Ronnie O'Sullivan makes telling admission as Neil Robertson pips him to £500k Saudi payday

Ronnie O'Sullivan admitted that he was 'outplayed' by Neil Robertson in the final of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters. The latter edged a deciding frame to secure a narrow 10-9 victory and win the tournament for the very first time. He was rewarded for his efforts with a £500,000 payday, with O'Sullivan landing the runner-up prize of £200,000.

O'Sullivan found himself 7-2 down at one stage but won the next five frames to level up at 7-7. From then on, the two players traded frames until one more was needed to determine the winner. It was Robertson who held his nerve under the pressure, rolling in a break of 87 to wrap up the match and get his hands on the trophy.

Speaking on TNT Sports after the final frame, O'Sullivan gave full credit to his Australian rival and insisted that he was not too disappointed with the result.

He said: "Neil deserved his victory he was the better player today. I just tried to hang on to him and make a bit of a game of it. I was pleased I did tonight. I was pleased to take it a little bit longer.

"[I was] 6-2 down, he outplayed me, [at] 7-2 down it looked like it could be an early night. I was pleased to take it a little bit longer. Neil played the better snooker, probably played the best snooker all week.

"Coming here at the start of the week, I would have been happy to win a couple of matches, so to get to the final I'm very happy. You can't be too greedy. I was pleased with my performances, disappointed I didn't win, but Neil deserved his victory."

Robertson, meanwhile, said the elation of his victory surpassed that of his sole World Snooker Championship triumph in 2010.

"Ronnie was pretty unlucky in the final couple of frames to not get a split on the reds, otherwise it would have been all over," he said.

"It is not about winning or losing. I'm just grateful to share this stage with him. I'm just glad I could be part of something special. I think this surpasses the World Championship.

"I've had to answer a lot of questions, like can I beat Ronnie in a final of this magnitude? To beat him here with so much on the line, it's definitely my best win."

Robertson climbs to third in the world rankings as a result of his victory, while O'Sullivan slips to fourth. In addition to his £200,000 prize, he will also bank another £180,333 for his two 147 breaks against Chris Wakelin in the semi-finals plus a share of the £50,000 highest break prize.

For the latest breaking stories and headlines, sign up to our WhatsApp community here.