Ronnie O’Sullivan will launch his World Championship bid by facing a former potato farmer who was desperate to avoid him.

Tamworth’s David Gilbert waited for news of the draw with one thought in his mind.

“Keep Ronnie on the other side of the draw,” he said.

But the 34-year-old struck unlucky, being the qualifier drawn to tackle the five-time Crucible king who has already this year won the Masters and Welsh Open.

Their clash will span the opening Sunday and Monday, and Gilbert must put himself in the mindset to tackle the player he most keenly wanted to avoid.

“It’ll be a massive occasion,” he said. “I played Stephen Hendry there (in 2007) and didn’t realise how big or important that day was at the time.”

When it comes to O’Sullivan, Gilbert will also have to rein in his admiration of the 40-year-old.

“I’m a massive fan of him myself and I’ll just have to get on with it and play the table,” he said.

Defending champion Stuart Bingham begins his challenge tomorrow with a tough opener against two-time finalist Ali Carter.

First round draw
Bingham vs Carter; Maguire vs McManus; Walden vs R. Williams; Higgins vs Day; Trump vs Wenbo; Gould vs Ding; M. Williams vs Dott; Robertson vs Holt; Murphy vs McGill; Fu vs Ebdon; Hawkins vs Zhang; O’Sullivan vs Gilbert; Allen v Mann; Perry vs Wilson; M. White vs Baird; Selby vs Milkins.