“[The referee] Leo [Scullion] came over to me and said, apparently I was moving my water when he was on his shot. I said ‘whatever, Leo’. I knew I wasn’t doing it.
“If I was doing it I’d have been the first one to apologise and say sorry, but he wasn’t even down on his shot. People do things at certain times, don’t they?
“Because I pulled him up [on the chalking], he probably felt like he had to pull me up on something. And then he pulled me up for nothing.”
And Selby, winner of 19 ranking titles and ranked No 4 in the world, insists O’Sullivan has played up more often in recent occasions because he’s not happy with his form.
That’s with tempers having also become frayed when O’Sullivan faced Mark Allen in November at the Champion of Champions evefnt, Allen accusing him of being a “bully”.
Selby continued: “I don’t think he’s happy with the way he’s playing at the moment. Sometimes if you’re not happy with the way you’re playing and your form’s not great, you’re looking for things.
“If everything is going great and you’re flying, you don’t seem to notice anything. I wouldn’t fall out with anyone, but I’ll always be willing to stand my ground if I feel like I’m in the right.
“I’ll stand my ground and argue, whether it’s Ronnie, Mark Allen, Neil Robertson or anyone.”
