Ally McCoist has asked Ronnie O’Sullivan whether there is an ‘unwritten rule’ among snooker stars about when they should conclude a frame. The Scot pondered whether there was a subconscious agreement that trailing players should not go chasing snookers when a frame is somewhat out of reach.

O’Sullivan has made it no secret in years gone by that he is willing to leave it all on the table, and his winning attitude could see him return to the Crucible in sensational fashion by ending a three-month hiatus with World Snooker Championship glory.

Speaking on Discovery, McCoist asked: “At what point do you guys think there’s an unwritten rule that snookers are out of the question, I mean, I don’t know, I take it you look at the balls and the situation and you say ‘no, I need two, I need three’, is there an unwritten law?

“Because I don’t know, I can see you maybe getting a little bit annoyed if somebody – I might be wrong Ronnie – started going for snookers and they needed two or three.”

O’Sullivan went on to hint that players are often willing to bow out when a frame is almost out of sight, though that is mainly because they would rather put that phase of play behind them and try and make amends.

He replied: “Yeah, I mean it’s possible I suppose. Some players are good at getting snookers and they can get six, seven snookers on the trot, but the guys now are so good at getting out of them that you think ‘If I need three or four then maybe let’s just get on with the next frame’. I got five once in one frame, in the qualifiers when I was 16. Craig Edwards (who it was against).”

O’Sullivan has returned to the Crucible in style by securing a first-round victory over long-term rival Ali Carter. The 49-year-old is bidding to land the spoils for the eighth time in his career in Sheffield, and his performance in the second session indicated that he is more than capable of battling it out until the latter stages of the competition.

The Rocket took a 5-4 lead into Wednesday’s session before rattling off five consecutive frames to secure a 10-4 success.