Snooker star Ronnie O'Sullivan wore pink nail varnish to raise awareness of breast cancer as he claimed his first win since the World Championship.
The 44-year-old, who won his sixth world title at the Crucible in August, came from two frames down to beat France's Brian Ochoiski 4-2 in the first round of the English Open in Milton Keynes.
Let's nail breast cancer @futuredreamss. I'll be getting my pink nails out tonight in support of Breast cancer. Please donate £5 if you can text LNBC5 to 70500 who is going to join me? pic.twitter.com/ecOIFa8was — Ronnie O'Sullivan (@ronnieo147) October 12, 2020
And he did so while sporting nail polish to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which runs throughout October, after a friend suggested having a picture taken while wearing it.
He told Eurosport: "I said 'Forget having a picture, I'll play a match or a tournament with it if you like'."
O'Sullivan revealed that his partner, actress Laila Rouass, had encouraged him to do something similar in the past.
He said: "It's just great to raise awareness for such an important cause – women's breast cancer.
"Laila said years ago I should have painted my nails but I was like nah, nah, nah.
"I suppose I have to thank her for this because she said it was all right to do so I thought I'd give it a go."
"100% for the rest of the week, maybe for the rest of my life... It's a nice feeling!" 💅💕@ronnieo147 on his pink nails and creating awareness for breast cancer charity @futuredreamss 🔴 English Open📺 Eurosport 1💻 📱 Uninterrupted coverage: https://t.co/eDT5opcpHv pic.twitter.com/yVRSeXGwVw — Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) October 12, 2020
O'Sullivan said the varnish was "really nice" and added that he was so taken with the look that it might be "here to stay".
"I get why women like painting their nails now," he said. "It's a nice feeling."
O'Sullivan, who tweeted a picture of himself wearing the polish, struck a particular chord with one Twitter user.
Siobhan McKean replied to his tweet: "Love this! Ronnie we went to Wanstead High School together ... your my claim to fame lol. Means a lot from a stage 4 breast cancer warrior."
