"6-0, Right? Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Williams Clash Over Snooker Icon Stephen Hendry's Comeback"

STEPHEN HENDRY makes a return to competitive snooker on Monday – but his appearance has divided opinion among the top pros.

Scotland’s seven-time world champion will be reunited with old rivals in the inaugural 900 Crucible Cup on November 24-25 at the Crucible Sports & Social Club in Reading.

The last time Hendry played a competitive match was in January 2024Credit: Getty Ronnie O’Sullivan is optimistic about Hendry’s prospectsCredit: Getty

The 56-year-old faces world No3 Neil Robertson in a best-of-11 frame session, with each frame capped at 900 seconds or 15 minutes.

Yet the pair will both feel jet-lagged having travelled back together on Saturday from a World Tour event in capital Riyadh.

This will be their first meeting since the last 16 of the China Open in 2012 when Robertson, 43, prevailed 5-3 in .

Hendry will play in the two-day event alongside Robertson, Mark Williams, , , Barry Hawkins, Gary Wilson and Xiao Guodong – a total of NINETEEN world title victories between them all.

Ronnie O’Sullivan – who has the same number of Crucible crowns as Hendry – is optimistic about his prospects and reckons the comeback star could cause an upset.

The Rocket, 50, said: “I think he’s got a chance. In the 900, if you foul, it’s ball in hand, anyone can clear up.

“The pockets are probably a little bit more generous than the main match table.

“So I can’t see why he couldn’t win some matches.”

There is a £70,000 prize pot on the table for the Crucible Cup and it will be streamed on Pluto TV.

The last time Hendry played a competitive match was against fellow Scottish cueist Ross Muir in the first round of the Welsh Open in January 2024.

Unlike O’Sullivan, Mark Williams is apparently pessimistic about his pal Hendry’s returnCredit: Getty

The former world No1 was handed an invitational spot on the World Snooker Tour in September 2020 – eight years after he had originally hung up his cue – but he barely played during that time, focusing more on TV commentary work.

These days Hendry is more known for his forthright opinions on TV and through his successful CueTips channel.

Unlike O’Sullivan, Williams – a close pal of Hendry – is pessimistic and reckons the return could prove to be another FLOP.

The Welshman – who lost the 1999 World Snooker final 18–11 to Edinburgh-born Hendry – laughed: “We all know what he’s going to do. Like the last time he tried – useless.

“What is it? The best of 11 frames? So, 6-0, innit?

“You know, we always have a laugh and a joke, but I think, looking back, he’d probably given up a bit too early last time.

“I don’t think he could get over getting beaten all the time. But he was still in the top 32, definitely, when he retired.

“Maybe if you ask him if he could go back, he’d have carried on to see where his form went.”