At the World Championship, O'Sullivan suffered a shock first-round defeat at the hands of 23-year-old debutant James Cahill, who was also the first amateur ever to compete at the Crucible. O'Sullivan trailed 4−5 after the first session, then fell 5−8 behind before rallying to level the match at 8−8. However, Cahill won the final two frames to record a 10−8 victory. It was O'Sullivan's fourth first-round loss in his 27 Crucible campaigns.