Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ali Carter LIVE: Snooker Tour Championship score and updates from grudge match

The bitter rivalry between Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ali Carter resumed this afternoon as the two Essex snooker stars clashed in the Tour Championship quarter-finals in Manchester. O’Sullivan absolutely dominated his foe to build a 7-1 lead in the best-of-19 contest, which will play to a finish from 7pm BST this evening.

The pair have a long-term feud and dislike of each other that came to a head after the final of the Masters earlier this year. O’Sullivan came from 6-3 down to win an eighth Masters crown at Alexandra Palace but Carter was furious with his opponent, accusing him of “disgusting actions” and “snotting all over the floor”.

‘The Rocket’ rejected those claims and hit back with a foul-mouthed rant, insisting “everybody knows what he’s like” and claiming his rival has “issues”. O’Sullivan said: “He’s a f*****g nightmare. F*****g why has he got issues with me? I’m not having it. I don’t care, grow some balls. I don’t give a f***. The more he brings it on, the more I f*****g punish him every time. He needs to sort his f****** life out.”

The Tour Championship is the final tournament before the World Snooker Championship, which begins on 20 April at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, where O’Sullivan will look to add to his UK Championship and Masters successes this season by clinching a modern-record eighth world title.

Follow all the action below, plus find the latest sports betting odds, offers and tips here:

Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ali Carter - live updates

• Ronnie O’Sullivan takes on Ali Carter in the quarter-finals of the Tour Championship

• O’Sullivan and Carter have a bitter rivalry and mutual dislike which came to a head at the Masters earlier this year

• END OF SESSION: Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-1 Ali Carter (best of 19 frames)

END OF SESSION! Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-1 Ali Carter

15:29 , Luke Baker

Ali Carter makes a stunning 141 to finish off the afternoon and that’s the highest break of the tournament so far! Showing his class right at the end.

But it’s Ronnie O’Sullivan’s session - he obliterates Carter 7-1 and only needs three more frames for victory when they resume at 7pm BST this evening

CENTURY! Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-0 Ali Carter

15:26 , Luke Baker

Fair play to Ali Carter. He’s dug deep to make a lovely break here and snatch the final frame of the afternoon session. And he makes the only century of the afternoon.

Passes 100 with a simple black off the spot! Great tenacity.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-0 Ali Carter

15:24 , Luke Baker

A tricky red to cut into the left corner pocket for Carter with the break on 54 and he gets it - nicely cued. Looks like he’ll get a frame on the board at the death here.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-0 Ali Carter

15:21 , Luke Baker

With the break on 15, Carter wriggles a black home. It wiped its feet but went in and the break continues! He moves towards 40 points and is still going strong.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-0 Ali Carter

15:20 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan has won the last two frames in a combined 13 minutes. Brutal stuff to take this match away from his opponent.

One frame of the session left and Ali Carter will just want to ensure it’s not a whitewash. O’Sullivan rattles a red in both jaws of the left corner pocket with a long pot to start frame eight and Carter is left a simple starter to middle. Can he brush off all the disappointment and score heavily here?

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-0 Ali Carter

15:18 , Luke Baker

A couple of delicate cannons, including one to split the final two reds but O’Sullivan misses a tricky-cross-table pot on that penultimate red, so the century remains elusive.

He won’t care too much though - a dominant break of 92 and O’Sullivan takes frame seven to extend his lead to 7-0. Carter on his knees here.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-0 Ali Carter

15:14 , Luke Baker

Leaves himself a long-range blue up into the yellow pocket to move 61 points ahead and nails it! Heart of the pockets, gorgeous pot.

This will be another one-visit frame win as he moves to the snookers-required stage. Can he make his first century of the day?

Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-0 Ali Carter

15:13 , Luke Baker

This calm, fuss-free break-building from O’Sullivan as he floats the cueball around the table into the perfect positions in a way only he can.

Brings up the half-century with a black off the spot. This is going to be 7-0 barring disaster.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-0 Ali Carter

15:11 , Luke Baker

With the break on 19, O’Sullivan pots a red to left corner and powers the white through the bunch to open up a few more. Very clever shot. He then comfortably moves beyond 30 points.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-0 Ali Carter

15:09 , Luke Baker

Carter misses a long red by a fairly wide margin to start frame seven. O’Sullivan crunches in a mid-ranger and he’s back at the table.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 6-0 Ali Carter

15:06 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan cruises to another frame as he gets over the winning line in the frame with the minimum of fuss. He flukes a red on 79 to keep the break going and keep the hope of a first century alive but the split of the final four reds goes wrong and the ton remains elusive!

A break of 81 and Ronnie O’Sullivan wins frame to move 6-0 ahead. This is a demolition job on Ali Carter.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 5-0 Ali Carter

15:02 , Luke Baker

Three reds and three blacks for O’Sullivan before he’s forced to cannon into the pack and go up to play for the blue. Nicely played and the balls are split very nicely here. He’s only on 30 but this is already a glorious frame-winning chance for ‘The Rocket’.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 5-0 Ali Carter

15:01 , Luke Baker

Gasps and oohs from the Manchester crowd as O’Sullivan floats a long red into the right corner. He’s straight back into a strong scoring position in frame six.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 5-0 Ali Carter

15:00 , Luke Baker

Carter left the arena after that fifth frame to try and gather his thoughts. He needs some turnaround from here.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 5-0 Ali Carter

14:57 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan wins the safety battle and pulls out a nice mid-range pot on the red before tidying up the remaining reds. He’s slightly out of position on the black but finds a nice pot to the left corner and lands perfectly on the yellow at the other end of the table.

A lovely clearance of 51 and Ronnie O’Sullivan wins frame five. A steal off Ali Carter and compounds his misery to make it 5-0.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:51 , Luke Baker

Carter clears the easy reds with blacks to move into a 48-26 lead. Four reds remaining and this is where the work really starts.

He goes up for the red in the baulk area and then makes an error coming back down the table, landing behind the pink and covering the potting angle on the next red.

Forced to play safe and Carter leaves the table with a 52-26 lead and three reds remaining.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:48 , Luke Baker

The reds pretty well spread with pink and black both available, so this a decent table for O’Sullivan to score on. But he misses a pink to left middle with the score at 26-8!

Carter simply has to make the most of this surprising opportunity.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:46 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan leading 10-4 in this frame as the safety continues. Carter leaves a pot on to the right corner but O’Sullivan follows the red in with the cueball! That’s another surprising mistake from Ronnie.

Carter doesn’t punish him though - misses the pot by quite a way to leave O’Sullivan in among the balls.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:42 , Luke Baker

That was rather un-Ronnie like. He cues across the white ball and misses a fairly straight red into the right corner. Carter pots the red, then yellow but pink and black are tied up, with the blue also not on its spot, so it’s not exactly a great scoring chance.

Forced to play safe after a break of four and makes a mess of that as well, double-kissing the blue to leave the cueball in mid-table.Luckily no pot is left for O’Sullivan.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:37 , Luke Baker

Carter accidentally sends the white into a corner pocket off the red during a safety exchange but no real harm done as O’Sullivan isn’t left with a pot.

Eventually, Carter has a go at a long pot down the left cushion but it rattles both jaws and stays out. Close! The wait for a first scoring opportunity in this frame goes on.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:32 , Luke Baker

Back underway in Manchester. Four more frames in this afternoon session and Carter has to win three of them you’d think to properly get himself back in the match ahead of this evening’s conclusion.

MID-SESSION INTERVAL! Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:14 , Luke Baker

Truthfully, it’s not been vintage O’Sullivan but he still leads 4-0...

Carter missed a simple red out of nowhere in the first frame and hasn’t really recovered since. He hasn’t got going yet and, in a race to 10 frames, this match is in danger of completely heading out of sight for him. He needs to come out firing after the mid-session interval.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-0 Ali Carter

14:12 , Luke Baker

Ruthless from Ronnie! He doesn’t need the two reds on the side cushion as the third-last red with black puts him 64-13 up, a lead of 51 with only 43 points available.

Carter concedes the frame and Ronnie O’Sullivan had a 4-0 lead at the mid-session interval!

Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 Ali Carter

14:10 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan tidies a couple of the reds at the baulk end of the table before heading back down towards the business end. Picking off the loose reds but there’s a central cluster of three that will need splitting at some point.

The lead is 35-13 when he pots the pink and splits those three. It works out ok and he’s on a red to the centre. Leading 41-13 now with more reds available...

Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 Ali Carter

14:08 , Luke Baker

Carter smashes into the pack after potting the blue to move the break to 13 but he’s only left with a thin cut on the red to the left middle pocket. And he misses it. Very tough pot to be fair, he deserved more luck with the split.

Either way, O’Sullivan now back at the table and can punish his opponent here.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 Ali Carter

14:06 , Luke Baker

Well, that’s a surprise! With the break on 10, O’Sullivan misses a black off the spot. Maybe didn’t get the cueball as close to it as he would’ve liked but that was still a shock.

Carter left with an awkward red up into the yellow pocket as a starter and rolls it in. Right, Ali - you simply have to score heavily with this chance now.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 Ali Carter

14:04 , Luke Baker

WOW! Pick that one out! O’Sullivan crunches in a stunning long red to start frame four. He’s unlucky to not land on a colour though, so rolls up behind the green.

Carter immediately makes a mistake trying to roll into the pack of reds, leaving Ronnie a pot to the right corner which he gratefully takes. Scoring opportunity for O’Sullivan.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 Ali Carter

14:01 , Luke Baker

Imperious from O’Sullivan and he wraps the frame up in style. Misses a red to the left corner to miss out on a century break but he won’t mind too much.

O’Sullivan wins frame three and Carter is in big trouble here.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:59 , Luke Baker

On 47, O’Sullivan faces a tough pot across the table to the left middle but cues it beautifully and it’s in the heart of the pocket. Nudges a red away from the others in the centre of the table and this frame should be his from here.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:58 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan seemingly brushing off any frustration from his missed chances in that previous frame as he strides round the table, working mostly with the black.

A couple of delicate cannons keep him in position and a mid-range pot on a red to the right corner takes him beyond 40 points. A couple of loose reds remaining before he’ll need to go into the main cluster.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:55 , Luke Baker

A safety mistake from Carter as he leaves the cue ball bang in among the reds at the business end of the table. O’Sullivan picks out a nice cut on the red to the left middle and he’s got a good chance in this third frame.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:54 , Luke Baker

On the other table, Gary Wilson currently leads Zhang Anda 2-0 in their best-of-19 match

Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:53 , Luke Baker

You feel Ali Carter needs to win those scrappy frames to have any real chance today. But that’s gone now so we go again for frame three.

Good opening red from Carter but he’s unfortunate to land awkwardly on the black, so just the single point.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 2-0 Ali Carter

13:48 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan pots the yellow, leaving Carter needing two snookers and he concedes. Ronnie O’Sullivan wins the second frame!

That was incredibly scrappy and disjointed but they all count and Ronnie leads 2-0.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:47 , Luke Baker

Carter misses the yellow and hits the black! So O’Sullivan now leads by 31 points with 27 points remaining. He’ll tidy the frame up from here, you’d think.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:46 , Luke Baker

Wonderful safety shot by O’Sullivan! Cue ball near the baulk cushion behind the green with the target yellow ball tucked tightly behind the black at the other end of the table!

Carter has to hit this AND get it safe. O’Sullivan only needs to pot the yellow to win the frame.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:44 , Luke Baker

A long-ish yellow is frame ball for O’Sullivan and he misses it! He just can’t put this frame away! He leads by 24 points with 27 remaining, so Carter will need to clear all the colours to snatch it

But we’ll have a safety battle first.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:43 , Luke Baker

Carter swerves out of the snooker but leaves the red for O’Sullivan to cut to the left middle. Chance to wrap the frame up here.

Left with a tricky red along the bottom cushion though... Plays it dead-weight and rolls it in! That should be the frame now.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:41 , Luke Baker

Carter pots a red to narrow his deficit to 31-22 but misses a long blue up into the yellow pocket. O’Sullivan in again and plays an exquisite shot on the yellow, dragging the cue ball down the table to dislodge the two reds on the bottom cushion. He’s unlucky to see the white land tight on one of them and not leave a pot.

34-22 to O’Sullivan with two reds remaining and he gets cArter in trouble with a safety shot behind the green.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:39 , Luke Baker

And now O’Sullivan misses with the rest and bangs his cue in frustration. This has become a very scrappy frame. 31-21 to O’Sullivan with a handful of reds left.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:38 , Luke Baker

Nice long pot by Carter although the cue ball runs away towards the left cushion slightly. Tricky blue but he cuts it in and gets a friendly cannon off the red on the cushion.

But the next red requires an awkward rest shot around the blue and he misses it as it rattles the jaws of the right corner pocket.

This has gone really scrappy now. Both men miss very makeable pots on the red to the right corner before O’Sullivan finally gets one to start another break with a lead of four poins.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:35 , Luke Baker

Carter gets into the cue ball way too much off the opening red. It zips all the way back up the table, meaning ‘The Captain’ is forced to take the brown to the middle pocket and can only leave himself with a tricky mid-range red.

Misses it by an absolute mile with the rest and leaves O’Sullivan with a long pot. Missed by Ronnie though, so no damage done for Carter in this disjointed frame. 25-15 to O’Sullivan as we head for a bout of safety with six reds left.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:32 , Luke Baker

Positional error with the break on 16 by O’Sullivan, coming up a long way short of where he would like to be for the blue. He digs out a nice pot on the yellow but cannons into the pink and isn’t on a red.

O’Sullivan’s lead is 25-10 after that break of 18 but a mistake with the safety shot leaves Carter a chance to hit back...

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:31 , Luke Baker

Ooof! Decent safety by Carter but O’Sullivan pulls out a gorgeous long pot into the left corner. His long potting can sometimes be Ronnie’s weakness but if that’s on point, then this could be a long day for Carter!

O’Sullivan in among the balls but still only has the blue to work with as a high-value colour.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:29 , Luke Baker

That won’t help Carter’s mood. O’Sullivan makes a hash of the safety shot but FLUKES a red to the right corner! Carter was plum in if that red hadn’t found the pocket.

There’s no colour to follow for Ronnie though but he produces a lovely safety shot up behind the green. Carter leads 10-7 but this isn’t an appetising safety shot.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:28 , Luke Baker

The table isn’t particularly enticingly set for Carter with the black tied up by three reds, the pink up on the green spot and a couple of reds on cushions.

He has to stretch for a red to right corner and undercuts it to end the break at 10. He hasn’t settled yet

Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:26 , Luke Baker

Frame two underway.

Granite safety from O’Sullivan wins the tactical battle and forces a Carter error, leaving him a mid-range cut to the right corner. But O’Sullivan can only make 6, over-screwing a shot on the blue.

Carter sinks a red and has a chance to post a telling contribution.

FRAME! Ronnie O’Sullivan 1-0 Ali Carter

13:18 , Luke Baker

Expertly done by O’Sullivan, who looks very sharp already. A break of 77 punishes the simple missed red by Carter and Ronnie O’Sullivan wins the first frame of the match.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 0-0 Ali Carter

13:16 , Luke Baker

O’Sullivan looking typically smooth around the table in the early going. Pots his way beyond the 30-point mark by picking off the loose reds, avoiding the need for any cannons or splitting the main cluster of four reds in the centre of the table.

Then he plays a lovely cannon to disturb that cluster and the frame is at his mercy as he leads 47-12.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 0-0 Ali Carter

13:13 , Luke Baker

That’s not great from Carter. He was cruising along but misses a simple red to the left corner as it rattles the jaws. Only made 11 from that opportunity for a 12-0 lead in the frame.

O’Sullivan digs out a red and has a chance to counter-attack.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 0-0 Ali Carter

13:10 , Luke Baker

A bout of safety before O’Sullivan - wearing a natty gold shirt under his waistcoat this afternoon, incidentally - gets a look at the long pot to the left corner but misses it by quite a way.

Carter left with a cut to the left middle and he’ll have the first proper scoring opportunity.

Ronnie O’Sullivan 0-0 Ali Carter

13:07 , Luke Baker

Ronnie O’Sullivan is probably the best front-runner in the history of snooker, so it’s imperative that Ali Carter makes a fast start today. That’s promising! He crunches in a lovely long red but doesn’t land on the black. A nice safety shot up behind the green.

Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ali Carter

12:59 , Luke Baker

We’re only a few minutes away from O’Sullivan v Carer getting underway. It’s a best-of-19 match with the first eight frames to be played this afternoon and the remainder this evening.

Mark Williams produces stunning clearance to beat Tom Ford

12:51 , Luke Baker

The most notable action at the Tour Championship yesterday came from Mark Williams as he produced this absolutely incredible clearance to beat Tom Ford 10-9 and book himself a quarter-final spot

Ali Carter ‘put throught the wringer’ by Barry Hawkins

12:42 , Luke Baker

The Tour Championship is a tournament for the 12 best players on the one-year ranking list, where the top four (including Ronnie O’Sullivan) get a bye straight through to the quarter-finals. Those ranked five to 12 play a first-round match with the winners joining the top four in the quarters.

Ali Carter had to withstand a roaring Barry Hawkins comeback in his first-round match yesterday, as he led 7-1 and 9-5 before eventually falling over the line 10-8. How much will that have taken out of him ahead of the match today?

Mark Selby threatens to quit snooker after ‘pathetic’ defeat to Gary Wilson

12:36 , Luke Baker

The Tour Championship has already provided plenty of drama this week, including Mark Selby channelling his inner Ronnie O’Sullivan by suggesting he might quit snooker after a ‘pathetic’ first-round defeat to Gary Wilson.

“I mean I was pathetic really, from start to finish,” Selby told ITV4. “Probably one of the worst games I’ve played as a professional. Definitely up there for sure.

“If I carry on playing like that, then yeah, I won’t be enjoying it and I will be choosing a different career for sure.”

Mark Selby threatens to quit snooker after ‘pathetic’ defeat

Ali Carter’s response to Ronnie O’Sullivan

12:25 , Luke Baker

Ali Carter isn’t exactly the shy and retiring type, so he hit back at that O’Sullivan rant and accused ‘The Rocket’ of not being mentally well.

Carter said: “Ronnie is entitled to his opinion. I just said what it is and how it was and I talk facts. It is as simple as that.”

Asked whether he was angry at O’Sullivan’s comments, he added: “Angry about what? It makes no difference to me what he says. He says different things on different days. I don’t think he even knows what is going to come out of his mouth at certain times.

“I actually feel a bit sorry for him. I don’t think he is that well, mentally.”

Ronnie O’Sullivan’s rant about Ali Carter

12:10 , Luke Baker

The O’Sullivan-Carter feud goes back a long way, including them infamously barging into one another during a World Championship match, but came to a head at the Masters in January.

After O’Sullivan beat Carter and his opponent accused him of being “disgusting” and “snotting all over the floor”, ‘The Rocket went into full-on rant mode...

“I’m not going to skirt around it anymore, tip-toeing on eggshells around someone like that. He’s a f*****g nightmare,” the 48-year-old said. “Playing snooker against someone like that is a nightmare. He’s not a nice person. It’s not a nice vibe he leaves around the table. I’ve said my piece, I don’t give a s***. I’ve said it now, done.

“You know what he’s like, everybody knows what he’s like. He’s got issues. F*****g why has he got issues with me? I’m not having it. I don’t care, grow some balls. I don’t give a f***, I don’t give a f*** about any of these snooker players, any of them. The more he brings it on, the more I f***ing punish him every time. He’s just digging a grave for himself. I don’t give a f***. That’s it, I’ve said my piece.”

The Rocket, though, continued his tirade adding: “He’s got beef with me. He’s got issues, he’s got to sort his life out, he’s got to see a counsellor or something.”

What time is O’Sullivan v Carter?

11:53 , Luke Baker

Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Ali Carter in the quarter-finals of the Tour Championship is scheduled to take place on Wednesday 3 April. The best-of-19 frames match will start at 1pm BST, with eight frames played in the afternoon session, before the players return to conclude the match in the evening session from 7pm BST.

The winner will advance to the semi-finals and meet the winner of Zhang Anda vs Gary Wilson.

How can I watch it?

Fans can watch the match and the rest of the Tour Championship 2024 on ITV4 in the UK, with a live stream available on ITV X and the ITV Sport website. Coverage starts at 12:45pm BST.

If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch major sporting events, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help and includes deals on VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.

Everything you need to know about Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ali Carter

11:51 , Luke Baker

Ronnie O’Sullivan takes on rival Ali Carter in the quarter-finals of the Tour Championship today.

The pair do not see eye-to-eye with tensions high during the final of the Masters this year. ‘The Rocket’ came from 6-3 down to beat Carter 10-7 at Alexandra Palace and extend his record to win an eighth Masters crown.

But Carter was furious at O’Sullivan, accusing him of “disgusting actions” and “snotting all over the floor”. O’Sullivan rejected those claims though, and hit back with a foul-mouthed rant, insisting “everybody knows what he’s like” and claiming his rival has “issues”.

“F*****g why has he got issues with me? I’m not having it. I don’t care, grow some balls. I don’t give a f***. The more he brings it on, the more I f*****g punish him every time,” he said. “Absolutely. He’s just digging a grave for himself. He needs to sort his f*****g life out.”

Here’s everything you need to know:

What time is O’Sullivan vs Carter in Tour Championship today?

Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ali Carter

11:49 , Luke Baker

Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Ali Carter from snooker’s Tour Championship in Manchester.

One of the sport’s bitterest rivalries continues as the Essex cuemen’s personal dislike of one another takes centre stage again after their antics at the Masters earlier this year.

Stick with us for full live coverage.