FANS were left baffled after the referee made an incredible blunder at the World Snooker Championship.
The surprising gaffe came during Ronnie O’Sullivan‘s round two clash against Pang Junxu on Sunday afternoon.
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After Chinese cueist Pang had potted the pink ball during the 15th frame of the game, referee Jan Verhaas went to respot the ball in its spot on the table.
Verhaas is one of snooker‘s most well-respected refs, having officiated numerous major finals, including six world championships.
However, the veteran Dutchman is not infallible, as it proved at the Crucible on Sunday.
As Verhaas placed the pink ball back onto the table following Pang’s pot, the 25-year-old had to point out the correct position of the colour.
Pang stopped in his tracks from potting a red to address the mistake, which Verhaas admitted to and promptly corrected while seeing the funny side by sharing a joke with the snooker star.
TNT Sports commentator Phil Yates said: “That is not the pink spot. It is nowhere near the pink spot.”
Co-commentator Neal Mouldes then explained what might have caused the initial error, saying: “He’s just put it on a chalk mark, it’s absolutely miles away.
“It’s miles away, and he was miles away. It wasn’t even close, it was in the middle of nowhere.”
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Yates added that he had seen the mistake for himself but did not want to question a referee of Verhaas’ esteem.
He said: “Jan Verhaas is such a good referee, I knew that wasn’t the pink spot, but I was frightened to say anything.”
Reacting to the incident, one fan said: “Miles away. Haha.”
A second said: “This must be very rare?”
Another said: “Wasn’t even close!”
A fourth added a pair of laughing emojis to the blunder.
Pang went on to pot the next red but failed to win the frame after previously scoring two in a row.
That saw O’Sullivan extend his winning run to five frames in a row before he then added a sixth straight after to end the day 12-4 to the good before play resumes tomorrow.
O’Sullivan, who is hunting a record-breaking eighth world title, needs just one frame to win the round two clash.
World Snooker Championship 2025
WE are BACK at the Crucible for another thrilling fortnight of snooker action!
There will be a new champion this year after reigning champ Kyren Wilson crashed out in the first round after a stunning performance from Lei Peifan.
Ronnie O’Sullivan will take to the snooker table after missing recent tournaments, while world No 1 Judd Trump heads into the tournament as the favourite.
The likes of Shaun Murphy and John Higgins are also expected to be contenders.
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