner.
And he was slammed by snooker legends Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry on BBC TV.
Davis said: "I find this very difficult to analyse, Hossein Vafaei is not cut from the same lump of wood as me.
"I don't understand how can you smash up the balls in a world championship. I don't understand how you can then play great in the next frame. What type of brain can do that?
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"To prove your point, whatever, but not in the world championship. I don't know where he is coming from.
"Bloody hell, to win frame three, after embarrassing yourself, how can you concentrate?"
Before Hendry added: "Before he got down to break-off, he looked up to presumably one of his friends in the crowd and smiled. It is obviously a pre-meditated break-off.
"It is what Ronnie did to him in a match. Silly really to get involved in that. It’s the world championship. What was he hoping to achieve there? Ronnie won’t care. Not good, not clever.
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"Ronnie doesn’t need any more incentive than he has already got. But surely there is some regret from Hossein and that break off?"
Commentator John Virgo then said: "That is a first for me. I cannot believe he has played a shot like that in the biggest match of his career.
"I don’t know what he was trying to prove. What he has done is sit down and watch the maestro in action. You could say he has had the best seat in the house."
Speaking ahead of the Crucible clash, Vafaei did not mince his words when discussing O'Sullivan.
He said: "Listen, Ronnie disrespected me before. Now God has given me an opportunity for revenge.
"I said that to God myself: 'If you make that happen, I'll do the same that he did to me'.
"That wasn't nice at all. Play like a man. Don't play mind games or smash balls and disrespect me, especially when 70-80 million are watching me in Iran.
"I don't have anything to fear or anything to lose. I'm not scared of this guy.
"If I beat my hero — well he used to be my hero — I'm going to be dangerous.
"I respect him just in snooker. Outside of snooker, he's such a normal person for me. That's it.
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"You want to learn from him. But I was learning bad things more than good."
O'Sullivan is seeking a record-breaking eighth world title in snooker's modern era.
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