The 2024 World Snooker Championships may only be in the second round, but Ronnie O'Sullivan already looks like the over-riding favourite to win a record eighth crown.
In doing so, O'Sullivan would break the record he set two years ago to become the oldest world champion at the age of 48.
Throughout the past few decades, there has been constant questions on who can take over from O'Sullivan as the dominant force in snooker.
Mark Selby threatened to do so when he won four world titles in the space of eight years, but he's struggled to rediscover his best form of late while O'Sullivan has found another level to his game.]
Looking at this year's World Snooker Championships and it highlights a worrying trend in the sport that the next generation aren't up to scratch.
Ronnie O'Sullivan looks set to win another world title at 48 years of age
GETTY
The average age of players who made it through to the last-16 is 38.5 with more than half of the field being over 40 years old.
The provisional world rankings tell a similar story with just 11 of the top 75 players aged 24 and under.
Si Jiahui is seen as the next big star to emerge out of China having progressed all the way to the semi-finals of last year's World Championships at the age of 20.
There are a handful of others under the age of 30 - Zhou Yuelong, Pang Junxu, Joe O'Sonnor and Lyu Haotian - who have all impressed in spells.
But there's still a gulf in class that's evident on the biggest stage with O'Sullivan setting an extremely high bar for everyone else to follow.
Former world champions such as Judd Trump, Shaun Murphy, Stuart Bingham and John Higgins are also proving too difficult for the next generation to knock off their perch.
Part of snooker's success in yesteryear was down to the sheer amount of talent that emerged through the 90s.
O'Sullivan, Stephen Hendry, Higgins, Mark Williams, Ken Doherty were among an elite set of players that took over the sport heading into the 21st century.
All of them brought a fresh spark to the sport from the days of Steve Davis, Alex Higgins and Ray Reardon.
O'Sullivan remains the main attraction due to his unpredictable nature on the table and entertaining action around the table.
The seven-time world champion even called out the younger generation of players for failing to knock him off his perch during the 2024 Masters.
Ronnie O'Sullivan is the oldest world champion in history
GETTY
He said: "I don't feel that old. I feel young in my mind. I feel a lot younger round the table when I play these younger players.
"They look old and their brains are quite slow. I still feel my brain is pretty quick round the snooker table, which is enough.
"They need to get their acts together because I am going blind, have got a dodgy arm and they still can't beat me."
Si Jiahui is the only player under the age of 28 who made it to the last-16
GETTY
At the moment, it looks as though O'Sullivan could comfortably continue at the top of the sport to bypass another generation of players before the next superstar emerges.
As entertaining as that might be to see a 58-year-old O'Sullivan moving into double digits with world titles, it's not something the sport will be hoping for.
Darts has undergone a huge transformation this year due to the emergence of Luke Littler with a new fan base tuning in to see the 17-year-old in action.
LATEST SPORT NEWS:
John Higgins is part of the old guard still dominating the sport
GETTY
O'Sullivan similarly took the world of snooker by storm when he turned professional at the age of 16.
The sport is anxiously waiting for its own Littler to truly challenge O'Sullivan and the other elder statesmen of the circuit.
But this year's World Championships indicate that is still a long way away from happening.
