‘I’m playing awful, I have zero confidence’ – Ronnie O’Sullivan compares himself to ‘swan’ at World Snooker Championship

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN took another step towards a historic EIGHTH World Championship after booking himself a spot in the semi-finals.

The Rocket beat world no.13 Si Jiahui 13-9 to earn a place in the final four at the Crucible.

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Ronnie O’Sullivan has booked a spot in the World Championship semi-finals[/caption]

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O’Sullivan beat China’s Si Jiahui 13-9 to reach the final four[/caption]

O’Sullivan is competing in his 33rd consecutive World Championship, returning to the table with a new cue after skipping out on five of events on medical grounds in 2025.

The snooker superstar’s involvement in the tournament was up in the air in the weeks and days leading up to the action in Sheffield.

But having made every effort to get back to it, O’Sullivan has looked back to his usual best – beating Jiahui, Junxu Pang and old foe Ali Carter to get to the semi-finals.

And he’s done all that despite “awful” form and a dodgy cue.

The 49-year-old, has been chasing Stephen Hendry’s mark of seven World Snooker Championships since 1999 and he equalled that feat three years ago.

Yet despite a year in which he has struggled off the table, he is now closer than ever to immortality.

This 13-9 quarter-final win over the exciting Jiahui, which was sealed with a closing 74 break, has put him into a record-extending 14th semi-final.

Yet he says his equipment is not in good shape and he is surprised he has made it this far.

He said: “I’m grinding it out. Had work done on my cue. The cue feels awful. I am playing awful. I need a new ferrule. I miss the buzz of playing well.

“I’m trying all sorts, to hold the cue in a different place, try anything. Si played poorly in the whole match. He let me off. He gave me chances.

“I’m looking forward to each match. I will keep plugging away. I love the Chinese guys to do well. It’s not easy for them.

“They are brilliant. A credit to China. Zhao is a formidable opponent.”

O’Sullivan – who snapped his cue in anger in January and is using a new piece of wood – added: “Well, I don’t think I can get any worse but we will see.”

“I have butchered more shots in this tournament than I have in years.

“I’m like a swan on the top but flapping legs at the bottom. I am playing with zero confidence. I have to grind it out.”

The Rocket will now take on amateur Zhao Xintong over four sessions across three days over the best of 33 frames, a Chinese cueist branded “stupid” following a controversial corruption scandal.

The Chinese Cyclone only returned to the amateur circuit last September after serving a 20-month suspension as one of 10 players caught up in a match-fixing sting.

Xintong, 28, was punished for betting on results over a three-year period and also being a party to another player fixing two snooker matches.

Yet he did not fix a match himself and was given a lighter sentence than the other offenders for early admissions and his plea of guilty.

By beating Chris Wakelin 13-5 in the quarters, he will earn £100,000 in prize money and be parachuted into the world’s top 64 next season.

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O’Sullivan will face controversial Chinese cueist Zhao Xintong in the semi-finals[/caption]

Asked how difficult it must have been, to go from zero matches to the one-table set-up in seven months, Wakelin, 33, replied: “I don’t know – because I’ve never been suspended.

“I don’t do silly things. I don’t make silly mistakes.

“We’re all aware of the dangers when we get on tour. You get involved in that sort of thing, you’re gonna get punished for it. He learned a hard lesson.

“He’s back on tour now, but he missed out on two years in his mid-twenties, which should be the golden stage of his career.

“I’ve had no doubt that he’ll go on to have several successes down the line now that he is back.

“But it was really stupid, the whole situation for all those guys that got involved. In terms of where’s Zhao’s going, he’s got his better days in front of him now.

“We all know how talented Zhao is. He’s a fabulous kid as well. He’s got a great smile and he’s very tenacious out there.

“His talent is just off-the-scale, some of the balls that he knocks in and the opportunities that he creates. He does things that a lot of players on tour aren’t capable of.

“There’s no reason at all that he can’t go on to lift the trophy this week. I think it would be amazing for snooker if he did.”

Xintong – who was a top-10 player when he was first charged in January 2023 – said: “This game was very important for both. We had big pressure.

“In the end I won, so I’m really happy. Hopefully I have the stamina to do it. I will try my best because now I’m in the semi-final, I can make some difference.”

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Chris Wakelin labelled Xintong as ‘stupid’ for his part in a corruption scandal[/caption]