Ali Carter suffered an 18-11 defeat to Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final of snooker's World Championship.

The Colchester-born potter, who grew up in Tiptree, went into tonight's final session 15-10 down.

He managed to pull one frame back but was powerless to stop his Essex rival winning a fourth World Championship.

It was Carter's second defeat in a Crucible final, having also lost to O'Sullivan in 2008.

Afterwards he joked: "If he retires I might win it!

"I kept punching but I was disappointed with the way I played in the final.

"Ronnie put me under all sorts of pressure.

"His safety play was better than mine and when he's at the table potting he's a genius."

Carter admitted earlier in the snooker season that he was considering retiring, due to his poor form and ongoing battle with Crohn's disease.

However, he said after tonight's final: "I'm going to keep playing for a while".

And asked whether he thought he could win the championship in the future, he added: "It takes a lot to be a winner here but I believe I can win it one day."