‘Bored’ O’Sullivan Into Last 16
Despite insisting he needs an “adult crèche” to keep him entertained, Ronnie O’Sullivan appeared to enjoy another emphatic win at the BetVictor Welsh Open, beating Jimmy Robertson 4-0.
Three-time Welsh Open winner O’Sullivan fired breaks of 94 and 131 as he set up a last 16 clash with Yu Delu at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff. Match schedule.
The Rocket’s win today took 55 minutes, that’s 16 minutes longer than yesterday’s 4-0 defeat of Tian Pengfei. And it’s the spells in between matches that the 40-year-old is struggling to cope with.
“These events leave you with a lot of time on your hands, waiting around for one match a day,” said O’Sullivan, chasing his second title of 2016 having won the Masters last month. “Maybe they should stick an adult crèche here to entertain us because I get so bored. Today I’ve had a haircut, been for a Chinese, been for a coffee, been to a cafe, went to the shops to buy some food, had a sleep and then played a game of snooker. I’d rather play two matches a day.
“I wasn’t born with a great temperament in the way that John Higgins, Mark Selby and Neil Robertson were. We all have weaknesses and I have to work on that.
“Coping with the mental challenge is a skill and I wish I had learned that 20 years ago because I would have won a lot more titles. It was a good professional performance today, I was happy with my mindset. It started scrappy but I was able to keep my cool.”
China’s Yu edged out Dechawat Poomjaeng 4-3, taking the deciding frame on the final pink.
Neath’s Michael White delighted his fans with a 4-1 win over Liang Wenbo, his top break 75. “That was the best I have ever felt,” said White, who now plays John Higgins. “Straight away I was into my rhythm and everything just clicked into place. It was sweet revenge because Liang getting to the UK Championship final knocked me out of the top 16 and stopped me getting into the Masters. If I play like that again tomorrow it should be a close match against John.”
Mark Allen looked sharp in a 4-1 win over Ryan Day, firing breaks of 78, 135 and 105.
Judd Trump beat Alan McManus 4-2 to set up a match with Joe Perry. McManus led 2-1 and had a chance to win frame four but his attempted clearance faltered on 61 when he missed the final pink with the rest. Trump potted a sensational long pink and added the black for 2-2. He then won the last two frames with runs of 112 and 57.
“I was struggling with my concentration early on but that pink and black were important and changed the match,” said Bristol’s Trump. “Most of the top seeds are getting through so that’s good for the crowd and good for everyone. The standard will go up now and we’re down to two tables so it will be a different atmosphere. I’m using the Stephen Hendry approach, just getting through the rounds and trying to improve as it goes on.”