O'Sullivan snooker rival slammed as "pathetic" by opponent after handshake snub

18 January 2024 , 22:05

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It is not the first time that Vafaei has struck up a rivalry (Image: BBC)

Mark Williams slammed Hossein as “pathetic” after the Iranian refused to shake his hand at the World Grand Prix.

The former was leading 3-1 in their last-16 showdown at the Morningside Arena. Williams failed to pot the pink before Vafaei then shook hands with the referee and stormed off. The crowd did not take too kindly to his actions as they booed the departing player. Williams was also far from happy after having his handshake snubbed.

He took to social media after his victory and labelled Vafaei’s actions as “pathetic” and “shocking” before revealing that he had “always got on” with his rival. He then attempted to explain Vafaei’s fury.

Speaking after claiming his win, Williams revealed: "I just pulled him up about it there and said, 'What’s your problem?' He said it was because I slapped my leg at the end when I won.

“I slapped my leg at the end because I shouldn’t have gone for the pink. I should have played safe and I thought he would have come back to the table and carried on for snookers.

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"That’s why I was a bit fuming, I shouldn’t have gone for the pink and I knew it and he just stormed up. He said that’s the reason, if that’s the reason, pfft, I don’t care anyway."

Hossein Vafaei refused to shake Mark Williams' hand at the World Grand Prix (Getty Images)

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It is not the first time that Vafaei has struck up a rivalry. He is currently embroiled in a long-running saga with Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Before the World Championship in 2022, the 29-year-old tore into O’Sullivan. He suggested that he retire and was “not good for the game” but eventually backtracked on those comments.

That was not enough to satisfy O’Sullivan though, as he stoked the fires once again ahead of last year’s World Championships. He said: "Has he been saying much this year? I think he's learned to be quiet. Don't rattle my cage! I'm just having fun. I love it when they call me out, I love it when they give me stick."

The pair’s war of words continued as Vafaei claimed that O’Sullivan was only a "nice person when he's asleep". He said: "I think Ronnie O'Sullivan is such a legend, such a good player when he's on the table. I think he's such a nice person when he's sleeping, he's just such a nice person when he's asleep, you know what I mean."

That led O’Sullivan to admit that he had become ‘baffled’ by their long-running rivalry. Vafaei is not the only one to have rubbed him up the wrong way. O’Sullivan also tore into a foul-mouthed rant in the direction of Ali Carter after claiming his eighth Masters title earlier this week.

Daniel Orme