Ronnie O'Sullivan - the greatest showman in snooker

WORLD SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL
THE CRUCIBLE • 1-2 MAY
[2] RONNIE O'SULLIVAN 18-13 JUDD TRUMP [4]

[1]	5-3	Sun 1pm 0-98 (72), 120-0 (120), 78-1 (68), 73-66 (JT 52) 62-13, 105-4 (105), 0-98 (97), 50-79
[2]	7-2	Sun 7pm 36-100 (73), 117-7 (66, 50), 122-9 (118) 107-15 (97), 77-0, 94-26 (87), 4-80 (80), 79-0 (60), 88-33 (88)
[3]	2-6	Mon 1pm 22-115 (107), 25-90 (59), 0-81, 71-45 (64), 20-66, 51-60, 68-1 (55), 0-126 (105)
[4]	4-2	Mon 7pm 82-12 (82), 88-12 (88), 27-72 (64), 91-1 (75), 0-151 (109), 93-0 (85)

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN joined Stephen Hendry on a record seven World Snooker Championship titles with a scintillating performance against Judd Trump at the Crucible.

O'Sullivan beat Trump 18-13 to go level with Hendry, and one world title clear of Steve Davis and Ray Reardon. At the age of 46, the Rocket also became the oldest Crucible champion ahead of former mentor Reardon.

"I think it meant more to him [Hendry] than me to have seven world titles but we will share it," O'Sullivan said.

"Hendry is an absolute legend of the game. It is just a number - I do not get too caught up in that."

Nevertheless, it was an extremely emotional O'Sullivan who picked up the trophy on Monday night, having first made time to give Trump a huge bear-hug and words of encouragement.

Trump, for his part, admitted that he had left himself with far too much to do after the first day of the contest at the end of which he found himself 12-5 down.

The 32-year-old Bristolian, appearing in his third world final, took the first frame of the match - but, ultimately, that would be the last time he led.

O'Sullivan responded immediately in the second frame with a 120 break and then took advantage of some sloppy Trump play to stride into a 5-1 lead.

In an early critical moment, the Rocket won the fourth on a re-spotted black with a cocked-hat double after having needed a snooker.

But, somehow, the opening session ended with Trump recovering to trail only 5-3 - while the Rocket was rocked after receiving an official warning from match referee Olivier Marteel.

It remains unclear what exactly happened at the end of the eighth frame after O'Sullivan ran out of position and failed to get out of a self-imposed snooker.

However, the Chigwell man has previously expressed his displeasure at his mistakes by making lewd gestures - although, on this occasion, he vehemently protested his innocence.

There had been an earlier minor flash-point in the third frame when Marteel failed to re-spot the cue ball correctly so that it unquestionably had a material impact on the options available to O'Sullivan.

But the incident at the end of the first afternoon made for altogether far more uncomfortable viewing - and the Rocket walked out of the arena without shaking hands with Marteel.

At the start of the second session on Sunday night, O'Sullivan did shake hands with the official, and the friction from the end of the afternoon thankfully appeared to dissipate.

Still, it made for interesting footage for the producers with whom O'Sullivan has agreed to make a Netflix-style documentary...

Back to the snooker - and Trump again took the first frame to reduce arrears further to 5-4.

From then on, though, O'Sullivan preyed on Trump's evident discomfort to achieve an ultimately unassailable advantage.

The Rocket took the 10th frame after a bad Trump error in the balls, won the 11th with a century break, and took the 12th after Trump messed up another big chance by missing a black off the spot.

In an error-strewn 13th frame, immediately after the mid-session interval, O'Sullivan again got the better of the early exchanges against an increasingly-forlorn Trump whose game was "in tatters", according to Hendry on BBC commentary duties.

O'Sullivan also took the 14th with an 87 break - and so it was to the great credit to Trump that he made a run of 80 in the 15th frame to stop the rot.

The last two frames of the session went to form, though - O'Sullivan took the 16th following an extremely unfortunate in-off by Trump with cue ball deflecting off a red into the pocket.

And, while he was nowhere near as unlucky as that in the 17th, it will have felt just as agonising for Trump to lose after he had again got in first.

Resuming on the second day, there was a fairly widespread anticipation that O'Sullivan might win with a session spare, given Trump's struggles.

Instead, the Ace produced by far his best snooker of the Final, bookending the session with century breaks of 107 and 105, and taking six of the eight frames to close back to 14-11.

This Final had finally sparked into life - and now at least it was on the baize.

All eyes again were on O'Sullivan ahead of the evening denouement - from the talk of winning with a session to spare, suddenly a momentous Trump comeback was on the cards.

The doubts about O'Sullivan did not last for long, though - and, at the final mid-session interval, he had extended his lead back to five frames at 17-12 with a trio of half-century breaks.

On each occasion, O'Sullivan appeared to be in with a good chance of a 16th ton at the Championship, which would have equalled a Crucible record held by Hendry and Mark Williams, only to break down with the frame already won.

Nevertheless, the Rocket still made three centuries in a largely free-flowing Final - including his 200th at the Crucible in the second frame.

Trump also made three tons, including a 109 in frame 30 which, coincidentally, set a new record of 109 centuries at this World Snooker Championship, one more than in 2021.

That effort pulled the score back to 17-13 - but, with still so much breathing room, there was no way that O'Sullivan was going to be denied.

In the 31st frame, the Rocket worked an opening by forcing Trump to play a containing safety shot which left a chance on a red along the cushion.

It was Trump's last shot of the Championship, as O'Sullivan then triumphantly breezed to a break of 85 to charge over the finish line amid a jubilant atmosphere.

Pertinently, in the evening mid-session interval, the BBC had shown an excellent feature about success and failure, something which O'Sullivan especially has had to deal with throughout his career.

Of course, he would be the first to admit he has failed to act in an appropriate manner in some of the situations in which he has found himself.

Nevertheless, for many years now, he has been acknowledged as the most talented player to have picked up a cue - the greatest of all time, if you like.

The difference now is that, whether he actually really cares about the numbers or not, O'Sullivan finally has the seven world titles with which to prove it.

WORLD SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP
THE CRUCIBLE THEATRE

FIRST ROUND [Best of 19 frames]

	[1]	Mark Selby	10-7	Jamie Jones
	[16]	Yan Bingtao	10-6	Chris Wakelin
	[9]	Barry Hawkins	7-10	Jackson Page
	[8]	Mark Williams	10-3	Michael White

	[5]	Kyren Wilson	10-8	Ding Junhui
	[12]	Stuart Bingham	10-5	Lyu Haotian
	[13]	Anthony McGill	10-7	Liam Highfield
	[4]	Judd Trump	10-4	Hossein Vafaei

	[3]	Neil Robertson	10-5	Ashley Hugill
	[14]	Jack Lisowski	10-8	Matthew Stevens
	[11]	Luca Brecel	5-10	Noppon Saengkham
	[6]	John Higgins	10-7	Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

	[7]	Zhao Xintong	10-2	Jamie Clarke
	[10]	Shaun Murphy	8-10	Stephen Maguire
	[15]	Mark Allen	10-7	Scott Donaldson
	[2]	Ronnie O'Sullivan	10-5	David Gilbert

SECOND ROUND [Best of 25 frames]

	[1]	Mark Selby	10-13	Yan Bingtao	[16]
		Jackson Page	3-13	Mark Williams	[8]
	[5]	Kyren Wilson	9-13	Stuart Bingham	[12]
	[13]	Anthony McGill	11-13	Judd Trump	[4]

	[3]	Neil Robertson	12-13	Jack Lisowski	[14]
		Noppon Saengkham	7-13	John Higgins	[6]
	[7]	Zhao Xintong	9-13	Stephen Maguire
	[15]	Mark Allen	4-13	Ronnie O'Sullivan	[2]

QUARTER FINALS [Best of 25 frames]

	[16]	Yan Bingtao	11-13	Mark Williams	[8]
	[12]	Stuart Bingham	8-13	Judd Trump	[4]
	[14]	Jack Lisowski	12-13	John Higgins	[6]
		Stephen Maguire	5-13	Ronnie O'Sullivan	[2]

SEMI FINALS [Best of 33 frames]

	[8]	Mark Williams	16-17	Judd Trump	[4]
	[6]	John Higgins	11-17	Ronnie O'Sullivan	[2]

CENTURIES 109
147 Neil Robertson 

140 Stuart Bingham
138 Mark Williams (2)

137 Mark Selby, Jack Lisowski, Mark Williams (2)

136 Zhao Xintong
135 Jackson Page, Mark Williams

134 Mark Selby, Ronnie O'Sullivan

132 Neil Robertson, Mark Selby
131 Mark Selby, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
130 Shaun Murphy, Chris Wakelin

129 Mark Selby, Anthony McGill

128 Jackson Page, John Higgins

127 Neil Robertson, Mark Williams, Noppon Saengkham
126 Kyren Wilson, Ronnie O'Sullivan
125 Mark Williams, John Higgins
124 Anthony McGill
123 Ronnie O'Sullivan, John Higgins
122 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Ding Junhui, Jack Lisowski

121 Mark Williams (3), Hossein Vafaei, Ronnie O'Sullivan
120 Judd Trump, Ronnie O'Sullivan

119 Jack Lisowski, Mark Williams
117 Mark Williams, Ding Junhui, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson

116 Mark Williams, Ronnie O'Sullivan
114 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, Judd Trump

113 Judd Trump
112 Yan Bingtao, Noppon Saengkham
110 Mark Williams, Noppon Saengkham, Ding Junhui, Mark Allen, Judd Trump
109 Zhao Xintong, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Mark Allen, Neil Robertson (2), Luca Brecel, Judd Trump

108 Matthew Stevens
107 Mark Allen, Stephen Maguire, Judd Trump, Ronnie O'Sullivan

106 John Higgins, Yan Bingtao, Jack Lisowski, Anthony McGill, Mark Williams, Stuart Bingham
105 Judd Trump (3), John Higgins, Ronnie O'Sullivan
104 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Yan Bingtao, Stuart Bingham
103 Zhao Xintong, Lyu Haotian, Judd Trump, Kyren Wilson, Yan Bingtao, John Higgins
102 Jackson Page Stephen Maguire, Yan Bingtao (2)
101 Kyren Wilson, Yan Bingtao, Ronnie O'Sullivan
100 Yan Bingtao, Mark Williams, Ronnie O'Sullivan, John Higgins (2), Jack Lisowski, Judd Trump

Champion Trump triumphs in record-breaking Crucible final

WORLD SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL
CRUCIBLE THEATRE, SHEFFIELD

(5)

John Higgins

9-18

Judd Trump

(7)

1 4-4 1-66 (51), 45-72 (63), 139-0 (139), 0-105 (105), 70-8 (69), 74-0, 101-0 (101), 4-103 (103)
2 1-8 125-1 (125), 0-66, 4-139 (135), 45-67, 0-118 (114), 30-64, 28-95 (71), 20-70 (58), 19-85 (70)
3 4-4 113-0 (113), 60-35, 0-101 (101), 0-72 (71), 0-126 (126), 92-16 (67), 79-11 (70), 0-104 (104)
4 0-2 0-94 (94), 1-63 (62)

JUDD TRUMP won his maiden World Snooker title after beating four-time champion John Higgins in a record-breaking century-laden classic at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

Trump took only two frames and just over half-an-hour yesterday evening to seal victory after one of the most dominant performances ever seen at the famous old venue.

In fairness, in the early stages of the Final, it had not looked anywhere near as clear-cut as it eventually became.

The contest was a re-match of the 2011 Final which Higgins won 18-15 - and the first session on Sunday afternoon was pure quality from both players as they shared the eight frames and made two centuries each.

Trump settled better initially, taking the first two frames before Higgins fought back with a 139 break.

Bristolian Trump immediately bit back with a century of his own to lead 3-1 at the mid-session interval but then Higgins produced a run of three frames on the bounce to appear to turn the match in his favour at 4-3.

The seventh frame featured a fine contribution of 101 from the Scotsman - but, for the second time, Trump responded immediately with a century of his own to make it 4-4 after the first session.

It always looked likely, therefore, that the second session was going to be a key phase of the match - and Higgins seemed to take that message on board.

The Wizard from Wishaw produced some magic to knock in a 125 break and take his fourth frame out of five to lead 5-4.

Trump, however, again responded brilliantly. Having run out of position, the Ace came up with the pot of the tournament by rocketing in a red with a deep screw to set himself up for the 10th frame.

In the 11th frame, Trump compiled a 135 break, considered by some to be the best they had ever seen - and, suddenly, he had regained the lead at 6-5.

It was the early in the contest but it was also the decisive point of the match. For, from that point onwards, Trump played not only with the utmost confidence but also with consummate professionalism.

Barely offering even a sniff of a chance to Higgins with perhaps the tightest safety play he has ever produced, Trump was regularly in position to take advantage of any sort of slip-up by his opponent.

By the end of the second session, breaks of 114, 71, 58, and 70 from Trump had helped him win eight consecutive frames and establish a 12-5 overnight lead.

Heading into day two, it felt then as if Higgins's only chance was the fact that Trump had to sleep on his big lead and upon the prospect of becoming a world champion for the first time.

To suggest it started well in the third session for the Wizard would be quite an understatement as he quickly went about his business by potting 14 reds and 14 blacks in an audacious 147 bid.

Unfortunately for Higgins, the final red was glued to the side cushion.

But, amazingly, the chance was not over after the 43-year-old doubled the red into the corner and found himself in a good position on the black. Inevitably, he missed the colour off the spot and the chance had indeed gone.

Trump - to his credit - had not dropped away from his own extraordinary standard either - and, retaining a determined poker face throughout, the 29-year-old never looked like panicking.

Instead, Trump took the next the next three frames to extend his lead to an eight-frame advantage at 15-7 either side of the afternoon mid-session interval.

Further runs of 101 and 126 brought the century count up a total of 10 in a Crucible final, an amount which clearly beat the record of eight set by Stephen Hendry and Peter Ebdon in 2002, and Ronnie O'Sullivan and Barry Hawkins in 2013.

It also made it 99 tons for the tournament as a whole, far in excess of the previous record of 86, set in 2015 and 2016.

Seriously, this was unmissable high quality stuff from both players and breaks of 67 and 70 were enough to keep Higgins just about in with a shout of making an unlikely comeback.

But Trump snuffed out any chance of that by launching a maximum bid of his own in the final frame of the play in the afternoon.

Again, this was not just a minor chance of a 147 - in fact, for a while, it looked on - but, unfortunately for Trump, he broke down on 104 after 13 reds and 13 blacks.

Nevertheless, the 104 became a landmark moment at the Crucible in that it was the 100th century of the tournament - a remarkable ton of tons.

Far more importantly to Trump, though, was the fact that he had retained his overnight lead of seven frames by squaring the session, and so needed just two more for victory.

At this stage, Higgins perhaps was just happy to have actually forced the match into a fourth session - and he later graciously admitted considered himself as "the lucky one" in the arena as he had not had to pay for a ticket.

For sure, it would be fair to suggest Higgins still lived up to his granite reputation and fought tooth and nail throughout as he lost in the Crucible Final for a third year in a row.

And, following defeats to Mark Selby and Mark Williams in the last two years, one more Trump surge was too much to handle.

At 7.32pm last night, the Final was over. Trump had won 18-9 and so deservedly became the 21st man in modern era to become world snooker champion.

It was the biggest margin of victory since Higgins himself had beaten Shaun Murphy by the same scoreline in 2009.

Meanwhile, Trump also became just the 11th man to win the Triple Crown of the World Championship, UK Championship, and the Masters having won the latter this year in January.

It is this glorious performance more than any other which has really made those in the know forecast even more success for Trump in the coming years.

Seven-time champion Hendry - who dominated the sport in the 1990s - has suggested that the snooker world may have to get used to a new "era of dominance from one player".

Elsewhere, five-time winner O'Sullivan - who exited this year's tournament in a shock first round defeat to amateur James Cahill - said Trump's performance had taken the sport "to another level".

That comment is a far cry from the Rocket's stinging criticism of Trump's game in his 2014 autobiography Running.

Back then, O'Sullivan wrote: "Sometimes I think [Trump] lacks the killer instinct.

"He seems as if he's just happy to be there - he's got a bit of money, enjoys the lifestyle, wins a few matches and the odd tournament, but what he really should be doing is trying to write his way into the history books.

In fairness to O'Sullivan, though, that assessment was pretty reasonable at the time - and Trump is now the first to admit his game needed a lot of work after he burst onto the scene.

"The concentration that hasn’t been there in the past was there,” Trump said last night. “From a young age, people have been touting me as a future world champion and it’s nice to get that out of the way.”

Never again will Trump be asked if he is ever going to achieve his dream. Instead, it is now just a question of quite how much he can achieve.

For now, though, Trump deserves to bask in the glory of his status as a first-time world champion following his efforts of the past two weeks.

And, of course, there is also the not insignificant matter of £500,000 in prize money.

“Not yet,” Trump replied when asked if he had already decided what he was going to spend his winnings on. “But when it hits my bank account, I think I’ll go a bit wild.”

WORLD SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIPS 2019
THE FULL RESULTS

FIRST ROUND   Best of 19 frames

	(1)	Mark Williams	10-7	Martin Gould
	(16)	David Gilbert	10-7	Joe Perry
	(9)	Barry Hawkins	10-1	Li Hang
	(8)	Kyren Wilson	10-4	Scott Donaldson
	(5)	John Higgins	10-7	Mark Davis
	(12)	Stuart Bingham	10-9	Graeme Dott
	(13)	Shaun Murphy	10-0	Luo Honghao
	(4)	Neil Robertson	10-1	Michael Georgiou
	(3)	Mark Selby	10-7	Zhao Xintong
	(14)	Luca Brecel	9-10	Gary Wilson
	(11)	Jack Lisowski	6-10	Ali Carter
	(6)	Mark Allen	7-10	Zhou Yuelong
	(7)	Judd Trump	10-9	Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
	(10)	Ding Junhui	10-7	Anthony McGill
	(15)	Stephen Maguire	10-9	Tian Pengfei
	(2)	Ronnie O'Sullivan	8-10	James Cahill (a)

SECOND ROUND   Best of 25 frames

	(1)	Mark Williams	9-13	David Gilbert	(16)
	(9)	Barry Hawkins	11-13	Kyren Wilson	(8)
	(5)	John Higgins	13-11	Stuart Bingham	(12)
	(13)	Shaun Murphy	6-13	Neil Robertson	(4)
	(3)	Mark Selby	10-13	Gary Wilson
		Ali Carter	13-9	Zhou Yuelong
	(7)	Judd Trump	13-9	Ding Junhui	(10)
	(15)	Stephen Maguire	13-12	James Cahill (a)

QUARTER FINALS   Best of 25 frames

	(16)	David Gilbert	13-8	Kyren Wilson	(8)
	(5)	John Higgins	13-10	Neil Robertson	(4)
		Gary Wilson	13-9	Ali Carter
	(7)	Judd Trump	13-6	Stephen Maguire	(15)

SEMI FINALS   Best of 33 frames

	(16)	David Gilbert	16-17	John Higgins	(5)
		Gary Wilson	11-17	Judd Trump	(7)

CENTURY BREAKS 100
143 John Higgins
141 Judd Trump
140 Gary Wilson
139 David Gilbert, John Higgins (2)
138 Shaun Murphy, Kyren Wilson
137 Barry Hawkins
136 Joe Perry, Barry Hawkins
135 John Higgins, Ali Carter, Judd Trump
134 Ding Junhui, Gary Wilson (2)
132 John Higgins (2), Kyren Wilson
131 Luca Brecel, Stephen Maguire, Mark Selby (2), Mark Allen, Kyren Wilson, Judd Trump
130 Barry Hawkins, John Higgins
129 Mark Williams, Ding Junhui
128 Ali Carter
127 Neil Robertson
126 Judd Trump
125 Stephen Maguire, Kyren Wilson, David Gilbert, John Higgins
124 Jack Lisowski
123 Shaun Murphy, Judd Trump
122 Stephen Maguire
121 Stephen Maguire
120 Neil Robertson (2), Mark Selby
117 Gary Wilson
115 Gary Wilson
114 Graeme Dott, Neil Robertson, Judd Trump
113 David Gilbert, John Higgins
112 Shaun Murphy, Stuart Bingham
111 Kyren Wilson
110 Stephen Maguire
109 Shaun Murphy, David Gilbert, Gary Wilson
107 Stuart Bingham
106 Gary Wilson, Ding Junhui, Neil Robertson, Stuart Bingham, Zhou Yuelong, Judd Trump
105 Stephen Maguire, Mark Williams, Zhou Yuelong, Barry Hawkins, David Gilbert, Judd Trump
104 Tian Pengfei, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Kyren Wilson, Judd Trump
103 Stephen Maguire, Judd Trump (2)
102 Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby, David Gilbert, Ali Carter
101 Shaun Murphy, Zhou Yuelong, Jack Lisowski, Mark Williams, James Cahill, Judd Trump (2), John Higgins (2)
100 Neil Robertson, Tian Pengfei, John Higgins, Kyren Wilson, Gary Wilson, David Gilbert

Selby takes on the Crucible Curse

MARK SELBY will become the latest man to take on the Crucible Curse when he begins the defence of his first snooker world title today against Kurt Maflin.

The Curse, which has affected even the greats like six-time winner Steve Davis and seven-time champion Stephen Hendry, has ensured no first-time winner has successfully defended their crown.

Joe Johnson in 1987 and Ken Doherty in 1998 have come closest to this achievement, reaching the Final before losing to Davis and John Higgins respectively.

But the fact that only Davis, Hendry and, more recently, Ronnie O'Sullivan have won any sort of back-to-back titles at the Sheffield venue shows just how difficult it is.

Indeed, it would be a surprise if Selby was to break the mould. It is not that the Jester from Leicester has turned into a bad player - but his status as the defending champion will always lend itself to a bit of extra pressure.

And that is not always something he has dealt with, as he has admitted himself.

Still, it would be a massive shock if Selby lost in the first round to World Championship debutant Maflin who - though born in Lewisham - lives in Oslo and represents Norway following naturalisation.

Instead, Selby's biggest threat in the top quarter of the draw would appear to come from fellow-Englishman Shaun Murphy.

The 2005 world champion cued beautifully to win his first Masters title at the Alexandra Palace in January, eventually thrashing Neil Robertson 10-2 in the Final.

Murphy also seems to have an altogether much more relaxed outlook on life after a rollercoaster start to his career.

For, when the Magician won his world title 10 years ago, he was aged just 22 - becoming the second-youngest champion after Hendry.

He was also only the third qualifier ever to win and had been 150/1 with the bookmakers at the start of the tournament.

The success did not last - and was even considered in some quarters to be a complete flash-in-the-pan until the 2008-09 season brought him a UK Championship title and another Crucible final appearance.

Still, though, the lack of a second world title drove him to the verge of quitting, something he openly admits in a revealing interview on the BBC Sport website.

"There were a few dark years when I wasn't practising enough, was doing too many golf days and charity events," said Murphy.

"Then when I started putting the hard work in, banging balls in all day long, day after day, I still wasn't getting anything for it.

"Losing 6-1 to Mark Selby in the semi-finals of the Masters last year was almost the final nail in the coffin. I could have easily walked away from snooker there and then."

But, without much of a fall-back plan, Murphy persisted - and victory in the Masters meant he completed snooker's prestigious Triple Crown.

Another run of form like that over the next 17 days and the Harlow-born 32-year-old will be a massive threat - he is my tip to emerge from the top quarter.

The second quarter is dominated by the presence of Australian Robertson - the only former world champion of the section.

By his standards, the Aussie has not had a particularly great season with the Wuxi Classic - played last June - his only ranking title of the campaign.

He also seems to have got into the nasty habit of giving his opponent the initiative early on in his matches.

In the Final of the Masters, he was blown away by Murphy before he even had a chance of getting into the game.

Similarly, the Thunder from Down Under found himself 5-0 down to Graeme Dott in the fourth round of the UK Championships in York before a stunning comeback to 5-5 ultimately failed.

At least, in this respect, the marathon format at the World Championships favours Robertson - and he also has a good record against his likely second-round opponent Ali Carter.

A place in the semi finals is the least Robertson would expect of himself - but, on current form, it would be difficult to see him going past this stage.

Quarter three is headed nominally by world number three Ding Junhui - but, with only one quarter final and one semi final in eight previous Crucible appearances, the Chinese has little World Championship pedigree.

Instead, Higgins leads the way in the section with four world titles - though his overall reputation is little recovered from the infamous News of the World sting operation.

Judd Trump, then, is the talent who most people will be keeping their eye on for a run deep into the tournament - and, as the last player to start his campaign on Wednesday night, the 2011 runner-up will be itching to get under way.

In the bottom quarter, Welsh friends Mark Williams and Matthew Stevens have been paired in what promises to be an entertaining repeat of the dramatic 2000 World Championship Final, won 18-16 by Williams.

The section, though, is dominated by five-time champion O'Sullivan who, like Trump, is another relatively late starter this year.

O'Sullivan is also inevitably the bookmakers' favourite - but, following his defeat in the Final last year, the Rocket seems to have arrived in Sheffield to less of a fanfare than usual.

His absence from the China Open last month for unspecified "health reasons" suggests his mind may not be as firmly on the game as it could be.

And, in a recent interview with the Guardian, he was typically enigmatic about his future, both in the short-term and the long.

Now aged 39, O'Sullivan knows there might not be many more chances for him to catch Davis and Hendry.

Nevertheless, with his standing in the game already assured in his own right, this is undoubtedly something for the writers and pundits to obsess about, rather than O'Sullivan himself. 

World Snooker final: 'Torturer' Selby completes Triple Crown

2014 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL 

Ronnie O'Sullivan (1) 14-18 Mark Selby (3)

Session One (5-3): 77-0 (69), 64-26, 102-0 (102), 28-69, 47-68, 80-8 (63), 36-72, 66-54
Session Two (5-4): 99-24, 70-47 (52), 67-27 (63), 25-82 (55), 45-96, 131-0 (131), 87-0 (87), 9-84 (58), 9-78 (62)
Session Three (1-5): 35-81 (55), 23-77 (52), 7-84 (74), 29-89, 76-38 (50), 67-70
Session Four (3-6): 100-0 (100), 24-67, 39-64, 12-90 (56), 79-0, 0-131 (127), 14-87 (87), 56-62

MARK SELBY dedicated his first World Championship victory to his late father after he beat defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan 18-14 at the Crucible Theatre on Monday. 

The Jester from Leicester became only the ninth player in snooker history to complete a career Triple Crown of the World, UK and Masters titles. 

And he did so thanks to one of the best comebacks in years, having been 8-3 and 10-5 down during the course of the two-day finale. 

Certainly, Selby - now also back at world number one - must be credited for taking the tough route to his first world title. 

After all, he had only just qualified for the final having got the better of the in-form Neil Robertson in a 12-hour marathon. 

By contrast, O'Sullivan had earned the day off on Saturday by beating his semi final opponent Barry Hawkins 17-7 with a session to spare. 

It was the second match in a row that O'Sullivan had won prematurely after he had beaten Shaun Murphy 13-3 in the quarter finals, thus repeating the feat which he had achieved on his way to the title in 2004. 

Indeed, O'Sullivan's more straightforward build-up to the Final seemed to have given him an advantage as he went 3-0 up with his 11th century of the tournament. 

But Selby hung in and reduced his arrears to 3-2 either side of the mid-session interval before the more fluent O'Sullivan compiled a run of 63 to move two clear again. 

The final two frames of the first session were shared - and so, resuming at 5-3, O'Sullivan was again able to open a gap on his opponent in the evening by taking the opening three frames to move five clear at 8-3. 

He then responded to Selby taking two in a row by keeping him off the table for the next two frames as he restored his five-frame lead at 10-5 with runs of 131 and 87. 

At that stage, it was looking pretty ominous for the 30-year-old challenger but Selby again came up with the goods unexpectedly as breaks of 58 and 62 reduced his overnight deficit to 10-7.

On the back of a good night's rest, the 2007 runner-up came into the second day looking more refreshed - and promptly made the more assured start. 

Runs of 55, 52 and 74 brought him level with O'Sullivan before he then won a scrappy 21st to take the lead for the first time. 

O'Sullivan stopped the rot by taking the first frame after the mid-session interval following a series of poor shots by both players on the yellow and green. 

But none of those misses could compare to O'Sullivan's unbelievable error on pink which effectively lost him a 50-minute long frame 23. 

It had been an afternoon of sheer drama at the Crucible with Selby, nicknamed the Torturer by O'Sullivan, in his element as the players were called off two frames short of their allocated eight. 

O'Sullivan badly needed a good start to the evening session - and he got one as he levelled with a ton in seven minutes.
 
The speed of his break in that frame was to prove deceiving, though, as the next three frames were ground out by Selby who went in at the final mid-session 15-13 up. 

Again, O'Sullivan responded as a 49 break brought him back to within a single frame. 

But Selby had long since sensed his chance and loosened up to play some of his best snooker of the whole tournament, hitting a break of 127 in frame 30 and an 87 in frame 31.

That still left him with one to go - but, while O'Sullivan looked as if he might receive a stay of execution by going 56-0 up in frame 32, it ultimately wasn't enough.

With the balls spread in awkward positions, it seemed to be a tough ask for Selby. However, he gradually reduced his deficit as he reached the colours, knowing he would need them all.

At this point, Selby must have been shaking inside but he showed few nerves as he sunk those final few balls, his calmness under pressure in demonstration to the very last pot.

Finally, a broad smile emerged on the Jester's face as he held the silver trophy aloft. Yes, all the hard work had paid off, and now was the time to enjoy it.

At the same time, though, O'Sullivan was far from miserable. This was his first defeat in six appearances in the Crucible final - and, if the reverse had come earlier in his career, it would have no doubt been swiftly followed by a threat to quit the game.

Instead, O'Sullivan acknowledged he had still had a good tournament and reflected calmly on the excellent matchplay of his opponent.

To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, O'Sullivan - with the help of his psychologist Dr Steve Peters - has now seemingly learned to treat those two imposters, Triumph and Disaster, just the same.

And, oddly enough, the five-time champion came much closer to a real Disaster on his way back to Essex from the final as he was involved in a road accident on the M1 in wet conditions.

Thankfully, he and his six-year-old son Little Ronnie were unhurt, if a little "shaken", something which can hopefully just be put behind them in the coming days.

In the meantime, in these coming days, it might finally start to sink in for Selby exactly what he has achieved...

At last, a world champion and thus a more credible world number one than he has ever been before. Bravo, Mr Selby.

 
FULL TOURNAMENT RESULTS

FIRST ROUND
Best of 19 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	10-4	Robin Hull
	Joe Perry (16)	10-7	Jamie Burnett
	Shaun Murphy (9)	10-9	Jamie Cope
	Marco Fu (8)	10-7	Martin Gould
	Barry Hawkins (5)	10-4	David Gilbert
	Ricky Walden (12)	10-7	Kyren Wilson
	Mark Davis (13)	5-10	Dominic Dale
	Ding Junhui (4)	9-10	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	10-9	Michael White
	Ali Carter (14)	10-8	Xiao Guodong
	John Higgins (11)	7-10	Alan McManus
	Stuart Bingham (6)	5-10	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	10-8	Tom Ford
	Stephen Maguire (10)	9-10	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	10-4	Michael Holt
	Neil Robertson (2)	10-2	Robbie Williams

SECOND ROUND
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-11	Joe Perry (16)
	Shaun Murphy (9)	13-8	Marco Fu (8)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-11	Ricky Walden (12)
	Dominic Dale	13-4	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	13-9	Ali Carter (14)
	Alan McManus	13-8	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	13-7	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	7-13	Neil Robertson (2)

QUARTER FINALS
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-3	Shaun Murphy (9)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-12	Dominic Dale
	Mark Selby (3)	13-5	Alan McManus
	Judd Trump (7)	11-13	Neil Robertson (2)

SEMI FINALS
Best of 33 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	17-7	Barry Hawkins (5)
	Mark Selby (3)	17-15	Neil Robertson (2)

CENTURY BREAKS (58)
140 Neil Robertson
137 Ricky Walden, Neil Robertson
136 Ding Junhui, Marco Fu, Ronnie O'Sullivan
135 Michael Wasley
134 Stephen Maguire, Barry Hawkins
133 Mark Selby
131 Ronnie O'Sullivan
132 Neil Robertson
130 Ryan Day, Neil Robertson
127 Mark Selby
124 Ronnie O'Sullivan (x2), Marco Fu
118 Ronnie O'Sullivan
117 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump
116 Marco Fu
115 Barry Hawkins
113 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
112 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Ronnie O'Sullivan
111 Jamie Burnett, John Higgins
110 Ali Carter, Mark Selby
109 Ricky Walden, Marco Fu, Mark Selby
108 Michael Wasley, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
107 Alan McManus, Ryan Day, Judd Trump
106 Dominic Dale, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Barry Hawkins
104 Barry Hawkins, Mark Selby
103 Michael Wasley, Neil Robertson, Ronnie O'Sullivan
102 Robin Hull, Neil Robertson, Ali Carter, Shaun Murphy, Ronnie O'Sullivan
101 Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson
100 Neil Robertson, Ronnie O'Sullivan

CENTURY MAKERS
13 Ronnie O'Sullivan
10 Neil Robertson
5 Mark Selby
4 Barry Hawkins, Marco Fu
3 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Michael Wasley
2 Judd Trump, Ali Carter, Ryan Day
1 Dominic Dale, Alan McManus, Jamie Burnett, Ding Junhui, John Higgins, Robin Hull, Stephen Maguire

World Snooker: Champion O'Sullivan tames his chimp - and so have I

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN returned to Sheffield this week with a chance of joining Steve Davis and Ray Reardon on six world titles by winning a third successive crown at the Crucible.

Often associated with being an underachiever in his younger days, victory at the end of the 17-day marathon would give O'Sullivan's talent a more deserved standing in the snooker record books.

After all, only Stephen Hendry - who won seven world titles between 1990 and 1999 - would then have more in the modern era.

O'Sullivan, seeded number one as defending champ, began his campaign by beating Finnish qualifier Robin Hull 10-4 on the first day of competition to set up a meeting with Joe Perry in the last 16.

Looking further ahead again, O'Sullivan could play Shaun Murphy or Marco Fu in the quarter finals, but, of course, nothing is for certain in Sheffield where some big names have already dropped out.

Debutant Michael Wasley has caused the biggest stir so far, beating world number two Ding Junhui in a final frame decider.

Ding had been tipped to do well after winning five ranking events this season, the first player to achieve this feat since Hendry in 1990/91.

But his record at the Crucible remains disappointing with only one semi final and one quarter final appearance from his eight attempts.

Four-time champion John Higgins also went out at the first time of asking to compatriot Alan McManus - who, at 43, set up a golden oldie last 16 tie with 44-year-old Dubliner Ken Doherty.

Doherty, champion in 1997, rolled back the years, winning each of the last seven frames of his match to beat number six seed Stuart Bingham 10-5.

Meanwhile, Stephen Maguire was another seed who failed to make it through as, like Ding, he also lost in a final frame in which Welshman Ryan Day was the winner.

By contrast, seeds Mark Selby and Shaun Murphy survived their last frame shootouts against Michael White and Jamie Cope, respectively.

And so, at this early stage, O'Sullivan's odds with all the major bookmakers have actually shortened further so that he is already odds-on to retain his title again. 

Undoubtedly, O'Sullivan will pay no heed to that - but it is often said, with some justification, that his biggest opponent is himself.

Indeed, this is something which he acknowledges in his second autobiography, Running, a title intentionally chosen as it demonstrates how athletics has become his new addiction.

Always a keen runner in his youth, O'Sullivan explains how his regular runs have replaced his previous addictions to drink and drugs, and how they have helped him cope with his troubles away from the table.

These have been numerous - most notably, though, O'Sullivan refers to his breakdown following his father's murder conviction and the painful break-up with the mother of his children.

The latter even forced O'Sullivan into a self-imposed exile immediately after his 2012 triumph - "I couldn't balance work, family and the custody battle, and work had to give".

Incredibly, when he returned after his year out, he won at the Crucible again - but he remains a troubled genius with a genuine love-hate relationship for his sport.

Matters are improving, though - and, while much of this is to do with O'Sullivan's running, it can also be attributed to his work with Dr Steve Peters which began in 2011.

O'Sullivan describes how his psychiatrist has got him on a much more even keel during his matches and tournaments - and, indeed, in life generally - with theories from his book, The Chimp Paradox.

I have not read The Chimp Paradox myself (yet!) but I understand exactly what O'Sullivan means when he explains about the brain having a rational section to it - the human - and emotional, but often highly irrational, section to it - the chimp.

Both are required to make us who we are - the emotional, irrational side can do damaging things but, without it, we would be automatons.

The key to success is to harness them both so that you can more easily accept who you are as a person.

Nevertheless, for sufferers of low self-esteem, like O'Sullivan and myself, this can be really difficult with the chimp regularly chirping ideas of self-doubt.

But, just as O'Sullivan has worked with his therapist to challenge the negative beliefs about himself, I am able more easily to do this myself - or at least find a way of coping with bouts of anxiety and the uncomfortable physical sensations which come with it.

I still get a tight chest and a lump in the throat when I am feeling anxious about something, and I still get this quite regularly for pretty irrational reasons.

However, I have much more ability to prevent this from spiralling into outright panic as it used to.

After all, I know that it is only a surge of adrenaline - and it will pass. And that, once it passes, I am almost always absolutely fine - whether I am at work or with friends or anything, really.

There is still work to be done - in terms of challenging underlying beliefs about myself so that I am more confident, look after myself better, and worry about things less generally.

I am much better than this time last year, though, when I was in a very dark place having given up this blog and been signed off work for two months with - as the doctor's note put it - "emotional exhaustion and extreme anxiety".

O'Sullivan dedicates a chapter in his book to his own various heroes - and it is fair to say that he is a snooker hero of mine.

I love watching him play and especially when he is in full flow like he was in the Masters this year, beating Ricky Walden 6-0 in one match inside an hour's playing time.

I could also watch the sheer perfection of his record fastest maximum break over and over again - and I obviously hope he can produce something like that and win again this week.

Whatever happens, though, I just hope he continues taming his chimp - and I can keep mine in check too! 


FIRST ROUND
Best of 19 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	10-4	Robin Hull
	Joe Perry (16)	10-7	Jamie Burnett
	Shaun Murphy (9)	10-9	Jamie Cope
	Marco Fu (8)	10-7	Martin Gould
	Barry Hawkins (5)	10-4	David Gilbert
	Ricky Walden (12)	10-7	Kyren Wilson
	Mark Davis (13)	5-10	Dominic Dale
	Ding Junhui (4)	9-10	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	10-9	Michael White
	Ali Carter (14)	10-8	Xiao Guodong
	John Higgins (11)	7-10	Alan McManus
	Stuart Bingham (6)	5-10	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	10-8	Tom Ford
	Stephen Maguire (10)	9-10	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	10-4	Michael Holt
	Neil Robertson (2)	10-2	Robbie Williams

SECOND ROUND
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-11	Joe Perry (16)
	Shaun Murphy (9)	13-8	Marco Fu (8)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-11	Ricky Walden (12)
	Dominic Dale	13-4	Michael Wasley
	Mark Selby (3)	13-9	Ali Carter (14)
	Alan McManus	13-8	Ken Doherty
	Judd Trump (7)	13-7	Ryan Day
	Mark Allen (15)	7-13	Neil Robertson (2)

QUARTER FINALS
Best of 25 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	13-3	Shaun Murphy (9)
	Barry Hawkins (5)	13-12	Dominic Dale
	Mark Selby (3)	13-5	Alan McManus
	Judd Trump (7)	11-13	Neil Robertson (2)

SEMI FINALS
Best of 33 frames

	Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)	17-7	Barry Hawkins (5)
	Mark Selby (3)	17-15	Neil Robertson (2)

CENTURY BREAKS (56)
140 Neil Robertson
137 Ricky Walden, Neil Robertson
136 Ding Junhui, Marco Fu, Ronnie O'Sullivan
135 Michael Wasley
134 Stephen Maguire, Barry Hawkins
133 Mark Selby
131 Ronnie O'Sullivan
132 Neil Robertson
130 Ryan Day, Neil Robertson
124 Ronnie O'Sullivan (x2), Marco Fu
118 Ronnie O'Sullivan
117 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump
116 Marco Fu
115 Barry Hawkins
113 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
112 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Ronnie O'Sullivan
111 Jamie Burnett, John Higgins
110 Ali Carter, Mark Selby
109 Ricky Walden, Marco Fu, Mark Selby
108 Michael Wasley, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Neil Robertson
107 Alan McManus, Ryan Day, Judd Trump
106 Dominic Dale, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Barry Hawkins
104 Barry Hawkins, Mark Selby
103 Michael Wasley, Neil Robertson, Ronnie O'Sullivan
102 Robin Hull, Neil Robertson, Ali Carter, Shaun Murphy, Ronnie O'Sullivan
101 Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson
100 Neil Robertson

CENTURY MAKERS
12 Ronnie O'Sullivan
10 Neil Robertson
4 Barry Hawkins, Marco Fu, Mark Selby
3 Shaun Murphy, Ricky Walden, Michael Wasley
2 Judd Trump, Ali Carter, Ryan Day
1 Dominic Dale, Alan McManus, Jamie Burnett, Ding Junhui, John Higgins, Robin Hull, Stephen Maguire

World Snooker preview: Teenager Brecel makes his breakthrough

Quarter 1:  
John Higgins (1) v Liang Wenbo
Stuart Bingham (16) v Stephen Hendry
Graeme Dott (9) v Joe Perry
Stephen Maguire (8) v Luca Brecel

LUCA BRECEL will become the youngest ever player to make his Crucible debut when he faces Scot Stephen Maguire in the first round on Sunday.

The 17-year-old from Dilsen-Stokkem in Belgium qualified for the main draw after battling through four rounds of preliminaries against Ian McCulloch, Barry Pinches, Michael Holt and Mark King.

And, having beaten King 10-8 in the fourth qualifying round, Brecel will break the record of Stephen Hendry from 1986 in being the youngest player at snooker's blue ribbon event in Sheffield.

Hendry, himself, had been subject to the qualifiers for the first time since 1988 after he dropped out of the top 16.

Nevertheless, the seven-time champion came through unscathed against China's Yu Delu, winning 10-6 in the final round, and he will now play the lowest seed, Stuart Bingham.

Brecel and Hendry are actually in the same quarter of the draw, and this quarter also features three-time and defending champion John Higgins.

The Wizard from Wishaw has had a quiet year in ranking tournaments but he should still have too much for the inconsistent Chinese player Liang Wenbo.

Liang blows hot and cold even within the course of a match sometimes - and this was no better exemplified than by his performance in the final qualifying round when he gave away an 8-2 lead against Marcus Campbell, only to win a deciding frame.

Hendry is now also too inconsistent to be a real threat for the title in the way that he was in the 1990s but he will fancy his chances against Bingham, and in doing so setting up a second round tie against Higgins.

Indeed, the whole top quarter is dominated by men from north of the border with another former world champion, Graeme Dott, seeded against Joe Perry as well as the aforementioned Maguire-Brecel match-up.

Dott seems to revel in the atmosphere at the Crucible, as the longer matches seem to give him more time to settle into his rhythm. As such, the 2006 champion will be strong favourite against Perry.

Similarly, Maguire should come through against Brecel for, as long as he remains cool in the competitive early tussles, experience usually wins out in the end.

Predictions: Higgins, Hendry, Dott and Maguire to make it an all-Scottish affair in the last 16 in this quarter.

Quarter 2:
Shaun Murphy (5) v Jamie Jones
Stephen Lee (12) v Andrew Higginson
Ali Carter (13) v Mark Davis
Judd Trump (4) v Dominic Dale

WHILE the top quarter is dominated by the Scottish, England fields four seeds in the second group of eight, including an outstanding talent in Judd Trump.

Trump had a brilliant year in 2011 - he won his first ranking tournament in China a month before knocking out reigning world champion Neil Robertson on his way to contesting the Crucible final himself, narrowly losing 18-15 to John Higgins.

The Bristolian did not really need to prove his success was a fluke but, for good measure in December last year, he won the UK Championship at York, beating Mark Allen 10-8 in the final.

And so, even at just 22, Trump has enough big game experience to make light work of Welsh veteran Dominic Dale who he also beat in the first round in York.

Another player enjoying some great form is 12th seed Stephen Lee, although it is fair to say that the 37-year-old from Trowbridge has had to wait a little longer than Trump for his purple-patch.

Only once a semi-finalist at the Crucible, in 2003, Lee has had a resurgence in early part of 2012.

In February, he reached the final of the World Open in China and, in the very next tournament, won the finals of the Players Tour Championship for his first ranking title in six years.

Lee seems to be enjoying his snooker and it would therefore be a major surprise if he failed to get past Andrew Higginson, for whom this is only a second Crucible appearance.

24-year-old Jamie Jones has not even had that much experience and, along with Brecel, makes his debut this year in the World Championships proper.

Neath man Jones caught the eye with a stunning 10-2 win over Ricky Walden in the final round of the qualifiers but he now faces fifth seed Shaun Murphy in a tough baptism of fire.

The Welshman will be hoping to take advantage of the fact that this has been a hugely frustrating season for the 2005 champ - though that Murphy is still without a ranking title this season is not through the want of trying.

The 29-year-old from Harlow has reached three semi-finals and three quarter finals without success, and he also lost in the final of the Masters to Neil Robertson.

Nevertheless, once again, it seems likely that this tie will come down to experience, and Murphy will have too much of that for Jones.

The remaining tie in this quarter looks to be the tightest of the four. Aged 39, Mark Davis is not about to storm up the ranking but he has improved in the latter stages of his career, reaching the second round of the World Championships for the first time in 2010.

His opponent Ali Carter has good pedigree at the Crucible, having reached the final in 2008 and the semi finals two years.

But the man nicknamed the Captain cast major doubts on his continuation in the sport, announcing on Twitter after his defeat in the UK Championships: "I'm going to retire at the end of the season! And I can't wait!"

In 2003, Carter was diagnosed with the auto immune disease, Crohn's, an inflammatory bowel disorder which also causes fatigue - it is hardly ideal for this 17-day snooker marathon.

And, although Carter later stated his Twitter comments had been made "in the heat of the moment", he has recently dropped out of the top 16 and gives an impression that he is no longer enjoying his snooker. Davis must sense his chance.

Predictions: The all-English quartet of Murphy, Lee, Davis, and Trump to prevail.

Quarter 3:
Mark Williams (3) v Liu Chuang
Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) v Peter Ebdon
Martin Gould (11) v David Gilbert
Neil Robertson (6) v Ken Doherty

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN received perhaps his biggest nightmare when the draw for the Crucible was made earlier this week after it was announced he would face Peter Ebdon yet again.

To say that O'Sullivan-Ebdon is a clash of styles rather understates the matter but there is more than one way to play this game and Ebdon successfully gets right under O'Sullivan's skin.

After beating the Rocket in the quarter finals in 2005, Ebdon said: "People can say what they like but I don't care. When I'm trying my hardest I seem to go slow. I don't do it intentionally."

Nevertheless, O'Sullivan will be favourite to level up their Crucible head-to-head record at 2-2 when they meet on Monday and Tuesday.

Get past Ebdon and O'Sullivan will fancy his chances of going deep into the tournament.

For, while it still seems unlikely that the Rocket will carry off a fourth world title - and the opener against Ebdon will be hard graft - O'Sullivan usually enjoys playing against his potential second round opponent Mark Williams.

Indeed, O'Sullivan leads his head-to-head against Williams 23-7 and has won his last 12 matches against the Welshman.

Meanwhile, Williams has hardly endeared himself to the Sheffield crowd after stating he "hates" the Crucible Theatre, adding that he would "rather play at Pontin's" and hopes the tournament moves to China.

There is little chance of that happening anytime soon with the current contract at the Crucible running until 2014 - but what a strange thing for the twice world champion to say!

Perhaps it was Williams's way of motivating himself ahead of his opener against one of the four Chinese players in the draw, Liu Chuang. It is likely, though, that the Welshman's talent will be enough, anyway.

Another possible last 16 tie is Neil Robertson v Martin Gould. This fixture should immediately recall the famous match-up from just two years ago when the Aussie recovered from 6-0, 11-5 and 12-10 down to win 13-12 on his way to becoming world champion.

In order for that second round match to be repeated, Robertson must first beat Irish veteran Ken Doherty - after the 1997 champion qualified by beating Nottingham potter Anthony Hamilton in a decider - while Gould must overcome fellow Englishman David Gilbert. Both Robertson and Gould should make it through.

Predictions: The four seeds - Williams, O'Sullivan, Robertson and Gould - to get through from this section.

Quarter 4:
Ding Junhui (7) v Ryan Day
Mark Allen (10) v Cao Yupeng
Matthew Stevens (15) v Marco Fu
Mark Selby (2) v Barry Hawkins
 
WORLD number one Mark Selby and China's great hope Ding Junhui both sum up this section of the draw perfectly for, despite their undoubted talent, neither has won a world title. In fact, none of the eight men listed above has.

Selby has at least achieved number one status out of his commendable consistency in ranking tournaments.

But, with 'only' the 2008 Welsh Open and this season's Shanghai Masters in the trophy cabinet, it is about time that the Jester from Leicester really stepped up on the big stage.

In this world championship, that means starting well against Barry Hawkins who, last year, finally broke his Crucible duck... at the sixth attempt.

That victory came against an out-of-sorts Stephen Maguire but this is a tougher draw for Hawkins, and Selby's matchplay should prove too much.

Hawkins is far from the only player to struggle at the Crucible. Indeed, until last year, Ding had a pretty poor record in the World Championships, having failed to get past the last 16 in four attempts.

In 2011, though, the Chinese cueman added a bit of steel to his game and made the semi finals before losing 17-15 from being 15-14 up against Trump.

That defeat was a bit of a shock for Ding but he is in decent enough form to go on another run this time, having beaten Selby in this season's Welsh Open final for his fifth ranking title.

Mark Allen won his first ranking title this year, beating Stephen Lee 10-1 in the final of the World Open in Haikou, China, despite having earlier bemoaned the event and even the host nation.

What his Chinese opponent, Cao Yupeng, made of Allen's comments about China is anybody's guess but it may add some spice to this first round encounter.

Actually, for 21-year-old Cao, the whole tournament will be a hell of an experience as he is a third Crucible debutant along with Brecel and Jones, having come through four rounds of qualifying.

Cao beat Kurt Maflin 10-2, Dave Harold 10-9, Nigel Bond 10-7 and Tom Ford in another decider just to get to this stage. But, while the qualifiers show Cao is not short of fight, it seems likely that Allen will still have too much for him.

Last but not least, Matthew Stevens takes on Marcu Fu in an intriguing tie - intriguing because, though Stevens is the seeded player at no15, Fu is the player with the slightly better recent record in Sheffield.

Welshman Stevens has reached just one quarter final - and failed to qualify twice - in six years since he lost the 2005 final to Shaun Murphy.

Fu may not have hit the heights either, having appeared in just one semi final in 2006, but he has at least made it to the World Championships proper for the last eight years.

Hong Kong's Fu can be a dangerous player on his day and 34-year-old Stevens will have to be on his guard.

Predictions: Fu can cause a shock but the other seeds - Ding, Allen and Selby - should make it through.

FIRST ROUND RESULTS
Best of 19 frames  

John Higgins (1) beat Liang Wenbo 10-9
Stephen Hendry beat Stuart Bingham (16) 10-4
Joe Perry beat Graeme Dott (9) 10-1
Stephen Maguire (8) beat Luca Brecel 10-5

Jamie Jones beat Shaun Murphy (5) 10-8
Andrew Higginson beat Stephen Lee (12) 10-6
Ali Carter (13) beat Mark Davis 10-2
Judd Trump (4) beat Dominic Dale 10-7

Mark Williams (3) beat Liu Chuang 10-6
Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) beat Peter Ebdon 10-4
David Gilbert beat Martin Gould (11) 10-8
Neil Robertson (6) beat Ken Doherty 10-4

Ryan Day beat Ding Junhui (7) 10-9
Cao Yupeng beat Mark Allen (10) 10-6
Matthew Stevens (15) beat Marco Fu 10-3
Barry Hawkins beat Mark Selby (2) 10-3

SECOND ROUND RESULTS
Best of 25 frames

Stephen Hendry beat John Higgins (1) 13-4
Stephen Maguire (8) beat Joe Perry 13-7

Jamie Jones beat Andrew Higginson 13-10
Ali Carter (13) beat Judd Trump (4) 13-12

Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) beat Mark Williams (3) 13-6
Neil Robertson (6) beat David Gilbert 13-9

Ryan Day beat Cao Yupeng 13-7
Matthew Stevens (15) beat Barry Hawkins 13-11


QUARTER FINAL RESULTS
Best of 25 frames
Stephen Maguire (8) beat Stephen Hendry 13-2
Ali Carter (13) beat Jamie Jones 13-11
Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) beat Neil Robertson (6) 13-10
Matthew Stevens (15) beat Ryan Day 13-5

SEMI FINAL RESULTS 
Best of 33 frames
Ali Carter (13) beat Stephen Maguire 17-12
Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) beat Matthew Stevens (15) 17-10


FINAL
Best of 35 frames
Ronnie O'Sullivan (14) beat Ali Carter (13) 18-11
Session 1 (5-3): 77-37 (57), 121-1 (117), 0-85 (84), 25-57, 86-42 (52), 2-55, 108-0 (92), 141-0 (141)
Session 2 (5-3): 8-84 (56), 73-21, 69-14 (68), 30-62, 73-8, 60-13, 1-83 (59), 74-34 (62)
Session 3 (4-4): 3-52, 101-0, 73-12, 62-48, 81-41 (54), 9-59, 27-105 (105), 2-62 (53)
Session 4 (4-1): 129-4 (64, 55), 90-0 (70), 17-78 (64), 76-0, 82-0 (61)

CENTURY BREAKS 
147 Stephen Hendry
142 Stephen Maguire
141 Ronnie O'Sullivan
138 Jamie Jones
136 Martin Gould, Jamie Jones
135 Jamie Jones
134 Jamie Jones, Ali Carter
133 John Higgins
132 Ali Carter, Jamie Jones
131 Neil Robertson
130 Ronnie O'Sullivan
128 Ronnie O'Sullivan
127 Jamie Jones
125 Cao Yupeng, Stephen Maguire
124 John Higgins  
123 Stephen Hendry, Matthew Stevens 
122 Matthew Stevens
121 David Gilbert
120 Judd Trump
119 Ryan Day
118 Ali Carter
117 Stephen Maguire, Ronnie O'Sullivan
116 Luca Brecel, Matthew Stevens
115 Joe Perry
114 Judd Trump
113 Cao Yupeng, Ryan Day, Ali Carter, Ronnie O'Sullivan
112 Ryan Day, Ali Carter
111 Andrew Higginson, Mark Williams
110 Stephen Lee, Ryan Day, Ronnie O'Sullivan
109 Martin Gould, Neil Robertson
108 Neil Robertson, Cao Yupeng
107 Ronnie O'Sullivan
106 Neil Robertson
105 Ali Carter
104 Ken Doherty, Ronnie O'Sullivan
103 Ronnie O'Sullivan, Joe Perry
102 Shaun Murphy, Stephen Lee
101 Stephen Maguire (x3), Shaun Murphy, Mark Allen, Ali Carter, Matthew Stevens, Jamie Jones, Ronnie O'Sullivan
100 Stephen Hendry, Neil Robertson (x2), Ding Junhui, Ryan Day, Ronnie O'Sullivan (x2)