World Championship star walked out mid-match, got hit with ban and dislikes O'Sullivan

 The authorities will be on edge when this man cues up at the Crucible.

Matthew Selt is a controversial figure

Snooker star Matthew Selt has never been far away from controversy. The world No.34 will be back at the Crucible this week after booking his place in the World Championship, but typically for Selt, qualification didn’t come without a flashpoint. 

He said sorry to Jimmy Robertson after coming through a final-frame decider with his rival to win 10-9. However, the match was plagued by complaints from Robertson that his rival had deliberately been putting him off, with Selt saying: “I have to apologise and say sorry to Jimmy. He said that I was distracting him and putting him off. So this win, there is no good feeling whatsoever towards it.”

It’s not the first time Selt has hit the headlines for the wrong reasons, and almost certainly won’t be the last. Express Sport looks at his colourful career so far…

Walking out mid-match in Saudi

The lucrative money offered at the Saudi Arabia Masters tournament last September wasn’t enough to persuade Selt to stay for the end of his match with Pang Junxu. Trailing 4-3, the Englishman was still right in the contest when he missed a straightforward black and decided enough was enough.

The crowd was then left stunned as he duly returned to his seat, gathered his belongings, and walked out. The match referee tried to intervene, but after a brief and spiky conversation, Selt headed for the exit.

Selt has qualified for the World Snooker Championship.

Punished for poor behaviour

The drama from the Middle East didn’t end there. Selt was later charged on three counts by the World Snooker Tour, having been accused of rude and abusive language towards a Matchroom Senior Executive, sending an abusive text to one WPBSA Member, and being aggressive towards another.

He didn’t contest the charges and offered an apology. It didn’t save him from being sanctioned, hit with a three-month suspended ban and fined £21,000.

Spat with Ronnie O’Sullivan

Last August, O’Sullivan came through a thriller with Selt at the Xi'an Grand Prix, winning 5-4. The tension throughout was on a knife-edge, not because of the score, but a previous social media incident between the pair.

In April 2022, Selt didn’t hold back when insulting O’Sullivan over his character. In a rant that cost him £3k, he took to X after a defeat to say: “Rather not play than be an absolute c*** of a human," before calling O'Sullivan the "biggest p**** on tour."