ROCKET CRASH

O'Sullivan's dream of a record eighth world title is left in tatters after being ko'd by Bingham

- NEIL GOULDING

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN played down his shock Crucible exit after his quest for a record eighth world title came to a crushing end.

The Rocket lost 13-10 to fellow Essex potter Stuart Bingham at the spiritual home of snooker.

Defeat means he remains level with Stephen Hendry on seven Crucible crowns - and has missed out on retaining his world No.1 status after crashing out at the quarterfinal stage.

"I'm actually really happy to be honest, it's just the way it goes sometimes," said

O'Sullivan, keen to play down his defeat. "I feel like I'm actually getting through the ball, which is more important to me at this stage. It's been a worrying couple of years.