O'Sullivan beaten by China's Pang in Nanjing
Ronnie O'Sullivan won the last of his seven world titles in 2022
- Published
Ronnie O'Sullivan suffered a 6-4 third-round defeat by Pang Junxu as the seven-time world champion was knocked out of the International Championship in Nanjing.
The match was tied at 2-2 in the eastern Chinese city before 24-year-old Pang made breaks of 85 and 73 to take a 4-2 lead.
O'Sullivan, 48, took the next two frames to level the match again only for his Chinese opponent to rattle off 120 and 123 breaks to secure victory.
Pang will face Welshman Jackson Page, who beat Ali Carter 6-4, in the last 16.
John Higgins thrashed Matthew Stevens 6-1 to progress, while Judd Trump was a 6-4 victor against Joe O'Connor.
Shaun Murphy's participation was ended as he lost 6-3 to Chris Wakelin, who made breaks of 116, 102, 60, 85 and 63.
Former world number one Mark Allen is also out after losing 6-2 to China's Xiao Guodong, whose countryman Xu Si thrilled the home crowd with a 147 break - the second of his career - on his way to a 6-2 win over Wales' Ryan Day.
World champion Kyren Wilson progressed with a 6-4 win over Wu Yize, while Barry Hawkins beat Neil Robertson 6-1.
Zhao to play in UK Championship qualifiers
Zhao won in Stockholm a month after returning from his suspension
The 2021 winner Zhao Xintong will play in UK Championship qualifying after returning to action following a ban for his involvement in snooker's biggest match-fixing scandal.
He has been awarded a place in qualifying in Leicester, which runs from 16 to 21 November, after winning the WPBSA Q Tour event in Stockholm last month.
He is the first of 10 Chinese players who were banned last year to make his return to the sport, although he did not directly throw a match himself.
Zhao was suspended for a year and eight months, reduced from two and a half years after his early admissions and guilty plea.
He accepted charges of being a party to another player fixing two matches and betting on matches himself.
The UK Championship begins on Saturday, 23 November at the York Barbican. with coverage on BBC TV and the BBC Sport website and app.