O'Sullivan beaten by Carter at German Masters

O'Sullivan won the last of his seven world titles in 2022
- Published
Ronnie O'Sullivan suffered a 5-3 defeat to Ali Carter as he was knocked out of the German Masters at the second round stage.
Carter hit a 128 break in the first frame and went 3-0 up before the seven-time world champion produced a 93 break on the way to levelling at 3-3.
However, Carter - a two-time German Masters winner - claimed the next two frames to secure his spot in the last 16.
The pair have had their run-ins in the past but Carter played down their rivalry after beating O'Sullivan for only the second time in 22 matches.
"We've known each other a long time," said Carter. "He's a character isn't he?
"We are fine now, there is no animosity at all. It is all heat of the moment stuff between two sportsmen and he is the best snooker player of all-time.
"It is great to be on the table with him and competing. Getting the odd win over him is a feather in my cap."
Elsewhere, Zhang Anda made a maximum 147 break in the opening frame of his 5-2 victory against Barry Hawkins.
"To be honest, I wasn't really thinking about a maximum in the early part of the break," said Zhang.
"It only came into my mind later on. I think the crowd already realised what I was trying to do. The atmosphere was fantastic. I really enjoyed that moment."
Judd Trump and Neil Robertson both made three centuries in respective 5-0 and 5-2 wins against Ryan Day and Pang Junxu.
World champion Zhao Xintong was beaten 5-3 by Tom Ford, while John Higgins was a 5-3 winner against Zhou Yuelong.