World Snooker Championship draw REVEALED as Ronnie O’Sullivan discovers first opponent ahead of Crucible showdown

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN has discovered his first round opponent at the Crucible.

The World Snooker Championship gets underway this Saturday and will last through to April 6.

Luca Brecel is bidding to become the first player to defend the World Championship title in 45 years
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Luca Brecel is bidding to become the first player to defend the World Championship title in 45 yearsCredit: PA
Ronnie O'Sullivan is aiming to win a record eighth title at the Crucible
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Ronnie O'Sullivan is aiming to win a record eighth title at the CrucibleCredit: Getty
There will also be competition from the likes of former world champion Judd Trump
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There will also be competition from the likes of former world champion Judd TrumpCredit: Getty

And you will be able to follow all the action from it with SunSport's live blog here.

Defending champion Luca Brecel is looking to break the curse held by the Sheffield venue by defending his maiden title - a feat not achieved in 45 years.

O'Sullivan, beaten by Brecel in the quarter-final last year, is also bidding to make his own history by winning a record eighth World Championship title.

The Rocket, 48, won a record-equalling seventh title in 2022.

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However, there will also be competition from former champions Judd Trump and Mark Williams.

Those four are among the 16 players to have been seeded, with Mark Allen, Mark Selby, Ali Carter, John Higgins and Shaun Murphy also among them.

Bullet Brecel will kick off his title defence at 10am on Saturday, with 2019 champion Trump also playing on the opening day.

O'Sullivan's first game is not til Wednesday 24.

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Find out what the draw has conjured up below:

Luca Brecel v David Gilbert

Robert Milkins v Pang Junxu

Ali Carter v Stephen Maguire

Shaun Murphy v Lyu Haotian

Mark Selby v Joe O'Connor

Kyren Wilson v Dominic Dale

John Higgins v Jamie Jones

Mark Allen v Robbie Williams

Judd Trump v Hossein Vafaei

Tom Ford v Ricky Walden

Zhang Anda v Jak Jones

Mark Williams v Si Jiahui

Ding Junhui v Jack Lisowki

Gary Wilson v Stuart Bingham

Barry Hawkins v Ryan Day

Ronnie O'Sullivan v Jackson Page

The final will be on May 6.

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There is £500,000 up for grabs for the winner.

Furthermore, any player who achieves a maximum break of 147 will earn £40,000.