Ronnie O'Sullivan will not be in action until the World Snooker Championship after he withdrew from the World Grand Prix due to medical reasons.
O'Sullivan has been absent since he snapped his cue and struck the table during his Championship League exit in early January, followed by a dramatic withdrawal from the Masters just over a day before his scheduled clash with rival John Higgins.
Since then, he has pulled out of the Welsh Open, German Masters and now the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong, which is a tournament for the top 32 players on snooker's one-year list.
The one-year list is based on the players who have collected the most prize money from this season. The next two tournaments, the Players Championship and Tour Championship, are limited to the top 16 and top eight players only.
O'Sullivan is currently ranked 24th on the one-year list, so will be unable to compete in those events, thus will next be in action at the World Championship in Sheffield from April 19 until May 5.
"Ronnie O'Sullivan has pulled out of next week's World Grand Prix in Hong Kong for medical reasons," read a statement from World Snooker Tour.
"O'Sullivan was due to face Si Jiahui in the opening round on Wednesday. Instead, he will be replaced by the next player in line, Hossein Vafaei who is 33rd in the Johnstone's Paint One-Year Rankings. Vafaei will replace O'Sullivan directly in the draw and will play Si."
O'Sullivan has withdrawn from nine events this season, since it began in July, and is yet to win a tournament.
The 49-year-old reached the semi-finals at the Xi'an Grand Prix, Shanghai Masters and Riyadh Season Championship in the early part of the 2024/25 campaign but has largely been far from his best.
After pulling out of the Welsh Open last month just hours before being scheduled to play, O'Sullivan apologised to his fans on social media.
"I realise plenty of people who bought tickets to some recent snooker events will have been frustrated when I withdrew," O'Sullivan wrote on X.
"So, I just wanted to say sorry to those of you who've been disappointed with me having to pull out of those tournaments.
"I've been trying to prioritise my health and well-being, which sometimes means making last-minute decisions not to play.
"It's never an easy decision and I hate letting people down. I'm doing what I can to get back to my best, and I'm grateful for all your support and understanding."
SportNews' Nigel Chiu:
"That's the big question now Ronnie O'Sullivan has no more tournaments he could enter before the big one at the Crucible in mid-April.
"It wasn't a big surprise to see him pull out of some of the events he has this season, such as the Scottish Open or Welsh Open, because O'Sullivan has been more focused on the Asian events, partly due to his sponsors and his opinion on the conditions in tournaments that take place in Saudi Arabia and China.
"Pulling out of the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong is big, though. O'Sullivan loves Hong Kong and is incredibly popular there, so this latest withdrawal is the most telling.
"For many people, including myself, he's snooker's GOAT having spent over three decades at, or near, the top of the game, so in some ways he can do what he wants with his schedule and the most important thing is his health.
"He's never withdrawn from the World Snooker Championship since turning professional in 1992 but did take nearly a whole season out in 2013, only to come back for the Crucible and win it in typical Ronnie fashion.
"His fans will hope he can do something similar this season to break Stephen Hendry's record of seven world titles. After all, snooker is much better with O'Sullivan at the table, but his life comes first."
