A pigeon managed to invade the World Snooker Championship

Don’t let anyone tell you snooker isn’t exciting.

The crowd gathered inside the Crucible for the World Snooker Championship got more than they bargained for on Friday, after a pigeon made its way on to centre stage.

Players and fans alike stopped in their tracks when the creature flew down from the rafters right onto the table.

Yan Bingtao was getting ready to break in the sixth frame against Mark Selby when they found themselves suddenly distracted.

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It enjoyed a short stay on the cushion before flying up towards the commentary box.

“I don’t believe it. We’ve got a pigeon in the Crucible! Have you ever seen anything like this!” the commentator says in the clip.

“There is a pigeon on the snooker table,” a tweet from BBC Sport said. “You read that right. Think it wants a game.”

Selby walked out into the arena and was instantly shocked by what he saw, as the bird was ushered out towards the players’ entrance.

It’s a first for the sport, with the surprise avian cameo thought to be the first time the Crucible has ever seen a bird rock up onto the table.

The officials later assured the fans inside the venue that the bird had been successfully captured and released outside without coming to any harm.

It was the unexpected highlight of a day which also saw Ronnie O’Sullivan take a 12-4 lead over Mark Allen.

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