Ronnie O'Sullivan suffered a 5-3 defeat to Ali Carter as he was knocked out of the German Masters at the second round stage. Carter hit a 128 break in the first frame and went 3-0 up before the seven-time world champion produced a 93 break on the way to levelling at 3-3. However, Carter - a two-time German Masters winner - claimed the next two frames to secure his spot in the last 16. The pair have had their run-ins in the past but Carter played down their rivalry after beating O'Sullivan for only the second time in 22 matches. It is all heat of the moment stuff between two sportsmen and he is the best snooker player of all-time.