Ronnie O’Sullivan is looking to make a return to the world snooker championship for his 20th title. The 41-year-old confirmed he was in talks with organisers about competing at London’s 02 Arena next May and said: “It would be my first time playing there.”
Ronnie O’Sullivan has beaten David Gilbert in the final of the World Snooker Championship. This is his first major title since he won it in 2012, and will take him to number three on the all-time list, behind Stephen Hendry and Ray Reardon. Read more in detail here: o’sullivan.
O’Sullivan’s most recent global championship came in 2020, 19 years after his first.
| Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre is the venue for this event. Dates: April 16th through May 2nd |
| Live coverage is available on TV and Red Button, as well as on iPlayer, the Sport website, and the Sport app. |
Ronnie O’Sullivan, the world number one, credits a “gladiator” mindset for his 10-5 victory against David Gilbert at the World Championship.
The Rocket, who is trying for a record-tying eighth Crucible title, rallied from a 3-0 deficit with high breaks of 122, 109, and 104.
In the second round, O’Sullivan, 46, will play either Mark Allen or Scott Donaldson.
In his quest for a fourth world championship, Mark Williams of Wales leads amateur compatriot Michael White 7-2.
Williams was on fire, hitting three hundreds and further breaks of 90 and 71.
Zhao Xintong, the reigning UK champion, made a statement by defeating Welshman Jamie Clarke 10-2. The Chinese player won the World Championship for the first time in spectacular manner, stroking in two centuries and five more breaks of 70 or more.
Anthony McGill of Scotland, a semi-finalist two years ago, leads Liam Highfield of England 6-3 going into the final on Monday morning.
Another Welshman, 20-year-old Jackson Page, and Scotland’s Stephen Maguire are both 6-3 up over Englishmen Barry Hawkins and Shaun Murphy. Those games will end at 19:00 BST.
O’Sullivan wants to break more records.
O’Sullivan is usually recognized as one of the best snooker players of all time, with names like Stephen Hendry and Steve Davis.
Now, the Englishman is attempting to reverse milestones that would put him in the lead on his own.
He is making his 30th appearance at the Crucible Theatre, equaling Davis’ record, and his victory against Gilbert gives him 70 victories at the arena, tying him with Hendry.
At the tournament’s media day on the day of the competition, a comfortable O’Sullivan was upbeat, claiming he is “not going to turn down” the opportunity to equal his old rival Hendry with a seventh global victory.
A more relaxed attitude from O’Sullivan, combined with his considerable skill, makes him an even more dangerous possibility, since he previously would have wilted after falling behind.
Gilbert got out to a fast start, jumping out to a 3-0 lead, but O’Sullivan held his cool and won six frames in a row to take control.
Gilbert won the opening two frames of the second session, but a fluke yellow flipped the tide in O’Sullivan’s favor, and he went on to win three in a row.
“I’m out there playing, loving it, and just trying to compete,” O’Sullivan said. It’s like the movie Gladiator, when Russell Crowe has a hole in his arm and knows he’ll die, but you just have to find a way to save him. That is what gladiators and winners do.
“I wasn’t born to play snooker, but I was born to do anything with a ball,” says the player. I only wish there had been another sport that would have fit my disposition better. Snooker is a sport that I like playing.
“It takes graft, time, and effort to be the greatest at anything; sometimes you wonder why you’re doing it.”
“I was never born a winner; instead, it had to be instilled in me. I had a father figure who encouraged me, “You are going to be a success,” similar to Serena Williams and Tiger Woods. I wasn’t very worried, but I was psychologically hardened and mentored in this manner.”
“He scores so good, it appears like his head is screwed on, and he has a tremendous opportunity,” Gilbert remarked.
Sign up for My Sport to stay up to date with snooker news.
