Snooker: O’Sullivan calms the Whirlwind
Ronnie O’Sullivan needed only 67 minutes to oust Jimmy White from the China Open in Shanghai and avenge a bitterly disappointing defeat at the recent Benson & Hedges Masters.
Earlier this month White recovered from a 5-2 deficit to edge past O’Sullivan 6-5 in the quarter-finals at Wembley, but this time the Whirlwind was not allowed to blow.
‘‘It wasn’t a case of revenge, I’m not that kind of person, but that doesn’t mean I’m not pleased,’’ said O’Sullivan.
‘‘Jimmy’s very experienced and basically he handled the pressure and the atmosphere at the Masters better than me. That spurred me on because I never like losing to the same person twice on the bounce, no matter who he is.’’
O’Sullivan, aiming to join Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry as only the third player to win the same ranking tournament in three consecutive seasons, signalled his intent by racing 2-0 ahead with breaks of 90 and 92 as White failed to pot a ball.
Swerving the cue-ball out of a snooker, O’Sullivan sank the green to bag frame three and moved 4-0 up at the mid-session interval when he cleared up with 35.
White managed to avoid the whitewash, but trailing 58-0 in the sixth frame he showed his frustration by conceding after leaving a red in the jaws of a top-corner pocket - even though 75 points and six reds were still available.
O’Sullivan has only lost one ranking event match to White - at the 2000 Regal Welsh Open - and now leads his friend and rival 17-9 in career meetings.
He goes forward to play giantkilling 18 year-old Mark Selby, the surprise 5-1 conqueror of Hendry.
‘‘I felt really funny all match,’’ said O’Sullivan.
‘‘Because of jet-lag I woke up at 3am and just couldn’t get back to sleep.
‘‘It might have looked pretty comprehensive but I didn’t feel as if I was cueing well. I feel so knackered it’s frightening. I was so tired, I was shaking out there.
‘‘Obviously I’m happy with the result but I know I’ll have to click up a notch or two to keep the trophy.’’
Having seen world number 95 Selby bundle Hendry out of the event, there is no likelihood of O’Sullivan falling victim to complacency when they met on Friday.
‘‘I watched Mark this afternoon and he was impressive,’’ said O’Sullivan.
‘‘These days you’ve got to play well against anyone and then there’s no guarantee you’re going to win.
‘‘That’s why nobody will ever dominate the circuit like Steve Davis in the 80s and Hendry in the 90s. Davis only had to fall out of bed to reach the quarter-finals but now every single match is difficult.
‘‘Since I won the UK Championship in December I haven’t been playing well or feeling good about my game but you’ve got to play your way through bad spells and get the most out of them.’’
