Mark Williams penalised for PICKING UP the cue ball as bizarre joke backfires and rival storms off

Welsh wizard Mark Williams was hit with a seven-point penalty during his World Grand Prix match against Hossein Vafaei after a bizarre practical joke which went wrong - and left TV commentators gobsmacked.

The incident came in the fifth frame when the 48-year-old PICKED UP the cue ball and hid it in his pocked while referee Olivier Marteel was replacing the balls. With the crowd in fits of laughter, Williams handed the ball back to Marteel only for the Belgian official to sternly say: "You know that's a penalty seven. It's a penalty seven points to Hossein. You touched the ball during a consultation period, it's in the rules.”

ITV commentators describing the action from Leicesters's Morningside Arena had queried his actions before he was penalised with one saying: “Why’s he got the cue ball in his pocket. I’m not actually sure if he’s allowed to do that. We’re about to find out…”

Three-time world champion Williams is a legend of the alongside the likes of Ronnie O'Sullivan and Scotland's own John Higgins and he couldn’t quite believe what had happened and later said: "World Snooker say 'have a bit of fun, try and show your character' and stuff like that. You do something like that, just to have a bit of fun, because it took him a while to get back, so I just picked it up and put it in my pocket, and I got fouled seven for it! What do they want? They want you to express yourself and have a bit of fun. When you do it, you get penalty points, so I won't be doing that again!”

The Welshman went on to win the match 4-1, but there was yet more drama at the end when Vafaei walked off without shaking hands with Williams. "I just pulled him up about it and said 'what's your problem', and he said it was because I slapped my leg at