Ronnie O’Sullivan will face previous rival Ali Carter in a blockbuster first-round draw on the World Snooker Championship on the Crucible.
Seven-time champion O’Sullivan is seeded fifth on the event however has not performed in since January after pulling out of the Masters earlier this year.
With the 49-year-old set to play at the Crucible barring a last-minute withdrawal, he’ll tackle a two-time World Championship finalist in Carter, who booked his place in the draw in qualifying.
The primary-round conflict has the potential to be a grudge match, with O’Sullivan calling Carter “not a pleasant particular person” and a “nightmare” to play towards following a heated Masters match final 12 months.
The World Snooker Championship will get underway on Saturday 19 April with the ultimate performed over two days beginning on Sunday 4 Might.
World Snooker Championship draw and schedule in full
(All instances BST)
Saturday 19 April
First spherical
10:00
Kyren Wilson (1) v Lei Peifan
Xiao Guodong (14) v Matthew Selt
14:30
Neil Robertson (9) v Chris Wakelin
Mark Williams (6) v Wu Yize
19:00
Kyren Wilson (1) v Lei Peifan
Barry Hawkins (11) v Hossein Vafaei
Sunday 20 April
First spherical
10:00
Jak Jones (16) v Zhao Xintong
Xiao Guodong (14) v Matthew Selt
14:30
Mark Allen (8) v Fan Zhengyi
Mark Williams (6) v Wu Yize
19:00
Neil Robertson (9) v Chris Wakelin
Barry Hawkins (11) v Hossein Vafaei
Monday 21 April
First spherical
10:00
John Higgins (3) v Joe O’Connor
Jak Jones (16) v Zhao Xintong
14:30
Ding Junhui (10) v Zak Surety
Mark Allen (8) v Fan Zhengyi
19:00
Si Jiahui (13) v David Gilbert
John Higgins (3) v Joe O’Connor
Tuesday 22 April
First spherical
10:00
Zhang Anda (12) v Pang Junxu
Shaun Murphy (15) v Daniel Wells
14:30
Ronnie O’Sullivan (5) v Ali Carter
Ding Junhui (10) v Zak Surety
19:00
Judd Trump (2) v Zhou Yuelong
Si Jiahui (13) v David Gilbert
Wednesday 23 April
First spherical
10:00
Zhang Anda (12) v Pang Junxu
Shaun Murphy (15) v Daniel Wells
14:30
Ronnie O’Sullivan (5) v Ali Carter
Luca Brecel (7) v Ryan Day
19:00
Mark Selby (4) v Ben Woollaston
Judd Trump (2) v Zhou Yuelong
Thursday 24 April
First spherical
Mark Selby (4) v Ben Woollaston
Second spherical
Schedule TBC
Friday 25 April
Second spherical
Saturday 26 April
Second spherical/quarter-finals
Sunday 27 April
Second spherical
Wednesday 30 April
Quarter-finals
Thursday 1 Might
Semi-finals
Friday 2 Might
Semi-finals
Saturday 3 Might
Semi-finals
Sunday 4 Might
Closing
Monday 5 Might
Closing
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