Ali Carter shows true colours as he makes fresh comment towards Ronnie O'Sullivan

Ali Carter has described as "the greatest player of all time" in what appears to be the conclusion of their famous feud. The two rivals were drawn against each other in the first-round of the

Fans were particularly looking forward to their meeting as a result of their fiery history. In the 2024 Snooker Masters final, his eighth crown, but the clash was best remembered for the Rocket barging into the Colchester native and their resulting war of words.

while the latter accused the seven-time champion of "snotting all over the floor". At the 2025 World Championship, O'Sullivan emerged victorious in convincing fashion,

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However, the mood between the pair looked positive, as they shook hands before and after the match, and even shared a pleasant exchange at the end. While disappointed with his early exit, Carter had nothing but kind words for O'Sullivan.

He said: "We all make mistakes in the past. We’ve all said things that maybe we shouldn’t have done, you reflect on that and at the end of the day I’m playing the greatest player of all time."

When asked about O'Sullivan's performance, particularly given he had only recorded one victory in 2025 going into the Crucible, Carter replied: " He could have 10 years off and still come here. He’s just a freak natural, we all know that and that’s why we all love watching him.”

Carter's gracious and dignified comments highlights that while there has been some frostiness between him and O'Sullivan, it will not get in the way of his genuine admiration for the Rocket. O'Sullivan reciprocated with some pleasantness of his own, even appearing to express some regret for his previous comments about the Captain.

The snooker legend said to TNT Sports: "Me and Ali are fine. I was probably going through a bad time myself, he was probably going through a bit of a bad time, and you just sort of say things that you think, 'Why did I say that?' It's just heat of the moment stuff.

"I practised with Ali when he was a kid, 13 or 14, and I thought 'This kid's going to be special'. I spent a lot of time playing, picking balls out for him. He's a good lad."

In the second round, O'Sullivan will be facing Chinese star Junxu Pang, who overcame fellow Chinese compatriot Zhang Anda in his first round match. Little was expected of O'Sullivan, who had not competed since losing to Robert Milkins in the Championship League, back in January.

O'Sullivan had also pulled out of the German Masters and the Welsh Open at the last minute, as well as an exhibition clash in Finland against John Higgins in January. He admitted that he had little expectations going into the action at the Crucible.

However, the lack of pressure on O'Sullivan's shoulders could make him even more dangerous. O'Sullivan said: "I had no expectations so there were no nerves, I didn't expect to perform well based on the past three or four years. I just wanted to make a game of it.

"Ali had his chances yesterday, on another day he would been 6-3 up [after the first session], and again today he had a couple of chances. I cued a lot better than I did yesterday."