Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ken Doherty live stream | World Seniors Snooker Championship preview
O’Sullivan and Doherty go head to head (Credit: Li Ran/Xinhua/Alamy Live News)
Ronnie O’Sullivan makes his World Seniors Snooker Championship debut on Friday when he faces former rival and practice partner Ken Doherty.
The former Crucible kings renew a rivalry and acquaintance spanning well over three decades on snooker’s biggest stage.
O’Sullivan is making his first appearance at the World Seniors Championship, in which he is an overwhelming favourite to lift the trophy on Sunday.
The Rocket was victorious at the inaugural John Virgo Cup last month, coming through a four-man field that also consisted of John Higgins, Mark Williams and Stephen Hendry.
However, he could not build on that momentum during his latest bid for a record-breaking eighth World professional crown, losing 13-12 to Higgins following their second-round epic.
O’Sullivan is looking to land his ninth World title overall, 35 years after he was crowned World under-21 champion, and a familiar face provides his first obstacle.
The 50-year-old first faced Doherty in professional competition at the 1993 UK Championship, the tournament he won on to win to become the youngest ranking event winner in snooker history.
O’Sullivan has won each of their last eight meetings, including a resounding 6-1 triumph in their most recent at the 2023 International Championship.
Doherty is aiming to make it third time lucky in this event, having been a beaten finalist in 2020 and 2024.
Doing so would see the popular Irishman complete a unique quadruple, by adding the Seniors title to his amateur, under-21 and professional World crowns.
The 56-year-old, now ranked 106th in the world, endured another modest season on the professional tour, during which he won just five of the 16 matches he played and failed to progress beyond the last 64 of any ranking event.
However, Doherty is fresh from a morale-boosting victory in the opening round of this tournament against Gerard Greene, who he defeated 4-3 on the final black.
A showdown with 2018 World Seniors champion Peter Lines awaits the winner of this clash in the quarter-finals.
The match breaks off at around 2pm BST on Friday and will be contested over the best of seven frames at the Crucible Theatre.
How to watch Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ken Doherty live stream
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