‘He can do anything’ – Ronnie O’Sullivan could win record eighth world snooker title despite cue rage, says Shaun Murphy
SHAUN MURPHY reckons it would be unwise to write off Ronnie O’Sullivan in his attempt to win a record eighth world snooker title.
The Rocket, 49, is in the field for the Crucible despite pulling out of five events this year on medical grounds and smashing up his cue in anger.
He has now revealed he will play and faces his arch nemesis on Tuesday.
Murphy, 42, has played O’Sullivan three times at the World Snooker Championship and lost all three encounters, once in the quarter-finals and twice in the last 16.
As somebody who also works for BBC TV, Murphy knows all about the electricity and X Factor the seven-time world champion brings to the sport.
The Magician, now a leading motivational speaker with the Champions Speakers Agency, exclusively told SunSport: “With Ronnie in the field, it just brings a certain sense of excitement to tournaments that is not there whenever he doesn’t play.
“Whenever he’s in town, you know it just changes the dynamic slightly. For the rest of us riding off the back of that, we play in a much more exciting event.
“There’s no getting around that. There’s no question of that.
This is Ronnie we are talking about. If it’s on a snooker table, he can do anything
Shaun Murphy
“Ronnie, the last time he played, smashed his cue up. That’s a massive thing for a snooker player. Snooker cues are like an extension of our arms.
“It’s not like a golf club where you can just buy another one off the rack and it will be the same.
“When you’re such a perfectionist, a high-demanding performer like Ronnie, nothing but the best will do.”
Murphy continued: “There’s no question that any event with Ronnie O’Sullivan in it is better for it. Better for having him in it.
“Could he do a repeat of what he did a few years ago, where he didn’t play in any tournaments and then he rocked up and won the World Championship?
“This is Ronnie we are talking about. If it’s on a snooker table, he can do anything.”
Murphy famously won the world title 20 years ago on his third attempt, aged just 22, lifting the title despite coming through the qualifying phase, as he beat Matthew Stevens 18-16 in the final.
He was the third qualifier in history to become champion of the world – no qualifier has won it since – and only the legendary Stephen Hendry (21 in 1990) has been younger when lifting the sport’s biggest prize.
Only 13 men in 98 years have been a snooker world champion on multiple occasions but that is what is driving Murphy forward.
Given how he played at the Masters in January – he hit a 147 in the semi-final win over Mark Allen – he will go to Sheffield brimming full of confidence.
Murphy said: “To win the World Championship for a second time has always been one of my goals.
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“I have always said that I consider multiple world champions in a different bracket to one-time world champions like myself.
“To do it 20 years after my first would be bigger than my first win and it would be the biggest moment of my career.
“The standard is so good these days that it sits way better than it was 20 years ago down the rankings.
“I have seen that debate all the time about are the top four today better than the top four of 20-30 years ago. Who knows?
“But the standard further down the rankings is by far better today than it ever was.
“I think every year that passes we get a bit more likely to see a qualifier winning the World Championship.
“We have been close a couple of times. Si Jiahui nearly won it a couple of years ago. Ding Junhui got to the final as a qualifier. It’s probably more likely now than it ever has been.”
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins